Jmoski

The sizing instructions want you to measure the actual length of ur foot with a tape measure to insure the best fit, looks like you might squeeze into the 12 shell and xxl liner. The other thing to check is your weight as the guide for setting the tension on the release mechanism tops out at 200 lbs. Not sure what that means if your over that?

If the water is glass I'm skiing regardless of temperatures!

Sweet ride - I have a 2006 196 and love it. Ditto on other comments regarding getting a new trailer. Consider it cheap insurance to protect your new baby - especially if the existing trailer doesn't have brakes. When I bought my 2006 in 2010 it didn't have a trailer so I bought a new single axle performance trailer w/disc brakes and diamond plate side steps for $3500. You might be able find a used trailer for less, but make sure it was designed specifically for your boat. HTH's

In Maine you can ski the course without a spotter provided you have a mirror. You should be able to use this as precendence to help your cause. My friends in NH have been lobbying for the same rule change. The rep they spoke asked "how does this change improve safety". The NH laws just recently changed, it used to be you needed a spotter for EVERY person in tow. So if you have 3 kids on tubes, you need 3 spotters! Now they are atleast back to requiring a single spotter. IMHO, lobbying to remove the observer rule all together would not make the lake safer given all of the Yahoos that are clueless out there.

Can you share a picture of how your connecting the hose to the intake hose? If you don't have a good seal that could be the issue. I prefer to: 1. disconnect the feed hose going into the raw water strainer 2. connect on a 8' section of clear 1" tube (from home depot) onto the barbed connector 3. run the other end into a 5 gallon bucket (suspended from a step ladder so the RWP isn't fighting gravity) 4. secure a running hose into the bucket to supply the water This way you can monitor the level in the bucket to insure it's drawing correctly while you wait to see it start to spill out the exhaust onto the driveway. You have to pay attention though as my boat at idle will draw slightly faster than the hose can supply, so I have to stop every few minutes and let the bucket refill. On a side note, you can pull the AF out the bucket as well with this set up - just make sure you drain all of the water out first and then remove the impeller and rinse it off after your done.

I'm surprised no one has posted with the inverse of this subject: "Skier Needs a Girlfriend"

@Chef23 - sorry to hear that, is that why I never saw you out on Cochituate late this Fall?

I have a 66" Connelly Concept (great non course ski - very forgiving) in decent shape you can have for a Ben Franklin - has Medium front binding & RTP.

FYI - 1. Make sure you drain the raw water out first before you pull AF into the system. If you don't the AF will be diluted and there is no way of knowing what mix % you are left with in the block. The Marine style AF is premixed, so adding water to it compromises the freeze protection. 2. Be sure to pull the impeller and the strainer and rinse the AF off afterwards. I just store the impeller in a small tupperware container with soapy water so it stays wet and is ready for reinstall in the Spring. HTH's

I finally called it this weekend and winterized - it was a good run this Fall in MA.

Hey guys, Just a heads up to avoid these ropes at all costs. I bought one and after its first ski, it was bleeding dark purple dye all over my pristine gel coat and platform! I sent it back and got a new one, it didn't bleed, but i discovered the end caps on the handle pop off if you grab it in the corner after a one handed gate. They pop back on, but it's highly annoying. Also, after only skiing a few sets on it, a loop of white bungie cord popped up through the core of the rope. I sent that one back as well and got a masterline - a million times better... My friend had ordered the same proline rope as well - we tried it today - purple dye bled all over his boat! Highly annoying for an expensive rope. Awful quality... JMO

Still skiing in MA - my boat is a garage queen, hence I can go into early December weather permitting.

IMHO it's critical to drain the block first, and then suck Marine Anti-freeze through the system. if you don't, your diluting the AF and could be compromising the freeze protection. The pink RV/Marine AF is already mixed... After draining, I pour a gallon into the block via the thermostat and then pour 1/2 gallon into the heater lines & the heater. I use an air compressor to first clear the heater lines and then again to push the AF all the way through the heater. This approach for me is faster, simpler and doesn't waste 4 gallons of AF via the pull it from the bucket truck. Finally, to backfill with AF is a commonly debated topic, the most important part is getting the water out...

owners manual on my old GT40 powered SN said "40w40." Straight 40 doesn't work in the north when skiing in November, so I always ran 15w-40 Castrol GTX which has 1300 ppm of zinc... don't let the diesel label fool you on the various 15w-40 brands - the fine print states it's good for conventional gas automobiles as well.

I have one - upgraded from 10 year old F1. Absolutely love it. I was going to get a new Connelly GT, but after I skied a few sets on my friend's '16 lithium vapor - I was hooked.

Lefty here skiing LFF, which like others was a function of being taught at camp to lift one ski while on two to see which felt better. The next step at camp was to drop... I suspect if I had gone straight to learning a deep water start I would be skiing RFF.

FYI - you need to inquire about the OEM teleflex gauges as they all fail on early 2000 - 2003 SN's. if the gauges are not original, it means the hours on the tach/hour meter probably reflect the hours since replacement. Possible the original owner pre-wound the old hours into the new gauge (I did this on my old 2001 SN) - but I doubt it. Bonus of the GT40 is it's an awesome motor - great low end torque and hole shot. Draw back is the hours aren't stored in the motor like they are on the Chevy engines, so you have to trust the hours are correct. Good luck.

I've only skied behind the 200 OB of the three you listed. The 200 is a tractor in the course, it doesn't budge when the skier pulls hard. I thought my 196 resisted the lateral pull extremely well, until I drove the 200. one other small feature on the 200 I really like is the side ski lockers - so convenient with 3-4 skiers in play, no more stepping over skis...

FYI - on the tranny fluid, you can still buy the equivalent of dex 3 - it's labeled Dex/Merc. GM owns the specs and stopped licensing/certifying dex 3 in 2006. So companies that continue to sell a dextron 3 oil can't use the name anymore. Dexton 6 (not 4 - there never was a 4 - they skipped from 3 to 6) is compatible with dex 3 applications, but is fully synthetic. PCM has yet to change their recommendation to dex 6 last time I checked with them directly. that said I ran a season with Dex 6 in my 2006 SN with no issues, but flipped back the next season. Reality is the benefits of Dex 6 will never come into play based on the short PCM annual change interval. my fluid comes out looking as good as when it went in every time....

I vacation up in the sebago lake region, the last time I was on Long Lake the course is on the very north end in Harrison, it's tucked in between the shore and a hazard area. Highland lake has a course on it, also on the north end in the right fork. Thompson lake has a course set up on the south eastern side in a side channel, but that lake often has really choppy water and the course is often curved from the wind. Moose pond, where I go every summer, also has a course on the east side of the main section. if you zoom in on google maps you can actually see the courses! Good luck, JMO

Thanks - I will, my friend just bought a house on the south pond that he just knocked down, so when it's done I will definitely swing over.

Bummer man - are you right next to rte. 9? I took my 2006 196 through that keyhole once - what a pain.