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@ejj has the correct theory here. I work for a large online ski and snowboard retailer and with changes in snow ski technology in the last ten years we are seeing more people young and old either switch back to skiing or pick up skiing for the first time. For midwest skiers the park twin tip has made it more fun for skiers to go into the terrain park which can be half the resort for smaller midwest hills. Out west fatter skis with rocker and better torsional stiffness have made it easier to ski powder and then still carve a turn down groomers. Alpine touring is also becoming more popular and it is easier to skin up a mountain on skis than hike up one with a board.

I have a feeling that a decline in wakeboarding has a lot to do with a rise in surfing. The people that can afford a 100k wakeboat are typically older and are going to prefer the low impact and social aspect of surfing. The customer can also buy the best surf boat out there and it will help their riding, whether beginner or expert. However, buying the flagship wakeboard boat is not going to help a novice wakeboarder get their first wake to wake. If anything it would be easier on a less expensive entry level boat with a less intimidating wake.

Here is a great animation for the clove hitch. animated clove hitch

Cool stuff, @Horton what was the camera mount setup for the slalom video?

If my memory is correct the Nautique is allowed because it only has two positions and other systems have not been allowed because of there being multiple positions.

@web I have seen one ski lake where there was probably a 15 foot difference. The soil there was nice clay and they took the clay from the high end and used it for the damn end.

@jimbrake one last comment for your son. If he is unable to get other students at his school interested in a water ski team he can still compete as the solo member of his team. I have done that in the past and in the midwest we get a lot of community college skiers that ski as the only member of their team before transferring to a school with a team. Once he is at the tournament he won't feel alone, all the teams are welcoming to new people.

@ToddL , I've seen that video before and the two contractions are the coolest looking dry land training devices I've seen.

One of the Michigan lakes has a landing strip running along it. Kinda funny to have to be told to look out for planes while walking from the parking lot to the lake.

As a college skier at the bottom of the rankings I am fine with the few pros competing.

A good question though is do the teams with pros still have a B-team? I could see a down side if their was a team cutting skiers for not being good enough.

Thule and Yakima both make great products, I have had both and the quality is similar. If you are looking for more of a long skinny box then Yakima is what you want. When looking at the length of a box do not just look at the listed exterior dimensions. Look in the description for "fits snowboards and skis up to " to find the interior length. Here is a link showing their longest boxes.

https://www.yakima.com/product-type/cargo-box?length_skis=17094

Where are all the hungover college kids? Or do other regions not take 4th event as seriously as the Midwest?

I have been on a xstar with it and for the most part liked it. The only time I didn't like it was after riding in 50* weather, the texture really hurt my feet once cold.

@DefectiveDave let me know what you need and I can make it out of Dyneema. Since your concern is losing your equipment I would go with @DW 's idea of using a leash as a back up. I'll do it for free so long as you get some data and share it with us. I have been looking for good data on how much load skiers and wakeboarders actually put on a rope.

I think everyone has pretty well covered the liability aspect of this. I would like to add my perspective as a collegiate skier. I am very supportive of collegiate skiing and want to see it grow. Most of us are responsible kids just looking to get some bouy time. However, as it has been said there are a few spoiled, disrespectful and inconsiderate collegiate skiers out there. If it was my lake I would want to meet with the team and spend some time with the leadership. If they seem like responsible kids then let them ski but make it clear that if they abuse the relationship than the deal is off. Also, make it clear that you have the option to ban specific members of the team. I have seen teams take tons of pride in maintaining their boat/site and I have seen other team destroy a boat/site in half a season. Meet with the team and try to figure out if these are the good ones.

 

Another options is to take care of the liability but instead of an open invitation just invite them out every once in a while when you feel like being charitable.

If a custom vest from Eagle doesn't work out I would find a NRS dealer near you and try on some of their rescue kayak life jackets. They sit up on your chest and some of them have some side padding for rib protection. They will have tons of extras that you do not need but they probably will be able to tighten up around your chest. Here is one for example http://www.nrs.com/product/2161/nrs-zen-rescue-pfd .

@eleeski any clue which rubber you bought from Rubatex? http://rubatexusa.com/

I have worked at a summer camp that has a 91' Prostar with the same engine. It has 2600 hours on it and sits for 10 months out of the year. To my knowledge the carb has never been rebuilt and in the 5 years I worked there has been no issues with it.

 

Definitely pick up more than just slalom. Trick is great because you can practice it behind any boat and in any conditions.

As someone who is contemplating purchasing OB4 bindings I have some questions for you.

Was the reason you sent back the binding solely because of the issue with the rubber on the plate?

If not, were you just unsatisfied with how the binding felt and performed?

Most importantly at any point did you notice the release mechanism malfunctioning?

 

The reason I am considering OB4 is for the safety aspect. I have plenty of years slaloming ahead of me and would prefer to do them without major injury.

I will leave questions 1 through 3 to someone else but for #4 check out this link. http://ballofspray.com/forum#/discussion/11622/how-to-add-an-image-to-your-post

The current rule for IWSF about splice bury length makes it impossible to splice a loop on each end of the section the traditional way for a .25M section. The problem is that the rule is splices must be .15M long. The two options I see are the continuous loop and possibly overlapping the splices of a normal section. I'll draw up a sketch on what I'm talking about later this evening.

Rule 10.04 c

Splices shall be 15 cm. (minimum) long secured with tucks before and/or after the splice, or

knotted to prevent slipping.

 

This isn't a big issue for the current line lengths seeing as there is only one length that messes everything up and we have yet to see it used in a tournament. For now the option of having a dedicated rope for 9.25M is the logical one since no one is needing it.

@ToddL Making the small loop is possible. It would be easiest to splice it as one big continuous loop and then sew the center together.

I actually tried this a week ago. It was very strange but kinda cool to do it just for fun. I don't think it would be that good of a training tool but it probably wouldn't hurt anything either.

If you are unable to find a slalom specific school to work at another option is working at a summer camp with a ski program. Even though many of them do not have courses it would be a good way to get something on your resume to help in landing a ski school job. Both @Beans and I have worked at Camp Walden and have had a really good experience.

I figured that this is safe enough for a promo boat with still having some fun.