Robert Pigozzi is top seed going into the finals at the Masters!

[Horton]

I think it is time for the Ballers to start paying attention to this kid. Robert Pigozzi is the real deal. I will be watching tomorrow.

 

http://masterswaterski.com/

[Gar]

Yes I watched it. Usual brutal water. Pigozzi was awesome.

[skihart]

The results do not seem to be updated? Just looked and nothing for men's slalom or jump? They seem to be wakeboarding now so I assume the skiing is complete.

[Horton]

@skihart Jump is after wake board

[Gar]

Pigozzi 2@ 41, Nate 5 @ 39, Will 4.5 @39, Tgas 4 @39 going from my recollection think those advance?

[Horton]

@gar TGas lost out in a runoff with Asher. Only four advanced

[Gar]

Darn was hoping Tgas would make it.

[DaveD]

Great webcast. Saw the number of viewers get up over 800 at one point during the slalom skiing. Only 500 for the wakeboarding. Maybe slalom skiing isn't all that boring after all.

 

Tricks were fun to watch this morning. The flips they do now days are amazing.

[Bill22]

If four advance and Tgas is out. Who is the fourth one in? Pigozzi, Nate, Will?

[Kelvin]

Freddie

[Gar]

Pigozzi is top seed. Nate second and Will third I think!

[Gar]

Freddie 4th?

[GaryWilkinson]

When will this org committee figure out the backwash problem.?

 

Seemed like perfect conditions,... for backwash!

Starting dock has a stone wall. Every return to the dock produces huge backwash waves down the course. Then the stands also contribute right at the start of 3 ball.

 

I find it somewhat ridiculous that this tournament that generally has the largest world wide audience never produces PB’s never mind records.

 

Doesn’t seem like it would be hard to put in swimming lane ropes, fences or Something to reduce the backwash.

 

It’s a shame we don’t see these awesome athletes at their best.

[Edbrazil]

Unless it has changed, there is a vertical stone wall across. Wouldn't be difficult to put

in some rip-rap rock.

[Wish]

@GaryWilkinson Just the opposite. Because it's the Masters and it's been like that for decades, we DO get to see the athletes at their best. Course records tied or beaten already. They do lower the lake to reduce backwash but ya can't take out the pavilion which rests on giant concrete pillars. It's Robin Lake. It's the Masters. I see nothing less the the best, doing their best. Same with Moomba. If u want to see world records drop, attend a event at Trophy Lakes or Lake Hanckock or Swiss. Or dozens of other places but to take anything away from the tradition of the Masters and Moomba being just plane hard to ski is like saying they should shorten the distance at hole #7 at the Masters Golf Championship cause it's to long and we may not see a birdy. Ski harder, ski better, win. That's what it's all about.

[Bruce_Butterfield]

@GaryWilkinson I have mixed opinions on this as it’s the first time I’ve been at the masters in person. Yes the sea wall on the far side creates major rollers. It’s hard to get the impact from the webcast, but in person the rollers are way beyond what most skiers would even attempt. I think it adds to the appreciation of just how good these athletes really are.

 

So some thoughts to ponder:

- if you want to know who the best athlete is in perfect conditions, simply look at the world standings list or the world record list.

- What is the measure of an athlete who can perform in less than ideal conditions, with the pressure of the best in the world on your tail? Isn’t that what the “Masters” should be?

- Adverse conditions are a great equalizer that allows “those that work hardest” a real chance against “those with raw talent”. Witness Robert Pigozzi beating the top seeds.

 

So, while the conditions are far from ideal, the combination of worlds best athletes, crowd enthusiasm, and prestige still make for a heck of a tournament.

[Gar]

Pigozzi reminds me of Mike Hazelwood in the 80’s total strong beast of a skier. The top seed is in the worst shape regarding conditions at Masters seems like. Pigozzi should still be in good shape tomorrow. No telling who wins should be exciting to watch and I will.

[ozski]

If conditions are perfect then Nate wins. Random conditions makes it interesting and you have to watch.

[DaveD]

I don't think the conditions need to be perfect but if the rollers are as bad as @Bruce_Butterfield says then maybe a little effort to reduce them is needed.

[Bruce_Butterfield]

@scotchipman with the distance to the far side of the lake, the rollers are about as random as you can get. I saw no variation from one skier to the next.

 

There is absolutely no basis to claim the conditions were not the same for all competitors.

[skispray]

If the rollers lead to such unfair conditions then why do the best skiers still always seem to win?

 

And if things are so random, then why did the skiers in the men’s semifinals all seem to hit the same rollers at 3 ball?

[mcskier41]

If they wanted to, they could make the conditions better. Why have bad conditions? Would you put up with that at your own personal ski site?

[skispray]

@scotchipman @mcskier41 look, I do understand your argument, and forgive me for saying this, but seriously I don’t think this level of anal-retentiveness does any good for the sport. I mean, you can plan a tournament at a perfect site, wait while the other skiers in your round get pristine conditions, and then have the wind gust up before you ski and end up with a 15 mph tailwind. It’s an outdoor sport, so conditions are part of it. Just deal with that. I don’t hear any skiers that participate in the master’s complain about the outcome being random. They know that the site is tough to ski and they go out and do their best. Sometimes they get bitten, but as long as it isn’t dangerous I think it should be part of the sport. Some skiers are legitimately better in tough conditions. There should be events that are pristine and there should be events that are challenging, and someone that performs well at both is truly the best. There are some skiers that seem to consistently ski worse at tough tournaments, and I think it means they just aren’t as good when the going gets tough. In most sports the pros deal with more difficult conditions than amateurs. I get that you’re looking for “fairness”, but I think the problem you’re concerned with is really not a very big deal; and the outcome you get is bad for the sport: pro tournaments where there are about 7 spectators, the same person wins by like 4 buoys every round, but the conditions are perfect. The masters, on the other hand, is an awesome tournament. Don’t “fix” it because it isn’t broken.

[GaryWilkinson]

You all make good points in that whoever skis the best that day in those conditions is the winner. But, I have 2 points that address the conditions vs outcome issue.

 

First, the rough water is caused by the boat and the terrain, not wind and nature. I’ve skied lots of tournaments in windy rough conditions and the results for everyone were down of course but generally the best skiers won. In my humble opinion the “randomness” or unpredictability of backwash waves mixing with skiers path waves make it just that, random, and unsafe. I’ve badly sprained an ankle because a rogue wave from backwash in the course causing my ski to bite unexpectedly and then skip out.

 

The second reason I believe they should take steps is for the viewing audience that they’re surely trying to build. I believe if you were to ask a bunch of fans that tuned in, if they would prefer conditions that produce a more random result at a full loop longer in slalom and 20’ less for jump, or would they rather pristine conditions that allow these athletes to not only achieve tournament PBs, but hopefully knock on the door of world records. While I might have the answer of about 50/50 from us ballers, I think the viewing public, (you know, those highly sought after numbers the sponsors are looking for) would prefer great conditions.

 

I also believe if you asked them privately, the athletes would prefer much better conditions but they will never be quoted because it would not be proper and stink of sour grapes.

I was lucky enough to be with some of these very same athletes last week and they weren’t training in rough conditions or having someone give them backwash from another boat. They were giving it all trying to get over 11k points and through -41 respectively.

 

In FIS racing they go to extraordinary measures to ensure everyone gets the same conditions. I know, I’ve slipped many many race courses to achieve that goal.

In tennis if someone yells while Serena is at the top of her toss, she gets a let.

 

3event waterskiing is decided in 16, 20 and 10 second performance time blocks. Shouldn’t we give them the best platform to achieve their full potential ?

 

Especially when it’s under our control.

 

Thanks for listening.

[skispray]

@GaryWilkinson Like I said, if it’s unsafe then that isn’t good. But I don’t see evidence that the conditions at the master’s are unsafe. What evidence can you cite that would indicate that it’s unsafe? And I also don’t see evidence that the conditions lead to random results. What evidence would you cite to argue that the results are more random at this tournament? Nate won slalom again, just like he has in the past. Will Asher and Freddie Winter made it to the finals, like you’d expect. Maybe Pigozza is just good?

 

And in jump and trick, year after year, the cream keeps rising to the top. So everyone that keeps using the word random, please give me one shred of evidence that makes your case. If you have none, then stop using the word. It’s insulting to the skiers the perform well under such tough conditions.

[Bruce_Butterfield]

@skispray I’ll concede “random” was not the best description and not precisely what I meant. How about “uniformly rolly” and the same level of difficulty for all competitors as a better description of what I meant.

[Wish]

@GaryWilkinson I'm sure (actually I know) that all ...reasonable.. measures have been taken over the years to make that lake the best it can be. Unreasonable would be to spend thousands if not tens of thousands to make it better. The lake is used 3 days out of the year for this event. The other 362 days of what you site simply does not matter. I've skied that lake many times. It ain't great but unsafe is more of how you ski it. I'm 90% more reserved then a pro. I bet if you asked the athletes and the fans the question....Would you rather have the Masters somewhere else for better conditions or on Robin Lake.??..well, I think you know the answer to that better question.

[GaryWilkinson]

No disrespect to the skiers that win, bravo and well done. I have won tournaments where I beat Canadian team members in conditions (wind) but I don’t value that medal as much as the ones in better conditions.

 

(I saw Robert

[GaryWilkinson]

Sorry

 

My full comment didn’t make it, to finish my thoughts....

 

I saw Robert P ski last week at Rini site. Man this young man can ski and ski he did.

 

I guess it for me would make sense to ask the skiers. I believe they would prefer the conditions of Trophy lakes for example, over Robin Lake. For their performance and safety’s sake.

 

And I, as a viewer and customer of waterski related items and services to the tune of thousands of dollars annually, would prefer to see those that run - 41 in their sleep, do so on one of the community’s largest stages vs, seeing them struggle through -38 and come off the water “unhappy” to say the least.

 

If we have the ability to “fix” this to achieve world class performances and have everyone come off the water with PBs and big smiles knowing they did their best, why not do it?

 

GW

 

 

[Ilivetoski]

What randomness is there really? Look at all the athletes who won. Manon, Nate, Freddy... Not exactly strangers to a podium

[ozski]

So has anyone ridden the Reflex ski?

[APB]

i agree. the problem isnt nature. its a man made issue, one that can be resolved. as the most "prestigious" event in waterskiing the effort should be made for 2019. attempt to fix it at the very least....

[ozski]

Manon on the GT is a good result for her and the new ski!

[Wish]

For those wanting conditions like backwash at the Masters improved, who exactly is going to pay for it?? . May I suggest you start a Go Fund Me page cause that's about the only way it's gonna happen.

[MickeyThompson]

Everyone should want better conditions at the Masters. Not sure that’s the case.

[Horton]

I would say that Freddy was taken out by random rollers. In some ways the winner of the Masters is SOMETIMES not really always the best skier. There is an element of chance... Nate won and that is what we all expected but it super sucks for The Fred.

[Ed_Johnson]

Back on subject.... I have been watching Robert for 3 years now and believe this kid is the real deal. He is now only 20, and each year he gets better and better. I love his technique, and feel he is the one, that in the future, will be the one to challenge Nate. I miss the years of the Cox vs Mapple duels, and foresee that this could be a repeat of those events. It would be great for the sport.

Also, Brooke Baldwin has really caught my attention, ever since the Calif. Pro-Am last year, and Swiss this year. She is like only 16 or 17, and kicking butt. Definitely my choice as the one who could challenge Whitney and Regina. I am a huge believer in the way she manages ZO with her technique and feel she is the one to watch in the future.

 

 

 

[ryno65]

@ozski your comment stands out from the others, purely by being relevant to the title of this thread ;)

[ozski]

Yeah I started watching his youtube stuff a over a year ago, he uses the ski really well and knows how to go after it when he needs to so there is no doubt he will be a big name if he continues on the current path. Interesting gate too.. I would like to know more about the Reflex ski he rides but I've only ever seen a couple of them in the wild..

[Ed_Johnson]

@ozski.. While I am sure the Reflex Ski is a great quality ski, in this case, I believe it is the Indian and not the Arrow !!!