Do we as slalom skiers tend to focus on all the wrong stuff? Do we know anything?

[Horton]

There is another thread here in the forum that talks about how in snow skiing boot fitting is a whole thing. It is a big thing and no one questions how important it is ( ok maybe someone does IDK). In water skiing, we mostly use repurposed skate shells or rubber boots that were mostly designed in the 1980s. The current Radar Vapor boot is the only successful bespoke high-end slalom boot and as good as it is, from a 40,000-foot perspective it is not incredibly different from the skate shells. Don’t get me wrong, the Radar boot is really very good. From a snow skier perspective water ski boots are Stone Age technology. It seems obvious that boot fittings should be a thing in water skiing.

Sadly, I do not think there is an Easter egg of goodness in this idea. Sure, some skiers have bindings that suck and would do better with different bindings but I am pretty confident that most skiers would gain little or nothing from "custom-fitted" boots.  If you are new to water skiing this must seem wrong or counterintuitive.

So your boots are likely fine.

Now what if I told you that your handle is costing you balls? This is a fringe idea that may turn out to be totally false but hear me out.  A smaller diameter handle requires less / different forearm effort to hold on to than a larger diameter handle. Could it be that the tension in your forearms needed to hold onto with a thicker handle impacts connection off the second wake? I do not think this is a huge thing but I think it could be an aid and perhaps more ROI thing custom bindings.

More important than your handle diameter could be if the pocket of your trunks is flapping in the wind. Perhaps we should just go ski… some of these ideas have legs and some do not.

[MDB1056]

1 hour ago, Horton said:

 

More important than your handle diameter could be if the pocket of your trunks is flapping in the wind. Perhaps we should just go ski… some of these ideas have legs and some do not.

That’s definitely it. All the unconscious shifting of body position to counter the resistance caused by flapping pockets! Correct that and you’ll probably gain a full pass . Love it…..

[Octopus_Paxarbolis]

I keep my left pocket out to help with my onside turns

[Taperflex]

It is definitely winter!

[DW]

We spent hours dialing in a ski fin to the thousandths, micro-tune our boots, go to the extreme of wearing specific 'lucky' apparel and yet ...

Max Verstappen wins an F1 race with a broken front wing that spent hours and millions of dollars perfecting in a wind tunnel, Kyle Larson wins a NASCAR race after smacking the wall more than a couple of times, Mark Martin leads a NASCAR race running on 7 of 8 cylinders, injured (hence not at 100%) athletes win games all the time, just sayin', maybe Horton has a point although flapping trunks and legs in the same sentence, it is winter.

[rockdog]

There are so many things I've heard from better skiers than I about driving and ski setup that I'm 110% certain is complete and utter horseshit but I can't say anything because what do I know... I read them every second day on here even.

 

[Horton]

@rockdog call out the horseshit. You might be right and you might be wrong but somebody will learn something.

Although generally, if somebody runs a bunch of balls more than you, they're likely to know more than you. There is no substitute for experience.

[Stevie Boy]

Over the years various people have said one thing to me, I now think that I am a believer.

"KISS"  Keep It Simple Stupid

Very easy to over think it and disturb the flow.

The Pros, probably have a maximum of three keys.

Time available in the course to think, process and action is miminal.

[ScottScott]

If someone that has skied for 20-30 years more than me skies better than me, does that mean they ski better than me becouse they know more than me, or becouse they've been skiing longer than me (possibly despite some misunderstandings, or focusing on things that don't really matter....)

[Horton]

@ScottScott I would say that 9 out of 10 times if a skier has a substantially higher ball count than you and has been around as long or longer than you than they know more than you.

For me the possible exception is elite high school or college aged skiers who are at their pure athletic peak and may not understand technically ( or able to express  ) what it is that they're doing even though they're crushing it.

[lpskier]

@DW Did it occur to you that perhaps the guys in your example were successful in the face of adversity because they were, in fact, wearing their lucky shorts? Exactly. I thought not.   😆

[ktm300]

Last year I watched a pro take a first ride on a new, different brand ski.  The fin had been set to known "good numbers".  Mounted his boots and ran 1@41 first set.  Next day, came out an took second set on the ski; 4@41.  All the stuff we focus on and talk about probably does matter, but not as much as I have previously thought.  Granted, this was a skier who has run 41 before but damn... first set through 39...  The pros are legit.

[Rednucleus]

I think you could close this thread if everyone would just put hi octane in their tanks!

[Hockdog]

Rotella will fix everything.

[Horton]

FYI - I am totally joking about the pocket thing but not about the large diameter handle. Not saying the large diameter handle thing is a big thing but it could be a factor ( maybe ).

[twhisper]

12 hours ago, DW said:

We spent hours dialing in a ski fin to the thousandths, micro-tune our boots, go to the extreme of wearing specific 'lucky' apparel and yet ...

Max Verstappen wins an F1 race with a broken front wing that spent hours and millions of dollars perfecting in a wind tunnel, Kyle Larson wins a NASCAR race after smacking the wall more than a couple of times, Mark Martin leads a NASCAR race running on 7 of 8 cylinders, injured (hence not at 100%) athletes win games all the time, just sayin', maybe Horton has a point although flapping trunks and legs in the same sentence, it is winter.

Another example of superb technique overcoming mechanical failure...

Doesn't mean we shouldn't strive to optimize our equipment, but there is also no substitute for technique.

There is definitely a lot to be learned still in binding set up. Look at what the old school jumpers used to use. Nobody is going 250' in flip flops.

[Garn]

I have learned from personal experience that a pro skier does not necessarily make him a pro ski coach.

[rawly]

2 hours ago, Hockdog said:

Rotella will fix everything.

Wrong site. @KTM300 and only a handful will get it 🤣. Actually there are a lot of skiers that ride. All I know is as long as I have Rotella oil and ride the handle path , all is good. I understand that the guys running 38 can do the fine tuning and feel it , but the majority of us who get off the handle early and end up in a free fall into the ball can experience every bad thing out there in various forms. I can run a perfect 32 ( for me ) and then hack at it in the same set. Guess what , it’s me not the ski 🤷‍♂️ Assuming my set up is in the ball park. 

[Jibbo]

There are some great recent Spraymaker episodes: "What Matters Most", "Stay Focused" and "Eliminate the noise"  which talk a lot about how we often focus on the wrong stuff like -...the bright shiny objects..

Definitely worth a listen

[ColeGiacopuzzi]

@Stevie Boy hit the nail on the head. Simple is best. Don't over complicate or overthink it. The better you can perceive what you're trying to work on and dumb it down; the better. Also the statement about the keys is dead on too. Never more than 3. 

[ktm300]

@rawly Look who's ranked #1 in his age division.  He's just naturally a badass.

http://results.gnccracing.com/racer.asp?n=36834

[rawly]

48 minutes ago, ktm300 said:

@rawly Look who's ranked #1 in his age division.  He's just naturally a badass.

http://results.gnccracing.com/racer.asp?n=36834

Of course he is. He’s Jeff Rodgers. 

[Luzz]

1 hour ago, ktm300 said:

@rawly Look who's ranked #1 in his age division.  He's just naturally a badass.

http://results.gnccracing.com/racer.asp?n=36834

is this THE Jeff Rodgers? Evergreen idol!

[ktm300]

@Luzz  Yep  Cowboy Roy really can ride...