Monster Wake

[dhofert]

So I don't know how to say this without sounding like a complete pansy. I seem to have a fear of the wake crossing. I always end up pulling up and coming across the wake slow and flat on my ski. I am skiing behind an 84 Four Winns so the wake isnt so great. Any tips? Just man up and do it? When I demoed my ski behind a Mastercraft I dont recall having as much of an issue.

[Than_Bogan]

Replace boat.

[BrennanKMN]

It was really hard for me to be an aggressive skier behind my old I/O. This was further compounded because I weighed around 150lbs so I would get thrown by anything.

 

i would try playing with the rope length and try and find a sweet spot on the wake that you can tolerate.

[sodbuster88]

I just skied behind a buddies new Malibu 22MXZ wake / surf machine.....just to see how it was. I played with rope lengths and speed. Not sure quite how to describe the experience, but it made me surrender to flat foot skiing and will never do it again. +1 for Replace the Boat.

[oldjeep]

Speed up and put some weight in front of boat. I skied behind my old bayliners for years, and about 36 was needed for the best wake at 15 off.

[ScottScott]

Some people on this forum seem to forget that not everyone can just go out and buy a good ski boat or new skis, but may still want to enjoy the sport of water skiing. Sometimes it pisses me off to the point I almost delete my account here. I'm out there skiing the course behind my 18' bow rider, on my 2010 Elite. Certainly I do much better when I'm at a lesson behind a 200, but you can go out and have fun and make progress behind other types of boats.

 

@dhofert how big is your boat? My 18' has a pretty manageable wake. A much bigger or heavier boat is going to be tough. I'm just getting through the course at 15 off, so rope length isn't really an option, but if you are just free skiing you may find a smaller wake at 22-28 off. Faster will certainly make the wake smaller, but that may not be a great alternative depending on your ability. Play with the trim....generally we trim all the way down for the best wake.

 

Take what you have, and go out and have fun. When you have good position it will minimize the impact of the wake.....good stack and alignment, COM forward and maybe most important.....handle low. I've certainly taken my share of over the fronts when hitting that 1st wake, but it builds character.

[Than_Bogan]

Fwiw, you don't have to replace the boat with a $75k shiny new ski machine or even a $25k top-notch used ski boat. Throughout the 80s and into the 90s, I skied extensively behind Boston Whalers and they had tiny wakes. Would guess most low profile boats like that do, probably including those hybrids that take a bass-boat-like shape and add a toe rope harness.

 

But if you have a boat with a large, hard wake, it's a major obstacle. Each person must determine his/her own priorities, but mine would be to find a cost-neutral boat that allows more progress on the ski.

[DaveD]

Check out the video of the kid in the "34 mph slump" thread. Learn to love catching air.

[bigskieridaho]

I grew up skiing behind A Celebrity, Sea Ray, and even owned a Bayliner and skied just fine behind them. helped me to pull a little line off and keep the speed up. Get on your edge and get across that thing. It will make you happy:) You don't need an expensive ski boat to have fun and cross the wake. Rip it up!

[swc5150]

x2 what @Than_Bogan said. When my wife and I were dirt poor, but still wanted to ski, we bought a '91 Prostar for $6k. It wasn't the prettiest MC out there, but still had a great wake and solid pull. It's all about what you want to do.

[swc5150]

 

$6k MC and $2.5k in a beat old Tahoe with 230k miles. Tight budget skiing is possible!

 

[fu_man]

That is a pretty boat. I like the color.

[dhofert]

As much as replace the boat is a great option, it is not really an option at this point. We are keeping an eye out for a deal of course. @ScottScott it is a 19' and I ski around 30mph give or take a few. I have tried 15 off a little bit here and there and really don't know what to think there. I think I have made much progress so far and feel great on the new stick, even nailed 6 deepwater starts in a row!!

 

My next step is either finding someone to video me or figuring out a way to mount my phone to video myself so I can actually see what I am doing.

 

I did take a pretty good OTF this evening, just cant seem to figure out the right weight distribution as I always find myself way back.

 

Just not enough hours in the day and I only make it out 2-3 days max per week.

 

@swc5150 that is a nice looking boat for sure. Would really like to find something closer to the 3k range, definitely don't need all the bells and whistles. It is all about fun for me still and I do plan on getting some coaching hopefully next spring.

 

[disland]

I learned to ski behind a Boston Whaler on the Severn river in Annapolis Md 1985. Those deep water starts were like submarine training

[Zman]

First successful pass through a 'course' was behind my first boat, an 18 foot I/O runabout. No idea how close the speed was, no idea how accurate the milk jug course was (not at all close). I just remember the smile and the song lyrics "I'm still standing" playing through my head out the gates, I mean, milk jugs.

[foxriverat]

This might be interesting link

[dhofert]

That is interesting, if I can get the other guy to go half with me it is worth a look. Thanks for the link.