Baller Orlando76 Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 Myself and a few others are soon to be dads. How have y'all placed your baby's in the boat while chasing buoys? Lots of different views on this. My plan but not tested yet is to line the bottom and sides of spare car seat with foam pool noodles to give buoyancy if something were to happen. Then wedge baby seat between pylon and front seats but not strapped in all while being protected by the awful looking bimin. What have been your experiences? Any pics? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Fine409 Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 @Orlando76 - my wife and I are currently expecting as well (baby is due today actually!) I've got this thread bookmarked for some ideas... http://www.ballofspray.com/forum#/discussion/comment/106175 Looking forward to skiing next year with him/her riding shotgun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Monkstr6100 Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 My wife always just held/wore both of our daughters. We do bring the car seat if we are going on the lake to spend the day but NEVER have had them strapped into it. I assume it would be an anchor. and if you plan to keep them in a vest the entire time make sure to spend the money on a GOOD vest that will be comfortable for them. If the baby is not happy, NOBODY on that boat will be happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Texas6 Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 We just stuck that big bucket in the observers seat and headed down the lake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Orlando76 Posted October 10, 2015 Author Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 @dtm8119 not knowing the gender yet? Awesome! Same here. One thing I was planning to do is start the baby very very early in a vest daily while at the house. As an infant, maybe keeping baby in one of those carrier things that mom/dad wear will be easiest/safest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller 6balls Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 We mounted a seat belt from a junk yard (caddilac of course)that held the car seat facing forward, child in seat not strapped in but wearing vest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller SkiJay Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 Strictly NO handle popping allowed! This little baby girl is now a fully-grown, in your face, two-year-old. Yesterday, her mom told her that they were going out to vote. When the two-year-old realized that mom had said "vote" and not "boat," she broke into tears! I love this kid! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Wayne Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 We used a baby carrier for a long time. If you have a walk through open bow ski boat the carrier sits pretty good between the drivers seat and spotter seat facing forward. We used the ski pylon to support the back of the carrier so it wa kind of trapped on 3 sides. It worked better then sitting sideways on the spotter seat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller GOODESkier Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 Depending on how many you have in the boat...... my wife and I drove for each other with no other help, so that left kids having to be "on their own" for 16.95 seconds...... We wedged a car carrier in between the spotters seat, engine compartment, and pylon. Worked for both my kids. Then I put "seat straps" in our spotters seat so that they could be held in place when they out grew the car carrier. Just so they weren't up on their own in the boat as we were skiing. They could wiggle out, but this atleast kept them put from sliding all over the seat and boat. Now at ages of 4 and 6, they just come to ski with us like normal skiers. Not sure I would bother with the extra flotation in the car carrier. Truth of the matter is, at that infant age stage, that won't be the saving grace anyways. Something bad happens where you can't aid in their speedy rescue, and I don't think even the PFD will be good for anything other than a recovery. I hate to say it, but that is the reality I believe for infants in a boat. It was a risk we were willing to take and did what we felt was the safest possible things for our kids. Pictures below are one of the mirror reflection showing my daughter in the car carrier while I get my son (age 2) skiing on the shark trainer off the swim step. Next of my son driving with me. Makes me reminisce about the progression in such a short period of time. Now at age 6 he runs 21 MPH like nothing! LOVE having them in the boat with us! Wouldn't have it any other way! He is turning into my coach! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Bill22 Posted October 10, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 10, 2015 @Wayne guess this is a good reason to sell my Lx and find a Lxi (with Zbox). Gotta have room for the baby! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Orlando76 Posted October 11, 2015 Author Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 @Bill22 Ha, that's how I got into my "modern" '93 Ski Nautique. Sold my wife on more room, more storage, and a Bimini. All the things we need for the baby and we couldn't get on my '76 Ski Nautique. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller GOODESkier Posted October 11, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 @Orlando76 @Bill22 That was our new boat story as well.......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Supporting Member Than_Bogan Posted October 11, 2015 Supporting Member Share Posted October 11, 2015 We added a seatbelt (technically illegal in a boat!?) and strapped in the infant seat base, facing forward so as to protect against any handle chaos. As an even further protection we left the seat handle up to block some bizarre hypothetical rope wrap (that of course never actually happened). (Note: Both of these are exactly opposite to the in-car protocol of facing backward with handle down.) Of course we also used a shock tube at all times. There is no life vest in this scenario. We concluded the chances of the boat sinking without us aboard to get the kid out was similar to being struck by a meteor. And having the kid unable to move is a HUGE increase in safety. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller GOODESkier Posted October 11, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 All of these stories certainly incriminate us as "Bad Parents" in the eyes of the law. I hear CPS calling now............ But as @Than_Bogan said, the statistical chances of the meteor hitting you. We always had the infant PFD with us, but THOSE THINGS SUCK! No happy children are ever in those things! I have a never before worn infant PFD hanging on the wall, and my guess is you may also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller 6balls Posted October 11, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 Slalom course skiing is also very controlled, in a very controlled environment, in a very stable type of boat. No only not likely to sink (especially quickly), just as unlikely to flip and if driving for buoy skiers unlikely to create sudden forces that fling someone or something out of the boat. Our boats can do high g-force things...but who does that when buoy skiing particularly with a child in a boat? Pretty safe boating environment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greg Lukin Posted October 11, 2015 Share Posted October 11, 2015 (coming from a dad to new dads) I love the enthusiasm of dads to be - you think nothing will change that much - LOL it does!! try and figure out how you can skip out for a few hours rather then taking bub!! Ok I'm actually impressed here with the ideas but it does take a lot more preparation... then wait till they want to crawl!! Fatherhood rocks!! enjoy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller GOODESkier Posted October 11, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 @Greg Lukin nothing changed in our boating world. If anything we skied more with kids than we did before. Bring em with ya! Let em have fun and start skiing them with you as early as possible! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ Bruce_Butterfield Posted October 11, 2015 Baller_ Share Posted October 11, 2015 Great topic. There is a huge correlation among skiers kids that become skiers and those that don't - the kids that ski were in the boat from a young age and see the boat as "normal/home". The kids that are left on the shore or watching tv/ video games rarely develop any interest in skiing. So absolutely keep them in the boat as much as possible when you are on the water. We used a car seat, with the baby strapped in on the floor in whatever position it fit. I tied a buoy to the seat in the remote event of the boat flipping and car seat getting tossed out. In reality those odds are infitesmial but it's the thought that counts! Once they get to where they can sit up (~1 yr) I used the belt from an old ski vest to make a kid sized seat belt to keep them from sliding around. My daughter was in the boat with me skiing when she was 10 days old. My son was later at 3 weeks. Enjoy. Those times are priceless. If it was easy, they would call it Wakeboarding Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller liquid d Posted October 11, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 You get one of those wind up rockers and place in on the shoreline at about 3 ball or 4 ball, you know depending on your direction, and if you wind it up all the way you can get 2 skiers pulled and be back just as it's running out of juice. WARNING! Do not ask wife if it's ok to do this! It's so much better to ask for forgiveness than permission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ Bruce_Butterfield Posted October 11, 2015 Baller_ Share Posted October 11, 2015 I rest my case. How do I give a panda? If it was easy, they would call it Wakeboarding Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Orlando76 Posted October 11, 2015 Author Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 why do I get the feeing @liquid d is not joking? I ski in basically a swamp, the shoreline (if there really is one) is the most dangerous location Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Orlando76 Posted October 11, 2015 Author Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 I feel like a horrible idiot parent for even asking this but vest or no vest as an early infant? I agree with Than that in reality the baby is just as safe without it in the slalom course scenario BUT I ski on non crowded public water, local bacon nazi's would hang me from a yard arm having a kid with no vest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ MISkier Posted October 11, 2015 Baller_ Share Posted October 11, 2015 One approach I saw to protect the baby from the handle was to put the bimini up and then get some bungee netting attached to the lateral support poles under the bimini canvas. Then, the netting dropped down and was fastened to the gunnel netting and/or the base of the pylon. This really provided a catch mechanism kind of like the old MasterCraft Safe-T-Top. The worst slalom equipment I own is between my ears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ MISkier Posted October 11, 2015 Baller_ Share Posted October 11, 2015 Also, when our kids were old enough to sit upright, we ran a strap (typically an old life jacket strap with buckle and adjuster) through their back straps of their vests and into the observer seat back. We wrapped this "tether" around the lift support arm for the observer seat back. We then closed the seat back and cinched the tether to tighten them closer to the seat back. This allowed them to sit somewhat naturally with no car seat and still be restrained. The worst slalom equipment I own is between my ears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller keithh2oskier Posted October 11, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 @MISkier thanks for the idea. We are running into the same issue for our 2 year old who has a hard time sitting on the seat still without launching off. I was thinking of a seat belt. She loves buckles... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller oldjeep Posted October 11, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 We worked from shore when the kids were babies so that someone could hold them, kids were rarely in the boat until they were old enough to talk enough to tell us what their problem was and never when skiing. Never found a jacket that was comfortable for the kid even if someone was holding them, and definitely nothing you could set them in a car seat with. My kids are grown, but Still don't allow anyone under 10 - the law here to be in boat with no jacket, and if you can't swim you had better be wearing one too. Opinions will vary, but the idea of tethering a child to the boat seems like a really bad idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller GOODESkier Posted October 11, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 11, 2015 @oldjeep better safe then sorry...... but under your scenario most families wouldn't ski or be in a boat together for years. Both my kids were skiing on their own beside the boat (boom) and transitioning to behind the boat before they could talk much at all (Shark Trainers ROCK!) WA Law is any boat over 19 feet requires a PFD be present in the boat, but not required to be worn. My 196 passes the test for the law. Skiing in my course on our river, or on our swamp I am not so worried with the somewhat controlled environments. Out on a public lake in high winds and waves, YOU BET THAT PFD IS ON! Common sense is the key here. For most of us, having an additional person to take our son/daughter every time we want out in the boat is unrealistic as much as we ski and in the non-club scenarios we ski at. PLUS, I still say, getting your family involved early ensures that the sport stays alive for you. My kids come to almost 100% of my tournaments, ski in about 70% of the tournaments we attend (increasing as they ski better and better), and are in the boat 99% of the time we ski. I am not a handle/rope launcher, but we do try and use a shock tube. Common sense...... I would never let my kid on a bike, motorcycle, snowmobile, skate board, etc... without a helmet. Other parents seem OK without. I was OK with the risk associated with kids in the boat. To each their own. My kids survived and my wife and I got to ski as normal and my kids are both skiing and having fun on the water at the ages of 4 and 6! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Skoot1123 Posted October 12, 2015 Baller Share Posted October 12, 2015 The oldest started in the car seat. Wedged in place. Took a set or two to get used to it 5 years ago - but it works like a charm now!! Congrats to all you guys (and gals)!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ Bruce_Butterfield Posted October 12, 2015 Baller_ Share Posted October 12, 2015 Here's the "seat belt" from an old ski vest And what they turn into in just a few short years If it was easy, they would call it Wakeboarding Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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