Chris Rossi

Like @Stickman suggested, I would go with a 65" Senate Lithium. Its the right length for you and the added surface area will keep you running on the water efficiently.

@DangerBoy the factory setting for that ski are on the Radar website. I'd start there and dial it in as necessary. https://radarskis.com/finsettings/

@gregy the short/deep settings have more fin area so a bindings back move will benefit you by giving you more ability to slide the tail of the ski through the finish of the turn.

@jenksski I would go Radar Senate Pro. The newest shape Senate is an absolute ripper and you will feel right at home on it straight out of the box. The ski has a ton of support, turns on a dime, and rips across the course. LMK if you have any other questions.

@LoopSki what length is your current ski?

@Ed_Johnson I would start with: 31 1/2" 2.460 6.950 0.785 9

I set the 67" Senate Pro up at the following: 30 1/2 2.460 6.960 0.775 9 For me personally, I like the bindings at 30 1/4" but I usually recommend starting at 30 1/2".

@Wish glad to help!

Here is my two cents on the issue.....Tips are always appreciated but never expected and never influence the level of coaching or driving on your experience while at ski school (at least the one I ran). So to those of you who haven't traditionally tipped, no sweat. May be consider it in the future especially if you feel like your coach went the extra mile for you. What I found in my years working for others and then on my own was this: When I was coaching at a ski school, I received a ton of tips. This really helped as my pay for being a coach was not that great (you get paid in sets with the coach/owner). When I took over the operation, my tips went substantially down. I was informed from a friend that it commonplace for customers to not tip the owner of an operation but rather its employees. True, I did make more money per set as the owner but with a ton more work and stress. I appreciate all tips I receive as its a very nice gesture for the coach who gave you his/her all.

The quick quick is that the Senate platform is based off the high end ski shape (Vapor) and then surface area is added by widening the ski 0.2". The extra surface area gives the ski more float/support while retaining the majority of the high end characteristics of the Vapor. The Senate line of skis are extremely fun to ride and are capable of skiing very short rope in the course at 34mph and below. Radar offers different "builds" to accommodate a wide range of skiers wanting the ski. The idea here is that the different construction materials of the different builds offer a performance enhancement much like would be found in different mountain bike builds for the same frame. The higher end materials that are added, the more responsive the ski becomes, while at the same time shedding weight, making the ski more efficient, reducing physical fatigue for the skier (sorry for the run on sentence). More is not always the better choice depending on typical conditions the ski will be used in. The Alloy (base model) is a great skiing ski that will perform extremely well in all conditions and will manage skiing through chop and rollers especially well due to its more robust construction. It sort of pained me to call the Alloy the "base" model so I'd like to clarify this by saying that Radar's "base" model would be like buying a base model BMW. It still is a driving machine just with slightly less upside. Then there is the Graphite line which offers an upgrade in materials that is noticeable as soon as you pick the ski up to go to the boat (lighter) and its benefits are felt at the finish of the first turn with faster acceleration off the buoy and less fatigue on the body. This will be the theme just heightened as we continue up to the Senate Lithium which has the same construction as a lot of the high end skis offered today from Radar's competitors. Shedding even more weight and adding a higher level of acceleration and responsiveness out of the turns. Finally we arrive at the flagship Senate, the Senate Pro, which is built with Radars highest level of construction (Vapor Pro Build) while being held to the strictest of tolerances during the build phase. Think 0.2" wider version of the industry leading high end ski. This is a ski capable of setting the world record at 34mph or be used to absolutely slay a glass calm open body of water. In most cases, I recommend going with the highest build level you can afford. I would also recommend buying the most recent year of the ski possible. The Senate line evolves with the newest Vapor shapes, thus the newer the ski, the more evolved the shape is. This provides you with the best performing, most predictable, best skiing Senate possible. Hope this helps clarify the Senate line of skis.

My heart just sunk. @Edbrazil is a legend. Always a good conversation to be had. A wealth of knowledge. Going to miss you buddy. Gigga

Thanks for the positive comments on the interview. Always fun to share some insights with such a passionate community. I would like to say that beating up the microphone thing is played out. John is aware of the issues and is trying his best to rectify the situation. When we started the convo about me potentially joining DFC as a guest, John was the first to bring up the microphone quality. He puts a lot of time into making these interviews come together, giving the readers some very cool inside access to pro skiers and their perspective. Thanks Horton and I look forward to next time.

I own a 2008TT and absolutely love the boat. I ski at shortline so I do not have much input on the wakes at 15off, but I can tell you that I have never had anything but positive feedback from my guests and their experiences skiing behind the boat. On top of that, it is the most bad ass looking boat I have ever owned. Multiple times a summer I am approached by other boaters who want to buy my 197TT on the spot.

Such a beautiful and great skiing lake. I love the local feel to the area (not as developed as south florida) and the beaches are fantastic. Its one of my favorite areas in Florida to go ski and hang out. Definitely should be on everyone radar as a destination ski facility.

We make bigger sizes :smile:

Glad to hear he likes the 2019. The new Senate shape has been a wild success with rave reviews pouring in daily. Thanks for choosing Radar and let us know how he progresses on it!

@Justin The Union is a wider version of the Senate. The Senate is 0.2" wider than a Vapor and the Union is 0.4". The wider a ski gets, the more surface area it has. Surface area translates to lift, so more surface area rides higher in the water. The slower the boat speed, the deeper a ski rides in the water, reducing its performance and increasing fatigue to the skier. Go with a Union if you are skiing slower speeds (24-32mph) and want more stability and go with a Senate if you are looking for faster speeds (28-34mph) and like a more aggressive line. Both skis are very balanced and intuitive to ride and offer the skier a great platform to progress on. LMK if you have any other questions.

@djycb I would go with the Senate Graphite and proceed with confidence that you have a ski that fits your needs and will provide you many years of great skiing. LMK if you have any other questions.

@djycb as @TFIN wrote, the 2019 Radar Senate is one versatile ski and one that you will be very happy you purchased. We sell a lot of these skis and every year at boat shows all across the country we get customers returning to tell us how much they love this ski. How easy and intuitive it is to ride. How they wish they had purchased one earlier. I feel very confident you will be over the moon with your purchase. As far as which version of the senate to buy, I recommend going with the highest level version that fits in your budget. It won't be too much for you. Cheers, Chris

There has been a lot of great input given on this thread. Figured I put my 2 cents into the mix as well. While buying a used ski can be a great savings, you never really know how that ski was treated other than by obvious damage shown on the ski. That ski could have been skied on hard by someone who skis aggressively and may have taken a lot of sets on it. There could have been a lot of big crashes taken by that aggressive skier as well. I’d say this scenario would be like buying a car with no odometer. On top of this, anyone selling their previous skis have moved on to something they consider to be better (or else they would not be selling). Of course there can be a gem on the bargain rack as well so there’s a chance you get a lightly used ski in great condition. As you can tell, I recommend buying new and buying the highest level materials for a given ski that you can afford. Do your research and listen to posts on websites like BOS as you are hearing from real skiers who have experience with products you are looking into. I’m biased as I design some of the skis you are looking at. The 2019 Radar Pro Build and 2019 Senate Pro Build are both top level competition waterskis and are more than capable to help take your skiing to the next level. Good luck on your ski purchase and let us know how it works out for you.

@IGski How tall are you? The 2019 Senate Pro would be an ideal ski for where you are at in your skiing (slightly more surface area than a Vapor adding forgiveness in the turns and made with all the high end materials for a light, quick feeling while skiing). You are on the upper end of weight for a 67" but it is possible for you to ski on it. You will find a 67 more work than a 69 from buoy to buoy but will also notice a smaller turning radius.

I love skiing/staying in Hobe Sound. The site is top notch. Wim is a fantastic coach and driver. The local area provides great beaches without the crowds and the restaurants provide that locals Florida feel.

@C5Quest 66 will be your size of choice.

Glad to hear so many of you are having success on the Vapor. @C5Quest what rope lengths you running? @jhughes that’s the type of review we ski designers/manufacturers strive for! So thank you.

@Ryota I think that @Gloersen's fin recommendations is a good one. I would go back and try those again. Also, you could slightly reduce the depth you are running now and also reduce length. This will reduce fin area and should make the ski feel more manageable/sporty and at the same time reduce some of that excess tip grab you seem to get. May be try these settings: 29.1" 2.515 6.839 0.781 9