markn

@CBR51 agree with you. Converted my 04 196 to ZO years ago. Now have single puck and she is a great slalom tug. Was over at Swiss today skiing and driving the 2021 Ski Nautique. Came home and drove my wife in our old 196. Dang I love our little, quiet, non-sea deck, soft wake, analog old 196! And agree, at 34 mph @28 off opener, the 196 has a better wake. From 32 off in, both are great, but more spray on the 196 at 38 and 39.

Just looked at nautiqueparts.com and they have a few replacement gauges for your boat. May not match color wise, but it is an option.

Had the same problem on my 2004 196 Limited. Tried unsuccessfully to buy a new replacement gauge. As already suggested, I just wired an hour meter under the dash to keep track for oil changes.

Sorry, I am not subscribing to the "it takes a village" to raise kids. The farther away we get from demanding personal responsibility for ones actions and outcomes, the more the 'WOKE minority" wins. Why the hell should the majority of people be dictated to by a small minority? This is absurd. The "factors" leading to poor outcomes, in the majority of instances are self imposed by poor decision making. I am not nor is anyone else responsible for those outcomes. Actions should and do have consequences. I sure as hell do not need training by any institution to "teach me" how to be a decent, contributing member of society or to know right from wrong. I was taught by my parents and frankly, some pretty damn good instruction. I am still with @The_MS on this.

Reading this got me interested to look back to 2004 participation in State, Regional and Nationals. Men 4 numbers. Florida State: 18, Southern Regionals: 56 and Nationals: 117. Based on these numbers compared to current numbers, interest and participation in these three tournaments has declined precipitously.

The mm list is long and illustrious. Will be some great skiing. If I head over there to ski today, I will take a photo of the list.

@dave2ball , what the heck is a "bang"? I know what it meant back in my college days, but now??? Thanks for the help.

High octane is not important in new boats and have run 38 off or deeper, both 6.0 and 6.2 engines.

I thought easter egg was slalom in Trick mode... not + setting.

Looks like he is trying to practice "safe skiing" in a condom suit. Disturbing on so many levels.

See if you can move your pylon by hand with extreme force moving it side to side. If not, more than likely a rope issue. If the pylon moves or makes noise, open the motor box and tighten the u-bolts at the bottom of the hull. You will see where the pylon is glassed in. Good luck.

Having skied both the Syndicate Pro and the Syndicate Omega, both great skis, for your situation, between the two, I would suggest the Omega.

When I first heard about Sure Path, must admit I was skeptical. Thought it was unnecessary technology looking for a problem. Today I had the opportunity to try it out. WOW, must admit, pretty dang cool. Drove 8 passes in a 2020 Nautique I had never driven. Skier was only at 28 off 36 mph, but what an excellent training tool. Having been a senior driver in the past, thought I was an ok driver. Yes, every pass was green, but I saw where I could improve to give the skier a better ride and the fact the data is in real time, not sure why there is an objection to using it in R tournaments. Maybe you can teach an old dog new tricks.

@tjm Thank you for your offer. If you have any left, PM me with address and I will enclose payment. Thank you.

My buoys may be high and rough looking, but it is no amateur operation....at least in my opinion!! ha

Barbasol shave cream. Cheap, rinses easily. Secret is to keep your feet and binder as dry as possible prior to inserting your foot into the binder.

Freddie's skiing was just amazing. Congrats to him for the win. Super Classy guy and a great diplomat for the sport. Also, there is a video of Mapple at 41 off (at West Palm) falling similarly at 3 ball, sliding on his back at least 15-20 feet and sliding around, somehow getting the ski back between him and the boat and standing up to score 3. Evidently the ride is not over when you fall if you were the GOAT!!

TWBC continues to elevate the bar. This podcast has been the best yet. Tony L. is fantastic and Matt R. provides amazing insight. Wade does great short interviews and the video of the skiers is amazing. Freddie W. also provided commentary and humor.....AND 41 off! Hats off to Vincent S. for his "creation"...TWBC. He is a master of the art of webcasting. Great skiing and great webcast. And thanks to Lake 38 for hosting the event. Looking forward to the finals tomorrow.

Always viewed a,b,c as WHERE the boat picked you up and 1,2,3 was the amount of skier resistance required to initiate that pickup.

Very unique driving characteristics due to engine position/V-drive. Rather firm, hard wake at 22 off. Think you would be better served with a major 3 brand boat of the same era. There are reasons they were made only a year or two.

@NameUnavailable I was the dock starter all day at the Swiss Pro event and I would say at least 30% of all skiers had some kind of handle guard. Everything from duct tape to manufactured guards.

@BS74 give the Syndicate knotless rope a try. It will feel like a steel cable compared to the Optima 2. Once you are 32 off and shorter, the difference does decline, but still feel no stretch or give with the Syndicate. Best thing to do is contact the tournament site and ask what ropes will be used. Then practice with that rope.

Looks like for the Masters, as Masterline is the official rope, it is the 9.75 optima 2. Having used both the Masterline optima 2 and the HO Syndicate rope, the Syndicate has little if any "give or stretch". Both great ropes, but feel different to me.

I believe the Masters qualifier was Masterline, but not certain. I know at the Swiss Pro, they used HO.

@Jody_Seal Thanks for your post,but FYI, I did specifically state in my post it was in reference to R and L tournaments. The tournament entered to which I referred is listed as R/L....not E.