Fam-man

Last evening the lake was 64F in Southeast Alberta Heat wave coming in, expect to break over 70F by the weekend.

On our semi permanent course we use 5 gallon pails half full with concrete. It is a weedy/ muddy bottom and they get sunk in and hold well. On the portable holiday course I use 30 pound river anchors in a sandy/ clay bottom. They hold so well we had a challenge retrieving one. It was on the upwind side and got pushed in pretty hard. Course didn't need adjustment after a week of afternoon whitecap winds.

It is very eye opening when you first start into the course. Here's some things that I did. Ask someone to video you so you can visually see what you're doing and compare to what you see better skiers doing. Hand held with cell phone is good. Compare to others at 15 off instead of pros at shortline Timing is important, learn the swing and speed required. It's better to ski inside a ball and maintain timing than to try and make the ball and screw yourself up. Focus most on position behind the boat, be strong here and speed and width will improve. 4th tip - practice outside the course using drills. Great drills can be found by searching discussions and youtube.

I agree with @vtmecheng was in the same situation a few years ago, realistically you don’t know what you don’t know. Demo if you can. Beg borrow and steal if you can. Buy what excites you. Out of the three crossover brands I went with what I thought was best and couldn’t be happier. Any one is likely more ski than I could fully use at 15 off.

@Horton I've never skied a tournament and haven't even completed a full pass at my proper speed but am contemplating entering the 2018 BallOfSpray cash prize. What's your thoughts on beginners entering this event? There was a post from a couple years ago encouraging skiers that aren't running ultra short-line to enter, how has that gone and is it still encouraged? Thanks

@Spuddy sorry to see that. Slow going in Alberta, we are still frozen over!

Thanks @Horton I appreciate the feedback

Hey Ballers Considering a used boat that has the 450Hp 6.0L in a 2011 Nautique 200? Any thoughts on reliability and longevity with this engine version? Are they very common, I typically see a the 409Hp version. Any other thoughts or words of caution? Thanks

@aspski I’m sure you’re aware of the Predator Bay Waterski Club in Calgary. There’s a few of us in Medicine Hat that have a course in a local irrigation reservoir called rattlesnake lake. We all chip in for maintenance and install/ removal. Reach out if you’re thinking to head this way

@skihard glad to hear of your success, the ice is still 24" thick where we put in our course so my frustration is limited to a short Canadian season. No tips for you beside ENJOY!

I probably had the same set up, mid-90’s Mach 1 with rubber front and rear toe. My rear had a heel cup. Had a few OTF’s that were hard on my front ankle. Been a couple seasons on a radar senate with double vectors. I found the performance, fit and comfort of the vector very similar to the old adjustable, rear Velcro rubber boot. I also found the ski quite an adjustment initially. This season moving to a radar vapor front, haven’t skied yet but do notice it is much stiffer laterally and forces more forward ankle flex. Based on the vector release I’ve experienced and what I’ve read about the vapor I feel much more confident if (when) I crash the release will prevent injuries I experienced on the old gear.

@flanker978 I have a 98 SN196 with GT-40. It tops out at 43mph, we are 4000ft above sea level. Definitely enough for bare footing.

We are a family of 5 plus a 35 pound dog. I’ve always been happy with the ford crew cab based on cab room. The dodge mega cab or new body style crew cab are also roomy. I’ve owned and used 2004, 2006, 2008 gas chev 2500. 2004 diesel chev 2500. 2006 F250 & 2011 F350 ford diesel, 2011 & 2013 Ford F-250 gas. 2007, 2010 and 2013 Dodge 2500 gas. For gas engines I’ve had experience with chev 6.0, Ford 6.2 and Dodge 5.7. I found the ford and chev quite similar for towing a 28 to 30’ holiday trailer at 6000-8000 pounds. The dodge had the least bottom end torque so was always running at high RPM. Got the job done but not as pleasant. I like the ford manual mode for their auto transmission the best, allows to hold a gear for going up and down hills. For Diesel engines ford 7.3 or 6.7 are most reliable. With a 6.0 or 6.4 expect to spend 6-8 grand in upgrades and deletes to get reliability. Nothing challenges a holiday like tow vehicle troubles. For Chevy the 6.6 duramax and Allison are all pretty solid, there were some injector issues pre 2003 and 2006-2008 are the most sought after for reliability and pre emissions. Stay away from tuned duramax unless the transmission has been strengthened. Know the least about dodge although the 5.9 Cummins is very sought after and the 6.7 after 2008 have been very good. The older dodge auto transmissions (pre 2008) are considered a weak point for heavy use. For suspension the chevys ride the best and with a ford I’d either go to a F350 or put air bags in a F250. Also make sure whatever brand is a tow package with rear anti-sway bar.

@sunvalleylaw Enjoy! We've used the 2 truck method for years, travel trailer with one truck and boat with the other. Definite benefits to travelling all together, but we love our trailer. Depending where you plan on going watch the camper and boat hitch weight doesn't surpass the RAWR (rear axle weight rating) of the truck. The malibu & northstar doesn't look that heavy but some 250/2500's are actually pretty light.

Interesting thoughts. What about the expectation for instant gratification? Skiing or wake boarding is rarely an instant success scenario.

Thanks again for the review

i Think this format is amazing! The stop motion, comparison to himself and explanation are amazing. Incredible value.

Not enough. Was slow getting the course in due to wind, availability of partners and family schedule. Never really got going due to water level issues, dry summer meant extra irrigation and drastically low lake levels, moved course twice and pulled it early. See what next year brings.

15 and 22 off. Both turns are even, exit the off side by grabbing for the handle and breaking at the waist.

Oh yeah, after around 10 sets they were definitely looser. I still use soap to get in easier

@vtmecheng I've been on vectors for two years, standard size and I wear a 9.5 shoe so would be in the middle of the spec. I found them hard to get on and use soap to make it easier. I have never had a problem coming out, I run the bottom lace tight and the top bungee snug on the front and the back is all loose. Are you testing when they are wet? They come off much easier when in the lake.

Bought my #1 ski partner her very first ever brand new ski and got her excited about skiing again. Our 9 year old got excited about trying and nailed the rec course. Took advantage of a couple coaching opportunities

Thanks all for your input so far. It went through pretty hard, the tracking fins are beat up, the drive shaft has some gouges in it, the prop is toast and there was mud on the strut and rudder. It drove back to the dock but only at idle and there was significant vibration. Due to water levels cant back the trailer in very far and there was massive shaking putting it on the trailer.

Yesterday my boat, 98 Ski Nautique 196, was driven over a gravel bar. Nobody was hurt and there wasn't much damage to the hull but it was a little hard on the running gear. I've checked the driveshaft with a dial indicator and the total runout is .012" which I believe to be out of tolerance, could somebody confirm this. This measurement was taken close to where the driveshaft goes through the hull. What is the best way to check the condition of the strut? Take the propeller off, disconnect the transmission coupling and remove the packing assembly to see if the driveshaft is centered going through the hull? Is there anything I should do before this step? Is checking the drivetrain alignment done with the coupling completely disconnected or with the bolts just loosened? Thanks

@mopowpow good intel thanks for sharing