KRoundy

This first skis in my mind were the Kidder Redline and the Jobe Honeycomb. My dad has one of those O'Brien Mach 1's in his garage. His ski collection from the 60's and 70's is quite spectacular. I was thinking that the HO Mach 1 from the 80's was a pretty popular ski in its day too.

That's it. I'm going to take off the size sticker at least. I wonder why I have not done so before?

That Carbon V was wild. Not only was there the v-tail but it had "rails" that were part of the tunnel on the bottom of the ski. I skied it and actually thought it was a pretty good ski for the day.

Is there another forum here where there has been a discussion about the different shells and how they fit? I've heard bits and pieces here and there about shells, liners, heating and I am willing to admit that I'm very intrigued but also a bit wary of all the options in front of me. Where do I start? What would be best for me? Things I think about include: my foot size/shape, my skiing ability or lack of the same, my preferred double-boot setup, etc?

@jrs Thank you. $9.99 with 2-day shipping via Prime. I've been fighting elbow pain for a while and hope that this helps. Going to stop the pull-ups too. Man, does getting old suck.

I skied November 10th and 11th before we pulled the boat. Air was in the 50's on Friday and in the lower 40's on Saturday, and the water was about 52. The lake was like glass on Friday. Simply amazing way to end the season and start on my winter workout program to ski more in 2018!

Praying for you from Seattle!

That is a well-deserved tri-panda. :smiley:

I thought that the e-Nautique/196 was good for a few passes before the battery gave out. Am I wrong there? I could see technology improving to where an e-boat working for a few pulls in the morning, but for tournaments or pulling a club all day we'd need multiple boats or a way to swap out batteries (very heavy batteries with current technology). Boats use a LOT of energy to move at 36MPH. Cars/truck can lug around heavy batteries with almost no penalty, but ski boats need to be light and powerful. I think eventually we get there. Would LOVE to see a breakthrough in power storage technology that could make this reality.

Turned 50. After toying with skiing again the last few years (after basically not skiing for 20 years) I finally took the plunge and decided to really improve. Skied multiple times per week from May forward. Lost 20 lbs with the purpose of skiing better. Got into a course and got 2 at 30 MPH. Long ways to go, but enthused about what the future holds.

I think you might be surprised in the difference between a squishy wakeboard handle and the grip available on a solid, well-made slalom handle.

This is awesome. Thank you for posting it. I am just getting back to skiing now and just had a very humbling weekend at a private ski lake. But I am improving and this note really gives me the motivation to keep working at it. Thanks!!! Just for my information - how do you video your sets? I know that this is something I should be doing. GoPro? iPhone? Other device? I'd like to know what works, without having to spend stupid amounts of money. Thanks! Kevin

A few questions - 1. How much do you weigh (I won't judge, I'm 250 right now - going down but still not where I want to be)? 2. What brand/model/size ski do you have? 3. What type of handle are you using? 4. What type of glove are you using? I had a very embarrassing time at a private ski lake a couple of months ago. I had a new pair of MasterLine ProLocks (similar to the Radar Vice above). No matter what I did I could not hang on to a handle at all. It felt like everything was covered in soap. So, I came here and quickly got a reply that when using a new pair ProLocks the strap needs to be sanded first. When brand new the strap is too smooth and slick. I got out my sandpaper and it completely fixed the problem. I have much better traction now. Also, I skied like crazy this summer and have a lot more strength in my shoulders, arms and hands. Exercise helps. Finally, do work on the techniques mentioned above. Even at 250 I can pop out of the water pretty quick now with better technique. Stay tight, knees in, pressure on my front toes. Just FYI - Double boot/Radar Senate/71".

@srr5008 As @SkiJay said, I'd cautiously avoid going too small at your size. If you lose a bunch of weight it will be an excuse to go buy a new ski! I know that my prize for hitting my goal weight will be a new, shorter, ski! :) Good luck and let us know how you do! As for getting pulled out the front - it helps for us big guys to have a somewhat slower pull-up. Have the driver start with not too much throttle and then slowly just keep rolling it forward as you gain speed. You have a lot of mass to both accelerate and also work to get on plane. F=MA (Force = Mass*Acceleration), right? Your (and my) "M" is much greater than others, for the force needed (by the boat and our hands/arms) is much greater. Slowing down the "A" will help with the force part. Just my .02 cents and some recent learnings. Keep on skiing, try our some new larger high end skis and let us know how it works!

@eddie_roberts_jr - Is that true for my 2015 Senate Lithium as well (that it is simply a stretched 69")? And after reading Jay's comment I suddenly want to try out a 2017 Senate...

If you can find a way to demo skis (where do you ski?), it seems like a run-off between a V and a Senate might be a good way to go. It also might be interesting for you to try a 69" ski and a 71" and see which you like the best. The extra length will certainly help you with the issue of getting up. Curious - how do you struggle to get up today? Do you simply get drug through the water until you need to take a breath? Do you have the handle yanked from your hands?

Preparing for the internet to break..Can't wait to hear more!

@srr5008 A graphite or alloy 71" Senate will turn on a dime for you. I'm 6'-1" and currently down to 257 (from over 270), so I'm right at your weight. I have a 2015 Senate Lithium and I have skied it happily for the last two seasons (working on number 3). The Senate shape is the same as the Vapor, but is 0.2" wider. Put 4 pennies together and look at how "thick" that stack is between your fingers. That is the only difference in shape between a Vapor and the Senate. So what I'm trying to say is that the Senate is a pretty high end ski. There are videos of Horton running a Senate through a course at 34 MPH. I love my 71" ski and think you would too. I can't image going down a size until I'm well below my current weight. I think of the Senate as the perfect high-end ski for big guys who do more than recreational slalom. If I get below 200 lbs some day I'll consider something else, but at 50 years old, I don't think I will ever need a Vapor or other rocket-ship ski. I'd probably just get a shorter Senate and move my boots over. Another factor you do not mention is skiing speed. If you are not in the course I would assume that you are skiing at 30 - 32? That reduction in speed means you need more surface area under your feet and a 71" ski will help. The 71" ski will help you getting up. If you want to get up more easily, and then ski as hard as you want I think you'd be happy with a Senate. I have size 11 or 11-1/2 feet, so I don't have your boot issue. Others can help you there, but I would not worry about how sharp a 71" Senate will turn. I don't work for Radar - I just love my ski! I've seen others ride the Carbon V and have heard good things about it as well. I'm not sure what sizes it comes in. Kevin

Good tips, Ed! Thanks!

I'm not saying that technique had nothing to do with my problems a few weeks ago, but the slickness of the gloves were in my opinion 90% of the issue. I've had zero problems getting up since I took the sandpaper to my gloves. I'm also down a few more lbs, which always helps. :wink:

Went skiing this morning and I'll try to catch up. The sandpaper worked. I skied for a bit, fell and then got up again. So the problem is solved. My hands were pretty worn out / weak when I was struggling last weekend, but with the sandpaper fix I can get up barely using my fingers at all. I just let the gloves do the work. The gloves work well. I have an In-Tow team handle made by Brenda just for me, so no foam/squishy issues. It is a solid handle. I ski with a double-boot setup. As far as technique goes, I get in a little ball and keep the ski in front of me. It has been so long that I have had to think about getting up that I don't know I can describe what I do well. I just get up. That was what was so weird about last weekend when the handle kept slipping out of my hands. The glove is certainly not too long. My fingers easily reach the end of each finger of the glove. If anything the glove is slightly small. I've noticed that you have a huge dowel there. Is that a different option to try with my gloves? The rope feels like it is way out on my fingers when it is "locked". I'm getting used to the feeling. I'm happy to be skiing again! Boy are my arms tired today. :smiley:

@OldboyII Thanks. I do understand that. I have spent some time on land getting a feel for how the gloves work. It definitely helps. When I was struggling to get up I could feel the gloves get to that point where they should lock, but then they would just slip out of my hands. I'm fairly convinced it was that the strap was too smooth. I am planning to give it another go this weekend with my newly sanded gloves and am hopeful that there will be success. I saw on another thread that Masterline might be updating the design? I will be curious to see what comes next.

I'm working on the weight loss! 10 lbs in a month is a good start, but I'm not going to magically be 225 tomorrow. I've sanded my straps and they feel completely different. I'm also still not convinced that I didn't get a size too small. Will go try on an XL pair and see if the strap feels like it lays more like I think it should. I'll keep everyone appraised of what happens. I appreciate all the advice and encouragement! Thank you all.

Eric, can you post a picture of what you do with the rubber bands?

Oh! I've never seen that advice before. The gloves have only a few sets on them. When I was struggling I kept telling my friends that the handle or the gloves felt like they were covered in slime. What you say makes perfect sense. I will rough the straps up with some sand paper and give that a try. Thank you very much, 6balls!