webbdawg99

@Horton I'll film it tonight with my iPhone and I'll post it on here as soon as you figure out a way to get video or pics directly from an iPhone to the forum! ;) I think @Kelvins video is a good example of a legit 1/4. Ski was still outbound when the skier lost the handle. Appears to have never made any progress back in bound....certainly not intersecting the mid buoy, imaginary line. Pretty much an illustration of what I said at the beginning of the thread. But to say that the 1/4 ball zone is only a few feet in size is very inaccurate....in my opinion.

Can anyone take a pic of their A1 fin set to stock? I had to add a LOT of tip to achieve these numbers. Dropping the rear of the fin only added depth without much length. There are several more depth hash marks showing on the front of my fin than on the rear. This looks scary....pic to follow.

Is anyone in disagreement with what @danbirch said? That is my understanding of 1/4 ball as well. It's not an area of a few feet, it's the area outside the buoy line running the length of the course. You must progress back across the centerline of the ball, towards the center of the course to get 1/2. I can go to the lake today and easily film myself getting 1/4 over and over again.

Most 1/4 ball calls I have seen happened when the skier is pulling very long and was traveling outbound at the ball and then crashed.

Ha. I guess you're right. I should have a video camera out b/c I'm expecting some of my worst crashes EVER. Hopefully 4 steps back for 6 steps forward!

@ShaneH I'm hesitant to make so many big changes at once. Do you think it would be more prudent to adjust only the fin at this point or go ahead and do it all?

My average is 2.5@38 (36 mph). My best is 5@38. Your assessment of my issues is spot on @SkiJay. I just can't believe I've been this far off! Well now that nationals is over, I'm going to put it back to factory and see what happens. The knowledge on this forum never ceases to amaze me! Should I leave my bindings one hole back? At least initially?

1 hole back. I don't have that measurement

Light on the line. Don't load the rope and engage zero off into 1 ball. Keep elbows tight with a slow, progressive reach, followed by a slow return of the handle to the hip. Slow out, slow in.

I'm really a novice on fin settings and what adjustments do what. I just measured my A1 for the first time in 2 seasons. What performance differences will the following settings create relative to the factory settings? I've listed factory settings in parentheses. Depth 2.492 (2.508) Length 6.687 (6.840) Dft .905 (.770) Wing 9 (9) So it looks like my fin is shallow, short, and forward. What does this equate to?

Here's some intel from someone on the inner circle of HO: the A3 isn't close to being ready. Obviously, the goal is to make it better than the A2. But apparently, it's just not there yet. So if you're looking to make a switch NOW to a new ski, take the A3 off your list. I know they were taking pre-orders at Nationals, but you could end up waiting months on this one. I'm sure when it comes out though, it will be better than anything HO has ever put out......at least that's the goal.

Here's some intel from someone on the inner circle of HO: the A3 isn't close to being ready. Obviously, the goal is to make it better than the A2. But apparently, it's just not there yet. So if you're looking to make a switch NOW to a new ski, take the A3 off your list. I know they were taking pre-orders at Nationals, but you could end up waiting months on this one. I'm sure when it comes out though, it will be better than anything HO has ever put out.

Atlanta is one of the largest hubs in the country. I know its not centrally located, but its got to be one of the easiest airports to get in and out of from anywhere in the country. AND there's a ski like 5 miles away.

My thoughts exactly. I was surprised someone hadn't commented on this earlier. The B3 division is KILLING it. Quite humbling!

It wasn't too long ago that Asher tied the world record....although it wasn't video verified. However, I bet he was skiing on the A3 or a prototype model of it. I'm just surprised there hasn't been more chatter about this ski. I'm certainly curious. As soon as Nats is over....I'm on the market. I've never skiied anything but an HO.....this may be the year the streak ends unless some awesome stuff comes out about this ski.

I don't have any info on it. I'm not in West Palm until tomorrow. John Mommer at HO just made the announcement with a pic on the HO Skis Facebook page

It's at Nats. Was just released at the HO booth

@LkSamm196 I believe when someone says "split the bindings", they mean move one binding at a time instead of both. So if you were thinking about moving your boots forward, try just moving the front boot forward. And if you're thinking about moving the boots back, try just moving the rear boot back. There are a lot of guys that think "the closer the better". However, I split my bindings a couple seasons ago and it helped me a bunch.

One of the M4 guys I ski with was trying to get in the top half to avoid having to ski on the turnpike lake. What's the possible reasoning?

Pics!

Just goes to show what a fine line there is between success and failure with slalom skiing

@bmiller3536 100% agree. I pass up on lots of other social activities and trips so that I can afford my habit....but I love it. Look forward to meeting you at Nationals!

@jimbrake. As a M2 skier, I think $$$ killed the M2 division. At 25, when you enter M2, you are no longer on mommy and daddy's bankroll (usually). Hopefully you have a job, but are making the least amount of money you'll make in your life. You can't afford a boat, you can't really afford a new ski, and writing a $160 check to ski at nationals (not to mention the peripheral costs) is painful. I'm lucky enough to have a decent job and a flexible schedule....but most of my peers aren't that lucky. If you aren't 100% passionate about this sport, it's easy to walk away from bc of the expense of truly participating. I was the only M2 skier at our state tourney. The tournament director said to me jokingly, "You're the only M2 skier bc everyone else has to work for a living". Unfortunately, I think this was all too accurate.

There is some confusion here. @MattP is correct. When someone says an "8 buoy course", they could mean one of 2 things. One: a course that has 2 more turn balls with one set of pre-gates and gates at each end. Two: a pair of overlapping courses used on a very short lake. There are 2 different entry gates and 2 different exit gates. With the second setup mentioned, there is no entry gate preceding the first 2 balls. You ski past these 2 and run the last 6 so that the boat has enough time to get up to speed on the short lake. Kinda hard to explain....easier to see. @Ilivetoski. Here is a video of the 8 ball course at Okee....

Does anyone know if they slowed the boat down for the night skiing? I've heard they've slowed to 35.5 for the OM in the past....