blagrata

I have used the red 41 Tail gloves for years. XL gloves always fit just right.... snug.. but not too tight. It's time to get the next pair of gloves. I ordered a pair of the yellow ones (not sure what year they are from... but prior to 2019). Size XL... look identical in design... but feel a little big. Definitely a little different size than the red ones. I'm going to send these back and try something else. Just wanted to know if there are any loyal 41 Tail glove users on here that have experience with the fit of the gloves. Has anyone tried a 2019 or 2020 (black ones)... compared to the older red ones? The construction looks a little different. The inside out ones perhaps? Has anyone gotten a pair of gloves that just seem to be cut a little bigger than another identical pair they've had? (Variance within the same year?). I don't live in an area where these gloves are available to try on... so I have to order them. I just wanted to see if anyone had any insight before I spent a bunch on return shipping for several pairs. Thanks in advance.

@Sivota I buy the CBO front binding for my 10 year old. I've talked to Wiley's several times in the past. They said the CBO uses a softer rubber than the high wrap and is more for "recreational" skiers who desire a little more comfort and probably a little easier release. Just depends what you're looking for. I've been getting the CBO for my son since he was 7 and he likes them. Simple... no laces.... no tension adjust... no maintenance.

@UWSkier The course is going to be in Florida. Water might not even freeze where I live in Ohio how things are going so far this winter.

I'm going to help a friend put in a permanent EZ-Slalom course in a couple of months. We're trying to come up with the best way to anchor this thing. The lake has a mucky bottom and the water depth is about 10 - 15 feet. Not a lot of boat traffic. I've read a lot of thoughts on forum with regards to anchors... but wanted to hone down on this. I was thinking that a scrap steel I beam would be a good anchor. Drill a hole and put a length of chain through it to attach to mainline. Has anyone here used beam to do this? The opinions on concrete seem to be mixed since it has some buoyancy. We're a little hesitant to do something with rebar. We have to be able to manage the anchors on the platform of a prostar. How heavy of a beam would we need? 50 lbs? 100? The other guy is scuba certified if that would help anything. I wouldn't presume underwater visibility would be very good though. Thanks for your thoughts. Looking forward to the project!

I regularly ski behind both a 2018 Prostar and a 2011 Ski Nautique. I have always liked the 200 better. To me the wakes feel softer at 15 off 28-34 mph behind the Nautique. Others have skied both those boats and don't notice much of a difference. My wife thinks there's no difference at 26 mph 15 off. Maybe some of it's in my head and I just need to keep on edge. I'd love to come up with a way to do a blinded comparison. I also regularly pull my 9 year old at a full line between 15.5 and 21 mph. He can make the course pretty smoothly. He thinks the Prostar is a little bumpier at 15.5 through about 18 or 19 mph..... after that he thinks they're the same. To me the wakes on the PS do look a little taller at that speed... and further apart. Both boats are awesome to drive. Nautique seems to take a little less effort. Prostar has a great interior.... very versatile. I'm very interested to try the new Nautique 200 someday. Pictures and video look great.

I had the MC dealer replace the wiring on my 2018 under warranty. The remote (by the steering wheel) would turn off every time I started the engine. They said it was a bad design because the starter would draw power and reset the head unit.. or something to that effect. They had to rewire the power. The problem may stem from the fact that these stereo units are designed to be run with a dual battery set up (with the radio running from the house battery not a start battery) on the wake boats. Just got replaced when the boat was winterized.... haven't had the chance to check it out yet.

Evolution covers. Cory made me one for my 18 Prostar. He already has the pattern. It's way better than factory cover

Thanks for your thoughts. As usual there seems to be a several different (passionate ) opinions. I look forward to skiing and driving one. I really like how the 200's ski and drive... and if the wake is even better on this one... I'm intrigued. It's a nice looking boat on their website. The engine and the screen sound good. It does seem like maybe a starboard ski rack would be nice. Glad to see the manufacturers are still making new stuff. New stuff is always fun. And @Golfguy ... I have considered a Prostar.... I currently own one. :)

Now that the boat has been out a year or so... what's everyone's review on the boat? Things I'm particularly interested in... 1) Is the wake the same as the Nautique 200 (original up until 2018)? Any perceptible difference in skiing it or driving it (particularly for 15 off or 26 through 32 mph)? 2) As it should be very similar to the predecessor with supposedly the same hull... and possibly a similar weight... would there be any advantage to this boat vs an open bow nautique 200 from 2017 or 2018? (I understand there are a couple cosmetic differences.. like the saddle bags). 3) Does anyone have one with the tower? Any issues with the tower? I'm by no means a short line skier... but would the position of the tower affect someone who is skiing 38 or 39 off? Thanks for your thoughts... just pondering the next boat...

I had a 2011 VTX.... great boat for freeskiing. It did everything pretty well for a family boat (storage was incredible). Nice to see that they're still trying to market to people interested in skiing! Looks like a nice boat.

perfski and miaminautique are both great sites. Very good if you have a question on stuff. For your location Wakehouse and Bartswatersports are both good too. Their shipping is really fast (nearly next day) because they are close to you.

I think the smallest real kid slalom ski out there is a 63". I got a radar for him. That will be great because they will be able to ski at 15 mph or less. I got my 8 year old a Wiley's rubber binding. They will build one for you as small as you need. I really liked the simplicity. A little binding lube to get into it... then you don't need to worry about laces being too tight or loose. My son has done great on them.

Contact Cory at www.evolutioncovers.com and get a quote from him. I'll bet that it's a better number than the commercial sewing and better for towing than anything I've seen out there. His covers and customer service can't be beat.

Is it possible to take the HRT off of the feather frame boot and mount it to an aluminum frame? (from some other binding I'm not using anymore). I would need an XL boot and they only put that on a feather frame. This is to be attached to an HO ski.

I can vouch for @jcochrane007 and his awesome Response! Go ski with him (provided you meet the criteria set forth)! That boat pulled my first complete pass through the course!

@disland That is true. It is pretty expensive to play nine in most cases... especially with a riding cart. Walking helps and going at off times. My wife and I go walk nine on Sunday afternoon a lot.

@oldjeep I agree... golf is a good walk ruined... by a cart. The suggestion of playing nine is a great one.... especially if people would start walking. That's not exactly good for the course.... they would prefer you take a golf cart and an expensive 6 pack of beer. If people would start to see it as 2 hours of exercise where you don't think you're exercising it would help. 9 holes is about 7-9k steps (more if you suck)... and a few miles. It is unfortunate to see golf declining. Courses are closing all over the place. It will be a long time until it gets to the access problem that skiing has... but fewer choices are never good. Golf unfortunately is relatively difficult... much like skiing.... people in general don't seem to like difficult anymore. There are a few courses around me that have started to promote golf as more of a family sport.... which is fantastic. The courses have promotions that kids can play for free with a paying adult. Putting a golf club in their hand is way better than an xbox controller. I have found if I say that I'm taking my 9 year old to play with me that I get zero resistance from the spouse (who plays too). Much like slalom skiing... golf also suffers from a lack of female involvement.

@mfjaegersr I didn't end up having time to run the experiment in the proper manner. We're always pressed for time... so being able to ski it with the tower on... tower off... and controlling for other variables is time consuming. I also ski two different lakes...as mentioned before... one shallow and one deep. Lots of variables.... and on top of it.. I'm not sure I can be an impartial jury. Hopefully in a couple weeks I'll be able to ski it with the tower off... and then the bow lid off on the shallow lake. As for the Nautique wake @ScottScott .... the 200 has a little movable plate in the back that changes between "trick" and "slalom" configuration. As I move the thing back and forth there is a very noticeable difference. I believe that's how the Nautique gets a better trick wake.

I have and like a fiberglass platform. I have found teak to be slippery. Mastercraft designs the platform well with sides that curve with the surface material... therefore when you hop into the water you don't grind your ski on a fiberglass edge.

@mfjaegersr Try running 22 off at 30 mph and 32 mph. I was banging my head on 15 off 34 mph most of last season. Then I tried 22 off..... feels very different... .and a lot of fun. I feel like it helped my skiing a lot more than struggling at 15 off 34 mph. 22 off at 30 mph came pretty quickly... and i worked my way up to 32.5. You mentioned that 30 mph felt slow.... 22 off will make it feel a little faster. I'm sure others could give you better advice... but changing up the rope length was a lot of fun.

@Horton and @skimtb The colors are Navy and silver flake. I really liked Mediterranean blue... but they discontinued that in 2016. I didn't like how light the other blues were. If I did it again I would probably make the front deck white. I just wanted some color above the rub rail. Grey would have been another decent option. The Navy does pick up some waterspots. Navy and Silver flake looks great together.

@wski1831 I use the bimini poles for trailering all the time. They work very well. Just takes a few seconds to put them on. The bimini then hovers an inch or so above the motorbox so it doesn't get scuffed up. I dislike the Mastercraft factory cover. It put tiny little scratches on the bow cover where it would vibrate against it. It has two poles which are cumbersome. I ordered another cover from Evolution covers. He has a pattern for 2014+ Prostar with or without tower legs. I have a tower strap on the cover to prevent pooling of water if it would sit for a while outside. The cover is awesome... really designed for trailering with felt stand off pads on the side so the cover doesn't scratch the gelcoat. No poles. Very well thought out. Would definitely recommend.

Definitely naked. I had a 2011 Malibu vtx. I had them leave the big "Wakesetter" stickers off of it. Just had a subtle Malibu lettering near the stern. In my opinion the boat looked way better without stickers or graphics. Just a clean hull. The biggest benefit was it was much easier to clean and wax. No residue around the edges. I wish I had them leave these silly raised letters off of the Prostar. They're a pain to wax around. Doesn't do anything to make the boat look better. Going to look especially silly when one falls off and I don't want to spend a couple hundred bucks to replace it. I don't know why so many ski boat owners are tower haters.