AdamCord

Starts at 1PM Eastern time

@Fehlindra put the wing on a 7

@BTheis all the c85s come with the CG Fin

@Rednucleus that was literally the first thing we tried

@MDB1056 Keep in mind that all the ski/boat/equipment companies are already putting a lot of money into nationals.

@adamhcaldwell is 5’9” and his PB in record tournaments are 3.5@41@36 and 1.5@43@34. Insane

@BlueSki so which was it for you? :#

@matthewbrown I don’t disagree about staying over the ski coming through the transition. That keeps you swinging better and longer. Where I think we aren’t agreeing is about rotation. I’m not sure where you stand on this but I do NOT think the skier should be trying to rotate their chest to the shore coming off the 2nd wake. Instead we should be letting the boat pull our body up and into the turn, while staying in a strong position agains the rope/pylon. This is not easy to do but it’s something that Mapple and Nate both do incredibly well. Where most people run into trouble is when they believe they should be counter rotating all the way to the buoy line. This almost always results in a ski that has not begun to smear enough if at all, and a ski path that separates the skier from the handle too soon. If instead we connect with our leading shoulder, like Andy does going to 2 ball, and elevate, the pull from the boat will rotate the skier into the turn before the outside hand ever releases from the handle. This sets the skier up to have a lot of ski rotation before apex, and therefore be in position to be coming back down/in on the buoy through the finish. Not only does it make the turn easier, because less rotation at the finish is required, but the early smear slows the downcourse speed keeping the line tight. This is why Andy/Nate have such smooth turn finishes and also why the line stays tight even at 41.

@matthewbrown At the longer lines (as in longer than 41 for Nate) yes you will see Nate do this because he's created so much ski rotation that he would turn before the buoy if he kept the same amount of rotation. I get this at 32 and 35, Nate gets it all the way through 39. From what I've seen it goes away at 41 and 43, because he can't get the ski rotation started as early when the rope is super short. As far as Mapple's swing into 2-4: If you watch any of the videos after Mapple retired you see his falling in on 2-4 go away. He figured out how to swing into the turn and stay connected while rotating his body and therefore the ski. To me that move he makes going into 2-4 may be the BEST thing about his skiing. Watch how he moves off the 2nd wake and into the turn into his heelside starting at the 1:10 mark here:

@jimbrake Now you’re asking the right question. Can you stay connected while also starting the turn...? Mapple sure as hell could, so can Nate.

@matthewbrown I think the “Who is the GOAT in xxxx sport” debate is the highest level of discourse humans can achieve. Way way more important than anything to do with politics.

@matthewbrown ok now you’re getting into 3 hour debate over a case of beer territory

Ok I HAVE to jump in now. The cross talk because of semantics is painful. @Horton - Are you telling me that on your offside you are NOT doing exactly what @adamhcaldwell is describing?: @gavski out of these 3 images which skier is going the fastest? Marcel also looks to already be moving up into the transition here while Ligety is in the middle of the turn. Lasty...Shoulders in line with body, outside hand over inside edge of ski....yep checks out: The point is not everyone is seeing or feeling the same things here. No you do not want to put your inside shoulder under water. No you don't want to be so square that you bend your body into a pretzel. Do I think Mapple and CP style is closer to ideal than people who ski very open with level shoulders? Well let's check the list of who has set world records....

Technically @RichardDoane’s ski is an 8.4, and the production ski is the 8.5. Only real difference is Richard’s ski was made from a prototype mold.

@Drago what you think perfection happens overnight? B)

Thanks @hammerski definitely looking forward (or backward?) to it! I know it's a long way out but I have heard this is already starting to fill up so get a hold of Gloria at gloria@skiparadise.com to get on the list. Should be a fun week

@ballsohard getting there, just not quite ready for production to keep up with predicted demand. Very soon

To further @adamhcaldwell ’s point I still vividly remember the first time I rode in the boat and watched Parrish ski. I was BLOWN AWAY at how powerful he was. I had been watching CP on video for years and it just doesn’t come through on video. My initial thought watching him from the boat was that he was either going to break the rope or pull the pylon out of the boat :D I also started skiing a lot harder after that and started running 38 soon after.

I'll also jump in and comment that what @adamhcaldwell is talking about is especially critical for LLF skiers. When we did the Gate video we tried to make it as foot forward agnostic as possible, but there are some differences between LFF and RFF gates. A RFF skier can build into a stronger lean and leveraged position because it's an onside pull through the gate. A LFF skier can't do that so they need to be very cognizant of their speed relative to the boat and make sure they have the line from a very wide point and as Caldwell says get your body rotating before the rope load starts to climb. That will give you a long "runway" to build speed into the first wake, which is the top prerequisite for the swing you are looking for. @Buxrus what you're talking about with your old gate, on edge too long, fast and hair on fire into buoys, is what happens when your speed into the wakes is too low for the amount of angle you have, so you end up having to stay on edge after the point where the handle is starting to go up and around the boat. That causes you to separate and get shot on a fast and narrow path to the buoy. In contrast with the Denali gate we want you to generate swing speed before the wakes so that your ski can be coming OUT of angle behind the boat, letting you ride the same path as the handle on the way out to the buoy line. TLDR: Most people's gates have too much angle and not enough speed at the 2nd wake. Denali Gate gives you more speed with less angle so you can connect and swing.

The clouds will part and the sun will shine as bright and beautiful as you have ever seen. The water will become dead calm. You will barely hear the boat, but you will hear music coming from the heavens as the buoys look narrower and the boat feels slower than ever before. You may catch a glimpse of yourself in the mirror calm water and see that you look younger than you remember, and your technique looks perfect. The shores will be lined with all the people you admire and you will perform flawlessly while they cheer you on. At least that’s what happens whenever I ride one.

Ah crap you mean I just cut holes in a bunch of skis for nothing??!!

I’m so pissed I never thought of this

@Horton I really thought it would work

@Horton im not sure if you should talk about Parsons like that

@Horton explain to me again how it is that your job is to run a waterski website, you have weather like that, you live on a ski lake, and yet you do not run 57off?