chris_logan

I'll agree with most comments I have read thus far in that access is a large issue. There are a lot of private sites that maintain an elitist view, prohibiting public access and limiting memberships to a very small number. Why would a site turn away someone who was willing to pay for a regular membership, assist in maintenance, and be a driver for anyone who needed one (when available), etc?? Because the people in charge at those sites paid large $ to enjoy it (not necessarily use it), and unless they see you ponying up half a million to buy/build a house there, they couldn't care less what you would bring to the lake. Attitude towards "outsiders" goes a long way to inspire or kill an activity.

@Rivvy I would definitely try one on if you have the option. I prefer my vest to be quite snug, but still be able to breathe fairly comfortably. Most vests loosen up once wet anyways.

In AL, we have a Nautique dealer who has chosen to sponsor entry fees to the state tournament for any new skier or skier that hasn't participated in the state tournament in the past. I think finding local sponsors for annual tournaments to fund new skiers is a fairly easy and great way to grow our sport. I like it especially for anyone who hasn't skied in a tournament before. That way it is literally a free trial. After the first tournament, they can ride on the Grass Roots wave if they would like to continue for the remainder of the year. It definitely eases the financial burden on those who haven't acquired a passion for the sport yet.

As far as fundraisers, I second @RazorRoss3 on all of his tactics. Also, don't forget you can usually get different restaurants (ie: 5 Guys, Moes, Wing Stop, etc.) to help you out with a fundraiser where they will donate 10% of all receipts over a 3-5 hour period on a given day. If you work hard at it, you can generally have 2 restaurant fund raisers a month all year long and never have one at the same restaurant twice. I would suggest putting together a very detailed budget for the '14-'15 scholastic year. It doesn't have to be completely accurate, but a fairly good estimate of income and costs incurred by the team for an entire year. Things you would want to include in the budget: Total Income - dues, fund-raisers, donations, tournament proceeds, t-shirt sales, etc.; Total Costs - practice site dues, boat, boat insurance, boat gas, boat depreciation, boat maintenance, potential USAWS club insurance, equipment (don't forget things like ropes, handles, vests in various sizes, jump suits, helmet, etc.), tournament fees (based on anticipated team participation), travel costs, hotels, tournament bibs (some regions require them at all tournaments, definite requirement for regionals and nationals), potential costs to host a fall tournament (USAWS sanction, region/conference sanction, gas, food, hotels for judges, etc. - don't host a spring tournament until your club can afford the loss). Once your have your fairly realistic budget put together, your costs will always outweigh the total income, divide out the difference in costs and income among the projected club members. This should give you a ballpark figure of how much total cost the student members will have to float on their own. Then you can determine what amount of money would be "reasonable" to ask the university to contribute to the success of your waterski club - use your club's faculty advisor to assist with this. Create an accurate and concise presentation of your club (history, current member status, projected member status, coach?, future goals) and projected budget. Schedule a time in mid March with the director of club sports to give your presentation to them. If you show hard work, organization, and determination among your club to those who are in control of your club's existence and potential financial assistance, you should do just fine. I know I kinda got lengthy, but that was a large lesson learned in my 6 years of waterski club experience and leadership.

Any update on shirts? possible relaunch?

I skied the morning of my own wedding, though only slalom (would've loved a jump set as well). I even had our wedding filmographers there to document it as officially part of our wedding day. Just ski smart and don't hold onto something you know you shouldn't, and you'll be fine.

Ok, so all I have seen is about Midwest Alumni Regionals. Who is putting together/handling Eastern Alumni?

Definitely full winterization, but not until early to mid December. Always keep a heat lamp in it when temps drop below freezing. Why chance it?

Clearly they folks in the X2 were racing the guy in the jon boat. It must have been dark and/or they hit land before before the X2 planed out. Guy in jon boat has no issue getting his boat back in the water so he just played along and parked his too.

I guess I should probably point out that sports turf and hydro turf are not the same thing. Hydro turf is a geotextile product designed with strength properties specifically for erosion control, and has a prescribed installation process that must be done properly in order for it to work. If you try to do this with used sports turf, you will likely end up with a giant mess and undercut erosion - negating the intended purpose to begin with. As is true with most engineering concepts - you can either do it right, or try to fake it and face the consequences.

Here's a link to when @Jody_Seal broke the news earlier today, and to tie the two threads together: ballofspray.com/forum#/discussion/11990/interesting

So does this mean that CC can now indirectly control costs at Malibu?

As far as costs go: HydroTurf™ is significantly less costly than hard armor revetment systems. Installed cost for HydroTurf™ is typically up to 50% less than that for traditional hard armor systems. In addition, HydroTurf™ requires minimal maintenance and will drastically lower long-term maintenance budgets. *Estimated Installed Cost Comparison: HydroTurf – $4 to $6/sf 24″ Riprap – $7.5 to $15/sf 6″ Concrete Paving – $6 to $8/sf Articulated Concrete Block – $8 to $12/sf This is per their website.

@liquid d That is in Emerson, GA. It is right off of I-75, opposite of Lake Allatoona. This is actually really close to @MattP's stomping grounds. Besides, "looks expensive" is a relative term. All new ski boats "look expensive" to me, but I'm in the process of changing that.

So, while at work, I just started looking through my latest Geosynthetics Magazine, and what do I see on the front page?... A picture and reference to an article about shore protection for wakeboarding lakes. This caught my eye immediately, as the construction/engineering world doesn't often intersect with the watersports world, especially in the literature that I receive at the office. From reading the article, this seems like a great product for maintaining the "perfect shoreline," preventing erosion and keeping the desired slope to prevent any backwash. In addition, being a synthetic turf, it also keeps a very nice aesthetic appeal year round without any maintenance. Can you imagine never weed-eating, and not having to deal with a rocky shoreline or any sand erosion? Of course there is always the initial cost of installation, which doesn't look like a DIY project by any means, but how long would it take to see ROI in this product? I guess it depends on what your time, back health, and perfect shoreline conditions are worth to you - in combination with the overall maintenance cost that a typical lake endures with natural shorelines. With this facility relatively being in my neck of the woods, I want to go check it out. I might even round up a trick ski to take with me, but I really want to see the end product and how it performs... so maybe on a busy day for them and hope the wind picks up while I'm there. By the looks of the finished product, at least in a picture, it doesn't look half bad. I may need to add some budget to my "dream lake fund". watershedgeo.com/hydroturf/

Moving into D1 Women Jump I don't know/remember how to imbed video

War Eagle @lpskier

Y'all get your other screen going and keep track of collegiate nationals. Support the future of our sport. or ncwsa.skibennetts.com/2-uncategorised/24-schedule-boat-draw.html

@MattP If I were you I'd find a W stencil and some black Krylon.

http://columbia.craigslist.org/boa/4667882665.html Here we have the classic case of: a) backwoods good ole boy slapping a name on it in hopes of getting more money b) ^ above said guy has been previously ripped off by someone else and apparently never titled or registered the boat (though the pictures show registration, maybe stolen from another boat??) c) ^ above said guy straight trying to rip people off FWIW, I emailed him to let him know that his boat is, in fact, not a MasterCraft, but a early 90's Ski Brendella. Can't say he doesn't know now.

@MattP fair enough. Stop texting and driving. You don't weigh enough to win that battle.

@eleeski "I am and I can." does not always transfer into "I will." Meets quota for being in college.

I refer you to this thread: ballofspray.com/forum#/discussion/9983/looking-for-a-place-to-slalom-in-naples-fl and put in my $.02 of The Ultimate Ski Lake. It's not far from the Fort Myers airport.

@RaxzorRoss3 I completely understand where you're coming from, but I also agree with what @BK said about the reason behind creating D2 division at nationals. IMO, I think what the Midwest would benefit the most from would be splitting into 2 regions, effectively doubling the opportunity for those teams to participate in nationals. This would eliminate the wildcard teams at nationals by adding a region. It could also cut down on the travel involved in that region for attending tournaments. Just my opinion, and I'm sure I forgot a few details that could change that idea entirely.

Plus, I bet these companies would do a lot better to write off extra stock (like the dumpster full of high end OBrien skis) and donate them to college teams. Almost every college team out there can provide 501©3 paperwork for anything donated to make those items tax deductible.