vtmecheng

All that said, I have heard great things about DJI.

A friend just got one but our season won't be up for almost two months. He got the DJI Phantom 4 pro and it's supposed to simply follow the boat. Not sure you want to wait that long but I can post some videos once we have them.

@tap should stop on by this thread. I recall he has/had done some data acquisition with skiing.

Don't worry about how low it hangs. From pics online it looks like the hitch won't be any lower than your exhaust pipes. You can get a Curt on sale from etrailer.com for $138 and it looks like the thing just bolts right up. No brainer to me if you are at all able to turn a wrench and have someone who can help hold the thing up (the extra set of hands helps a lot). I've used etrailer a few times now and have no complaints.

@mkerzie that's not an upside for the first time buyer of a used boat.

@usaski1 you will find that kind of stuff happens with Chevy, Ford, Dodge, Toyota... It's mechanical and duds come out from all factories. My dad's Tundra had lots of problems. It's a dice roll every time you buy a car/truck.

In the end, boat manufacturers don't care about sport promotion. I know that may seem counterintuitive but hear me out before you hit the disagree button below. Let’s look at a similar market, cars. Lower cost cars for the masses don’t actually make a ton of money for companies, models like a Corolla or Fusion. Where does big money come from then? The high end market like Porsches, the higher end BMWs and Mercedes, and even Lambos rake in money at unbelievable rates. Why is this? It’s all about perceived value and what someone is willing to spend to get a high end name/product. Sure, Lamborghini spends a lot of money on car development and high level components but the markup of what they spend vs the vehicle cost is way above that of a Corolla. So, they make fewer, sell fewer, but end up with nice profits. Maybe that’s what is going on with ski boats? Let’s be honest, all of those electronics that they put ski boats now don’t actually cost thousands upon thousands of dollars. A touch screen, lights, speakers, etc are all minor. Even speed control systems have been around for so long that the price should be small. GPS components are low cost now and the engine control software is really not that complex, not to mention it’s been developed for years now. What I’m trying to get at here is that it’s all about profits for a boat manufacturer. If the boat is considered a high end, luxury item then profits don’t require high volume but high markups due to perceived value. So long as people buy the boats they make at enough of a profit per sale, business is good. Shoot, why do you think there aren’t any lower cost ski boats out there? It wouldn’t be hard to take an already developed OB hull, strip the “high end” materials down some, take off any higher cost bells and whistles, and sell it under a sister brand name to save face. If volume made money or they cared about sport promotion then we would already have two of three of these budget ski boats for the amature who just wants to go out with the kids or friends. I’ll get off my soapbox now, sorry everyone for the rant.

@Horton kids will swim in the coldest temps. Mine will go in until their lips have been purple for a good while.

Not cool @Horton. We still have a couple months before the first pass. I have to like Danger though.

Just wanted to take a moment to send a big shout out to Performance Ski and Surf @perfski for embodying awesome customer service. I recently had an issue with a ski that I purchased from them. They went the extra mile, provided me with options, and made sure I was happier than happy. In the end, Performance Ski and Surf proved why they have stayed in business for 30 years and have so many repeat customers. That's the only place that I'll buy from in the future.

Well, day one post surgery. Ends up the problem was a tack that my body only hall way dissolved. I haven't spoken with the doc yet but he also replaced the mesh with an absorbable type. Either way, it's done now and I have the recovery to work through. I'll have to wait until my first appointment to find out when I can ski again. I'm hoping it won't be too far beyond memorial day.

Love the discussion and so many good points to think about.

Don't be like me @Horton, stop over thinking it and just get a Weber.

Interesting points. I do think the keeping up mentally is a factor. People are embarrassed so easily these days if they don't have something nice. I remember being embarrassed as a kid because we were one of the last to still have a huge station wagon (Now looking back, that was a great car that could take the 5 of us with a ton of stuff, tow a boat, and fit a sheet of drywall in the back). This mentality really does hinder being happy. At the same time, the nice boats keep getting more expensive. Like @gregy said, even pontoon boats can degrade the bank account. I would say that boat manufacturers need to make lower end ski boats but a couple year old Chaparral H2O serious is plenty for just having fun free skiing. Problem is, the cost of tech takes precedence for most. Maybe it's just that people don't want to leave their living rooms. I just am amazed at how skiing is almost unknown these days. So many of my coworkers don't even know what I mean when I say "I was water skiing."

I have nothing to add to the discussion of what is safer. Just want to say this... DAMN! Heal quickly and good luck.

The addiction for instant gratification is a problem today. I have noticed that even when we take people out, they get up, and have fun it's still just a one time thing. Just too much money for most of them to buy into it. All that said, I do wonder why wake surfing has become a go to for those that do jump into water sports. Is it because it's easier to do at the start or because it takes less physical ability? I saw a guy drinking a beer while wake surfing so it can't be too taxing (I haven't tried it).

My wife and I have spent some time over the past year talking about why skiing has lost popularity from our parents' generation. Additionally, we are seeing fewer wakeboards and wakeskates. I have two thoughts on why this is happening. My generation, mid 30s to 40s, isn't buying into boating. I have friends who would love to have a boat and have good jobs but a boat is still out of reach. We have a hypothesis that the popularity of these water sports has declined due to the increased price of boat ownership and the increased cost of living. We spend money on cell phones, internet, and all kinds of electronics that our parents didn't have available. Plus, we spend more for the things they had, like cars, because we "need" all the fun electronics. That takes up all of our disposable income. We can't forget student loans that go on forever. Then, just like cars, boats are more expensive because they need touch screens and bangin' sound systems. Gas is also expensive, impacting getting the boat to the water and your time on the water. It makes sense that the boat would be the first thing to go for most people. My second point is that people are over weight. Water sports are physically demanding and being fat and out of shape isn't conducive to them. At some point, the average person just can't do it without feeling like crap for days, if they can do it at all. The TL;DR: Boating is expensive and we have less disposable income for it. Also, people are getting fatter and physically unfit, making water sports harder. That's two huge hurdles to get past. What do you all think?

This is a great way to learn. The side-by-side view makes seeing the description really easy to understand.

I'm becoming a pro at dealing with post hernia surgery. My doc also uses a mesh that's been around for a long time and hasn't been recalled. I really do think my body simply doesn't like the polypropylene. Either that or I'm creating too much scar tissue. My first one created a lot of scaring too, this surgeon even removed some to help with a but of discomfort I've had for years. Everyone reacts different to trauma I guess.

So the system worked great at one time, now it doesn't. That means the battery is simply going bad, charger isn't charging well enough anymore, a connection has gone bad, or the motor isn't running efficiently. How old is the battery? That's the most likely culprit. Batteries are only good for so long, especially if they get drained down too far over and over (even a deap cycle). Also, take a look at the connections while in there to make sure everything is clean. Start with the simplest and most likely causes. Edit: I didn't see your last post that the problem is solved with a new battery. Glad you got it solved.

Make sure the battery is a deep cycle and the biggest you can get, want to afford, and carry. Also, how far is the doc from your house? It would have to be really far for me to not just have power run down there. You then have the added bonus of a small fridge and lights.

The mesh used before isn't recalled. The current surgeon was thinking back to when he put the mesh in and remembered that the polypropylene stitches that were in there from the last food attempt weren't as incorporated as he would have liked to see. He just thought it was due to me ripping through them, around 40% of hernias fixed with stitches fail if I'm remembering correctly. Now he is thinking that my body doesn't like polypropylene. Going with an organic mesh this time.

I get to up my surgery count to six just after Christmas this year TL;DR I had an inguinal hernia fixed back on 2004. One of the incisions was at my belly button and I got an incisional hernia a year later, which was again repaired. Fast forward to last year, and that same incisional hernia at my belly button was back. New surgeon put a poly mesh in. About 4 months ago it started hurting just a little, then I got a popping feeling when I took deep breaths after a workout. Think it first started after a morning on the course. Luckily they can be felt on the outside so everyone believes me. Surgeon doesn't know exactly what could be causing that but all his theories necessitate going back in. He wasn't going to at first but it's getting worse now. Doc is really working with me. Gave his personal cell so we could talk through the plan and ask questions. Likely going to replace the ploy mesh with an absorbable one. Good times.

Get a Weber, don't think twice about the extra cost. I still have a 3 burner Weber that's from the late 90s. Thing still works great and I can get parts when a consumable part fails. They simply work well. If you want smoke in a pinch just add a foil pack of chips under the grate, right on the flavor bars. Doing something quick like a steak, you don't need to replace the chips in that short time.

Looks like some serious smokers here. I've gotten into meat smoking a number of years back and really researched hard. I get what you want, easy and quick. The first you can get but the second really doesn't work. Smoking is all about low and slow, time with the smoker and a beer. A pork shoulder takes 12+ hours, brisket maybe 9 hours, pork ribs take 4-6 hours. If you just want to add a little smoke to a steak just add some chips in a foil pouch near the fire. Now if you want to get into smoking, we can get you going right and it doesn't have to be hard. A lower cost option is a gas fired cabinet smoker, like one from Landmann. They aren't the best but they work and are easy to use. I've had one for maybe 7 years and made lots of great meat. Feel free to message me any questions you may have, I love talking smoked meat.