bassfooter

We've had an abnormally windy summer at our site. While frustrating, it's been great for my form and confidence. @wtrskior said it best: you have to be stronger and quieter. But I draw the line if it's too crazy, out of fear of injury.

@eleeski and I just last night witnessed one such San Diego-area college grad rip a beautiful -22 at 34. Strength didn't have anywhere near the effect on her pass that her determination did. And she did this after taking a full-body slam into the wakes during an earlier pass. The OTHER San Diego-area college woman we were with whipped out a dozen trick passes, hand and toe, amidst a classic @eleeski coaching frenzy. Both met their current spouses through collegiate water skiing. Both couples are very active in the local skiing community. Granted, a small sample size and totally anecdotal, but...there it is.

@cragginshred lots of good advice here. I see the same themes over and over, and they're all things that have worked for me. I cannot recommend lowering the speed for training unless you do so sparingly. I think you just have to get out there and ski it.

34, according to the video title.

@Glock I replaced my front Wiley with a black Reflex front and kept the Wylie rear wrap. It took a half-dozen sets before I was totally liking it, and I've never looked back. I put a drugstore insole in the Intuition liner, and I inspect and tighten things pretty regularly. Sounds like you’ve already tried a hardshell setup, but make it easy on yourself and keep the top buckle loose for the first few rides.

+1 @gregy on getting some video. Super-helpful, especially if you don't have someone who can coach you.

Oh...you were thinking relative to a slalom course. I was just thinking in terms of open water, like free skiing. Sorry....

@BraceMaker why wouldn't a pressure-based or paddlewheel speedometer give accurate readings in a current? Don't those systems measure speed over the water?

@eleeski it's been said by guys way smarter than I that there's no replacement for displacement. That American Skier needs a V8.

@Intheday Nope, slalom. I swear. I have a witness.

@Horton I just had a killer slalom set with @eleeski coaching. Should I be concerned?

We put Z Box on our '98 SN after a couple seasons with just Stargazer, and it was much better right off the bat. It's not ZO, but I think it's closer to ZO than classic PP. The driver has to come up to the target RPM without overshooting it too much, especially with a short setup. If you overshoot the target RPM, it tends to take too long to correct on our boat, making maddening throttle adjustments well into the course. I know of another Z Box installation on a newer ('04-ish) Malibu that also runs great, and does not have the overshoot problem ours does. Someone on BOS -- probably Ed -- recommended getting SG dialed in before adding Z Box. In other words, Z Box isn't going to make voltage or linkage issues go away. If you can find a retailer who will let you return it, you have nothing to lose except a few more days of messing around with it. Still way better than being at work, right?

Got any video at both -22 and -28? That would make it easier to help. Although there are many here far more qualified than I to offer coaching, what got me running -28s consistently was keeping my arms in off the second wake all the way out to the buoy line. I envision my trailing elbow being glued to my vest all the way out to the reach. This seems to help make that early edge change and it creates space before the next buoy.

I just had the pleasure of skiing with Eric at our local tournament here in San Diego this past weekend. I got some excellent trick and slalom coaching, and enjoyed several very interesting conversations off the water as well. This sport needs more Eric Lees.

@Fehlindra Great advice, but is your keyboard pregnant? Looks like it's missing its period.

@A_B '78 Nationals were at Tivoli Gardens. My buddy and I went to see all the big names, and we weren't disappointed. LaPoints, McCormick, Suyderhoud, Brush...but the one I really remember was Camille. [sigh]

@DW is correct. The surface of any inland body of water (i.e., not including the Great Lakes) in Michigan is state property, with very few exceptions, mostly involving non-profits. It's a blessing and a curse, depending on what you're trying to do or prevent. For example, some folks thought it might be a good idea to limit the hours we could water ski on the lake I grew up on, and found out very quickly that wasn't going to happen because the state had jurisdiction. But a decade later another group of folks ran into the same quandary when they tried to limit PWC usage to certain hours. But it sounds like some of the laws have gotten out of hand back in the Great Lake State. Even California law allows for the use of barefoot suits and non-USCG "competition vests" when engaged in that kind of skiing. And California is not exactly known for restraint when it comes to overarching legislation.

@Wayne where was that accident? Just curious. The absolute worst kind of legislation is that which is in reaction to a one-time event, no matter how unfortunate the outcome. Besides, a driver not watching where they're going isn't going to see a flag. [sighs heavily]

California requires a flag be held up when the skier/rider/tuber is in the water, but not while the skier is up and underway. Given the crowds on some of California's public waterways, it's really not all that bad an idea. Have you ever seen Lake Havasu or San Diego's Mission Bay on a holiday weekend? However, the new law that @sixball linked to appears to require that the flag be up the whole time the skier is out of the boat, i.e., including while underway. Yikes! That's just plain stupid. The idea behind the flag is to signal that you have bodies and ropes in the water near your boat; you can see a skier/rider/tuber once they're up and being towed. I was more concerned by all the legalese about having to tell the Sheriff's Association about who qualifies to practice on "no more than three lakes" designated as "practice lakes". Holy crap. That makes my head hurt - I need more coffee. And besides, isn't a tuber a potato?

Water is 65-ish in San Diego Bay, air is high 60s - low 70s. Much-needed storms moving in this weekend, so...to Mammoth we jammoth.

Congratulations, @eleeski! Well-deserved recognition.

@Ryota - Congratulations! Great skiing. Doesn't it feel good? And it's awesome you have it on video! Keep up the good work and post more video as you start to figure out 12m.

I agree with what's been said about your gate. Get up further and wider, get your weight on your front foot and turn in a little earlier. @Marco said it: The boat is pulling you down the course well before you have any angle or speed across the wakes. Look for "Regina Jaquess Slow Motion" video on YouTube. Look how she gets her ski lined up across the wakes long before the boat is pulling her. I think you're doing very well with everything else. Your 14m looks great!

@TallSkinnyGuy I am very interested in seeing this happen in California. In a rare display of legislative clarity, they've relaxed the life jacket requirements for tournament, course, exhibition and barefoot skiing. Someone in Sacramento was thinking straight, at least in that case. Note that Utah's law only applies when using a course. I think we'd have a shot at something like that for California. How many courses do we have on public waters? I know of three: Mission Bay, San Vicente (when it reopens) and Nacimiento. I'm sure there are more up north. Realistically, I cannot imagine we'd get anywhere trying to relax the law on the open water, i.e., outside a course or tournament event. Public waterways in California are already jam-packed, booze-fueled bloodbaths, which might at least partially explain the proliferation of private slalom lakes. And we're a litigious bunch, too. Sacramento is right in the middle of several primo tournament sites and clubs -- maybe someone knows a legislator who skis? @Horton? @eleeski?

Wow...still time for a hat trick, @jimbrake. Evening's young!