sunvalleylaw

@tlarocque , cool. It looked very puget sound to me, but like it was not salt water. Looks like fun!

@tlarocque Great! What lake is that? I don't recognize it off hand.

Cool, @gregy , keep me posted and let me know when you are going to commit. Would love to get the project done before buttoning it up again this autumn.

I have seen someone with a Malibu Stargazer display for sale for $175 OBO but without the rest of what I need, that would be useless.

Thanks. Good to know. @Bill22 , did you buy new?

Or I can add Z-box myself. But I want the Stargazer set up so I can. Anyone selling? EDIT: Intended use is on an older Malibu Response LX with mechanical throttle.

@ScarletArrow , I love that vid. I would love to be able to ski a lot more like that than I currently do.

You know, having been raised behind old outboards, some very small where we had to drag a leg, and then behind 115's and 120's, etc., when we got out new DD, I missed a few starts. Also behind other's boats. I am a double boot guy. As some have mentioned here, a lot just want to throw the hammer down. I guess because I am not used to that, sometimes I will let that pull me forward then lose the handle. In training my wife and family, I discovered that I like it feathered a touch, but not too much. Also, "In gear" in my DD gives more pull than I want as compared with the old outboard. I prefer to bump it for a decent line tension prior to hitting it rather than just put it in gear. I suppose that depends on each boat and how the idle is set. Then the other key for me seems to be to let the ski hang or fade left, as far as 10:30 or 11:00 as I see @Marco mention above (I am LFF) and let the first tug of the line pull the ski straight. If I try to hold it straight up, I can get pulled out of position somehow. Another key for me is to keep my knees bent and let the ski plane before standing up up. That is an easier start for me as compared with standing on the ski too much to begin with. I had a blown L4/L5 disc a few years ago, and try to minimize force where I can. If I can avoid resisting or fighting the boat, I will.

Out in the PNW this week, visiting family and free-skiing on the salt water. Here is my brother out in front of Seabeck, at Hood Canal in front of the Olympics. :) (he tried my ARC after this run and said he may not be able to go back to this old Nomad). ;)

I have said this before, but my 17 year old now is a slalom skier, working on wake crossings and playing with whip drills to get started. My daughter just got up on skis for the first time the other day. Trying to grow a few new ones. May have an opportunity to get a couple of their friends up this next week.

Do the go pros and SJ's now record close enough to see for coaching purposes? In the past, my go pro was so wide angle it was hard to see anything. I would want to use a pylon mount so that the camera points toward the skier.

@dgarland10 ; I did each step at a time, top and bottom. I did it on those saw horses you see in my pic. I did not experience any problems doing it that way. For the final step, I did the bottom first, to make sure I would do the top last, so I could take care of any imperfections up top. I did not need to use a ton of product on the bottom, and it did not leak through for me anyway. I tried to get some product to go down in the cracks from the top only. But again, did not overdo it. Getting it out in the sun was key to getting it to set well. It did not take long but definitely needed the sun. On the Malibu forum, some took their whole platform apart in order to get all surfaces. I did not see the need for that or do that.

@cruznski , I am a strong free skier but a novice course skier trying to get more into it. I am 54 and 185 lbs. and the yellow works great for me. It immediately felt both familiar and awesome. But I am not into 35+ off so cannot tell you the fine points. I received my ski for Christmas and had considered having D3 send me a Blue to try, but after getting on the yellow for a run, I was in love and figured at my level, it was not worth it to mess with it for me. The yellow seemed to help me clean up some things, as it was, and I did not feel like I needed anything more forgiving. The ARC seemed to help me on by poor points and accentuate anything good I have going. If you have the chance to try both, do. But from what I understand, the difference is not huge, at least for most of us. Sorry I can't help more there. I can tell you that I started with my old leverages, with the older wraps, and then once used to the ski, moved to the T-Factors. They felt "edgier" to me at first, which was definitely a different feel. It was like a real sharp tune on snow skis in feel at first. Then after half a run, I started to get used to it and by the second run loved the feel. It may be in my head, but I felt like the fore-aft feel was helping me move more naturally toward the new turn/new ball, but that is also something I have been working on this year. I cannot tell you anything about the new wraps for the leverages. I can tell you it is way easier to get in and out of the T-Factors than my old Leverages, which is another nice benefit. I tend to moderately cinch the lower foot, and tighten the ankles nice and snug. The front more than the rear. Have not had occasion to come out yet. Oh, and I have skied the HO Animals and personally like both the Leverages and T-Factors better. And also better than my old Wiley's.

+1 for 80 grit. That is what I used. Feels nice. No need for anything finer, and is not slippery.

Just did mine this spring. I did both sides this time, as the boat was new to me, and I wanted it fresh. May only do the bottom every other year or so. I sprayed it down with degreaser, sanded when wet, then used Star Brite Teak cleaner, then the brightener, then the Star Brite color sealer, Classic Teak color. The step had been doused in Thompson's water seal for years and I wanted to get rid of all that and start over. Mine is not slippery. I expect to do only light touch up for a couple few years at least. It is holding up real well. And really do not expect to do much at all to the bottom after doing it this first time.

Found out I prefer medium and ordered one from Overtons.

I joined.

Wiley's, D3, whatever rubber. Not a toe piece only. To go on a D3. Need to replace my kid's rear boot. Does not have to be super tight or precise but do want a back boot. Hoping for relatively cheap.

Found one.

@Than_Bogan Your 15 off leverage stuff helped get me back into it before I blew my disc (not necessarily water skiing. It was at the end of snow ski season). Thanks for the inspiration. And I did not forget your inspiration when I started returning to the sport after recovering. I was just talking with a friend who just podiumed at some road bicycle races in Pocatello. I was discussing my family commitments and he encouraged me to stay healthy and I can race and compete more as time opens up. We both have watched people in their 60's and 70's do well with less apparent effort through good training and technique. I saw a couple guys in their 60's kick my ass yesterday. He watched a 70 something pull away from him on a hill climb (that my buddy still did very well in). Step by step. Stay healthy and keep moving forward. Course skiing is just more different from free skiing, even aggressive free skiing, than I realized. I made progress yesterday and this year and will hopefully continue to do so. Kinda give another meaning to your "Get out while you still can." :) That and embracing it are then not mutually exclusive. I am currently very close to completing the course at 15 off at 30 mph. Hoping to get that done soon. Then build from there.

Well, I just got myself a USA Waterskiing number so I can enter the grassroots at least at Gilbert Lake. I am now number 900178694. I bucked up for the full membership as if I am a guest at MGM, they want a number to put down in their book, or charge you a daily fee, and figured I might want it for something else. Committing to this process step by step.

One thing I liked about skiing Puget Sound over most any public lake I ever skied is that at mid tide, the shores are shallow, and wakes die on the beach and do not reverb. Way better. When the tide got high enough to hit the bulkhead in my home bay back then, I knew the water was going to be "Dancy" at that spot. I tried to avoid those times. And Puget sound is plenty deep. I am certain it is more the banks than the depth.

I hate to say everyone has to be too PC about it. I love joking around with my buds doing whatever we do, be it snow skiing, mountain biking, and to a lesser extent for me, water skiing. To me, that is part of the experience. Lesser because I am just less qualified and have less to talk smack about. But, I have learned over the years that even words in jest among friends as @ski6jones references can turn off some people, especially people like my wife, my brothers' wives, and I am sure other spouses and family members. It is a fast track to you are skiing by yourself, cave man. Not being sexist here, just observing. If the goal is more participation, and for a lot of us that means including families, then the event has to be inviting for all family members who have a say about attending or not attending. So, I would think that what goes on on the dock amongst the competitors, needs to stay out on the dock, and not within ear shot of someone who might get turned off by that humor. I do plan on entering as I said above this year. I am personally looking forward to the experience.

Coming only from the perspective of one thinking about his first tournament, I think @Wish makes some really good points. I still want to try, as having something mildly competitive makes me train better. Like entering a fun run, or a 10-12k running race. And I do understand that only tournament results from a sanctioned event count with regard to the records of the governing body. I have heard others talk about the waiting around for very little ski time as being an issue too. I think that is just hard. Ski runs don't last long, but take a while to get set up for each skier, I would guess. As opposed to a running race where when the gun goes off, everyone is running at their own pace, pushing themselves together. I am intending to go to the local grass roots event this fall as a bridge to an actual sanctioned tournament later. I had hoped for an actual entry this year, but I am just not there yet at this point. The grass roots is still giving me something to shoot for. So kinda is that bridge for me. YMMV.

Ok, I had a thought I just had to put down before I forget. When I learned guitar, at first self taught, I sometimes slowed or stopped my hand to try to hit strums or notes in time with what I heard that I was playing along with, or heard in my head. I learned later to get a good rhythm in the correct tempo with the correct mechanics, moving the hand up and down, never stopping, and hit the strings as needed. It occurred to me that I need to do this in the course. I need to focus on my basics, try to get wide enough, keep the correct mechanics, and pretty soon I will be rounding the balls, which are like notes on a page of written music. Of course there is a lot of technique going into that, and still have to deal with the course no matter what (kinda like playing in time. Either you are or you aren't). And it will take more course time to get there. but it lets me let go off looking at those balls so hard, trying to get to and around them, and focus on the mechanics to help me get there.