32 and 35 off clues

[Patmaster]

It's been discussed, but could you ballers just repeat what the major clues for 32 and 35off are? My 28's are perfect, but 32 comes only at a rate of 50% and 35 rarely beyond No. 2...

[SkiJay]

No doubt your 28s are excellent @patmaster‌, but if your 28s were "perfect," your 32s would be consistently good too. You'll find that as you get better at the following tips for 32 and 35, that 28 will get even more perfect. And visa versa. Running better and better 28s will help your 32 and 35 more than doing a lot of mid-course deep water starts with shorter ropes.

[kdeupser]

@patmaster, I'm with you. I can run 28 on my death bed now, but 32 still kick's me in the tail. And my PB is 2@35 as well. From what I can tell, is I'm always coached that I ski 32 to aggressively. What ever that means? I'm slowly getting some clues that I do find myself over turning and going flat through the wakes. And my edge changes end up suffering.

 

For me, I believe it comes down to lack of water time. I've had enough coaching(too much probably). I can run 32 when I'm calm and in practice. Tournaments, well the 4 ball monster seem's to rear his ugly head. So now it's just time behind the boat.

 

Good luck

[markchilcutt]

@‌patmaster Slow the boat down and run your harder passes. Slowely increase the speed until you start running 32 and 35 at full speed. This is advice Rossi has given me for years and it seems to work for me. By slowing the boat and running the pass i build confidence instead of frustration by only getting 2 @ 35 over and over again. Rossi puts it like this 35 and 38 are like a new race track? Does a race car driver go as fast as he can on a new track or does he work his way into his fastest possible lap? 32 is no problem these days! 35 still seems like a new sport! Just my 2 cents! Just remember to have fun, laugh and smile a lot!!

[ski6jones]

Not sure if this applies to you, but I had much more success learning both 32 and 35 once I realized not to up my intensity through the gates as I shortened the rope. Start your turn in wide (no even wider) and get the ski pointed in the right direction before the boat gets on you, then hold that through the wakes. The shorter the rope the more the boat can do for you so long as the ski is pointed well cross coarse.

[Patmaster]

Thanks guys! @SkiJay, you are so right! Will slow the boat down @markchilcutt‌ ! Still, I heard a lot about equaling the speed of the boat at the pullout, starting earlier as the rope gets shorter and so on. Last one I heard was "if you pulled like a man, you would have made it!". What a sport!

[Wish]

To add to the above. The visual is different at 35. You have to be ok with not back siding the ball visually like you do with your 28 if you're wide and early. Your gonna feel later as in " I should be turning already" and most will then try to quickly " do " something to correct it. That just makes it worse. Cant be afraid to really reach at that apex as well.

[rfa]

I wish i could still add my name to the @patmaster and @kdeupser camp...up to about 3 years ago i was in the same boat...very good 28s, 50% 32s, PB 2@35...last couple of years not so good 28s, maybe 5% 32s...well, if i ever get back to good 28s i will follow the advice on learning 32/35

[Than_Bogan]

@kdeupsur If you're getting vague non-actionable advice like "be less aggressive," then while you may have had a lot of coaching, you are still lacking enough good coaching.

 

Posting video here can be very helpful (if a bit painful), and also check out the various threads about who the best coaches are -- and pay attention to the specifics because a coach has to match your learning style, too. There is one super-famous and highly respected coach who never makes an ounce of sense to me! And even your level matters. For example, I'm a decent coach for 26/-15 through 34/-38 (for some learning styles) but before and after that my helpfulness declines to zero (or maybe negative!).

 

-32 is conceptually a lot like -28, but you have to do more behind the boat -- which both means not to load up too soon out of the ball and to leverage effeciently when between the wakes to take as much advantage as possible of the shorter but harder pull zone.

 

That pattern repeats at every new line length, but -35 also begins to feel "fundamentally" different, and I think @ski6jones and @Wish hit on some of the key points. My personal biggest key at -35 (and -38) is to make sure I stay connected on the rideout (i.e. second wake to nearing the buoy) -- handle low and tight to my body even though I'm not leveraging anymore, and ski away from the handle only when I absolutely must in order to go around the buoy.

[Marco]

Well put @‌Than_Bogan

 

In addition to what has been mentioned above, maintaining a more consistent speed throughout the course becomes more important as the line shortens. Pull out with enough intensity where you have enough speed on your turn in to create really good angle without creating a lot of load. Then ride the handle out to the buoy as Than suggests, and don't try to kill it at the turn. That will just kill your speed. Take your time through the turn generating more angle as you ski your hips back around to the handle.

 

If you are able to even out your speed through the course, you will also even out your load, and decrease the intensity of the acceleration and deceleration that comes with big swings in speed. We have all experienced the impact of hard acceleration/load (getting pulled out of your stack), and of hard deceleration at the buoy (burying your tip, breaking at the waist, or going OTF).

 

Balanced intensity and speed is your friend as the line shortens.

[Waternut]

There are two things that I battle that make the difference for me. Some days I've got it and some days I don't. I have a sneaky suspicion that they are both related but I don't know for sure.

 

First... 22 and 28 off for me can still be run with fairly poor technique although 28 is usually a bit more scrappy if my technique is bad. My biggest issue is loading the line too early and I can't hold my edge through the second wake. If I can remember to slowly lean in for the gates and really start pulling at the wakes, then I can hold my angle. If not, I'll let up and I start getting further and further down course.

 

Second... At 22 and 28 off, I don't really have to reach and I start getting it in my head that my body should be skiing around the buoy and not just my ski. For me, it makes me feel vulnerable to reach out but when my confidence is high enough and I do reach out, the only thing that feels difference between 28 and 35 is the acceleration through the wakes and how late I am able to hook up.

[Patmaster]

Many thanks guys! That is so much of valuable food for thought...tournament coming up, let's see if some of the tips will work!

[bishop8950]

@wish and @Than_Bogan‌ already touched on my favorite web coaching: Most skiers I see working on 32/35 are trying to turn too soon. They crank a turn as soon as they get to the apex or the ball. But as the line gets shorter we have to ski farther back behind the boat before we want the rope to tighten. If we get it all on the backside of the ball we will get pulled up behind the boat and ski right at the next ball. Instead of 1) ski out to the apex and 2) load the rope, try 1) ski to the apex 2) round the buoy and sneak in behind the boat and then 3) let the rope load into your acceleration. It's like adding a little phase to your skiing that you didn't know you needed.

 

@Marco and others also mention that gate and that is huge as well. Don't worry about the rest of the pass until your start is good enough to get out of one ball in good shape.

[Patmaster]

@bishop8950‌ - yes cranking the turn too early is what ends most of my 32 and 35 passes. If I don't do it at No. 2, that it happens at latest at No. 4. That said, what exactly do you mean by "load the rope try"?

[mwetskier]

@patmaster -his point will be clear if you imagine a comma after the word rope and before the word try.

[Dusty]

My ski partners suggest that at -35 and shorter, if your eyes can look down the 1-3-5 or the 2-4-6 buoy lines at the turn, you already missed it. Commitment to the turn gets crucial. YMMV...

[Skoot1123]

Was realizing this past weekend what @bishop8950 was saying. My crack at -32 this past Saturday was really good - until I overturned 3 ball. I was early to 1, 2, and 3 but for some reason thought I needed to crank a turn at 3 ball. In the drink was the result. It made me realize this: YOU HAVE TIME TO MAKE THE TURN AND GET BACK TO YOUR LEVERAGE POSITION!!! So often we think that we have to RUSH - well, we need to RACE, but not rush! K.C. Wilson was coaching me this two years ago - I didn't understand the significance of it until this past weekend. Great stuff. Keep the tips coming!

[Jordan]

As the line gets shorter...this becomes more important.

 

 

 

 

[Patmaster]

Great stuff guys, great stuff! Many thanks.