Shannon

I want first to thank my friends who have made so many nice comments. You know who you are! AND I want to thank all of those who offered helpful advice on my quest to ski the Caspian. I'm pleased to let you know that the mission was accomplished! After navigating some logistical challenges, we were able to find a rent-able Ski-Doo and a relatively calm stretch of beachfront outside of Baku Azerbaijan. With my son driving the jetski, I was able to ski for about 10 minutes with an oil tanker in the background and an offshore platform about half a mile down the beach! So I have now skied on the Caspian, Red, Adriatic, Persian Gulf, Mediterranean, Aegean, and Black. Cheers!

Thanks to all who provided advice. I bought a sport tube, with a TSA lock, and although TSA opened it both on the way out and the way back, and although JetBlue lost it for two days (!), the ski came back fine. Just a word of info: TSA is required to check oversize bags going in and out of the country, and this process may take up to 5 hours at a busy airport like JFK. So if you need your ski to arrive with you, you need to book long layovers.

Thanks so much everyone.

I will be travelling overseas with my slalom water ski next month. I have a soft-sided bag for it, but wonder if others find this adequate for checked baggage on an airline? Or do I need to get a hard-sided case? Any other advice that I need for air travel with a ski? Thanks in advance for your help.

Awww thanks TEL...

Hello all, I'm new to the site but am posting at the suggestion of several long-time members. I am looking to water ski on the Caspian Sea this summer as part of a larger quest to ski on the Ancient Greek Seven Seas. I'm finding it challenging to find a place with a boat or jet ski to pull me. The Caspian is surrounded by Russia, Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkmenistan, and Kazakhstan. From my research it seems that the best bet will be the sea resorts around Baku, Azerbaijan, but I'm open to anything. What I think I need is someone familiar with the area and/or someone who speaks Russian or any of the other languages of the region and might be willing to help me. I'm following up all leads--friends of friends of friends! Thanks in advance for your help.