buoyboy1

I planted 20,000 of them at my lake. If you have clay soil they will be slow growing but if its silty/sandy they will grow quite well provided you also live in a southern climate. They will however attract muskrats. We planted them just above the water level in a 18" x 24" diagonal pattern about 10' wide on the 10:1 shelf. They do eventually grown out into 18" max water depth. We kept the lake down about 4" (low enough to keep the soil moist but to avoid wind erosion) and did not ski on the lake for the first year to allow shoreline growth to develop. If you plan on skiing while you plant them I would drop the lake some more so the rollers don't erode the cattails but if you don't want to erode away your lake its well worth staying off it for at least a year. That was very difficult but the long term benefit was HUGE. If I had to do it over again I would also find something that does not attract muskrats like spikerush. We bought the cattails through Wildlife Nurseries in WI. However, after a few years we also have native cattails growing. After 3-4 years, I would say a 50/50 mix of planted ones and native ones was very well established.

I rode a 67 green vapor for a while but found the 66 worked better at 35 and 38. It shut down better at the buoy. 6' 185 BTW....34 mph.....AND also have really slow water....

I would get a geotech engineer involved to make sure your rock does not have fractures that would make keeping a lake full of water difficult. Also, if you rotate the course about 5 or 10 degrees, it will make for an easier set up for the driver and skier and help to prevent bow rollers when turning in to line up. I did that on my lake since I did not have room to offset my islands. You will be surprised what a difference a few degrees makes. I have one buoy only 45 feet from shore and its really not an issue. If you decide on an island, keep the top of the island no more than 18" above the lake level. My islands are much higher and the muskrats have caused a great deal of damage. If you keep the top of the island low they will not have room to get a den above the water level. Most of my lake maintenance is on my islands......muskrats, erosion and mowing.....never ending.

Definitely do the turn islands especially if the lake is only 1800'. Also, keep the top of the island only 12" or so above the water level if you have any muskrats in your area. My islands are 4 or 5 feet higher than my lake and the rats have made Swiss cheese of them. Also, use plenty of rip rap. I also only have 50 feet from the edge of one island to the shore with zero incidents. If you are concerned about someone driving around the island then you sure do not want them pulling you between 8' wide boat guides. My islands are also not offset from the center of the lake. I rotated the course a few degrees which equated to about 25 foot at each end. It allows for an easier setup coming around the island. I also did the slopes of the island at a 1:4 below the water line to allow less of a chance of someone getting into shallow water. Same with the ends of the lake. The shelf of the lake where the course is was done at 1:10 but I wish I had done 1:12 or 1:15. It still washes out and I even waited over a year to allow vegetation to take hold before skiing on it.

Typo, I meant to say 3 @ 32 off......

Many years ago back in Ohio I skied on a portable course on a river and was able to get 3 @ 35 off. At that time I could barely run 15 off at 34 mph. We measured the course arms when we got done skiing and the turn balls were 16" narrow on each side. Course width makes MUCH more of a difference than the length of the rope. I sure miss that course......:)

There is also evapotranspiration to take into account if you will have any shoreline vegetation. http://water.usgs.gov/edu/watercycleevapotranspiration.html

Before replacing them, unplug the puck connectors and reconnect. I was also getting fail messages on both pucks and for some odd reason both of mine have been working fine ever sense. If not, there are some Garmin ones on Amazon that you can pick up for 1/3 of what ZO is selling them for. Good Luck.

34 mph also.............

Where do you think the cutoff is between a 66 or 67 for a mid-38 skier?

John - What ski are you riding?

63 acre property with 17 acre ski lake, house and outbuilding. Lake has plenty of water and stays full year round. weskialot.com

I had Tim White in AL put ZO off in my 05 196 SN nearly 2 years ago. My boat had 425 hrs at the time. Best decision I ever made. Your current boat is going to depreciate a LOT less over the upcoming years vs the newer one you are trying to buy. It was about 4K to do the conversion and I was also able to sell my PP as well.

IN ADDITION, rumor has it (not verified by Stats Inc) that he is the FIRST Men IV division skier to ever run 39 at the Nationals. Not bad for a scrawny guy from Buffalo with hip dysplasia. WAY TO GO DON!

Cattails are great for keeping your shoreline together and dissapating rollers.......

As a senior judge and someone that has installed a camera or two I would love to see judging the gates go away. Think about all the time saved not having to deal with cameras and video feed back to "base camp". No more tourney delays when one goes out either. Tech Controllers will also love this new idea.

Bought a Bank Repo1988 Ski Supreme in 1990 for $9500. Sold it Jan 1 1996 for $9000 with 4 inches of snow on the ground in NC. Did not even charge him extra for the huge wake outside 28 off. My shins still ache......