GaryWilkinson

Suffered with golfers elbow for a few seasons and had to grin and bear it. Until... I did 2 things: 1) adjusted my technique and decision criteria to let go in order to reduce taking hits from slack line. 2) tried a radius (bent) handle. These 2 things have reduced this painful condition to almost zero past 2 seasons. If it does come back a bit, it's ice packs and Band-it for sure. But as previously mentioned, the band doesn't cure the condition, only reduce the pain.

Wow that's interesting! I've been reading for years that heel lift is a no-no. Yet when I'm checking, I feel my heel lift often. It's seems required for balance. So I guess a bit is ok, what say you experts? Gw

All pix look great, calm, serene, how's the wind in your area. Planning on planting additional wind break tree line. In that area I'm sure you could grow some protection rather quickly!? Looks beautiful though A dream realized I bet.

I have a 95 with over 1000 hours on it and it is a sweet boat and ride. I ski 55kmph at -28, -32 and don't find much if any difference to my friends 196 2010. There is however a big difference to the 200 but that's not in this conversation The only thing I wish I had for my boat was a bigger, fuel injection engine. Other than that, she's a beaut! Good luck!

Havin' fun while dropping course anchors old school!

Looks great but even though I'm a builder bathrooms and kitchens, I'm not up for re-inventing a custom Bimini. And my sewing skills leave a lot to be desired. Yours does look good though

Aha! Ok so a ski Nautique it is. ! (Egg on my face , owner of ski nautiques since 1975)

Shane really? Lol Is there a number associated with a 1995 Nautique ?

One last question: 1995 Nautique is what model of boat? (Not 196 right?)

Wow @jhughes great site recommendation! Just went there and ya, they are in canada eh!? In fact about 2 hours drive from my home. Problem is my boat is in storage, shrink wrapped and surrounded by 3 ft of snow. I may go to local dealer to see if they have a hull not in storage and accessible enough for me to do the measurements. Unless anyone out there has access to the same hull with a Bimini on it and can measure for me, I'll have to wait for the snow to melt far enough which this year should be about June! Thanks for the guidance!

Been thinking about a Bimini, - shielding from the melanoma inducing sun, and rain for those foolish enough to ski when it rains. - generally warmer and more comfortable when driving. Any downside ? Except the odd bang on the noggin and having to collapse it when covering every night? And, where can I buy one for my 95 Nautique ? Sunbrella the best? Thanks

Wish I could say that I broke my neck doing shortline but alas, it was a very old kids trampoline and a bad decision that resulted in my 5 cracks spread over C5, C6. I had paralysis and almost needed surgery before my arm strength finally started to come back. All this to say when it doesn't look good at -28 off or -32, I let go! I'm no hero and I'm not skiing in tournaments anymore. So no more "watch this, hold my beer" on the tramp or anywhere for that matter. Glad the 2nd fall wasn't more serious.

Can't beat the L 70-200. I have least expensive version (f 4.0) and it's awesome from the boat. Another great lens were lucky to have is the 1.8 85 mm prime lens. Glass is awesome for slalom at almost any line length. A pro sports photog once told me zooms are for amateurs and prime's are pros choice (when budget allows). Still can't go wrong with 70-200 f4. Used they go for around $500.

I'm 54 yrs old skiing -32 off and pb was a few at -32 at 36 a long time ago. I always dreamt of extreme shoreline now, and when I was young. In those days a few at -38 was the World Record!! So you're achievement @GOODESkier of -38 may, and probably will remain a dream for me but a reality for a terrific season Heartfelt congrats fella! Livin' the dream!!

Another question to @BraceMaker is "I would consider looking for those bits" how does one do that inside the water jacket of an engine.

I've heard those mufflers go for around $500 bucks but have a look on correct craft fan forum: http://www.correctcraftfan.com/forum/forum_topics.asp?FID=10&PN=2&title=boat-parts-for-sale I've done a lot of fibreglass work and it's imperative to have no grease,water or oil stains on the outside of the surface you want to adhere more fibreglass to. So best to take it out but if you can't, use a degreasing agent. Even using Dawn dish soap with water and sponge will help. Lather, rinse, repeat! Then blow dry but leave engine cover open and no conditioner!

@horton. Do you if they are 100 or 82 degree tapered heads? I used to do a lot of radio-controlled planes and these guys were great at providing fasteners at great prices. http://www.microfasteners.com/home.php?cat=589 Have a look. Gw.

Awesome video! So many times I've seen and told people to push hips forward and chest out. Yikes! Your description of proper position is critical for slalom success and longevity. @marcusbrown your offside description and explanation of "ski with what you've got" as far as hip rotation goes will change my skiing (and my coaching!) Thanks so much.

@cragginshred your videos are tremendous! Thanks so much for sharing them. 2 things, 1, what theraband exercises work best for medial golfers elbow pain? I get it bad when I'm skiing with bad technique and too much slack. (Im doing your exercises shown above too) 2, you should look into making a "slalom skiers most common injury healing and prevention exercises" video. I would pay good money for such an item! If the meantime I hit the star button and keep them as favourites. Thanks for your contributions, they make a difference.

Great stuff @marcusbrown. Tremendous advice Another great stripper-butt exercise is one I learned from a PT many many back injuries ago and that is the Pelvic tilt: Stand up, squeeze your butt cheeks hard! and Thrust forward with your pelvis as much as you can. Hold for a few seconds and relax. Do it 3-4 times. If you have even a little back pain this maneuver gives instant relief. It also is a decent core exercise and builds strength in the lower core and pelvis. A good friend of mine writes a fitness column in our montreal newspaper and she did her research and found that doing these 3 exercises are way better than sit-ups for core strength 1) plank 2) mountain climber 3) side cross I'm no yoga guy, never attended a class ever, but these exercises have given me much improved core strength and reduced back pain to almost zero. Marcus, you asked what else we'd like to see, for me that's your best description of, and exercises to do and practice the Stacked Position. I've been slaloming for over 45 yrs and yet still have trouble getting that position, but when I do, it's magic. Any tips on how to do it better, more consistently ? And a sincere thank you for taking the time to do these video tips They are tremendously well appreciated!

I have a couple of skiers I'm coaching at the same level as you and I'm telling them a few things. 1) move closer to the boat, put the line at -22 where the wakes are smaller and closer together and I find at this length, you get a great swing rhythm. Some may disagree with this advice but I've found it to be a great teaching aid to get over the wakes. Which brings me to # 2... 2) your position going over the wakes is body forward, flat ski. This is something you have to remedy before you can progress. Read Than Bogan's great article: "Leverage Position" it will change your skiing. It's a vicious circle, flat ski makes you bounce forward and the ski then goes down course with no edge in the water, with your body bouncing forward, your ski goes flatter. The other vicious circle is thinking " wow it's tough to cut thru those wakes so I should go cautious, going cautious means a flat ski and makes it impossible to cut thru the wakes. So try this a few times: pull out with handle in close, elbows touching your vest at the hips. Gradually swerve in keeping handle low and hips forward with the ski on edge! Slice through the wakes and glide out to the other side. See how you DON'T feel the wakes like before? This new position and technique will give you the confidence to learn the position of leverage, which allows you to slice through the wakes, which gets you more speed and glide out wider which keeps you ahead of the course yadda yadda yadda. 1st thing though: read Than's article Leverage Position. He explains it waaay better than I do.

Related to handle control is Seth's video on ski track vs handle track. It's on YouTube just search Seth and ipad. Seth's point is, (hope I got this right) at the point of maximum load, or should I say when the boat is at its most powerful, the ski should start to separate from the handle while keeping it in close. Hard to do. The secret I've found is in the position in that my shoulders have to be back, hips aligned and knees bent allowing the start of the edge change. At this point im at a load of 7 soon to be by the 2nd wake at a 3! IMHO if your legs are too straight with a load around 6-7 at the 2nd wake, something's got to give and its usually 1 of 2 places, handle away from body, or in my case too often, it's breaking forward at the waist which is another popular topic ! Oh to be supple and have great timing. Nate smith does this better than anyone on the planet. My 54 yr old body has a tough time doing it unfortunately, but when it does, the load is lighter, angle is better, I'm ahead of the course and life is good!

Great work Than, but calling it "work" is probably wrong. I bet you had a great time too. Giving back, coaching, helping out, call it what you want but spending time with eager young skiers is so rewarding. When I was in late teens, if you weren't picked for the Quebec team, (which some years I was not) you weren't getting any help or advice. As the only real slalom skier on my lake competing, it was tough to improve. Sorry for the name drop but until I shared a slalom course with George Athans and got some coaching from time to time from him I wouldn't have gotten past -22. So now if we see even a little bit of interest from our local teens at the lake we help'em out. Feels great, they improve and everyone goes home happy and hopefully better as a result. Well done @than_bogan !

@Than_Bogan just check out how much Nate at the completion of his turn DRIVES his knees forward and gets his body from knees up, aligned with the rope, !! Leverage position. !!

What blows me away are his early passes that look like he's at -28 off or -32 like all the rest of us mere mortals. Honestly, it doesn't look like he's using the same rope measuring devices as we do! That's it! My first conspiracy theory of the year is that he's got someone on the inside swapping out ropes before and after he skis! The guy is awesome, Beautiful to watch And inspiring! Way to go Nate!