GAJ0004

Dodge Viper engine in a ski boat, THAT WOULD BE COOL! The Dodge Viper is my dream car. I wonder how a marinized version of one of the Dodge Hemi V8's would do...

Good luck to all the competitors this weekend! Looking forward to watching it..

With my boat (1994 ski Nautique) we changed the engine oil at 15 hours, and then at 50. You can pull a couple of slalom sets per day until it is broken in. Just don't run it ALL day pulling slalom skiers until it is broken in. With the newer boats, follow the engine manual instructions on break-in.

If I were buying a new 200, I would definitely get the big engine. I would probably keep the boat until my skiing days are over. I bet in the next 10 years 400 horsepower will be the standard. I am sure the engines are going to keep getting bigger. From what I have read, it runs at lower RPMS, is quieter, and is lighter weight. I have been told that the nightmare edition Master Craft with the 400hp engine is easier on gas than a boat with the 350hp engine. The same could possibly be true on the SN200. I wish we had the option to choose ZeroOff or Perfect Pass Stargazer. That could knock the price down a bit. Â I suspect the engine life would be longer too since it would not be working as hard as the smaller one. If I did buy a boat(especially one that costs $50,000+) I would plan on keeping it 20 years. It would take me 15 years to pay for. I would not be suprised if they come out with a 600hp engine for a ski boat in the next 5 years.

Kevin, You looked pretty smooth on your second video. I am left foot forward also, so I can relate. My take on getting your offside pull to work is getting the ski to do the same thing as your onside. The way I do it is let the ski finish the turn(you have to exaggerate that verses your onside turn). I try to turn my hips, chest, and shoulders so the front of my body is pointed across the course ahead of the next ball. I also keep my eyes fixed on the spot I am trying to reach. As the ski finishes the turn your hips should come up to the handle. As that happens start leaning away from the boat. Once you start leaning you want to rotate your upper body away from the boat. Your hips, chest, shoulders, and eyes should be pointed across the course. As an example going from 2 to 3 ball, let the ski finish a little longer than you would in your onside, start leaning away from the boat, and rotate your hips, chest, shoulders, and head to look across ahead of ball 3. At this point try to twist your upper body slightly to get your right shoulder away from the boat. If it feels like your right shoulder is going to hit the wake when you are going across, you are in the right position. At that point you want to still keep your knees and hips forward, and hold that position until your next preturn. What also works for me, NEVER look at the boat while you are in the course. You will know you have got it when you can make up time on your offside turn and pull.  Before going on the water, tie a handle to a tree, get into your onside lean position. Take note of the leverage that you have. Observe where your feet(in your skiing position) are, hips, chest, shoulders. Once you get the feel of the leverage, switch your feet position to your offside. You will find you will have to adjust your upper body to get the same leverage. The key is keeping the right shoulder away from the boat and the front of your body pointed across the course. Hope this helps! Good luck! Gary

Ed, I have had good luck with Masterline trick ropes. My slalom ropes are used so much that they lose their bungee effect after a month which I prefer. I really like Masterline. I rotate two trick ropes, and 4 slalom ropes. I have not ruled out getting the Masterline slalom ropes. I just bought two Straight Line Shadow handles 1.02'' diameter. They work pretty well. Since I ski with half finger gloves they are very comfortable for me. If I could get the materials I would make my own slalom, trick, and barefoot ropes. I know how to splice ropes with and without a splicing fid depending on the kind of rope. I will probably buy the ropes during the off season. I will be buying a truck load of equipment, new kneeboard, new barefoot suit, two more slalom handles, and four ropes. The ropes that Performance Ski and Surf sells uses clear resin on some of strands of the rope which makes it more slippery, and the absence of the dye is supposed to make is stronger. They say they tested them at Jack Travers' and Chet Raley's ski school. I am seeing more of those Masterline ropes all the time. Gary

Here are my observations about ZeroOFF. I am used to skiing behind PPSG. My best is 3@35 off 34MPH(set a new PB two weeks ago). Behind a Master Craft, the B-2 setting felt just like PPSG. The key to skiing with ZeroOff is to keep your skiing as smooth as possible. Try not to "hook" your turns. If you keep a smooth rythm the pull will feel solid, but not to the point where it will want to pull you out of position. If you do any sudden jerky movements it will bite you.. I hate a stretchy slalom rope. I would make a rope out of polyethelyne if I could(trick and barefoot rope material). I really concentrate in exaggerating letting the ski finish the turn before you pull across the wakes. My strategy is to minimize the RPM swing. The harder and longer you pul, the more the boat will counter against you. My boat is a 1994 Nautque with PPSG 240HP 1:1 tranny. The pull from my boat feels the same as PPSG behind a Master Craft. It is firm, but not ripping your arms off. B2 on ZeroOff on a 2010 MC felt slightly softer, but still firm. On some ropes I feel like I am hanging on to a bungee. I hate that feeling when I am pulling across the wakes. Speaking of ropes, has anyone tried the Performance Ski and Surf brand of ropes? I am using Straight Line right now, but all 4 of them will need to be replaced after this year. Straight Line are not as durable as they used to be. I like Masterline, but slightly more than I want to pay for a slalom line. I figure most of you guys on here can out ski me since I ski in the great white north(Pennsylvania). If you don't get a lot of time behind ZO, start at 15 off if you normally start at 22off as an example. Let me know what you think..   Â

We tow our 1994 Nautique with a Chrysler Town and Country minivan. We only tow it from the house to the launch ramp, and then an occasional trip to the marina for service(every 4 seasons). It can tow 3500 pounds which is just big enough. It has a trailer towing package. It works for us, but I would not try towing my boat across the country with it.  If I were towing my boat to tournaments or multiple local lakes I would get a vehicle that could tow 5000-6000 pounds like a Jeep Liberty, Chevrolet TRaverse, GMC Acadia, or Ford Explorer. If I were towing by boat across the country I would get something with a V8 like a conversion van, or a pickup.. My boat sits on a lift all season long, and the trailer is kept in our boat garage. Towing does beat up a boat quite a bit. I try to tow ours at little as possible.

I used six magnets to calibrate my baselines, but I run it in single magnet mode. My boat runs a bit hot coming into the gate, but as soon as the skier starts pulling it is on the right speed. My buoy to buoy and course times are usually okay. I occasionally get fast times at the end of the course if I don't make all the buoys and just ride straight out after missing a buoy. I have not yet experimented with the tweaks you guys are talking about. The digital speedometer fluctuates up and down, the analog one next to it stays pretty much locked on.

Beautiful boat. Got to ski behind one just like it in Burton OH. No new boat for me until my house is paid off.

Solution to the ski boat/wakeboard surf boat dilema. Get the SN 200 so you can do 3 event skiing. In my 1994 Ski Nautique we use an extended pylon which you can remove when not in use, and we have a FAT SAC. You won't need the tower. If you pull a wakeboarder, put the FAT SAC in the back, and if you want to surf, get one of those FAT BUDDIES and put it on one side so you can get the big wake on one side. It takes a little time to fill them with water, but they make a nice big wake. It is easier to set up a ski boat for wakeboarding and surfing, and it is to ski on a wakeboard boat. A full FAT SAC in our boat makes the wake almost a foot and half high. I don't wakeboard, but pull some of my friends who do. It also works great for kneeboarding. I have used the FAT SAC in a Master Craft PS 197 also when kneeboarding, and it makes it to a good wake for kneeboarding. The equipment I mentioned is made by Barefoot International. It will work on any boat as long as it has a 12 volt plug to operate the pump.

I have had good luck with the Overton's buoys. The color fades after about a season, but structurally they hold up pretty well. Our course is on a residential private lake in PA, so we have to replace buoys that get cut loose. I usually get two seasons out of them before I replace them. I found some old red Ski Limited Buoys in my garage.

I think it is good there will be more players in the market. It will force the Big Three to keep their costs in check. On my lake in PA the new boats are Master Craft and Malibu. Correct Craft pulled the franchise from one dealer in western PA, and the other went out of business. I definitely like PCM better than Indmar. On the new Master Crafts and Malibus the water intake has no filter screen. The hose directly goes down to the floor to the intake next to the water drain plug in front of the engine.  On some lakes it can make the boat vulerable to heating up becuase of weeds clogging the intake. That happened to my friend's 2008 MC. Luckily we were only a football field away from their dock when the engine temp alarm went off. They had to unclog the hose, and it was good to go. I have to check the filter bowl on my boat and clean it every now and then. Every boat should have a screen/filter. I would like to see Correct Craft make a smaller version of the SN200, say one between 18-19 feet long. I am sure they could set up the interior where it would have just as much room as a 196. Any ideas on how wide the trailer is for the SN200?Â

The lake I ski on is semi-public. The kids today are more interested in tubing than learning to ski. Over the years I have seen a shift from runabout type boats to pontoon boats, and a few I/O's.

I think the reason you don't see any people skiing in M1,M2,W1,W2 is money. 10-15 years ago you could buy a tournament boat for $30-40,000 new. Now you pay $40,000-$60,000. I would enter tournaments, but I have to work two saturdays per month with my job, and I cannot schedule a vacation day on my working Saturdays. With the price of boats and equipment skyrocketing the problem is accessiblility. I quit doing tournaments because I could not get practice time in decent conditions, and the cost of the entry fees and travel were too much for me. When I was in my 20's (i am 41 now) it got to be too expensive for me then, and the economy was good then.  To ski at a level where you can compete at a national level takes more money, and time than most people have. I can ski, but I am on a budget. I have a 16 year old Ski Nautique, a 10 year old trick ski, 20 year old barefoot suit, 4 slalom ropes and handles that are 5 years old and wearing out. $1200 a year on gas etc... I think the expenses and other obligations are squeezing people out of tournaments, or the sport all together.  Â

Minnesota! Yeah baby!Â

I am used to Perfect Pass. Have her try the B-2 setting on Zero OFF. I was told it was the most neutral setting.

I usually get 7-8 seasons out of a ski. I had a 2000 O'Brien Mapple Signature model. I had to replace it because the bindings were shot, and the fiberglass on the ski was beginning to delaminate. I got into 32 off at 36 MPH in a variety of conditions since the lake I ski on is semi-public. I quit skiing 36 MPH at the end of 2008 at the age of 39. I felt it was time to think about preserving my body so I can still ski when I am 65 years old. If you are competing to ski at the nationals every year I could see changing skis every season or two, but for the rest of us I don't see the need. I slalom, trick, barefoot, and kneeboard so my equipment has to last.

It sounds like some of the problems with the new SN200 were just a matter of making adjustments to the boat for higher altitude. Coming out of the factory it would be tuned to essentially run at sea level. The same thing could happen with cars too. I looked at one on the showroom floor. It has used some of the best design cues from past models. The only minor change I would make would be to shorten the sides of the windshield to make it easier for the driver to pick up a released trick rope, or grab on to the dock when docking. The stearn shape is very smart. I don't see any places where a rope can catch or snag when turning to pick up a skier. I like when the back seat is out and you have the storage compartment, and the steps up and down to the platform. I like the compartment for storing gloves and soap. It should fit on my boat's lift. I would have to measure the trailer and the boat to see if it would fit through the door on our garage for storage. I would be curious to drive it manually to see how it is for pulling barefooters, and beginner skiers who don't necessarily need to be on cruise control. I love the closed bow version. It gives the boat a very sporty look, and less vinyl to take care of.. The open bow version I looked at could seat 10. Any idea what the top speed is with the 5.7 or 6.0??

I have the s1-x magnets from skier-to-skier. I have six of them placed about 2 feet down, so far no problems. I used six to set up my Perfect Pass Stargazer, but I run it on single magnet mode. Friends of mine have boats with Zero Off. One is a 2008 MC PS 197 TT with both systems. I am still using Perfect Pass until I can figure out which setting to use on ZeroOFF. It works great once you map the course coordinates. I am still trying to find the letter number setting that is the most similar to Perfect Pass. Any ideas? Both of them beep at each gate when they are in use. I tend to let my ski finish the turn, pause, then load on the rope. Per the article in WaterSki I am thinking A3 may be the right setting for me..

I hope I get the chance to ski behind an SN 200. Some of the posts I saw on here about it were not very encouraging, but I am seeing more positive feedback all the time. I am old school. I like a closed bow whether it is an MC, or a SN. The only Malibu I have skied behind was a 1993 Echelon. It was a nice boat to slalom behind. I got to see a SN 200 one on the showroom floor. The fit and finish, and upholstery were absolutely superb. I skied behind a 2006 SN 196 a few years ago at a clinic, and it had no wake at all. Correct Craft has always been pretty good about getting new innovations to the market after they have worked the bugs out, so the customer does not have to deal with them. Does anyone know how fast the SN 200 goes from 0-36 with skier?

Still using 4 Straightline TLS Radius handles.. They don't make them anymore, but when the time comes to replace them I saw one made by US Gear that looks like it will work for me..

There are lots of Nautiques around the lakes where I ski. The newest Ski Nautique on my lake is a 2002. The rest are older. lots of 1990's vintage. All the new boats are MC and Malibu.

These problems don't suprise me. It sounds like the SN 200 is slow and clumsy like a wakeboard boat. If you look at the specs, the boats are 2800 lbs. That is way too heavy for a ski boat. My boat is 2300 lbs with 240 HP. If you add 500 lbs to that and add 100 more horsepower you are losing the benefit of the bigger engine. I looked at one on the showroom floor. It is BIG! I would think they would design it to be faster since the majority of the customers would be skiing on a specialty site. Does anyone know how fast it goes from 0-36, or the distance to 36 MPH? I was impressed by the fit and finish which was absolutely superb! ( I would expect nothing less from Correct Craft). Master Craft and Malibu pretty much rule the lakes in OH and PA.

The 1997-1999 was a great boat. I think the hull was the same on 2000-2001, but those years have the "Big N" graphics. The wake is slightly flatter than my 1994, but the slalom wake is very soft. Put a fat sac in the back and you have a great kneeboard boat too. If the boat is in good condition, and the bilge and engine are clean. Go for it. The PCM GT 40 is a great engine. I hear PCM begged Ford to sell them the mold for the block so they could keep building them. Ford said no. Put Perfect Pass Stargazer on board and you will be all set..