Zero off setting/ survey

[ToddL]

The hardest part of understanding ZO settings is to remember that the skier's input is the primary value that affects everything else. All of the settings feel/drive exactly the same down the lake when there is no skier on the handle.

[ToddL]

Paraphrasing Will Bush's presentation in an attempt to summarize and understand - here it goes!

 

Numbers dictate the INTENSITY of the throttle Response (How Much to apply)

1: Less Intensity, less amount applied. Takes longer to get back to speed.

3: More Intensity, more amount applied. Takes shorter to get back to speed.

+: Even more intense

 

So in order: 1, 2, 3, 1+, 2+, 3+ (note that 1+ is more intense than 3)

ToddL adds: when intensity and pull level are mismatched, then the boat recovery is impacted.

If a heavy pull skier is on 1, then the skier may pull the boat down more than the throttle can easily recover.

This would cause the throttle to say on the skier longer after the skier's pull ends to that the speed loss can be recovered fully.

 

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Letters affect reaction timing of both pull response and throttle release response.

 

 

Letters - Pull Response - WHEN throttle reacts

Dictate how quickly to apply throttle based upon when the boat feels you.

A: Waits the longest after feeling the skier's pull

C: Starts the sooner after feeling the skier's pull

+: Even more quickly

 

So in order Slowest to Fastest: A, B, C, A+, B+, C+ (note that A+ is Faster than C)

ToddL adds: the slower the response, the more time the skier has to pull the boat's speed down.

 

 

Letters - Release Throttle Response (where it gets backwards)

Dictate how long the extra throttle continues to be enraged after the skier's pull has ended.

C: Keeps the throttle on the longest after the skier's pull ends

A: Released the sooner after the skier's pull ends

+: Even more quickly

 

So in order Slowest to Fastest: C, B, A, C+, B+, A+ (note that C+ is Faster than A)

ToddL adds: the release response is opposite the pull response. Throttle on fast is paired with throttle off slowly.

 

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ToddL - putting it all together - maybe?

 

A1 = upon feeling the skier's pull, longest delay to apply the least amount of throttle, but after the skier's pull ends, should come off the throttle as soon as possible once speed is recovered.

C3 = upon feeling the skier's pull, shorter delay to apply the most amount of throttle, but after the skier's pull ends, should come off the throttle slowest until speed is recovered.

 

+ makes both the pull response and the release faster.

 

Again, ZO is always waiting for skier response/input and uses the above to correct any reduction in speed due to skier input.

 

If a heavy pull skier is using A1, then the skier is likely to be able to pull the boat down the most before the throttle starts to react (A). Even though the A letter release time is fast, it may still have to stay on the skier longer to recover lost speed due to the low intensity of the number 1 setting.

 

I would think that if the skier wants the boat to "be there" when it is time to hook up out of the buoy, then that skier is looking for a C or one of the "+" settings.

Further, if that skier wants the boat to be strong once throttle is triggered, then that skier probably wants a 3 or "+" setting.

If that skier wants the boat to recover quickly and get off the throttle earlier "into the next buoy," then that skier probably wants a "+" setting.

 

Another example:

C1+ = quicker on & off throttle than C, but with least amount of intensity of any "+" setting (still more intense than C3, but off throttle sooner).

 

[Horton]

@ToddL No stop. Bad info. You are confusing everyone and please do not try to paraphrase Will.

 

Think about it this way.

 

A, B & C are the delay before power is added. Simple as that.

 

The danger of A is the boat will be running on you after you have switched edges and need to catch the boat.

The danger of C is the boat will give you too much before you have finished your turn and are back in position.

B is right in between.

 

1, 2, & 3 are the contour of the throttle responses. This is the part you guys are making way too confusing. Below is an massive oversimplification but is practically all you need to know.

 

1 means the throttle comes on slower and tapers off faster

2 means the throttle comes on faster and tapers off faster

3 means the throttle comes on Faster and tapers off slower

 

If you are not running 35 or shorter I would discourage anyone from messing with ZO setting very much.

[ToddL]

@Horton - I respectfully disagree. Please review the presentation again or the exact quotes included below. My paraphrasing above (indicated by bold is nearly verbatim.

 

To summarize it similar to your post:

• Letters = both When on and slope/speed of the "off" ( part of the Contour )
• Numbers = how much (and how long) when "On" (the other part of the Contour)

 

Quoting the presentation:

Page 18 - on Letters: "Release... The letter tells the engine how quickly to reduce power to get back to the SET speed."

 

Page 20 - on Letters & Release: "The HIGHER the letter, the LONGER it will take for the engine to reduce throttle." This to me means throttle contour.

 

Page 22 on Numbers: "Numbers dictate the INTENSITY of the throttle / engine response to your pull. In other words, HOW MUCH throttle to apply."

 

Page 24 - the Letters - this page continues with describing the "asymmetric" load/release of letters A & C vs. B's symmetry.

 

Note: You attributed this exact concept to the numbers in your post above.

 

Specifically, C3 is the fastest to taper off of them all and not slower to release than any of the 2's or 1's. Reference Page 30. If this chart included the "+", it would show C3+ with even a faster release taper.

 

I understand your perspective... Will notes back on Page 22 that "with a lower number the feel of the INTENSITY of the throttle will be less, with a longer duration"; higher number resulting in more intense feeling with a shorter duration.

 

Hopefully, that is pretty clear that if the boat has to make up a fixed amount of lost speed due to skier pull, and the two options are a high intensity throttle or a low intensity throttle, then the duration of that speed recovery will be shorter for the high intensity and longer for the low intensity.

 

Still, the text on pages 18/22/24 clearly describe the contouring of the trigger timing and the speed or abruptness of release. It is the speed of the release rate which impacts that part of the contour.

 

 

[bishop8950]

What Will Bush said. Fortunately I ski with him plenty and have talked to him about it for years. That spares me from reading the "debates" in this thread :-)

[Horton]

@bishop8950 does Will ever answer the question you are asking

[brettmainer]

A panda pox upon you all.

 

This spring for fun, I asked the driver to randomly set the ZO to one of the 9 settings until I tried all 9, 2 passes each. I ran one -32 and one -35 with each. Told driver and observer what I liked better (optometrist style, better like this or like that). Ended up back with the same C2 I've used for years.

[ToddL]

@Horton and I are all good, BTW. To his point, too much info can make things harder to comprehend.

[brettmainer]

Which is why you should do a blind taste test and go with whatever feels the best.

[Chef23]

General question would setting preferences change as the rope gets shorter?

[h2onhk]

@Chef23 , I was thinking the same thing.

[ToddL]

If the skier wants to, yes.

[Roger]

As a tournament driver, I've had a few skiers change the setting when they arrive at their hardest pass.

[eleeski]

At 28 and 32 off I struggle with slack. C3 helps with that. At 35 and the few times I've been to 38 in practice, getting out to the buoy is more of an issue and A1 seemed to help that. I was never reliable enough getting to those passes to do it in a tournament or even consistent enough in practice to make a switch in letter at 35 my normal routine. But I absolutely could see that a change in the way the boat pulls as the rope changes could help.

 

Of course if I had skills that could take advantage of the letter differences I probably wouldn't have problems at those passes anyhow. All ZO settings give consistent pulls and good times that we should be able to adapt to.

 

Eric