Lovell

Try BoatUS

I've got one 2014 model got a scratch on the bottom, but I'd don't think you'd feel it until u are into 32 off or so. Just sitting in the garage PM me if interested Mark Lovell

Not taking 20 yrs off. Best decision ever to get back into the course though.

I'm 41 and returned to skiing this year. Best decision ever. My practice average (hope to ski tourneys next year) is about 3 at -32 at 34 mph. one piece of advice that I found helpful was don't change ski brands. I grew up skiing Kidders when I was young and tried the Radars early this year and found that I was much more comfortable on skis that were from the Kidder/d3 mold.

@Horton Thanks for providing that example. It may sound Polyannaish, but those are the types of lessons that collegiate sports should teach and I think the purpose is being accomplished by enforcing grade regulations etc. You will probably tell your kids and grandkids about the lesson you learned about the need to be as good in the classroom as you were at the lake. If so, than I think it's mission accomplished I personally think that in my professional life as an attorney I rely as much on my experiences as a collegiate athlete as I do on what I learned in the classroom. Like you, I'm pretty sure most of my professors never thought I would reach any level of professional success, although I do think the football and water ski coaches, probably thought I'd turn out ok. Fascinating perspectives here.

You are probably right and I probably should climb out of the ivory tower, but I do find this discussion to be compelling so thanks for putting up with it.

I'm not totally in tune with the college scene these days, but back in the nineties I recall a couple of the better pros who were rumored not to be college material, save for their skiing ability, ski for three different schools, over a couple of years with virtually no explanation. In our eyes coming from a non scholarship team, we figured he just got a better deal at each new school, was there to ski only and had almost no shot of graduating or even going to class. That hired gun implication was not well received. Hopefully, that has fallen by the wayside.

under NCAA rules, which do not apply to club sports like water skiing, accepting prize money would probably disqualify you from collegiate participation. An analogous sport might be golf. If you played a golf tournament that had a purse while you were in college, you would not be eligible to play for your school. Frankly I think it is rare to find another sport where kids of high school and college age are participating in competition where there is a purse. I personally agree with this approach as collegiate sports of which I played two, one sanctioned by the ncaa and water skiing that was a club sport, should serve as a supplement to a student's education and should not simply serve as a publicity tool for moonlighting pros who would otherwise be aged out or are shopping year to year for the best deal. Just my opinion .....

Did not finish my post Once you leave high school and enter higher education, at any level, you have 5 years of which you can compete for 4 of the 5. The only thing that stops the 5 yr clock is a religious mission or military service. Additionally you cannot earn money participating in any athletic event of any nature. Also if you transfer you have to sit out a year. If these rules applied the character of the competition would be fair and reflect the spirit of college athletics. I skied in college and there were pro skiers moving from school to school year after year, which was disrespectful to the kids that were in school for reasons other than skiing, in my opinion

The NCAA eligibility rules should be followed. Basically once you

I just got back into skiing this year after an almost 20 year hiatus and am not near as good of a skier as you are, but have made some great strides this year getting back into the mid 32 off range on average In practice, so there are a ton of people on here who are better qualified than me to comment on this , but I'll chime in any way. Twenty years ago, I always tended to get my eyes cross course, but my hips would fall back. What I was taught this year was to try to look across or pick up the bow of the boat as you exit the turn which gets you outside shoulder back and pushes your inside hip up. When I do it right I tend to finish my turn (which feels slow)and achieve good body position cross course.

I broke two lines this year. Both should have been retired earlier because of heavy use, not age. In my youth (mid 1990s)I bent multiple straight line handles by simply pulling too hard. Back then I was big (240) and strong and skied the course with almost no finesse. Nowadays I am much lighter(195) and ski with a lot more grace and I think the chance of my Masterline custom handle going is slim to none.

I like quicksilver waterman collection Very light and durable No drag at all coming out of the water Can get them at the outlet for a reasonable price too

Double boot keeps my rear heel down

While the EPA is problematic I'd spend more time worrying about the Army Corps of Engineers There's a long intellectually challenging explanation which I'll save for another time

@Horton I agree with you. I almost never drop the handle and almost always go for broke and knock on wood have not had an OTF in a Long time. Frankly the slack hits never caused a problem skiing my consistent passes. on a new pass that is not as smooth, however, can result in skiing straight at 6 ball, still making the exit gates and too much slack line. As the pass got easier later this year the slack problems disappeared at that pass. But they'll be back as I move up. Ski smooth no problems. Easier said than done .... For a guy like me LOL

Try to avoid taking slack hits in practice. I took two going out the exit gates earlier this season when I was really wanting to complete a new pass more consistently and I injured a muscle between my ribs and it has been with me on and off all season. My advice take a hit in a tournament. Let the handle go in practice

Very interested as I am trying to make sound decision when replace our even older boat

I would not cover it. Unless it is shrink wrapped only bad things can happen. I have practiced maritime and recreational boating law for more than fifteen years and I have dealt with numerous damage claims related to damages to towed vessels when covered. Rarely have a I seen a claim related to damage to uncovered vessels under tow on the road or on the water

I just seriously returned to the sport after 19yrs off. I was a life long Kidder guy. Earlier this year I tried a Vapor and a Senate and did not love them. I then tried skis from the D3 family and felt awesome and have been skiing great. I personally discovered that sticking with a family of skis even dating back 20 years made me feel right at home when I returned to the sport. Just something to keep in mind.

Just returned to the sport after 19 yrs and I'm using Wiley's and they are working great. I think they are made with the molds from the old Kidder binding that I used my whole life growing up.

I know very little about engines, but quite a bit about boating safety and have hundreds if not thousands of hours in competition ski boats. I generally have someone else work on the Nautique save for things like oil changes and impellers. That being said I managed to identify the solenoid as a problem a few years ago. Proud of myself, I went to AutoZone got a new one, put it in and problem solved. Does this pose any safety risk? Been running fine for around 5 years with no issues. I'm sure this comment shows my ignorance about engines, but I don't want to burn up my boat or get anyone hurt.

Thank you for the response

I am mounting a Wiley front binding on a Radar Vapor and I am trying to figure out where to measure from. I am assuming that I should measure from the heel of the binding where the rubber meets the inside of the plastic horseshoe on the back of the binding as explained on the D3 website. Can you guys please let me know if I am on the right track? I'm trying some new skis. Will transition to new bindings next. Thanks to everyone.

I don't know, but one of my old kidder's I had as a teenager (1988) had a fin with no holes and a wing. The fin had a triangular shape, every ski before or after has had holes in the fin. I used that ski through 22 off and never had any performance issues.