Ryno

@6balls Yeah I'm not training for nationals or anything, so beating my PB is all I'm after. It gives me consistent 16.08s times with a small wake, so I can't fault it. If you're still enjoying and using the old barefooter, it doesn't make any sense to get rid of it. The $10k or so you'd get for it would hardly make a dent in the price of a new Nautique.

@ShaneH The problem is getting the boat off the trailer in 1 1/2" of water and running the boat into the beach etc. This is not a man made lake, so there are sand bars (shallower sections) etc.

@6balls I remember discussing your boat with you at the start of the year. I take it you didn't get round to fitting Stargazer? The photo above is taken at the lake I have my slalom course - It's only 5 ft deep all over, so you'd run a real risk of loosing the prop if you tried to use an inboard. It's a perfect boat for what I'm after - it actually skis and drives the course better than my folks LXi!

@GregHind I also have Stargazer Z-box rigged up to an outboard... Though my hull is an older Flightcraft. All hail the mighty outboard!!!

So that's why Nate is so good! Nothing to do with technique, but rather he has a secret weapon... I'm going to get the drill, 10 holes it is!

@bdh1974 My mum has the same issue as you, though it is her rear foot that has the shorter leg. She bought the thickest RTP she could find (I think it was a Jobe) so it's around 1/2 higher than her front boot. In your case, having the rear leg longer than the front is probably less of an issue, though if you want to try a spacer I'd cut up a nylon chopping board in the shape of your front plate and get some longer screws so it'll go through both the plate and the chopping board. Where in Australia are you?

Electric does make perfect sense in a wakeboard boat ~ given weight is not an issue. Hopefully if these take off, prices will come down and technology will continue to improve, which will eventually make it viable for a slalom boat. I do love that it is only a 6 hour charge for a 10 hour run time!

Yesterday I tried the technique for turn in outlined above (left hand gate ball lined up with #1). It is way earlier than when I would normally turn in, and it was a real mental game to force myself to turn at that point and gradually build the lean to the gate. For years I've been starting my run with a late turn in, then skipping through the gates at warp factor 9. More often than not I'd then be struggling to control the speed going around #1 and would usually be wide of the buoy. Although it will take a little more time on the water before I perfect this new turn in point, I'm pretty sure it is the fix I need for one ball. Thanks guys!

Oil isn't going to last forever... In around 100 years haven't we used about 50% of the worlds reserves??? It won't last another 50, given the rate we're using it these days. Sure electric isn't viable now, give it another 5 - 10 years... The price of oil may give us no other option.

I also use www.windfinder.com Two great things about it: 1. It provides forecast for almost everywhere in the world 2. You can get an app to use it on your iphone It is very accurate, though it can sometimes mislead you with the early morning winds. This is because is doesn't seem to account for the time it takes for the upper level winds to mix down to the surface, first thing in the morning.

@BRY Do you ski at 58kph or 55kph? I noticed in your profile you ski on a 68" SR2... my 66" has less surface area so I think (at 58kph) I need the extra wing angle to help slow down! The only gremlin I'm dealing with is some porpoising (or bounce) in my offside turn. It's something I've had to iron out with other skis in the past. I usually cure this problem by moving the bindings forward, but in this case I'm trying to make small fin adjustments to cure the problem. This last thing I want to do is sacrifice any other area of the skis phenomenal performance.

@BRY My current settings are fairly close to stock: 66" SR2 Front Boot 750mm from tail Fin Length 176mm Fin Depth 62.5mm DFT 20mm (though it's hard to know where to accurately measure this from) I run a Schnitz mini wing at 0 deg in a normal front ventral position And a rear Schnitz HO/D3 Style wing in the standard position at 9 deg

I also agree with the comments on Jetboats... When I've slalomed behind them I've found that you get very little power when cutting through the wake, as the wash is so aerated from the jet drive. Go the outboard!!!

I'd also recommend looking at outboard boats. They are usually more durable in the salt water than an inboard, and the ability to trim the nose up will help you in less than ideal conditions.

I've been skiing on an SR2 since reading Hortons review last year. I'm still in love with the ski - It does everything well. I ski at 58kph and I'm now regularly running the 14m. Before I switched skis (from a Sixam SS) I'd run the 16m once, so I'm more than a pass better. I don't find mine as unstable as Ed mentions above, though I did add a ventral to the fin (as per his recommendation) which settled it down nicely.

What's with the shorts he's wearing in that video??? No cool - even for the 80s

I gave up on Straightline handles after the rubber on my handle started twisting independent of the bar. I've been very happy with the switch to ML.

If you're worried about the quality of the fin clamp, Fluid Motion make a replacement for O'Brien skis. I've fitted one to a friends sixam and it's definitely an improvement.

I run a forward ventral on my Sans Rival SR2, with the carbon fin and rear wing. Very happy with the performance. It made the ski less squirrelly, yet is still fast and quick to edge change. Also I've never had a tail blowout since adding a ventral.

I also use a Wiley's Stay Dry Drysuit... It only gets about two months of use here in Australia, but very good value for money.

Dave didn't ask about Andy's new ski? What? Awesome skiing Andy, this will only add to the credibility of the Big Dawg

Do it! Sixam 2 Point is a great ski

I'm not game to try, but it'd be interesting to see how Rainex on the underside would affect the skis performance. It'd be fast as hell, but would it turn?

@Roger That's what Horton's hair has been designed for. Genetics has provided him in built handle guard protection.