I AM not cool - as my use of the word "cool" possibly indicates.

Despite this, I once seemed to quite enjoy bobbing about in the sea with a surfboard attempting to catch waves or even - ta dah! - stand upright. In regard to this last matter I had very limited success.

This half-forgotten friendship with the waves, however, must explain why I grab an opportunity to visit Scotland's first cable wakeboarding park, Foxlake. There is, after all, no other rational explanation. For anyone unfamiliar, I should explain that cable wakeboarding is a bit like water-skiing except that one's legs are booted to a snowboard-like platform and you are towed by a remotely operated cable, instead of a boat.

Given I have never tried snowboarding, there is no reason to think I will be any better at this sport than any other. Furthermore, since having multiple children, my exercise regime has been reduced to school-runs and playing chase. I am lucky to find my wetsuit still fits.

On the morning I head to Foxlake, which opened in East Lothian in 2012, the forecast is gloomy. Emma Lonie, a teenager from across the road and Gemma Armstrong, her friend, who are joining me for the experience, seem every bit as nervous as I am and I wonder why on earth I am putting the three of us through this.

But as we park at Foxlake Adventures, off the A199 near Dunbar, and walk down towards the trees, my mood lifts a little. The water is an inviting bluey-green, the result of a treatment used to prevent the growth of algae, and there is almost a foreign-holiday buzz about the place. People across the age spectrum are hanging out, watching the action on the water while lounging in wetsuits on waterproof cushions, or sitting at the picnic tables with coffee bought from the little cafe which is serving a steady stream of customers through a hatch.

Foxlake doesn't just run a wakeboarding park, it has "FoxFall" - an aerial ropes course over water. Unlike any other ropes course challenge in the UK, participants are not strapped into a harness - the water below serves instead like a giant safety mat.

But more of this later. Gav, our young instructor, wants someone to get into the water and I have to man up. There is an on-land briefing first, which leaves me largely confused, though I hang on to a couple of messages: try to stand up on the board slowly and if you fall in you can help turn yourself back into the right position using the rope.

With some help, I then lower myself into the lake (it isn't that easy with a laminated board clamped to the bottom of both legs) and wait with my bum submerged and my knees bent, holding the handle of the tow rope. Gav uses some kind of remote control and I watch the slack in the tow-rope reduce. When the tip of the wakeboard starts emerging from the white water, I start to rise and, would you believe it, I'm standing. I'm riding the water. Sure, I am probably in what my husband later tells me is a classic first-timer's position: arms thrown in front, bottom stuck out behind. But it feels fantastic. When I do splash in, Gav has encouraging words and tips to improve the journey back to the bank. I have an amazing time. I'm not doing tricks, but before my 15 minutes are over I would like to think my position improves somewhat. Emma and Gemma both have a go and do brilliantly. They later say it was the best part of the day.

As guests of Foxlake, we get treated to ringo rides, where you tear up and down the lake lying on giant inflatables, which is also fun. Then we hit the FoxFall ropes course. This, it turns out, is the bit I should have been worried about. It takes some mind over matter to balance on the different obstacles which are dangling in mid-air, but the zip wire down into the water is great. (It's a good idea to bring spare trainers as your footwear will get wet at this point even if you don't fall off.)

I don't quite make it across the last obstacle, my arm strength failing at the final hurdle, but the sun is out (despite the forecast) and the water is warm. My abdominals hurt for days afterwards, yet I find I am already planning my next wakeboarding session. Most days I work just around the corner. The standard charge of £25 for 15 minutes on the cable might sound steep, but it's more fun than the gym and I could squeeze it into my lunch break.

Foxlake Adventures - Scotland's first cable wakeboard park - is on the A199 near Dunbar. A range of packages are available and confident swimmers aged six upwards can participate. Other activities on site include ReBoot Disk Golf (frisbee golf) and FoxFall ropes course. Call 01620 860 657 or 07436 271 601 or visit http://www.foxlake.co.uk for more information.