Laz

We rented a house two years ago at the Swiss Ski School. It was about $1500 for a week and was plenty big enough for 4 adults and 5 kids. The only issue with Swiss, is the coaching is quite variable. But the price is right. Also, have a look here: http://www.vrbo.com/182514 You can rent a house that comes with a ski boat on a lake with a course. It's pretty close to most of the ski schools.

Davemac, You make a good point about the closed toe. The water was 6 C. for the last ski of last season and my feet were very cold.

Hi. I was currently skiing on a Connelly F1 with double Enzo bindings until a minor OTF fall ripped the back binding into two pieces. Fortunately, my foot is still in one piece. Luckily, this happened 4 days before the warranty expired. I'm thinking of trying Radar boots while I stay with the F1 ski for now. I ski at 34mph, can usually get through 22' off and am currently working on '28. I am hoping the wise readers of this forum help me decide between the Strada boots versus the Vector boots. I like the way the Strada's look. Both are pretty comfortable and fit well. I think the Strada's might release better with the liner, but I'm not too sure about that. Any suggestions? Thanks.

This is all good advice. I will try and make it work next time I am on the course. And I will bring the video camera. Speaking of video, Brent, have you been to Summerski?

I feel like I am getting a fairly good gate. I seem to be coming wide enough but I feel like I am well outside the 1,3,5 line too soon. I then coast to the 1 ball and turn with slack. If I turn early and miss the 1 ball, I don't get slack. I will try and get video.

I have finally been able to get 15' off at 34mph working for me most of the time and am now getting 22' off with some regularity. I have only made 28' off once and that was with a strong head wind. The last few times at 28' off I have been struggling with timing. I try and make the most of the gate but seem to always be ready to turn well before getting to 1-ball. If I try to go around 1, I often get slack. I think my width is good enough, but maybe that's the problem. Any suggestions?

Sure. I think he might be having Mike Suyderhoud up at some point.

Attention Ontario Skiers: Paul Roberts is having an open house at SummerSki (www.summerski.ca) this coming Saturday and Sunday. The price is $30/set. He has a great setup on a private lake with two courses. You will ski behind a 2010 Response LX. There is also new Malibu wakeboard boat for those who lean that way. His place is near Newmarket, about 30 minutes north of Toronto. The weather report looks good. Laz

That's a good idea. There are very few inguinal hernias that can't be fixed with the laparoscope. If it was me, that's how I would have it done....umm.. that's how I do it.

Umm.. First, I would get it done laparoscopically if your surgeon has a lot of lap experience. It has a longer learning curve and a higher recurrence rate in the beginning of a surgeon's experience. However, when done properly, you will have less pain, faster recovery and less risk of nerve injury or infection. Regardless of the technique, in the first 4 weeks (at least) after surgery, the more you use your abdominal muscles, the more likely the chance of the hernia coming back. At least that's how the teaching goes. And slolom skiing uses a lot of abdominal muscles. After six weeks, the mesh will be healed well enough in place that it won't really matter what you do. If you have an umbilical hernia, then that would be fixed on the way in automatically if your repair is done laparoscopically. Otherwise, it would need a separate incision. Lastly, excess fat does not help. Laz

All these suggestions are great. Thanks. The main issue is I have Friday evening until Monday evening and I'm coming from Toronto. So, working on flights.

I've been skiing on Enzo's and am not thrilled by these bindings. My feet cramp up sometimes. I doubt they will ever come off if I go OTF and the top lace gets loose after every pass. So, I'm looking for an alternative. With the EXO's fit on a Connelly F1? Laz

GAJ0004: Get a Moomba!

My wife and I are "thinking" of taking off for the weekend next month. We are in Toronto, and I'm looking for suggestions for a place to fly in and fly out with some good skiing. I first thought about H2Osmosis, but I don't think they are there on the weekend. We could go to Orlando, but we were just there 2 weeks ago. Sunset Ranch in California looks really good, but maybe a bit far for a short trip. Suggestions please. Thanks!

Hi. I have a friend and his wife who have recently gotten the slalom bug! They are going down to Phoenix for a week next month and will bring their skis if there is a place to go. Anyone know of a place they can go for some lessons or just some pulls? They are both just learning to slalom. Thanks, Laz

Nice. How do you keep your hands and feet from freezing. I find that the limiting factor.

We've had an EZ-Salom course for 2 seasons now, always on public water. About 35 minutes to put in and about 20 to take out. We have it down to an art. Just ordered the 55m gates for this year. The whole system works very well.

Why is the list of boats so short? No Moomba, no Tige, no MC214V, etc. No Response FXi, etc.

Hi. I really enjoy watching good tournament skiing. It seems to me that 41' off (10.25) is a great achievement but that running 43' (9.75) off is near impossible. (28' off in my case). Would it not make sense for something in between such as a 10m (42.2' off). I would imagine that a good many battles could be fought over that line length where people could realistically try to complete it or at least get past 1.5 balls. Great sprinters improve on the 100m record by mere 100ths of a second. But tyring to get an extra ball at 43' off would be like forcing sprinters to round their times to the nearest .5 second. Just some musing. Laz

Great idea. I'll be ready for the 2010 version in May. Laz

We stayed at Swiss last year and it was fantastic. I found one house to rent in Orlando with a boat on a ski lake but it's booked for the week we'll be there. Not sure there are too many other houses like that.

Hi. We have only 2 or 3 weeks left in the season here in Canada, so it's time to look south. We are going to go to Orlando for the first week of April and are looking at options. Does anyone know if it's possible to rent a house with a boat on a lake with a course? That way we can get a lesson every morning and practice all day. I found a house near Orlando but it's being used by the owner that week. For now we are sticking with Orlando as the kids both ski and want to go to Disney. Any suggestions?

HI. I have PPSG but no magnets. The kind people at Perfect Pass threw in a timing switch that sits on the dash. I press the button as the boat goes through the gate and it works perfectly like a ball #1 magnet. Laz

Does Matt Rini have a website?