What did you learn in 2021?

[Horton]

There is nothing worse than learning new stuff all ski season and then forgetting it all in the winter. So with that in mind what did you learn in 2021?

[The_MS]

The Rob Hazelwood segment on elbows and reach was huge. Learned a lot from that.

[2Valve]

1) 32 off works better if I'm not trying to "muscle" it through the pass.

2) Arthur (at Eden Ski Lake) makes me better every time I'm there.

[jayski]

Being "ahead of your feet" is a game changer

[bigtex2011]

i like corn and working on sunday

[igkya]

@MS

Can you share the link to that segment?

[bigtex2011]

I also learned Deliverance was "not" filmed in Arkansas

[The_MS]

@igkya

I just refreshed the thread.

[ETskier]

I learned how to have FUN again. As Toby Keith sang, "I'm not as good as I once was, but good once (occasionally) as I ever was."

[swc5150]

That time is catching up with my body :s

[MISkier]

I learned that my turn in for my gate needed to slow down a little to avoid generating immediate load with bad direction and suboptimal body position. That error also results in being pulled up early and shoulders forward just before the wake rather than a natural pull-up into edge change at or beyond the wake. All of that is making me narrow at one ball and in bad position to turn it well.

[6balls]

@miskier not a this year learning for me but I also found that important with first getting stupid high on the boat at pull out such that my slower turn in still established good position and angle with time/width to make good speed to the CL.

 

Other than that I learned a lot about how many members feel about a variety of issues, and that my spine is cooked--both cervical and lumbar following surgery number 4. May have a bubble butt for sale come spring.

 

I've also experience that stuff I wrote in the fall hoping for an earlier hot run in the spring--didn't always help. I think b/c in spring I just didn't have the basics, the muscle memory, the conditioning to implement those things right away--those things tended to be more helpful after working out the spring-time kinks.

[Wish]

Ski TALL!

 

And Full shoulder rotation toe side ala Rob H

[TEL]

That trying to skiing with the correct hand grip after skiing for many years with the wrong grip is a bad idea.

[ToddL]

@TEL - best time to make big changes (like grip) is the start of the new season. Also to prepare, grab the top or bottom of your steering wheel using the new grip when driving in a low risk context. Most people spend more minutes behind the wheel than on the water, so use that time to make the new grip feel more normal.

[Dirt]

I learned that Horton is a selfish ski hoarder.

[Bruce_Butterfield]

@Dirt you have known horton for how many years and you are just now figuring that out?

[dave2ball]

USA WATERSKI MANDATES REALLY SUCK AND WILL HURT THE SPORT

[swbca]

That trying to skiing with the correct hand grip after skiing for many years with the wrong grip is a good idea, and using 2 hands at the start.

[swbca]

You can get 2Awsomes and 2WTFs on the same post if you say the sport is running out of rope.

[DW]

Octane matters, ballers love web seminars, nobody on this site is passionate about where the sport is headed and mostly

 

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all the ballers, only 3+/- more months to complain about all things waterskiing before the next season:-)

[75Tique]

I neither learned that this was a problem, nor did I learn how to fix this problem in 2021, but I did continue to work on it. Working on straightening out the yellow line. In 2021 it got better but I got a ways to go. Suggestions welcome. (no need to remind me "hips to handle"... I'm trying/working on it)

 

[C5Quest]

I learned I suck and sometimes its best just to walk away and take a break instead of beating yourself to death with failure. Step back and just ride in the boat for a while. You can learn a lot from watching.

 

[Turn6]

After taking 16 yrs off, coming back is going to take long than I thought!

[swbca]

After taking 30 yrs off, coming back is going to take even longer than it takes @Turn6 above.

[Taynton]

I learned that old skiers are an interesting bunch and ski lakes have more drama than high school soap operas lol

[braindamage]

That I need to continue my fitness and flexibility regiment even during the ski season. Muscle imbalance!

[swbca]

I learned you can't even begin to refresh your old skills for skiing in a slalom course without a slalom course. And, there is no similarity between taking a winter off compared to taking decades off with no skiing. If you are healthy, agile, have an efficient weight and are strong, the time gap is a much bigger factor than being older.

 

After a long layoff, you can free ski forever and never figure out if the ski you are using is any good because its impossible to ski to the ski's limits or to rebuilt the muscle memory for skiing to your own limits without the performance demands of a slalom course.

 

Taking winter off only degrades your physical strength. Taking decades off also erases most of your muscle memory even if you have a sharp recall of your physical action and the visual experience of skiing your previous personal bests.

 

So last year I ended up with a slalom course that was stuck 5 feet below and only skied three sets in a course at a friends lake. This summer I am prepared with an OFFcourse and a Realcourse. I wasted 1 full year at an age where my new dog will outlast my short line potential in competitive skiing. Looking forward to a much better year.