Lobonator

@Woody74 I think a senate or an omni would be awesome. If you can wait a little longer, I believe the 2019 senate will be using the 2018 vapor shape, but a tiny bit wider. I just bought a 2018 Vapor, and still ski mostly open water, but absolutely love it. I can only imagine that the 2019 Senate will be the ultimate open water weapon.

@Agobran I think a senate would be a good choice. Best thing is to get out and ride a few for a few passes. Every ski will ride a bit different from person to person, so although all of the recommended skis are awesome, you might like some particular skis better. Earlier this year, I was pretty much deadset on buying a 2017 lithium senate, but after demoing the senate and vapor back to back, I liked the vapor 10x more. As far as picking up damaged skis I would stay away from that, just cause you never know. There is a site http://discountwakeandski.com where I saw some pretty good deals on blemished graphics stuff.

Welcome to the BOS! As most here will agree, you will definitely get substantially better performance from a newer ski. At $500 I'd look for something used on ski it again. And definitely be ready to become addicted and humbled by the course when you give it a go!!!

@Woody74 What boat will you be skiing behind for the most part? I had a freeride when I was behind an I/O and it was good, not made to go fast and make hard turns behind an inboard like a more traditional ski

I'm very new to the course! First thing that everybody says to me when they tow me through the course, is to not focus on rounding balls. Most important is to get the set rhythm of the course, compared to the lack of rhythm in free skiing.

@ballsohard I've found the same thing on my HO freeride. I think the clean edge that HO uses on these skis releases the water at mug lower angle compared to other skis. Definitely not the best for impressing the ladies!

Unreal! @tjm I will get out for a set as soon as my ski comes in this week and let you know if you missed much by getting the lithium!

@tjm awesome! Do you still find the lithium quick crossing the wakes? How's it int he turn? Haven't heard too much about the 2018 lithium compared to the pro.

@tjm I just ordered a lithium after demoing the probuild a few times. How are you finding the lithium so far?

@GZ22 if that's the boat you're behind, I would go as far as to say. Get something a title more traditional for people who want to learn. I've found the transition to a proper slalom ski from the freeride to be a little tricky because the feel is THAT different. When doing back to back passes on the freeride and a radar strada, I literally felt as if I could not move to either side on the strada. I personally think the freeride, is ideal for people who like to ski but have either an I/O or a bribe vdrive with less than ideal wakes for slalom, but still want to ski. *** still think the freeride is awesome for its purpose those so definitely not bashing the ski!

@GZ22 do not get a Freeride if you have goals of skiing the course, or at speeds of above 26ish. The ski gets extremely skittish at those speeds (30+) and will not turn well for you. To me it feels like being on ice. The ski is designed for having fun behind any boat in a wide variety of conditions. And for that it fits the bill really well. I have one and love boosting off the wake on days when it's choppy. And to reference your desire to put up walls. The "clean edge" on the freeride releases the water at an angle that does not put up the most impressive wall.

@34mph it was the pro build. But was told that the 2018 lithium vapor will still feel very close to the pro build in the turn. Just not quite as quick accelerating cross course.

You could maybe try off of a regular tow tube. I know people who have learned to barefoot by starting off of a tube.

@MuskokaKy I didn't see him ski either, but heard from multiple people on the dock. I was very ready to buy the lithium senate that day, but made the mistake of trying the vapor... the difference was night and day even when skiing at 30mph.

I was told at Radar Nation Day last week that JMac ran 39 on the 2018 Senate Lithium.

I've dislocated my left 4 times now. And would highly recommend being diligent with the physio to make sure it's good and strong after the first time. Mine subluxes (comes partially out of the socket) quite often, and now have a torn labrum. With consistent physio I think you could be back by September for sure though! Best of luck in your recovery!

@skihart @vtmecheng it's starting to look like the relocation was a good move. The weather for this weekend looks amazing, so I'm gonna be getting a tonne of skiing in! So pumped!

Thanks for all the comments everybody! Really appreciate the help. Im going to be getting out for my first ride of the season this weekend, and will pop over to McClintocks next week to see what the Radar stuff is like over there, hopefully get a test ride in. My new office is only a 5 minute drive away, so this could be deadly!

I am in a similar spot as you, after skiing on an HO freeride for a few seasons. After trying my friends strada, I knew I needed something more course oriented. The strada is fast as hell, and pretty twitchy in my experience. Old-time what I've heard the newer stuff is just as fast if not faster because they are more controlled. As somebody mentioned above the HO Omni line is supposed to be pretty awesome. I'm pretty much set on picking up one of those. Hope this helps.

Early 2000s Malibu Sportster LXI wouldn't be a bad option. Great ski wake for slalom and babysitting. And with what you'd save you could easily add a wedge and tower to test the surfing/boarding side of things

Thanks for the info guys! Happy to get confirmation on that. I will be looking to pick one up in the next few weeks! Definitely gonna go for the Syndicate version @vtmecheng. The only other ski, that I've seen that kinda fits the same bill is the Radar Senate. What do you guys think about the Senate for what I'm doing? @sivota @blakeyates @block

Thanks @block. As many other members here have noted the lines are pretty blurred between what limit, or speed all of the different skis can be skied to. Do you think the Syndicate version would be too much ski?

Hey everyone, I've been a silent listener on the forum for awhile and have learned a ton from you guys! I'm currently strictly an open water skier on a 67" HO Freeride. I'm 6 feet and around 160lbs. My tow time is split between an I/O bowrider, and a Malibu sportster lxi. Recently I've relocated within a very short drive to McClintocks Ski School and am looking to get something that will help me get into the course. When I ski open water I am almost always skiing at 34mph, but find my free ride gets really squirrelly when I'm going at faster speeds behind the direct drive. I'm not looking to compete by any means but would like to run the course if I'm on a lake with one. Do you guys think the HO omni syndicate or carbon is a ski that would be a good match for what I'm trying to do? And will I have any issues mounting Radar Profile Boots onto that ski? I'm open to any other suggestions you guys have as well! Thanks in advance, Aidan.