david_quail

Oh ,.. it also makes me feel like a huge weenie when my other club members are watching from the dock! And it's a terrible use of expensive engine hours! All good reasons to remedy this problem pronto.

I have both feet in btw. I learned on double boots.

Hi foks, Beginner skier, 30MPH, 15 off. Getting about 4 balls ... although an offside turn gone wrong will get me earlier often. Question about deep water starts though .... which oddly enough I still struggle with. I noticed today that the ski is actually resting against the "V" part of the rope quite close to the handle just as the boats about to "go". This does 2 things: 1. Pivots the ski way out to about 10 o'clock (I'm LFF). 2. The bigger deal, it pivots my body counter clockwise in the water to about 10 o'clock I'm usually able to save it ... but it's always a bit of a battle ... and I crash about 1/5 times because I'm just not balanced coming out. I always thought it was because the boat was starting at a bit of an angle (we're at a private ski lake where the start is pretty tight) ... but realized what was going on today. Not being confident coming out of the hole really gets me off on the wrong foot and is exhausting. Mentally, I'm in the water focusing on the start (rather than the course) ... and once I'm up, I'm just thankful I'm up. I also spin at the other end rather than drop again ... because getting up is such a pain. I'd love to get to a point where the start is an afterthought. Any tips? I seem to have 2 options. 1. Loosen up the ball and extend my legs further so that the ski rests against the straight part of the rope (which goes against the whole "tight and as much of a ball as possible" mantra 2. Hold the handle vertically so the V looks omre like an I ... and doesn't pivot me in the water. Anyone else have this problem? Solutions?

PS . not sure why I decided to stagger my feet in the photo like this .... Trust me ... it looks similar if they're actually in a line ...

Hi guys/gals, I'm a newbie - started last fall, and currently *almost* but not quite running 15 off @ 30mph. So humbled and inspired by you shortliners ... My focus thus far (much because of the advice on these forums) has almost exclusively been body position. I am using double boots, but am wondering if there are people that feel they need to use a rear toe plate to get a slight heal lift to achieve proper body alignment? I consider myself to be very flexible - in particular in my ankles - but it seems like I'm able to a) "stand tallest" when I give myself a bit of a lift and b) put the appropriate amount of weight on my front foot. Which has gotten me thinking about switching to a RTP. Maybe there's others anatomically similar to me??? Or maybe there's something else flawed in my stance?

@Wayne Thanks for this! Talked to the local Shoremaster dealer and they have a vertical lift fitting your description (lift cradle nests inside frame, has a "V" shaped cradle, can remove the legs. They reckon 25 inches of water would do it for the Nautique Ski. Which would be fantastic if it turned out to be true. The good news: our lake is sandy and it'd be easy to move earth. The bad news: I've heard the local authorities can be a bit anal about this, so one's somewhat paranoid about even thinking about it. Thanks again. Hugely helpful.

I'm sure others will offer more insight but for what it's worth, I started slaloming last year and after dabbling with a HO free ride and cx, I went straight into a graphite senate and loved it. Skied at 28mph or 30mph. It handled great, but as I said, I'm a newbie, so can't exactly compare it with a bunch of others. I also tried the hybrid for fun this year (I'm normally a double boot). Maybe it was just me as I have a wide foot, but it was actually pretty hard to get my heal down. A few others have tried it at the ski club I go to with varying succeess. A few like it, a few really don't. It seems somewhat polarizing. My $0.02

@Horton How do your fins clear at 24"? Seems they wouldn't clear the back frame to get into the bunk.

@skier2788 I *think* I understand what you're suggesting. Is there a specific lift / maker that designs an overhead lift? Turns out my optimism of the basta is premature after talking to a dealer. The fins won't clear without 3' at least.

@Horton Thanks for this! This looks promising. Needs just 22" http://bastaboatlifts.com/product/4-5k36-aluminum/

Ugh. Just purchased my first ski boat ever, am super excited, but now dealing with shallow water. Can anyone reccomend a lift / give any advice? - Nautique Ski 196. (draft = 22", weight = 2570lbs) - Lake depth at the end of our 70 feet of dock is 28" - I have to go another 80 feet to get to a comfortable depth of more than 3 feet. We have a Floe lift for our existing Bayliner but I've heard that Shoremaster lifts can operate in much lower depths? ie. taking the leveling legs off, the fins and prop only have to clear a few inches of frame? so could handle 22" + 3" = 25" of water? Other solutions? Much thanks for any old secrets of the trade!

If you have the time (and $) for it, +1 for Crossfit. Lots of anaerobic, pull ups, deadlifts, core, rowing. Plus ... it's a lot more fun than just hopping on the rower or heading to the gym for some pull ups and squats ...

* Update - All great comments above - and hugely appreciated. Took much of it to heart and agreed on a price for a Nautique 96 within my price range (you were right again suggesting I should be able to find one well well within that). Like anything - it's all about balance - and the boat seems like an ideal one for family of passionate skiers (some young who appreciate a nice wake at slower speeds), who have no interest in wake boarding / surfing, and occasionally just want to zip the 4 of us along the shoreline for a joy ride. If all goes well - our family will be zipping across a buttery wake in a week ... and I'll have disposed of my paranoia about submarining the boat.

@Wish I was looking at a 2006 Nautique 196. Beautiful boat but a bit more than what I was hoping to spend.

I should note that we are keeping our Bayliner for pulling the family around ... so the ski boat can be very simple / closed bow. We have a lift we store it on so really can be selective about when to take it out. Maybe I'm being paranoid about getting swamped. But water inside the boat at the same level as outside does not sound like fun.

Apologies if this general question has been asked a million times! Looking to buy our family our first ski boat. A few things: - We are just getting into it - but serious about getting better. Started last august and could barely get up on 1 ski. Finished 5 balls at 30mph after a week this year - We have a cabin at a fairly large public lake (pontoons, surf boats, waves). So our ski time is in the morning. - I'd like to spend ~15-30K - I'd like to get a boat amazing for slalom ... but also one that won't submarine should a surf boat do an unforseen fly by (we'll be smart about taking it out and avoiding traffic / weather etc) but can only do so much. Currently have it narrowed down to a 2002 Mastercraft prostar 197 or a 1997 Malibu Response. My assumption is that they are both great ski boats, and it would be a very long time before I noticed a difference from behind the boat. But that the Malibu would handle an open lake better? Any advice or thoughts thoroughly appreciated!

Started the season late (in August) failing to get up on a singl ski (a combo) 10/11 times (literally). 1 month later can easily complete the mini course. And got 4 balls at 28mph, 15 off. I have no idea what I should set my goals to next year, but it most certainly includes 6 balls @ 30mph+ 15 off.

I started skiing this year and after a couple weekend slaloming on combos went straight into a Radar Alloy Senate. I love it. Stable, wide enough that it makes deep water starts relatively easy and can handle slower speeds. A loooooooong way to go but ran the course at 15 off &28MPH and I have a lot of ski left to progress into.

@wskierman8 Thanks! I try to focus on staying stacked when pulling out initially - but even that could definitely be better. But when angling back to the wake I seem to forget what a stack is. It's essentially the exact same position - except traveling towards the wake and through? Thanks much for the tips!

My big face plant crash at the end of the video is something I've done about 4 times. Seems like it's a symptom of not being stacked? Bending at the waste leaving me subject to the pull of the boat exiting the wakes?

I got up on one ski for the first time 6 weeks ago! Self taught on open lake and tried the course at 27MPH. 2 balls and then wasn't even close (and felt reckless for those 2 balls) Would love some feedback on things to focus on from I'm 6'0, 184lbs skiing on a Radar Alloy Senate 67. Got up on one ski 6 weeks ago and have been out 8 or so times since (behind a Bayliner 135HP - which I know isn't ideal). Seems like I'm not stacked while crossing the wakes (bending forward at the waste). Weight maybe a bit on the back foot too much? Lemme have it! Harsh feedback won't hurt my feelings. Bound and determined to get better. Have done a few cartwheels going over the wakes so would be lying if I said I wasn't a touch nervous crossing them aggressively.

Found it. It's a 2006 Connelly FX. The last year they were made.

@TallSkinnyGuy - Awesome! Thanks for the speedy reply!

My wife was gifted a 65 Connelly slalom ski from her colleague - but for the life of me I can't find online what model it is. I'm trying to determine how appropriate it is for her level. We're both getting back into slaloming for the first time since we were kids. So beginner/intermediate - but highly competitive and have access to a course and boat. She's ~130 lbs and is a former competitive downhill skier (on the canadian national team) - so very athletic - and I think will progress quickly Does anyone recognize this ski?

Same thing here. 10.5 running shoe. All the lube in the world wouldn't have gotten my foot into the 10.5 vapor. And the 12 was way too big (they had nothing in between). I think it's largely because they fit narrow (and I have duck feet)