Anyone interested in a 68" D3 ION ? - its not for a 30mph M9 light-weight

[swbca]

Switched to a 67" today. The 30 mph 2004 ProStar wake is too big for this ski for a 170lb skier. Like hitting a wall at any rope length longer than 38 off behind

 

The ski was used for about 15 pulls - 2 additional inserts to mount a Radar Hybrid Rear

 

[steve77]

What is your price? I’m demoing one next week and planning on purchasing

[skiboyny]

I'm real curious did the 67" help this problem? 1" difference

[swbca]

@skiboyny

I am sure its the added width in the mid and forebody of the ski. The 67" ski helps this problem and doesn't feel to small for the lower speed.

[swbca]

@steve77 will send you a message in a minute

[dbutcher]

@swbca Have you skied the 68" behind other boats?

 

Speed, angle, a hard edge (lean), and slightly flexible knees are needed for 30mph wake crossings. I'd be concerned about not getting enough speed with a 67", like when the water temperature changes. Over time you may find a 67" too small. I weigh 190 lbs. and ski 30mph on a 69" Senate which is quite wide. The 30mph wake is no doubt a large, irritating bump, but it rarely knocks me off edge.

[swbca]

@dbutcher I have only skied on the 68" D3 behind the ProStar 197. I am going to a 3 round tournament tomorrow even though I am not ready. It will be a place to try another boat and not be a one and done when I mess up.

 

I have been working on the edge and the knees.

 

Even the 67" makes the wakes a bigger issue than anything I remember from the distant pass. My last boat was years ago . . a 1986 ProStar which had almost no wake at 34 and 36. I bought it for that reason. But I skied behind all sorts of boats back in the 80's and never remember a wake experience like now.

 

It could be the modern skis. The mid and front of 67" D3 is wider than any competition 66/67 ski from the 80's. That's one reason they perform better than the skis from the 80's. I used to widen the mid and front of most of my old skis with layers of spray resin and it made them work better and hit the wake harder.

 

I mentioned before that watching 2020 Nationals M9 event on YouTube, I couldn't figure out why all the skiers were getting a very large single or double lift on the wake. Now I know I'm now alone.

 

PS if you try to find the M9 event on YouTube, its a few un-edited clips that are incomplete and out of order. The TV guys ran out of gas on the older divisions

[Alberto Soares]

New boats are heavier and carry a lot more drag than the old ones, unfortunately they are build for the short line 34/36 skiers.

[swbca]

@Alberto Soares That's why most of my skiing this season has been for conditioning, free skiing at 39 off. My boat has no wake at 39 off, saving knees and other joints that don't like getting knocked around. Thanks for the insight on the newer heavy boats.

 

One comment though; Master Craft made the running surface at the back of the 2004 190 a lot narrower than boat. The wake could have been a lot smaller if that was the priority. Rather than replacing the boat, maybe I'll get into hull tuning.

[ALPJr]

I kind of remember skiing with that hull and the wake at 32 mph at 15/22 off feeling something like skiing over a curb.

[dbutcher]

@swbca I am hopeful that you will be pleasantly surprised by the tournament boats' wakes you experience tomorrow. I don't think you will feel like you are hitting a wall. There were a couple of model years in the past when Mastercraft's wakes were larger and harder than their earlier and later models. The 2004 may have been one of those years. I had a 2014 Mastercraft that had almost no wake. I've heard good things about Mastercraft's current model wake.

[swbca]

SOLD to a skier wanting to trade up from a 67" ION to 68"

[lpskier]

So how did the tournament experience go?

[swbca]

@lpskier @dbutcher For those that have asked, I ended up as a spectator at the tournament last Saturday and caught up with a bunch of friends. I had only skied on the 67" ION two times and didn't want to look too foolish. I had my stuff and was on the list but figured it would be a better day if I finished the day seeing friends rather than skiing.

 

But then I skied behind a 2008 Correct Craft 196 yesterday. Nice wake compared to the 2004 ProStar 197. Learned a few things about skiing slow. Mostly its hard to get wide.