srr5008

@Andre Good catch. I'm sure removing the fin would make things interesting, to say the least! :D

@dhofert that would explain my confusion! Guys at Radar suggested I remove the fin. I'll start there.

Binding and fin adjustments appear to be stock. Pardon my ignorance, but i dont see how you would adjust fin depth? Unless the thickness of the ski changes from front to back? (Meaning that moving it forwards/backwards would expose or hide more of the fin)

Full line (sorry for my amateur slalom terminology lol) . I also meant to clarify that I am free-skiing and not running the course. I have not mastered a single-handed turn yet, so I also wasn't sure if that might contribute to me not getting enough angle to keep the ski on edge. However I do ski pretty aggressively two-handed and have never had a problem putting a ski on edge when crossing the wake. Our boat is a jet boat that does not have an ideal ski wake (creates a table that is 8-12" higher than the adjacent water) so being on edge to knife through it is ideal. That's what I am trying to get out of this ski.

I had this buried in my "new ski" thread, and figured my question might get more views if it had it's own thread. I finally got a chance to use my new ski last week (Radar Senate Alloy). Made a huge difference coming from off of my dad's old undersized Cypress Gardens Tech-1. However there was one thing I did have an issue with that I think/hope can be fixed with adjustments. While the ski did seem to corner pretty hard, it felt like I was crossing the wake pretty flat. The ski didn't seem to want to lay over on the edge as easily as my dad's old ski. I was wondering if removing the wing from the fin might help with this? (I've never had any experience with a ski that had a wing) Also, the spotter noted that I wasn't throwing up much water when I skied (compared to my dad's old ski, which was always throwing up a rooster tail). This also led me to believe that the wing might be part of the issue, as I read in a waterski mag article that they recommended removing the wing for throwing up more water when freeskiing. For what it's worth, I could care less about how I look as far as throwing water is concerned, but I would like to see if there is something I can tweak to get the ski to go on "edge" a little more when crossing the wake. The overall ride seemed a bit tamer than what I was hoping for (minus the hard cutting on the outside). For what it's worth, I'm skiing a full length rope @ 34mph.

Finaly got a chance to use the new ski. What a world of difference getting out of the water! Where i struggled before on my Dad's old ski, I was able to pop right up on the Senate. However the biggest differance that i noticed once i was up and skiing was that it didnt seem to want to lay over on the edge as readily as my Dad's tech-1. I was wondering if removing the wing would help a little with this? It still cornered hard when I was turning but seemed to want to level out as i crossed the wake. Any ideas?

Well I know that I got some mixed results on ski lengths, but after talking to the guys at H2O Pro Shop (couldn't get a hold of anyone at Performance Ski) and talking to people directly at Radar Skis I went with the 69" Senate Alloy. Will report back next week once it's in and let everyone know what I think!

Does anyone have any experience with Connellys shadow bindings? The h2o pro shop is recomending them but i can't find much online about them.

I'm skiing on the Susquehanna in northeast PA. Not much in my neck of the woods. And I'm usually getting drug through the water then pulled over forward. Our ski boat is a jetboat with a chevy 350 small block so it gives you a heck of a yank coming up out of the water. I suspect my infrequent attempts combined with bad form are the biggest contributors. Ive just started getting serious about slalom skiing again this summer. If i can get back into fighting shape I'll weigh around 230. Thats part of the reason I'm torn between the 69" and 71"

The guys at h2o pro shop recommended the Connelly V (non carbon) for what it's worth. Of course that might be because my list that I sent them was narrowed down to the V or the CX - never considered that Senate at that point.

Kevin, thank you for the in-depth comment! I actually ski at 34 mph - probably because that is the speed my father was used to when he skied the course, and because the speed is necessary to keep my fat backside above the water on a too-small ski. I've seen last years Carbon V being sold for a decent price, but I wasn't sure if that would be too much ski for me (biggest size is 69" btw).

Thanks for all the opinions so far. Unfortunately no ability to demo in my neck of the woods. Reading up on a couple forums, I saw guys my size/weight getting 69" Senates and doing OK. Think I'd be pushing my luck with a 69" instead of 71"? I'm afraid of the 71" almost being too big for making sharp turns. And thanks for the Wiley's recommendation. They are on my short list for bindings. A lot of the HO and Radar boots are 10-14, and being on the upper range of that size worried me. I did see that HO has a XXL animal boot that runs 14-15 however.

I was hoping to pick someone's brain on choosing a new ski. I am 6'6" and 250 pounds (and dropping). I am currently skiing on my fathers old Cypress Garden Tech-1 ski. I believe it is a 67" (might be 66") and from what I have read that is too short for me. I have not been able to get up on that ski (deep water starts) so usually I drop a combo ski. I can get up on the combo skis most of the time, but because I ski fairly aggressively (at least for my skill level) I get bored on the combo so I stick to using the Cypress ski and dropping. I'm trying to figure out a good place to start with a new ski. I split my skiing time between the river (smooth as glass) and lakes (bit rougher). I doubt that I'll ever ski a course, but I want to progress to more aggressive skiing behind the boat. From what I've read, carbon fiber skis might not make sense for me? I was looking at the Connelly V's or maybe the HO CX. I'm trying to spend under $5-700 on a blank ski. I'm open to buying a more expensive ski (HO CX Superlite?) but as mentioned before, I don't know if I'd see the benefits from carbon fiber. Do you guys have any recommendations? Another struggle is that I have size 14 feet and could use some advice as to which boots run the biggest. I currently have an old Connelly boot that has a latch on the back, but it is a pain to get my foot into and it doesn't release when I fall hard. Any and all advise would be helpful! Thanks, Steve