Jordan

Funny about the new ski boats. I like my friend's 2008 197 very much. My kids who ski at 30mph, 15 off greatly prefer the wake on my 1993 Mastercraft 190.

wow...he seems to be out of shape at the end of virtually every turn...yet is somehow in a perfect pulling position about a half second later.

A coach once told me, "we want station wagon turns and ferrari pulls...not the other way around"

Than...really good job! That article passes on very important information with a great deal of clarity, well done!

The tip that helped me "get it" regarding a leveraged position was to lean as opposed to pull. Pull, mad me think that I should pull with my arms...good for your biceps, bad for your skiing. Leaning, allowed me to ski with extended arms down at my hips, to employ my skeleton rather than my muscles to resist the boat, and to generate speed that felt totally in control. The best drill was to practice leaning by pulling out from just outside the wake and then drifting back to the foam, over and over again. First on one side then the other.

http://images.canadianlisted.com/nlarge/slalom-water-ski_4524172.jpg

Mouth guards are logically thought to reduce concussions, though there is very little evidence to support that. Jackski...99.9% of mouthguards used in hockey go over the upper teeth. There is one model that covers the lower teeth. Though helmets are imminently sensible, and they do protect the exterior of your melon from getting crushed, most concussions are the result of the brain sloshing around in your head and hitting the inside of your skull. Helmets in every sport simply don't have enough cushioning to slow your head down slowly enough at impact to prevent most concussions. If you go out the front at 60 mph, and your head is accelerating faster as it whips towards the water, there is very good likelihood of injury. I am actually amazed at how rare head injuries are in our sport.

1) elbows tucked into your vest,as you head into the pre turn 2) keep two hands on the handle until edge change is completed after the second wake These two thoughts are what worked for me.

why are you laughing at my advert?

Go work for a large company (I do) and a small company (I have). while large companies in theory have large resources available, it doesn't always work out that way...time lines, departmental specific budgets, politics, quarterly reporting pressures, the relative sway that your department or product holds within the company; all of these things affect what you can and cannot do. In a small company, communication is wide open and easily achieved, changes can be made on the fly, you are much closer to the end user of your product. There are many more things and great things (and bad things) can come out of both arrangements, but don't ever assume that bigger is better. Particularly in a small run niche product like a high end slalom ski. Look at the father of the industry Herb O'Brien, he has founded three major ski companies, and twice has sold them and moved on, only to open another small shop. If you were looking for a fine meal, would it always be served by a chain? Or would you do better at a small bistro with a terrific chef?

Here is a complicated sounding fix...but it will work. Put a check valve in (you want a metal one...not plastic)...in between the motor and the lift. Okay, so now the water won't get back to the motor BUT you need to let the air out while the water is filling. The solution for letting the air out and not the water, is to drill and tap the body of the pipe that holds the check valve on the boat lift side...then install a schraeder valve (like the kind you see on tires) with the spring pulled out. without the spring, it will let air out, but will close will close once the water hits it. With both the check valve and schraeder valve closed you will have no water leakage. This system is used on drain back water systems at cottages here in the great white north....same design needs.

Two centavos... IMHO...Hips trailing is a symptom...not the actual problem. A wise waterskier once told me that you can't do two things at once when waterskiing. You are either turning, or pulling....not both. I believe that trailing hips are a symptom of failing to complete the turn when you start the pull. Your hips have to be skied back to the handle in order to start pulling in a stacked position. If you begin pulling in an unstacked position the boat will pull your arms and torso forward. The result is trailing hips or an OTF. In order to make all of this work, I also believe that you need to keep both hands on the handle to initiate the edge change AND (read Bruce Butterfield's article on handle control) that in the pre-turn you need to glide outbound on your inside edge, elbows tucked in. That sets up a patient and complete turn...which leads to a stacked pull, which leads to a great edge change...blah, blah, blah....

91-94 had a softer wake, but had spray issues at deep shortline; or, 32 or below if you were skiing into the wind. The '95-'97, solved the spray issues, but the wake hardened a little. Great overall boat though. LT-1 is a great engine.

YES.... It also allows you to practice better and longer. More balls with more energy in practice kills less balls and being gassed half way though your second pass. Trust me, tried it both ways.

I used a line of credit from my bank. Prime...could pay it off whenever I wanted.

She was listed at 172 cm on a website for the Panam games last year...about 5'7"

For me....YMMV...I know when I am skiing correctly when the pull feels more like a pulse. A momentary load that comes with the handle right on the hip. Results in a slingshot across the wake, flowing directly into a pre-turn on the other side. Total effort is much less when this works. Unfortunately, this doesn't happen nearly as often as I would like. My thought while skiing, is to focus on is: hips to handle, not handle to hips. BTW, I think that Butterfields article which talks a lot about keeping your elbows in is a major key to making this happen.

Yes

BINGO...Speed comes from being stacked when the line comes under tension. Congrats for "feeling it". That said...the great thing about skiingis there is another "light bulb" waiting to bite you in the ass at another line length.

Pellet side towards the interior of the engine...pointy side out.

sounds like the extra stiffness is creating too much tip. maybe try moving them back a bit?

"The Office" As in, "I'm at the office"..."I'm heading into the office". Makes it easier to lie to your boss!

1) As the rope shortens, the angle of the rope steepens at the widest point of the turn. The greater this angle, the greater the force that the boat's pull imparts attempting to straighten out your ski...or to move you back to center. 2) the speed and cadence is significantly different as you shorten the rope...it gets much faster 3) the required path (to get around the buoys) becomes ever more exact as the rope shortens...leaving much less room for error. 4) The transitions going from pull, to pre-turn to turn etc, have to be much more precise, and occur much quicker as you shorten the rope. If you try shortening the rope while free skiing...you will notice the incresed speed; but, from 15 off to 28 off, it might even seem to be easier. You may experience less slack, and even a reduced effort (due to reduced drag on the ski). That said, it is a bit of an illusion, as you can turn and transition very patiently. In the course, it is a very different story. After 28 off...it will become harder with each shortening...but still, nothing like when you are in the course. Anyhow, try it, it can be a lot of fun.

My question is, what posessed the first guy to try it??? Have seen a lot snow machines doing it...

Steel framed, floating dock...tow it to a protected area on the lake for the winter. Used to leave in front of our place, even with the steel structure had damage. Builder claimed that it could withstand anything...not quite.