GAJ0004

I have a custom cover that has cutouts for a bow stop on a correct craft style trailer. I had a hood made that snaps on to the cover when the boat is on the lift, and it covers the bow and the exposed rub rail. I am able to remove it when I have to put the cover on while the boat is on the trailer.

My boat hit the 1800 hour mark. Just sunk the course for the winter. May get snow tonight in PA. Boat gets pulled tomorrow and winterized..

I have to sink the slalom course on Lake Latonka today, tomorrow or Tuesday. My boat gets put away next weekend. Ordered new skins for the coaming pads, and engine cover. If they arrive in time they will be installed by spring, and the boat will look new again. You can spray fogging oil into the cylinders. I also take the tension out of the belts, remove the impeller from the water pump and store it in a small jar of antifreeze(pink RV type). I reassemble the water pump without the impeller in it, and reinstall it in the spring if it does not need to be replaced. If you see the beginnings of a crack or tear in the impeller, get a new one. I also remove the battery, and put it on the charger once a month during the winter. @Ajskier, you have all the bases covered..

I think on most boats the fins are designed to break away if you hit something otherwise it could rip the hull apart. If the pylon is loosening up, take it to the dealer and make sure they send someone out from the factory to investigate. That should not happen on a brand new $80,000+ boat.

Boat lift with a padlock. My boat is old now, and I think wakeboard boats would be a more desirable target. Garage in the winter. Gear gets taken out of the boat every night and put in the garage. Smaller stuff is what is usually taken, canoes, small outboards, kayaks, etc.. Difficult to strip down a boat into small enough parts that can be hidden unlike cars.

I slalom and trick, and enjoy them both equally. I would hate to see 3 event disappear.

I have a Wiley's trick wrap. It has been a good binding for 15 seasons. I have replaced 2 overlays over the years. If you order one from Wileys, they can adjust how tight it is for your personal preference.

Like the picture of Andy getting ready to ski, and his best buddy his swimming to him..

I was lucky to meet Andy on multiple occasions. I met him a couple of times at the Cleveland Boat show, also got to ski with him, Deena, and Ben Favret when they had their ski school in 1995. Andy and Ben pulled a bit of a practical joke on me at the time. They had me run the slalom course on my trick ski. I was doing it pretty easy, but when it came to the end gate Andy changed the boat path at the last second and I missed the exit gate. I was on my ski laughing, and I could see Andy laughing too. He also came up to Dave's Pond in Edinboro PA and gave a clinic which was a good time a few years ago. My thoughts and prayers are with Deena, Mike and Elyssa.

Know your limits. When you feel like your form is breaking down, take a break. You may not feel the fatique right away, but it can effect you. I usually ski 7 or 8 passes in a set in the slalom course. I never do a third set of slalom. If I ski after that I will barefoot, or trick ski. Use a different set of muscles. If you get a ton of slack in the rope after at turn, throw the handle. It is not worth getting yanked over your ski, or getting hurt. Stretching is everything off the water, especially one you turn 30.

My boat has the 1:1 tranny with the 240 horsepower 351 Ford PCM, at 36 MPH it runs about 3300 RPM with a skier in tow, and 3100 RPM at 34 MPH. If I got new boat I would put the prop on that would lower the RPM's since I am on a big lake with 700 homes, and would like to quiet the boat down a bit. I would find the happy medium between holeshot, and not having the engine work too hard while going fast to preserve engine life. If I were to buy a new boat it would be the last one.

I would always use a shock tube. I won't let anyone pull me unless there is one in the boat. When I get a new shock tube I put a piece of plastic pipe inside to stiffen it. We have had no problems since we have been using it. There was one time back in the 1980's where someone was pulling a slalom skier on my boat. The handle popped out of his hands and flew over the front of the boat. The rope and handle got caught in the prop. The handle was bent in half, and the rope was shredded. No one got hurt, and the boat or prop was not damaged. I recommend using the shock tube for pulling slalom skiers, pulling any big first time skiers, and pulling kneeboarders too. If I see a ton of slack in the rope, I just throw the handle straight up in the air and call it a day. I do not want to injure my boat crew or damage my boat. The extra half buoy is not worth it.

Use a light grey. If you go too dark you will burn your feet on a hot day. Even the light grey carpet in my boat will get hot sometimes.

How fast from 0-36, and distance to 36 MPH? If you get a chance to check that out please post it.

Watching my cousin Darren trick and slalom when I was a kid, and my friend Alan Valeriano barefoot. Learned to ski at age 12, ran the course for he first time at age 15. Started trick skiing around the same time. Learned to barefoot when I was 18.

I was always told you want the bindings to be as close together as possible so you have greater range of motion with your knees.

I would keep the wing on stock setting for the speed you go most of the time. Less angle at 34 MPH verses 36 MPH. I had a different setting for my wing angle depending on the ski I was on. My last ski I kept it at 5 degrees, my current one 7 degrees. You may have to experiment to see what works best. My ski is pretty much on stock setting for everything. I moved the fin back from .80 from the tail to .76 from the tail. I had a ski a long time ago where I took the wings off because it did not respond the way I liked it.

Driving depends on who you are pulling. With a smaller skier, be gentle with the throttle, but quick. With a bigger skier I start out slow for a second, once the boat is above idle I hammer the throttle, and back off quickly as I get to the desired speed. It is an old habit from driving manually for so many years. With Perfect Pass on my boat I have to throttle up like I am driving manually until the system kicks in. Not as simple as driving ZeroOff, but still pretty easy.

Spray Nine works very well, followed by 303 Protectant, or 3M vinyl protector.

My boat has 1750 hours on it, but I have seen some boats with less than half that are not in as good condition as mine. Once I get the coaming pads and engine cover reskinned it will look almost brand new again. I will take that since my boat is now 21 years old.

I would be glad to bring my boat to a tournament to pull the tricks event.. 1994 Ski Nautique with Stargazer..

I get Waterski magazine. I spend enough time in front of a computer.

For the yellow boat gate buoys use the solid foam bullet shaped buoys they will last a long time, and can take multiple hits from a prop. I bought the buoys for lake latonka at skiertoskier.com That is the way to go on public water. I use the Overton's buoys for the orange ones.

We were able to put boats in, and got the course put in. The lake was still down 7 inches yesterday. We got a mini monsoon last night. My dad just emailed me, and the lake is finally full. The spillway on the dam looked like Niagara Falls. Back in business!

My Dad's Chrysler Town and Country. It does the job for launching, and an occasional trip to the marina. I would not use it for towing on a long trip though. The boat is on the lift all season long. When it comes time to trade in my Pontiac G6 I am thinking a Ford Edge, Jeep Cherokee, or Chevrolet Equinox. GM I have found are cheaper to fix..