gcam4

Full disclosure, I am not really a course skier. My sister has the Nautique cruise on her 200 and I don't care for it. If the driver doesn't pay attention you can overshoot your speed really easily. Another issue is that the speed is off. It could be corrected though easily though but my sister is too stubborn to let me fix it. We've never had it in a course so I cannot comment on it there.

Man that sucks! Hopefully you can get everything fixed up quick.

Not a paragon iirc. They had the flat curved windshield. Beautiful boat though, reminds me of a Riva.

@dbski a ton of detail! Awesome work!

I think the biggest thing for me is: 1. Practice more often as mentioned above. That is really hard for me as well. 2. Know what drills etc you plan on implementing. 3. Have your equipment prepared. Don't make changes right before your first pass. 4. Most importantly, execute 1-3 better than I do.

@RazorRoss3 congrats! I'm sure you will have plenty of fun in Austin! Awesome music, awesome food, and I'm sure some awesome skiing!

@Jody_Seal @storm34 I would have to say a ZR6 in a late 90's 196 would be impressive! I will say I would rather have that engine architecture instead of the SBC excalibur. On that same note an excalibur would still be quite nice.

@Emmababel there are several lakes in Grimesland, which is outside of Greenville. One of them is named Lake Kristi, which is Kristi Overton's lake, at least it used to be. They held a US Open there in the 90's and I was there for that. I've never skied there, I've only skied on the Tar River which is a great place to free ski.

@Jody_Seal will a PCM ZR6 fit into a late 90's 196?

@waterskicorey the only downside I see to that is if they welder doesn't do a great job with gas coverage while welding they will rust. Albeit, probably not enough to worry about though. You also have to make sure what grade of SS you're using.

@lantley I absolutely need to work on this as well. Maybe one day we can meet up and work on this together.

Fogman's also use the weld on nut if I'm not mistaken. They machine a counterbore slot in the hardshell so the insert slides in it and it doesn't spin.

I would assume McMaster Carr would have them, but I'm unsure what they are. They do have about anything you could ever need though.

@Howa1500 I think you made a great decision, boat looks awesome. Enjoy!

Not a problem. Let me know how it is, we're in the market for a house, but we think we have made up our mind for the north side of the city. That's where all of my work is anyway...

@lantley - from what I remember it's in the catawba river entering wylie. It's in the 2nd section of that cove. It's right off the end of Paschall road. They may have removed it, I cannot see it on Google anymore, but i know that doesn't mean much. I know they have built some neighborhoods right there and maybe it is no longer a viable location.

@DmaxJC_ski - thanks for the encouragement, I will keep working on it. @OldboyII - I know I don't lift my heel now, because of my binding setup. I still have to think about the physics aspect some more...

@gregy I use fogmans so that limits my ability to change things. I want to upgrade but it's not in our budget right now. Next year will be different though! I can probably add something to the inside of the boot though. @ToddL my binding setup dictates what I can do. I will think about how I can do something to try a wedge. @mrtoueye nice place, unfortunately I live in Charlotte NC @OldboyII I will have to think about that. Maybe @Horton can comment?

The one that I know of on Lake Wylie is right by 74 and 485. I'm unsure of others. I've actually never been on Wylie but the course is clearly visible on Google maps. I don't think you can get to the north end of Charlotte in 30-60 min so that limits you, but there is one on Davidson Lake and several others on LKN. I am unsuure where the ones on LKN are.

@OldboyII I always stretch before I squat and it has done little. I guess I need to be much more diligent throughout the day. @gregy what do you mean by lifting their heels? Running a toe plate and just lifting it or are you talking binding setup? @mopowpow I will start working on my calf area some. I will say I don't feel any issues in day to day life. Nothing hurts or feels tight necessarily. I have rolled my calf in the past and don't ever remember getting a release.

So for several years I have struggled to get on the front of my ski and I instead ride the back a tremendous amount. I am really starting to wonder if my ankle mobility could be a reason for this. Another thing I am thinking that could be leading to this is that I use fogmans because of 2 previous broken ankles while skiing. I do struggle at the gym while squatting and after doing some net research, I believe my ankles could be some of the problem. So does anyone have any pointers to help me get more on the front of my ski? Or, in gaining mobility? Fwiw, I just free ski, but hope to get back on the course soon. My wife and I contemplated getting some lessons this summer but instead have decided to save as much money as possible for our first house, hopefully a lakehouse. Thanks

@RazorRoss3 I would have to agree with @lantley. If you work in the financial sector of Charlotte, somewhere on the Southside of would be ideal which would be something like Fort Mill. I've never been on Lake Wylie, but I know they have at least one course very close to 74 and 485. If you decide to move down, let me know we're currently looking to buy on the north side of town on a another lake. I sure could use some pointers!

The banking industry is really strong in Charlotte, NC. I don't work in that industry but they employ a ton of people.

@webbdawg99 I believe it was a centurion that had one of the tracking fins as an additional rudder. Was Rob at centurion ever? Not sure if you are talking about something else.

Smaller ski boats are not that bad to dock and maneuver, but large surf boats are a pain. My nephew grew up with ski boats and he now has a huge surf boat and it took him a while to figure it out. I will say that mercury has had a system out for some time for outboards but I believe it incorporates a bow thruster. Watching our close friends who have a large offshore center console makes me envious on how easy it is for them to dock it. @Than_Bogan is on to something with the spouse comment though. It was quite windy yesterday and my wife gave up trying to dock the boat and turned the duties over to me.