Looking for some criticism...

[Waternut]

Finally got some video the other day. I'll apologize for the zoom and shaky camera. The internal mount actually came out of the camera that day. We've been struggling with our Perfect Pass and ended up hand driving all day but the speeds were supposed to be 30, 32, and 34 though I'm thinking they were probably slow.

 

Here are a couple passes from the first set. I know the first gate was complete crap.

 

Here is one of the passes on the second set.

[ForrestGump]

I heard @sethski tell someone yesterday that they were steering the ski from the tail instead of getting up over the ski and moving in with it. It's the same thing I'm seeing from you here. Starting with the gate glide. You have front leg straight, back leg bent, with the ski out in front. You're centered over the rear binding or even behind it a bit. Straighten the back leg a touch or flex the front ankle and move the knee forward a touch and get up and over the center of the ski. Look at these two videos:

 

 

Compare where Seth is standing over his ski and compare it to yours. Seth had the skier yesterday do the 2nd drill a couple of times and it was amazing to see the difference once he got up over the front binding and started moving with the ski instead of steering it ahead of them. He recommended for a few weeks that they start every set with a pass of these drills.

[Waternut]

Thanks! I guess I'm going to have to work the muscles and muscle memory up to that. Tried it on open water at slower speeds and was only semi-successful. But at least I know what to work on now.

 

I'll try to remember adding some extra weight on the passenger side next time it's just the two of us.

[Joeprunc]

It looked like your 30 mph was one of the more difficult passes in your videos. I got this advice a week ago while doing a set at 30 mph. Ski your buoys at 30 mph wide, way wide. Ski as aggressive as you do at 34 mph. Instead of just skiing to the buoy and waiting to turn around it. Ski beyond the buoy and make your turn so you almost hit the back side of the buoy. You have an additional 23 feet of line to make it around the buoys, exercise that additional length.

 

I've heard this comment a few times before but for some reason this time it clicked, the next six passes at 30 mph were the easiest I've ever skied (and it was my first time out of the year). Before this I would loose my rhythm when I was early, and wait to turn around the buoy, screw up a turn because I had been sitting and waiting to pass the buoy, then play catch up the last 4 buoys.

[GAJ0004]

You are keeping a good smooth rythm, but you need to work on getting earlier and wider. With the way you are skiing at present if you shorten the rope, or increase the boat speed you will not be early enough to run the passes. Coming into the entrance gate you need to start out wider at the 2,4,6 buoy line for your cut through the entrance gate. When you cut through the gate the strongest pull should be behind the boat. The object is to almost clip the backside of the right entrance gate ball with the top of your ski. You need to get as much angle as you can at the entrance gate to set yourself up wide and early for ball 1. At this stage will will always be progressively later and later for each ball, so you always need to set yourself up as early as possible at ball 1. When you are at 15off try to get 10 feet outside the buoy line before you get to the ball. You will know if you are doing it right when you finish rounding the ball at the end of the turn. You will almost be to the point where you are changing to your pulling edge as you begin to cross the wake. Once you get that rythm established you will be able to run your later passes more smooth. As the rope gets shorter or the boat gets faster you will not necessarily be able to get outside the buoy line 10 feet, but you will have the rythm at the lower speeds you will have more time in the course.

[ToddL]

All this get wider at easier passes talk is really valid. When you are passing the turn buoys on your way back inward toward the first wake, then you are ready for the next pass (faster speed or shorter rope). If you are passing the turn buoys at the apex of the turn or as you are still headed outbound, then you are not ready to speed up the boat or shorten the rope.

[ral]

Complementing @ToddL, wider is especially important at long line (18.25/15off), as skiing narrow at that length implies that you are getting pulled by the boat at the buoy before the ski turns, because of the angle of the rope and thus position of the boat when the skier is at the buoy.