Thomas Wayne

I don't see anything wrong with it at all. It's got stuff about waterskiing and a great shot of a big boob...  Not only that, you can even see Pam Anderson down in the corner! TW

If it were for my site I would design & build it myself. However, when I suggested that he felt that he needed to move immediately because the window for building the boathouse over solid ice is closing soon. TW

A ski buddy of mine is getting ready to build a covered boat house adjacent to his dock and wants to include an overheard boat lift system. He specifically wants one that raises and lowers his boat on a cradle (similar to his boat trailer), rather than using lifting hooks, and he asked me to seek out advice from this forum. Has anyone purchased and installed one of these, and if so who was the vendor and what are the specific features you'd consider important? TW

Getting caught trying to put your pants on in a dark closet with a pocket full of change. TW

Occasionally a slalom skier has reported breaking a fin off in mid-course. It's never a pretty story. That said, the only time I've ever run six balls at -39' was on a Kidder Redline Pro-Graphite 42" trick ski (at ~ 18mph). TW

We've compiled data from every water safety study I could find. Surprisingly few states keep detailed spreadsheets on water skiing injuries -preferring simply "water skiing" as the cause of injury. A number of states will list the sub-category "rope/handleinjuries", and a few actually separate out "body part throughhandle" as an independent cause. It might be noted that suchannual state records can only be of the accidents severe enough to seekemergency medical attention, so that the accident report manages to get intothe state database to begin with.  Extrapolating the data from the few states that do keep suchdetailed records, and adding in the many, many stories we've heard or read fromour customers we estimate the number of arm-through-handle accidents,world-wide, to be several dozen per year. These injuries range fromsevere bruising all the way to loss of functional use of the limb. Head-through-handle injuries, such as those that killed Scott Worthingtonand Brent Yager, are much rarer - though they almost always make the news inone way or another. When a water-skiing accident is fatal, annualstate reports generally lump these into the "Recreational BoatingDeaths" category, or into a "Water skiing Deaths"sub-category without additional details. Historically, survival is the leastlikely outcome of a head-through-handle fall. Around 30 years ago I was scheduled to go in for some sort of surgery and afriend of mine asked me if I would be under general anesthetic (completely “out"). When I said that I would be he said, "Don't do it. Some people gounder like that and never wake up." I told him I had researched abit and the chance of that happening was on the order of one in ten thousand. He replied, "Yeah... but if it's YOU it's a hundred percent!" That same math applies to handle injuries.TW

Check out older footage of Deena Mapple (post Andy hookup) if you want to see palm-up/palm-down control. She would roll her palm-down hand over in a very dynamic fashion as she extended it out (and the reverse on retraction), and I'm pretty damn sure that wasn't an accident.  TW

Frankly, having had my arm caught in the handle before, that picture scares the hell out of me. Now, before anyone jumps on me claiming that I am trying to discreditthe idea simply because it might compete with our ARM-GUARD, I'd liketo point out that in the past I've published photos and contactinformation for competing products that I felt could improve handle safety. In this case, however - while Brenda's design obviously reduces the likelihood of getting one's head through the opening - if you get your arm inthere you may be in very serious trouble. When a skier falls and hisarm inadvertently goes into the bridle opening, it will generally comeback out pretty easily. Some level of injury usually occurs as it'syanked free, but rarely is the skier caught up enough thathe'll be dragged behind the boat. With this design I think there is amuch greater chance that a skier's arm could be pretty seriouslywrapped up in the whole thing. Aiden Willers, the skier from New Zealand who was injured at lastyear's Princes Cup (UK), reportedly fell in a twisting fashion suchthat the handle slid all the way up to his armpit as he landed on hisback. If I understand the descriptions I've been given, this meansthat his arm was in a position to be yanked with extreme force prior toreleasing. Of all the arm-through-handleinjuries I've chronicled so far his seems to be the worst, with severemuscle and ligament tears and a ruptured artery that nearly resulted inamputation. Even after several surgeries immediately following theaccident it was still unclear [at the time] if he would keep the arm ornot. I suffered an upper arm fracture that was clinically described as"just about as bad as it gets". I don't ever want to get my armthrough the handle again,and I especially don't want to be dragged down the lake if I do. This design does not, in my opnion, appear to prevent either. TW (PS: I like Brenda and I think she offers excellent ropes, handleassemblies and other products, and I would recommend her work toanyone; I especially like her mainline/shortline ropes, and considerthem the best we've ever had.)

I've said this before, and I'll say it again: I'll eagerly study anything Bruce Butterfield chooses to write about slalom technique. We keep well-worn printouts of his past essays handy when we go skiing - they live at the top of the library stack at my lake. TW

I've designed a number of logos for other companies over the years, and I started in on one for BOS, but then I realized that I already have a copy of "Evolve", so my interest kind of tapered off. I'll bet a new RS-1, A1 or Elite would fire me back though... TW

It's actually cool to hear Andy actually talk about how the ski was actually designed, and how the process of RTM molding is actually accomplished, but as I actually listened to Andy's presentation I was actually thinking that the O'Brien PR team ought to actually consider actually scripting videos like this one so that the presentation would actually seem more professional. Then Andy would actually sound like the educated man that he actually is. As it currently stands it was actually a little bit painful to actually listen to after a while. That's my two cents worth... um, actually. TW

Good to hear. We still need dimensions of your spare handle... TW

Yes. As the designer and manufacturer, we will provide a one paragraph prologue about the product, which will include our interpretation of cherry-picked comments made by you (the "tester). Following that we'll provide three or four paragraphs describing how great our product is and how & why it is so well designed. I'm sure the buying public will find that particularly helpful... TW

I want to to know which ski cuts through that Ski Park ice the best. TW

Sure, "everyone is entitled to their own opinion"... now. But when I posted that I was disappointed in the results [on a different forum]I took nice slap in the face for that opinion. Of all the posts in this forum that I've read so far, BruceButterfield came the closest to expressing what I would consider a usefulformat. When I read various posters on this forum - and Kent's - I see anaverage demographic that is NOT in the upper echelon of slalom skiers. That's not to say that we don't have some -38', -39' and perhaps even oneor two -41' skiers checking in around here, but I think it’s pretty safe to saythat there are a lot more -28' skiers here than there are -39' skiers in thebunch. A couple of years ago a good ski day for me would be running deep into -35 oreven sneaking over into -38'. Post-catastrophic arm injury I now considerit a good day when I break halfway through -35'. So it's really hard forme to feel I get much out of a ski "test" that features theone-or-two-sentence comment(s) of a top level skier, followed by several paragraphsof puff and fluff from the manufacturer [of that ski]. This offering - nodoubt carefully written to fit into the WSM zero-offense formula - providesalmost nothing for me to sink my teeth into. That's my opinion, and it is undeniably negative. However, I also haveanother opinion that I hope can be seen in a more positive light - I certainlymean it in that way. That opinion is about how I think a true"independent" ski test (review, or whatever) should beconducted. I believe that a broad spectrum of skill levels should berepresented in such a test. I mean all the way down to first-year courseskiers through -39" skiers... and beyond. I think some readers givea damn about how easy (or hard) as ski is to get up on. I think somereaders give a damn about what speeds work best with any given ski (I know Ihaven't personally skied at 36mph in almost twenty years). I think some readers give a damn about fitand finish of a ski, about whether it tracks straight or hunts for an edge,about how easily adjustable the fin is… What I find ironic is that there are almost certainly far more sales to hadfrom the –28’ crowd than from the –39’ crowd. Tadd, (who sells skis for a living), and the manufacturers (whoalso sell skis for a living) should care about that. It’s “business sense 101â€Â, in my opinion. Reading “I average 5 buoys at –28, and Ifound the D3 X5 worked better for me than any other ski I tested†(for example)has got to mean something to a reader who is just breaking into –28’ andtrying to find his next ski in a row. On the other hand, reading that a particular ski “really has ears†mightnot carry that same impact. How difficult can it be to create a simple questionnaire for each tester tofill out for each ski he/she tests that addresses these many issues? Include a gradient scale for the many and various performance aspects. Do a little math and crunch a few numbers. Horton did it (or something similar) and inmy opinion it worked. There’s certainlynothing wrong with giving the manufacturers a place to spin their wonderfulstories about why their particular ski is so great. But making that the “meat†of these reviews leaves me, forone, a bit cold. And I live in Alaska. In spite of his dissatisfaction with my opinion, I sincerely appreciate theefforts of Tadd (et al) in this potentially valuable event. I consider them a bit misguided, but doappreciate them. On a side note, it’s been suggested that to be published in WSM all reviews mustconsist of nothing but slightly greater or slightly lesser glowing praise – orthey would risk alienating advertisers and losing their business. Bologna. Where else are they going to go? Pandering to the manufacturers, whether it’s skis or ski boats, isnothing but a huge disservice to the skiing public – which is us. Don’t we get enough of that glad-hand happy horsesh*t from our politicians already? Whoneeds more of that at the ski lake? TW

Well now you have an answer if your best friend ever needs a kidney donor.  TW

I believe those "shorts" are actually a one-piece ski suit made by a company called "Turbo". I would imagine they no longer exist, but back in the day they were used by a lot of skiers. Rather than neoprene, they were made of two fabric layers sandwiching a central layer of natural rubber - which was kind of tan colored. They had limited stretch and provided virtually no insulation from cold water, but they would definitely prevent a high-speed enema. They were available in a bunch of different colors and designs; mine started out orange, but over a number of years faded to more of a muddy pink. TW

You're skiing well into -35', and your fin depth is 2.48"? Go deeper - a lot deeper. Secondly, a lot of what Boody said is true, but how do you convert that truth into practical results? Try just one thing, and try the hell out of it. My suggestion is to see just how much counter you can generate into and through your 1,3,5 turns. The goal here is to counter SO much that you overdo it - that's the mindset anyway; in reality it's almost impossible to counter too much. As you begin your edge-change into 1 crank your hips, chest, and shoulders outward toward shore as far as physically possible. Really exaggerate it - after all, what have you got to lose here? Now, as you're fully extended and the ski is coming around, continue to force everything above your thighs to twist around clockwise (from an overhead POV) until you ski right back into the handle. If you really commit to this experiment I believe you may very well have a major epiphany right on the spot. One warning, though: it will only work if you fully commit; anything short of that and you won't have given yourself a true chance to succeed. Why this works is because it eliminates the mistake I suspect you're currently making - which is trying to negotiate the turn at a slower speed by jumping on the front of the ski. We know that carrying speed through the turn and into the next "pull" is a very desirable thing, but years of not doing that has you lunging out the front trying to stomp on the brakes. If you're extremely countered you won't be able to make that mistake - it's virtually impossible to have extreme counter and load up the front at the same time. Try it. If you're not satisfied you'll receive an automatic refund of every cent you spent for this advice. TW

 For just a plain old hardcopy journal it's pretty hard to beat these: http://www.baproducts.com/riterain.htm Cheap, and perfect for a wet environment like the lake; we've used them for years. TW

"I wish the US had English police. I would love to have nothing but english signs." AMEN to that. amigo! TWÂÂ

Wish we could do that on my lake, but it's hard to break through 30 inches of ice with a 20' inboard. TWÂÂ

Here's a trick to consider. When I went to Houston earlier this month I put My slalom ski into a regular waterski bag and then put that into a larger snow-ski bag (which is designed to hold two pairs of snow-skis). The additional room in the outer bag allowed for towels, wetsuit and vest - which formed lots of extra padding. Most airlines consider golf clubs and snow-skis to be exempt from their oversize baggage fees, so I only paid for an extra bag ($25 on Continental). To avoid the awkwardness of lying to a counter agent I initiated the conversation by asking, "Are skis exempt from oversize baggage charges?" Invariably they said they were, and failed to ask if I was referring to anything other than snow skis. TWÂÂ

This may very well be a viable solution. Testing has indicated that a much smaller engine can produce plenty of pull with this twin-prop modification. The inventor - it's patent pending - intends for it to be an after-market add-on, as well as OEM option.  TW http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n293/ThomasWayne_2006/twinscrewMC.jpg

The more you conform to "West Coast" style the less you'll notice the bowed legs, IMO. This is because the unnatural leg position that results from extreme counter on your offside seems to bring your knees together, thereby compensating for the inherent bow - at least that's been my experience. I've noticed that on some WC skiers the back knee almost seems to "cross over" the front knee [on their offside] - at least that's my perception - and you couldn't get your back-leg calf much more out of the water than that. Here's to swimmin' with bow-legged women... TWÂÂ

Try repeating this to yourself: "Find a happy place... find a happy place... find a happy place..." TWÂÂ