Kelvin

In a Class C event, even with towers in the "recommended" location, it is nearly impossible to cut the gates unless the skier clearly misses. All 3 judges have a say on the gates and 2 out of 3 must cut them. The far tower can't see the gate at all and will give the skier the benefit of the doubt. That leaves the near tower and the boat judge. Of those, the tower is the only one that can really see the gate. The skier has to miss by a wide margin for the boat judge to be able to call it out. For "call it yourself", skiers are too focused on their skiing to know if they missed a gate. Several years ago at Regionals (under the old rules) I knew I went outside the centerline of the gate, but I didn't know if I "missed" it. Got to the end of the lake and heard the judges score - "6". Asking skiers to call it yourself would be like asking receivers in football to call "2 feet in bounds".ÂÂ

I like the idea of leaving the entrance gates there as a reference point, but do not see the need to require skiers to go through them. For the exit gate, a new set of buoys should be added at 41m from 6-ball so getting 6-ball is the same as getting all the rest of the buoy's. I've seen some nasty slack rope falls at 6-ball with the close exit gates. Moving the exit gate would make the course safer.ÂÂ

With the right equipment and expertise, the 3 point survey can be done entirely from shore.   Last month, a tech controller in Texas (with many years of experience) surveyed a course from shore while a tournament was taking place. Everything was done from shore and neither activity interfered with the other.

"Anybody run a Strada or RS1 with a RTP? How does that combo work out? I don't know that I want one of the slippers you see on the Radar website. " My son uses the RS1 front boot with the Radar slipper style RTP and loves it.  I wouldn't choose it for myself, but he likes it and continues to progress. The newer slipper appears to be more adjustable than the old one, but still more bulky than the D3 or HO RTP.

For National tournament qualification purposes, skiers at this level should not be included on more than 1 list (Open, MM, M3/4/5). By doing so, they are taking spots away from other skiers. The move up to MM should be 2 years.

The Red 02 MC Team Tournament boats have the current hull.

thanimal, I would be interested in the fin and fin-box from the broken 9100. If your interested in selling/giving it away, let me know.  kelvin at sportpixusa.net  Thanks

Shane, are they coming home for the tournament next weekend?ÂÂ

Shane, what is the weight range for your 67? I can't find a chart on the O'brien website.  I'd like to give it a test ride.

skibug Wrote " ". . . I have no vested interest in USA-WS, nor am I a member" USA-WS needs members to survive. As it stands now, I'm a member because I have to be a member to ski tournaments and I use their boat insurance (this year it was about $75 bucks less than Ski Safe, but it varies). Other than that, I find it difficult to understand why anyone would be a member of USA-WS. For the non-tournament skiers out there, what could USA-WS offer that would entice you to become a member?

Is he going to do the face-to-face tour again this year? It was a big hit in the Houston area last year.

Personally, I'm waiting for the 130 degree rule (air temp + water temp) to kick in down here in Texas. Getting soft as I age.

Based on discussions at the SCR midwinter meeting, expect something in March.

Shane, we will be at your tournament this weekend with my daughter's HO Siren if she wants to give it a try.ÂÂÂ

Interesting topic - Today I watched a 180 lb ski buddy of mine run 2 @ 41 off/ 34 mph on a Goode 9100. I originally bought the ski around 2000 and sold it to him in 2004. He commented that it is still as stiff as the day it was made.ÂÂÂ

Been running the mechanical/servo version of SG for a month now on a 2003 Malibu Response LXI. For 34mph N mode, it is dialed in for 200 lb skiers -within 1 to 2 hundreths at every ball. Today I pulled a 160lb skier at our lake and the 3 ball times were smoking him - in the 7.07 range. At 160 lbs, he is supposed to be in the N mode, not the L mode. Can a 200lb skier and a 160lb skier use the same settings? That is what I bought into, but it is not what we are getting!!!  Any thoughts or solutions would be appreciated.ÂÂÂ