skispray

I had a top level ski when I started the course at 28 mph. Changed to a more forgiving ski on some good advice, and used that to get from 30 mph up into 36 mph, 22 off. I switched back to a top level ski at that time. I would 100% recommend this path for people learning the course. The intermediate ski was more stable and handled speeds of 28-32 mph much better. 36 mph is when I felt like I needed something a bit more aggressive, but ran into 22 off without issue on the intermediate ski. I think it sped my progression.

Turn by driving your knees where you want the ski to go.

I look at the buoy I'm approaching until I get to apex. At that point my head and my gaze go up (from looking slightly down at the buoy in front of me, to level) and across course as I find the next buoy. When I do this while slowly/smoothly releasing the handle, it seems to keep my inside shoulder up and gives me better balance at the finish of the turn. I also tend to over-rotate my shoulders less since my focus in on something in front of me (on the other side of the course). Since I'm fixed on that one object all the way until the next apex it seems to help my focus from finish of the turn until the next buoy. On this topic I think @Horton has absolutely nailed it.

It’s not unreasonable to deal with real, relevant political issues as they relate to water skiing without dragging the conversation into the decisive mud of everyday partisan politics. There’s a big difference between discussing proposed legislation that would materially impact water access and slinging mud about masks, taxes, immigration, or whatever other political topic. The former should be welcomed on this site, the latter shouldn’t be allowed. If you don’t think there’s a difference, then you are probably too intellectually lazy to be having political discussions in the first place. We can’t have a civilized, fraternal message board that focuses on skiing but that also allows free range political discourse. It just isn’t possible in times like these, so if you’re advocating for all political discourse on this forum you need to be careful what you wish for, because this place is the way it is now largely because that stuff isn’t welcome.

@DaveD I found an app called RFV that allowed me to reverse the video. However, I used the Wakeye app so there were many small videos to reverse and I found it to be a bit too cumbersome. Ultimately I ended up using an iPhone 6 specifically for ski videos and I don’t regret it.

@adamhcaldwell and @AdamCord are you basically saying the goal is to get the ski smearing as early as possible? By definition if you’re smearing early after edge change it would mean you’re starting the turn and also still continuing outbound.

@Dylan_wick I sent you a PM. The river course is located here: https://goo.gl/maps/LTfxKseo1p4kgav17

@jgills88 it sounds like you’re at the perfect place in your development for some coaching. If possible, I’d get to a ski school. If not possible, try to get some video coaching. There are a few amazing trick coaches on GiveGo. I considered saying to just ride the ski as much as possible, but I do think it’s important to learn to ride it correctly. Edging instead of leaning, making sure you’re standing properly on the ski, soft legs, handle in the right spot. The basics always matter on a trick ski, and can take you far if you learn them early and drill them like a Belarusian.

I think these answers that reference acceleration are right. It seems like when you are truly stacked it's akin to the idea that when sprinting you want to be leaning forward as much as possible without falling over. The idea is to be leaning forward to the maximum extent possible without "outrunning" your legs, so that your legs moving forward are all that's preventing you from falling forward onto your face. This is the action that will achieve maximum forward speed. Likewise, in slalom it seems like you want the connection to the boat and your body position to be "ahead" of the ski so that the ski is always trying to accelerate in order to get underneath you. If you can get into that sweet spot where the ski is wanting to accelerate to catch up to you but you are positioned so it isn't catching up to you until centerline, then you will generate the maximum acceleration possible and it will be along the path of the handle. At the end of the day it seems like it's about generating as much speed in the right direction as you can, so that you generate the most centrifugal force possible to whip you up on the boat.

@lpskier wow. That is so simple and I could be wrong but it seems like it would really work. What I like so much about that is that, at least when I try it on dry land, it seems like it would both improve structural alignment but also shift your center of mass toward the front of the ski, into the optimal acceleration position that we're really looking for. Really looking forward to trying that out. Now I'm mad that's January. :s

@The_MS @ReallyGottaSki thats a screen capture from a video. The video showed gates, 1, & 2. The image is him going through the gates.

@Horton you mean to say you can’t do this?

@jimbrake maybe I missed it when I listened, why do you say “picking on the old guys again”?

@MS so a girl can’t drop the F Bomb without people thinking she doesn’t deserve a sponsorship but... well, let’s think about what happens off the water for some men’s slalom skiers who still have plenty of sponsors and then, hopefully after considering, you won’t say nonsense like that anymore.

Elizabeth definitely seems to know how to promote herself. It’s refreshing to have someone on the pro scene with a bit of intensity and a story that’s a little different than what’s typical.

@sixmilelaker you’re in luck. Take a listen to the fourth episode from this season - Skiing in Adverse Conditions. https://anchor.fm/spraymakers

You can check out the webcast of the Hilltop Pro-Am, as there was data on heart rate and line tension displayed while people were skiing, or at least for the pros. The Swiss Pro Slalom webcast also had line tension data, I can’t remember if they had heart rate data.

In the same vein as @LOTW, you could do an episode on how to teach people new to the course. I often start with people skipping the gates, and the most common thing I see is they pull out to 1 ball too late, so they pull all the way until they’re at 1 ball, then try to make a quick direction change and get huge slack, with no chance at the course. Pretty defeating! Obviously we can work on those issues, but I’d be curious to know if you give them exact cues for timing, and even things like what to have them work on if they’re not ready for the course, what your initial approach to the course is (eg full course or some form of mini-course), what speed you recommend, etc.

Another idea, a little different, could be an episode about your best and worst memories from your lives in skiing. Could be highlights or lowlights of tournament skiing, or some amazing experiences you had traveling for tournaments. What are the unique experiences that you’ve had during your life in skiing that make for interesting stories? Basically just an episode that would be the equivalent of sitting on the dock listening to you two shoot the breeze about crazy stories you’ve heard, or funny things you’ve seen, memorable experiences, etc. Or, if that doesn’t work well, an episode talking about some of the most legendary performances in slalom skiing. Maybe give it some structure by making it a top 5 best skiers of all time type of list, and go through why each pick deserves to be on the list, etc.

Another topic of interest would be buying a new ski: when is it time? How do you know what ski to get? If you’re demoing, how long should you give it? Basically, what process would you recommend people go through when they think it might be time to upgrade skis?

How to get the most out of online coaching would be kind of an interesting topic, given the explosion of online coaching available (mainly GiveGo but many others too). Do you recommend sticking with one coach or sending video to whoever? How often should you send in video? In fact, you could extend this to in person coaching too. How long should you go to ski school? Should you do less than the maximum sets per day to stay fresh? How can you continue to make progress once back home? What do you see people doing that is counter productive? What have you seen people do that surprised you and you’ve found works well? I know some discussion was had about this during this past season, for example you talked about getting coaching as early as possible, etc., but with you both having so much experience coaching people, I’d imagine there are more ‘best practices’ that people could apply.

@Horton fracture events? There are currently like 80 divisions for adults and I proposed there be 3. I’m okay with strictly doing handicapped competition for amateur tournaments, but still keep the kids separate. When people are advancing against their PB’s very quickly it’s not really a competition to pit them against people with scores based on a long history. The “best” skiers at every tournament would be kids beating their PB’s by 3 passes as they reach their max speed.

@JeffSurdej I like the idea of the pros competing with no handicap. For amateurs one idea that comes to mind would be to have two division, a handicapped division and a non-handicapped division. If you sign up for a local tournament you pick which of the two you want to compete in that day, and everyone in the handicap group competes amongst themselves, while everyone in the non-handicapped division competes against themselves. Factors that would be relevant to your selection are how well you’re skiing at that moment relative to your baseline score, who else is at the same tournament, and what division they’re skiing in. You could have both handicap and non-handicap ranking lists. FWIW, I still think there should be boys/girls divisions separate from adult divisions. So to me ideally there would be divisions something like the following: Men’s No Handicap (18 yo+) Women’s No Handicap (18 yo+) Adult Handicap (18 yo+ men & women) Then either leave the boys/girls age divisions alone, making them either exclusively handicapped, or having both the handicap/no-handicap options there too.

I just want a pro tour where, at the end of the season, there’s a champion who has earned that title by skiing consistently better than their competitors at the same events, with the season being long enough to make random chance an unlikely contributor to success over the series. The boat path for every skier is reviewed so we know the scores are legitimate per the rulebook. This is how you determine who is the best of the best. I want that title to be the most prestigious accomplishment in water skiing. I want a livestream available for every event in the series. A real pro tour that legitimately determines where everyone stands because everyone participates and fights for the title because it means the most of anything. @Horton if you’re going to work to change the sport at the pro level, I submit that you should put some effort on this idea.

Spraymakers has been awesome. It’s a highlight of my work week when I can pop on some headphones and listen to what those guys have to say. Really looking forward to the next season as well. Hats off to everyone involved, it’s a great service you’re providing and it’s definitely appreciated.