Dano

I like how she limits movement and never gives up connection.

I’ve done big moves with both fin and bindings. The goal is to be feeling out the ski and the effects of the changes, not to run a PB. I both cases I was able to run passes it’s not like the ski was sending me out the front or tumbling out the back unexpectedly.

Less is more. And patience.

@Horton I'm sure you are not wrong. But you are a better, more experienced skier than guys like me and have a better feel for the changes. The big move suggestion came from TW who was telling me to do the big moves so that the results leave no mistake as to what the effects were. Both intial moves for me skied terrible but I quickly discovered that one of them did solve the problem I was trying to fix so i just had to make a few tweaks to get it right.

@BraceMaker great advice. Big moves is key. I had a hard time getting it right until i was told to start by going as far forward as I could, followed by as far back as I could get. Thank god I got that advice when i did. I was ready to sell the ski in frustration thinking it just wasn't the ski for me. Got the boot in the right spot and I'm pretty sure this is my ski until it breaks now. turns out a 1/4" in the right direction makes a really big difference.

Second year with a Stokes vest. No complaints, Fits just as good today as it did on day one. super comfortable, foam stays in place, stitching is all intact, colors have not faded, floats me sufficiently. Just really good vest overall.

Have you skied it? Radar boot on radar ski should be pretty good. Myself, I like my radar boot back of factory on other brand skis. I’m 29.25 on my 66” NRG R2. D3 recommends 29.5

@skialexThere has got to be a better way to place/measure front boot location. I’m pretty good at finding the right spot by feel now. But in the past I am sure I rode several skis for the entirety with a poor setup just because I measured and set to factory measurement. I guess I had just assumed that would be close enough for all bindings brands. For a reference I dug out my old A3 that I rode at factory measurement and decided that ski wasn’t for me. I have a Vapor binding on it. I moved the binding back 1/4” and all of a sudden It feels pretty darn good.

@skialex I like that you have done a comparison. I've been using Radar vapor front for a long time. I don't have any bindings to compare it too. But I have had it on 4 different skis. Radar says to measure to the bottom stitch. On my Vapor ski I measured to bottom stitch and mounted as per Radar recommended. It was exactly the middle hole and it skied awesome. On the other 3 skis I have always ended up moving binding back of the recommended measurement when measuring to the bottom stitch by 1/8 to 1/4". From what you are saying it sounds like midway of the heel gives you the same measurement as the Relfex so if you were to measure to the bottom of the heal to locate and use the same measurement the Radar binding would be further back than the Reflex as described. So I can't explain why pulling the Radar binding even further back works for me, but I know going forward does not work. Maybe it's the way the boot holds your foot or the angle of the cuff that is the difference for how it skis?

@Horton interesting observation since I am on the R2 which I think has a deep or larger volume tunnel.

I like to adjust my front boot by how the ski feels/moves thru centreline and out to buoy. If it feels heavy thru centre and/or doesn’t make space or width before buoy, I move front boot back. I don’t know if that’s good advice but it’s what works for me.

Thanks @CBR51

Hi ballers, wondering if there is a course on this lake? Will be visiting the area this weekend.

Ride a different ski for a few sets.

If it’s similar to PP stargazer, and my understanding of PP is correct. As long as your course is mapped they should behave the same in practice mode as they do tournament. If In open water with no course you will get a different pull because there is no timing, so the boat can only react to the skier rather than both the skier and buoy to buoy times.

@scoke i think is bang on. I’m only touching into -35 but even at -32 I find it’s more about managing position, timing and energy thru the gates, so that you can arrive on time at 1. From there things kinda fall into place and the pass feels effortless. If your timing is off or your position is off, or your path is off , it’s extremely difficult to get it back. I can only imagine how much harder it as at -38 and shorter.

The biggest problem is that wages have not kept up with inflation. It was a problem before covid. It’s just plain obvious in the wake of covid. Covid caused people to re allocate funds for things like boats, motorcycles, vacation homes, etc…. Big ticket items. But it wasn’t wages that paid for it. It was generally savings or real estate equity being re distributed via sale or refinance. Now that money is spent and people are left with wages alone and things are tight so spending has ceased. Prices will come down a bit and wages will go up until things become more balanced again, then the cycle begins again where prices will ramp up until wages no longer are sufficient.

@Jody_Seal@Drago Curious as to why you both disagree with using a recommended 3 blade over a 4 blade. When I reached out to Eric at OJ he told me his best prop for me was a 3 blade cnc. If the guy who makes the props himself tells you the 3 blade is better, then why would you opt for a 4 blade? I bought the 3 blade and was very happy with the performance gains, Did exactly what Eric said it would.

Send these guys an email and they will get you the best prop. I bought mine a few years back and it was remarkable how much performance was gained. https://www.ojprops.com

@adamhcaldwell I Believe you that it works, In fact I have read and watched your videos to try to teach myself and it has helped me. My current gate is very close to your description and is miles better than it was before I had read your suggestions. I'm sure it helps even more to get some in person coaching from you on this as well. your coaching might even be crucial if the skier attempting this has less than adequate width, glide speed, rocks to the tail, or has trouble rotating. Coaching from a guy as accomplished as you would surely move those skiers past those mistakes and skiing into better gates in a hurry. Many thanks to all of your contributions to this site. It's very helpful for all of us to understand what it is that you are finding success with.

I think a lot of skiers that are not at the higher levels are perhaps trying what the Adams are describing and it can cause them to rely on the rope for support, and they can be rocking back onto the tail and all kinds of problems from there. I think you have to be able to get the ski turned and set your direction without relying on the rope or rocking to the back of the ski. If you ski at Adams level His description probably works well. For me I have to start thinking of turning just a little earlier.

Had to chime in on this thread again, I'm using a Radar vapor size 12 binding, on a 66" ski with a HRT rear. I spent last summer at stock or forward of stock with my bindings. The ski turned really well but I always felt like creating space was hard. This year a spoke with TW I moved my front boot 1/4" back of stock, suddenly I have space and width established again and the ski still rips turns on both sides, it's so much more fun with this set up. Hope this helps other readers that may be experiencing the same.

I have the x-series and I couldn't be happier. It's a stiffer rope but it has some give to it. My last rope was a syndicate which is definitely stiffer than the x-series.

One of the common things a see skiers do is to ski with their front knee locked out with zero bend, hips back and rear leg bent. Telling that skier to bend their knee, combined with an explanation of why and how can only help them.

Slalom is hard. It takes a person with real drive to succeed and get better at the sport. First to keep at it, 2nd to dedicate the time with early morning sets or late evening sets if you’re on public water, 3rd to invest the money for boat and equipment. It’s not like other comparable sports. Surfing and wakeboarding have that almost instant reward for beginners, and if you don’t get better or enjoy them enough to continue you can still hang with your 10 buds on the boat enjoying the tunes, bevies and the day on the water and both are totally doable on pretty much any public lake at any time. Readily accessible. It’s relatively easy to sell that lifestyle. Slalom made a good push it the early 90’s to create a sellable lifestyle with espn’s hot summer nights. But it didn’t seem to survive the test of time. I for one really miss that enthusiasm. money is not what’s holding the sport back. It’s just that slalom is hard and requires more effort than most are willing to commit to.