andjules

66.5" HO S2 available, blank, fin at stock settings, good shape (the usual insignificant little scratches), great ski, asking $265 CAD/$200 USD plus shipping.

@Laz is active WSWO membership required?

Freddie Winter won with 3.25 @ -41 (and am increasingly common Freddie-Winter-hip-slide-crash; Neveu and Asher both had 3 @ -41)

I'm going to be a bit of contrarian: many people on this board tend to always go back to gates and setup, as if every failed pass can always be traced to the set up. There's something valuable in that philosophy, but I think it gets overstated, often. Could your setup/gates/1 be a little better? sure. Is that what's stopping you? I don't think so. To my eye, your body position from 1-to-2 is night-and-day worse than your gates-to-1. Your ass is dragging more dramatically, and as a consequence your arms end up much further from your hips, and coming through/off the wakes you crush, giving all your energy/angle back to the boat. Result: a narrow-and-fast 2 ball. @Horton sometimes talks about trying to straighten your back leg. I think if you focused on a straighter back leg as you approach the wakes from 1-to-2, your hips would come forward and you wouldn't give so much energy back to the boat. Keep your arms tight to your vest after the wakes and I think you'll carry more of your energy outbound, setting you up for a better 2. My 2¢. P.S. I'm about your level (a pass ahead on a very good day), and have struggled with similar stuff. Please take my comments humbly, in that context.

I'll add to the chorus... it's a super-fun, multi-purpose boat. The slalom wake is small, and ranges from good to great depending on what speed and line-length you ski. If you or some of your crew ski at 30mph or below, it might have a very slight edge over the MC. At 15/22 off, 32-36 mph, the MC might have a slight edge (just a little softer?). If you're shorter than 28 off, I'm not sure it matters. Either way, they're close enough that I'd let other factors influence my purchasing decision (how well were they taken care of, is it harder to keep up/find parts for a 1993 boat vs a 2000 boat in 2019? etc.). You won't ski noticeably worse or better on either.

It's a bit better. I think it's more about the type-of-mic + distance-from-mic combo. Are you using a shotgun mic? If not, you may need to bring the mic closer unless it's a very directional mic. You might want to try a cheap lavalier (label) mic (which isn't directional, but is positioned so close to the speaker's mouth that it sounds more natural).

What was most interesting to me was seeing Nicholas LeForestier on one (on Facebook), and the vague suggestion that he was prepping for competition; especially interesting when Russell Gay came 3rd and Jaret Llewellyn came 4th at Moomba… late 40s+ skiers tricking at elite levels.

@BraceMaker indeed, there were all kinds of issues that prevented the brand's success. But it was a moment when someone built a tournament class ski boat engine that sipped about half the gas. I'd like to see something like that happen again.

I'd still love to revisit the 4 litre, aluminum, marinized Lexus engines that were in the short-lived Toyota Epics. But a 3.5L ecoboost might be interesting. Unfortunately, it seems it only takes a couple of traditionalists saying "the hole shot wasn't quite as strong" (as if that matters) and everyone goes back to drooling over 6 litre gas guzzlers.

@gapullin I used to think the height disadvantage was huge; then I realized Regina Jaquess is 5'4", which means either a) it's not that big a deal, b) Regina is way more talented than we give her credit for (and we give her a lot of credit), or c) maybe things would look different if we measured height + reach/wingspan… in reality it's probably a combo of b) & c), or perhaps all three.

I don't know if underrated is the right word (and in the early days it was more of an overall story than slalom-specific), but Mike Morgan seems to have spent decades just under the radar. And made the gutsy decision to keep skiing @ 36 long after the rules said he could move down to 34.

We had one all through my teens and twenties. It was the love of my life!

+1 for the Outback, assuming the price is right. No frills, reasonably nice wake, even at slower speeds. I skied behind a couple of them for years with a family-oriented club, ran my first -32 behind one. My only (minor) complaint was driving it for strong skiers; it didn't track easily, but you get used to it.

+1 for uncoached sets @ Lapoint Ski Park. For me, in the off-season, the coaching will be largely wasted... I'm just looking to maintain some fitness and have some fun. I stopped by last month for the first time… great site, great location (SW Orlando not too far from the airport) and @lpskier was really welcoming and accommodating.

@Rob It was Rossi who wrote about not trying to ski the impossible line. Great article, especially as people were adjusting from PP to Zero Off, and dovetails nicely with other thinkers on the topic of load vs speed.

Thank you, @Horton. You're making a real difference for our sport.

Today was my first day of marketing for an electric fuel cell client. I'll see what I can do :p

@mwfillmore you should check out this thread.

@Joelh I saw your other post (what you mean by "crossover": 50% in the course, 50% free ski). My 2¢ (others may disagree): pick a properly-sized ski that's best-suited to a pass or two above your current-hardest-pass-on-a-good-day. In other words, if the hardest pass that you can complete is 32mph at 15 off, pick a ski that's perfect for a 34/-15 or 34/-22 skier. The same ski will be adept at free skiing, too (again, there is nothing to "cross over"). If you happen to be anywhere between, let's say, 30mph/-15 off and 34/-32, then as others have pointed out above, the HO Omni, Radar Senate and Connelly Carbon V get a lot of good reviews around here. The big exception: it's different if you're just learning the course at dramatically slower speeds (e.g. you free ski @ 32mph and are trying to get through the course at 26mph). The right ski for your weight at 32mph might not provide enough of a platform at 26mph.

@BraceMaker I 100% agree, and that's awesome... I'm just making the point that the word "crossover" probably isn't the right word (because it typically means something else when used in other sports/industries). What you're describing is simply a "right-fitted ski", for both your weight/boat speed and ability level (and water conditions).

@Joelh please describe what you mean by "crossover" Ski companies have thrown the word around off-and-on over the years, but they're rarely clear what it means in the context of slalom. Often they just use it as a substitute for "advanced-intermediate" (good for someone freeskiing and starting to learn/advance-in the course) If you mean skiing in-course vs free-skiing, my 2¢: unless you're just beginning to learn the course, if you picked a ski that was best for your level for course skiing, it would almost always be the right ski for you when freeskiing. That said, some skis are better than others for: 1. being ridden by a variety of skiers (range of weights, range of boat speeds, range of skill level) 2. rougher public water (well, at least they are marketed that way) 3. "playing around", wake jumping, skiing at slow speeds (well, at least they are marketed that way)

@dchristman I had seen that Suarez video before but forgotten the WTO wrap-in. Awesome stuff. Here's another good LeForestier clip (jump forward to 9:27):

At about 0:14 into the 2nd Pickos video, he does a reverse toe wake O WRAP-IN. I'm not sure I've ever seen that before... I'm sure it wasn't long after that the TWLO was introduced: easier and far more points. Judging by the shorts and maple leaf Mastercraft that segment is from the '79 world's in Toronto - first tournament I ever attended (spectator!)!

+1 on a wider handle for old-man-reverse-back-wrap. I've only gotten on my trick ski about 3-4 times in the last 20 years. The last time I did, I brought a wakeboard handle in the boat and it made a world of difference. The other thing worth considering (if you're really dedicated) is researching a range-of-motion exercise/stretching regimen. Either a physio, rehab trainer or even a crossfit trainer who has an interest in mobility (kind of a sub-cult in the already-cult-ish crossfit world) might be able to help you.

@Zman yes. a) in ~10+ flights in soft bags over the last 4 years, I've had zero problems but b) it's worth noting that I'm travelling with a $500-a-few-years-ago ski-it-again special that I'd be excited to have an excuse to replace, not a brand-new, just-unboxed $2000 Goode that would leave me with a broken heart if it came off a plane in two pieces. Risk ≠ probability Risk = probability * consequence