If you have a USAWS Rankings list score into 35off or greater what kind of boat do you use?

[Horton]

If you have a USAWS Rankings list score at 35 off or greater what kind of boat do you use?

 

I am not asking for EVERYONE because as scores get higher the speed control becomes more critical. For you guys with scores below 35 please do not take offence. Just looking for data.

[Texas6]

2015 MC Prostar with ZO primarily. I ski PP sometimes but I've noticed it's much harder for me to get consistent on my starts with speeds sometimes still settling out with PP. if a tourney is coming, I'll stick with ZO only for the week or two prior just to stay consistent

[eleeski]

As a mm tricker ( @Horton that should be pretty equivalent) I really try to use ZO. It is that much better a pull.

 

My normal training boat is an obsolete 2011 MC - good for everything (including slalom). I work hard to get rides behind other current hulls. Two years ago, I chose Centurion or MC. Last year I chose Malibu. This year it's CC. Not having a current boat to train behind is difficult. I have to put in a lot of effort to get familiar.

 

A lot like what a tournament serious slalom skier would do.

 

Eric

[RazorRoss3]

Ski deep 35 and into 38 and at 55K, practice almost exclusively with ZO.

[RazorRoss3]

@eleeski, that must be really challenging not having a current hull for trick. I know that even at my tricking level an unfamiliar wake can pose a challenge.

[JWebSki]

I train mostly with no speed control. Just hand driving. Tournament best of 3 @ -35 36mph

[schafer]

98 nautique with stargazer. Not a usaws score but iwwf score and most tourneys I ski are in Canada. I want a ZO boat very soon though.

[Hockdog]

Train with ZO behind a 2011 Nautique, typically ski behind a CP at tournaments...

[ozski]

Converted 2005 6.0 196 Nautique with ZO with regular sets behind a 200 6.0 just to keep me honest. Hard to split these two for performance....

[bkreis]

been with ZO since 2012...love it!!! and really like the new 5.3 and 6.2 engines in combination with ZO!

[skidawg]

ZO only, really must have the same contr you are gonna have at tournaments

[MattP]

I can count the times on 2 hands I have ever skied behind PP.

[Chef23]

I have been hurt the past two years but when I was healthy my average was 4@35 and I train almost exclusively behind PP.

[Razorskier1]

@RazorRoss3 - you mean you ski at 58k.

[Razorskier1]

Agree with @OB1 -- both drivers and skiers appreciate speed control that doesn't require an artist to get the entry speed or course speed correct.

[6balls]

Been hurt and other factors have me out of tourney scene (ie ski broke wiping me out for 3 weeks one day before 6 round weekend locally...can't get a call switch for 6 round ski-watch upcoming).

 

Best tourney avg was just shy of 101 or 5 @ 38 skiing four, 3 round tourneys for 12 rounds total. Ran 35 off 11 of 12 rounds on ZO training PP and got 2.5@39 in one of those rounds.

 

That said...I'd love to have ZO. It just hasn't been in the financial cards. I don't even think of it so much as wow it's the same pull as a tourney...I think regular ZO training would make me a better skier.

 

Part of the trouble is I ski 3 lakes. Right now two spots (one of 'em mine) have bubble butt SN's with PP. The other is a Response Lx with Gazer no z-box. Even if I went ZO, I would still be skiing quite a bit of PP.

 

Interesting, however, is that the Lx guy is looking at a Txi. The other SN guy has an unfortunate marital situation and may now be skiing primarily at my site. In theory may be able to split something with him in the not-to-distant future.

[RazorRoss3]

Yeah, 58K, none of this old man speed.

[AKShortline]

Nautique 200 with some sets behind a 196 mixed in. All ZO.

[Bdecker]

Mostly Carbon Pro or 08 196 6L. Occasionally a 200, 2012 197, or a sport nautique 200. All ZO boats.

I have an 05 197 with ZBox/PP at my family's place. Just 1 set on it in 2016. Tough to evaluate because the course is widely off and the boat typically pulls kids so it was set to "feather". I certainly don't ski like a feather! We did run this boat at my normal ski site last fall and it performed great. I ran a bunch of 35's on it and things felt reasonably normal.

[MillerTime38]

PP stargazer, enter crew weight and enter speed and forget it. When I was skiing tons of tournaments 2-3 years ago my tourney average was 106 buoys (58k) and podiumed twice at nationals. It works great for this tournament skier

[Horton]

I'm really surprised how many of you are using Perfect Pass

[jcamp]

PP Stargazer. Got the Zbox this year and it feels very close to a ZO pull. Can't tell the difference when skiing in a tournament.

[schafer]

@Horton it's not for lack of desire of a ZO boat. It's in the 2 yr plan.

[Wish]

I'm not suprised. Average of $25-30k to get into a ZO boat is a lot. It's a toy. When you can fit a Supra ts6m, 92-94 MC 190, most inboard Bu's from the late 90s, slant and bubble back SN, and a few others with PP ..total cost $7-15k and have an adiquate ski tractor, it's hard to fork out twice as much. Especially private owners. Now just imagine how that number jumps with non tournament skiers and under 35offers.

[Chef23]

@Horton I would love a ZO boat unfortunately I am way too far off the upgrade curve. It would cost me my boat plus at least 20-25K to get in to a ZO boat and I am locked in to college tuitions for the next 6 years and I don't have that kind of disposable income at this point.

 

In general my average is about the same behind PP and ZO. I am not sure if I could be better behind ZO than PP but I was skiing pretty much the same.

[Beastmode]

I mostly train with a 2012 nautique 200 - during the season I stick to just ZO boats, but I do own a 94 MC Prostar with Classic PP That I use in the winter. Works good but always a hot start - alot like the + setting on ZO.

[markchilcutt]

ZO

[Roger]

2016 MC Prostar. I use B2 on all the boats except the 5.3 SN with single puck where I use B1. At a tournament at Okeeheelee early this year, I skied 3.5@35 behind 3 different boats, a 2016 MC, 2016 SN 200 5.3, and a 2015 Centurion 6.0. I also ski behind a 2016 MB at some of the Palm Bay tournaments and run about the same score. All 4 current boats are pretty great. My average is a bit lower than the PP days, but I'm a bit older too, so who knows... My tournament PB with PP was 2@38 and my tournament PB with ZO is 2@38 (just haven't gotten through 35 as often as I did with PP).

[ski6jones]

Skied at a club the last couple of years behind ZO. My personal boat was PP Classic and just upgraded to ZO. If it wasn't for the fact my old boat had a wake anomaly at 35 and shorter I probably would still be on PP.

[JC McCavit]

PP Star Gazer w/Z-box. 1997 Nautique GT-40. Pull feels closer to the Nautique 200 than the Malibu or MC with ZO, but all are close enough not to impact my buoy count. Ski B2.