gginco

@estrom Yeah...on top of; did I turn off the coffee pot, where are my car keys, did I tell the boat driver my settings, when is my anniversary, etc. etc. haha

It seems to me it's more about where and how the edge change ends more so than where it begins. I think we determine that place at the end of the previous turn. Our brains must make a split second evaluation of our position at the point of hook up. Did I have any slack in the line? Did I finish the turn? Am I late? Am I early? Am I just right? Is my current body postition going to give me the right load on the rope? Is my ski on the angle I want? Am I hooking up near the buoy or the first white wash? One's ability and quickness to evaluate and then adjust from this all important split second is what it takes to move up the line. If we get more angle or load than ideal we need to get off edge sooner. If we bobble a turn or get stood up we're going to need edge a lot longer to get wide. The guys with immense time on the water don't have to adjust as much or adjust seamlessly and therefore are the deep shortline skiers.

my order is in...thanks!

@SkiJay Thanks for the input. I'm on the top end in weight that is recommended for a 67.5" A2. Logic tells me to set my ski up to be on the "long" side to accomodate my size a little better. I guess "sweet spot" to me means the place where stability and forgiveness exist without detrimental sacrifice in responsivness. It's the "cake and eat it too" thing and something I think all manufacturer's are striving to achieve but with different philosophies. Obviously the vast majority of top end skis are shaped with pro input and with top end pro and top end ametuer skiers in mind. There seems there could be a void in ski shapes that might better serve the 22-32 off skier. The golf industry figured it out and developed the titanium mega heads to give amatuer golfers the big gun off the tee box. It completely changed the industry. Since the titanium mega head ski doesn't really exist for the average 22-32 off skier I'm trying to "dumb" down my top end ski to my 28-32 off ability. So, your post I think really understood what I was asking and essentially said by doing what you suggest it would allow me to ski more like I'm in a rodeo without getting bucked off too easy. I don't know if you ski a lot of brands or models (shapes) but if so, what's the most stable yet responsive enough ski you've skied?

@ShaneH I have used badal fin numbers on my A1 and A2 with good success but if i could pick one word to descibe ho skis it would be "finicky". it seems if i gain a pound overnight the ski notices. i want to believe there is bigger sweet spot on the a2 and want a proven method for finding it. i will ride an a3 next summer but think the method (order of adjustment) to find the sweet spot should be somewhat universal.

If Utah is getting a plug then Colorado rocks too! 20+ private lakes including 1 in Steamboat, 1 in Vail, 1 near Aspen and 1 within an hour of Telluride. Denver area lakes have 60+ degree water April and October with water temps ranging from the low 70s to the high 80s May through September. You can, if you must, drysuit it early March, November and early December. Sunshine pretty much every day, no humidity, temps rarely over 100, etc. etc. It's world class skiing both on the snow or in the water. I must disclose that, as a Coloradoan, there is an unspoken oath to not suggest more people move here. :)

@ntx Where is your lake?

When its time to "dial" everything in on a new ski or when you get that "start from scratch" urge in what order do you set things up or make adjustments? There's binding location, binding angle, wing angle, fin length, fin dft, fin depth etc. etc. With one effecting another so easily it seems an order of precedence would be necessary. After you think you have it "almost" perfect do you just stick to one or two adjustment from there?

When SMRR fully matures it's going to be awesome! We have some fellow CO skiers that own there. Can we come ski with you?

@BRY Isn't it much easier to just adjust the boot location on the plate rather than peel the plate off the interlock? There is a good 3/4" adjustment in the boot slots.

There is a GPS device called Shadowbox that I'm curious if anybody has tried. It measures speed, acceleration, angle, etc. etc.

It sounds like at least everybody does agree that there is a difference in the way things "feel" in different temperature water. Some argue that it's a myth. I've noticed that rather than immediately move to adjustments I try to relax that much more in cold water and try to soften the load on the rope. Because cold water is "faster" you seem to accelerate easier and sooner so, to me, managing speed is the first thing to be conscious of.

 

There is also a theory that elevation plays a role in the way things "feel" in ski speed. The claim is that atmospheric pressure at sea level will cause the ski to feel slower because of more pressure on the ski than there would be at higher elevations. Has anybody experienced this?

2x2 squares of 400 in each corner...250 everywhere else. Never have pre-released but have released when it mattered. 190 lbs.

Radar must like the Broncos!

Has anybody looked into Shadowbox? It's a gps recording device you mount to your ski. I don't know if it records fast enough for slalom but it records speed, location, acceleration, G-forces, angles, rotation degrees, etc. All I could find on Google was http://www.navigadget.com/index.php/2010/06/23/shadow-box-records-gps-data-g-forces-and-more Not sure if they're in business still.

Don't overlook the S2...there might be a few barely used ones popping up for under $1k.

500 +/- hours.

2009 196 photos....

Walleygater...the boat is at laku landing in windsor colorado...it has right at 500 hours...the trailer is tandem axle. I suspect the reason you see a lot of blue and white is because their appearance is easy to maintain. I'll post photos soon.

The ski is well out in front too. This keeps the ski from tracking inside too soon.

We have a 2009 196. Blue and white. Not sure of the hours off hand. $30k. Great boat and very well maintained.