GroovyGrant

@wish - and anyone else on the fence for sizing of the Impact vest. See the below that I copied in from getagripwatersports.com. I guess I'm going to keep my medium and wait till warm weather to try it out. Worst case: I'm out $30 ($40 purchase less the $10 I'd have spent shipping the return back) and someone I know gets a very nice slightly used vest. With any other comparable option costing $140+/- I reckon I might as well give it a shot. This is a really cool vest at a steal of a price so if it just does work out that leaves me $100 to otherwise support the habit! By the way, as far as I know, the blog post below would have been made well before anyone's stock got low, meaning they had plenty of larges and bigger to pick from so they probably weren't just trying to unload a bunch of smaller sizes. "One of the owners of Get A Grip Water Sports is 5' 10", 170 lbs, and typically wears a 40-42 Regular suit jacket. He also fits comfortably into 2010 and 2011 medium Radar Strada vests. When the 2012 inventory arrived, he first tried on the medium 2012 Decibel, it was too tight...on to the Large...too tight...and then on to the X-Large. The X-Large felt good on land but, once in the water, he realized the X-Large was too big. He tried a Large in the water but, still to big. The large was a marginal fit but, potentially, medium would be better. So, back to the medium, this time an effort was made to actually zip it up. After a little work, the vest was on and felt OK; very tight, but OK. Once in the water and after a couple sets, medium is what he settled on. Please keep this in mind: When new and dry, the Radar Decibel vest MUST be tight; otherwise, you will not be happy with it in the water."

@wish just tried mine on a few minutes ago (after FedEx delays here too). Fits about the same as yours. Glad to know the dude is nice cause I'm about to ask him to take mine back, too. It is a really cool vest though so I hope the large fits me.

@horton--thanks! @imprint--my story is just about the same. I'm on a 68 Strafda for the same reason. Really like the ski but have always felt it was just a bit big. Feel like I would be a little more agile with a little less ski under me. I might see if I can do some trading before spring.

@horton what size Strada if in 175-180 range?

I'm speechless--over the ski AND the taxidermy!

@xrated those are probably pretty decent. Search the Obrien Scout, too. About the same as the Wakestar but a little narrower and less buoyant as @Jdubs points out. Taught my kids to ski this summer on the Scouts. They were just right for the 6 y.o. boy, but just almost too big for my 4 y.o. girl to manage before the rope was tight. Bottom line--just right and should be useable for another year or two with the connecting bar and rope removed. I haven't seen any problems with the bamboo durability but you do want to be sure to get them out of the boat so they can dry at the end of the day. Seems they take on just enough moisture that they will mildew a bit near the tips if left in a damp area. No biggie and it goes away but probably not good for the skis if it happens repeatedly. Nothing better than getting the little ones up on skis!

Grant Miller--live near Springfield, MO; ski on Table Rock Lake about 30 minutes from home. Have skied on/off for 30 years or so (38 years old). Learned on a lake in Mississippi behind my grandmother's Starcraft that she skied behind into her 80's! When I was a kid, competition skiing was still visible enough on TV and with some pro events in the middle of the country that I got to see some of it right when I was learning how to ski. That's back when slalom skiing was more about brawn and huge turns than it is today and it was so awesome to see those guys nearly lay their ear in the water to get a buoy that I was hooked and knew I wanted to be able to ski like that one day. Although, I'm glad skiing has evolved to more technique than herculean turns because I'm getting too old for that! (By the way, we gotta figure out how to get water skiing back in the main stream in front of society so more kids are getting that hook.) Got an inboard on a lift at the lake a couple of years ago. This summer was the first to spend some time in the course with another baller, @hpskier1, and I've managed to complete a few passes at 15 off this year. Hope to be able to get a course in on my end of the lake next spring to spend some real time chasing buoys and get my 4 & 6 year old kids in it at an early age. Ski on a 2012 Strada with Strada boots on a Sequence plate. My capability may never match that ski, but I got a great deal. I hope to get good enough to ski some tournaments one of these days. My ultimate dream is the same as most ballers I would guess--to have my own ski lake with a house right on the water with an attached boat house. If I had that, I would probably put up lights so I could ski absolutely whenever I took a notion. I have definitely learned a lot from reading this forum and have also learned that it takes more than knowing to make it happen--it takes practice. Hence, the dream for the lake/boat house so I could ski at least once a day about 250 days a year!

Try a Radar Senate or Theory. The Theory is a bit wider and slower but still capable of running bouys.

@Than_Bogan good comment. I'm just at the point of being able to do that and now struggling with the slowing down part. What's the trick there that @mahammodz and I can work on?

What is the theory on the standoffs? I have them for my sequence plate but haven't used them.

Before I commence to some Ozarks engineering...has anyone solved the problem of the insole in Strada bindings folding up just ahead of the molded plastic under the heel area? Every time I take my feet out the insole folds up and I have to pull the liners out of the boots to smooth out the insole. Not a big deal, just kind of a PIA--especially when you forget to do it until you're trying to get the ski on next time. Thanks in advance for any ingenious ideas!

Are all LXis the same length? I have an 01 Sunsetter LXi that's 21' 8" and love it for a family slalom boat. Only reason I might ever trade is for a smaller boat/smaller wake but I'm not sure I'd be gaining much.

@kcpickett--check out the AWSA tournament schedule for Shull's contact info. They're hosting 3 tournaments there this summer. I don't know about the memberships but would be interested to know.

O'Neil Hammer isn't bad.

Kyle--I'm in Spfd. No clubs I know of (except MSU collegiate). No private lakes I've found except Shull's. Just met Pat Shull last week--seems like a real nice guy. There are 3 courses scattered around Table Rock Lake. There's a handful of guys that ski in different areas on the lake. Too bad the weather's headed down the tube while you're here or I'd take you for a ride. I skied Saturday but between the wind and the spoonbill fishermen I didn't have a chance. Now we have 6" of snow headed out way. Shout back if you'll be here any length of time or if you come back and we'll go for a ride. Grant Miller

Kyle--I'm in Spfd. No clubs I know of (except MSU collegiate). No private lakes I've found except Shull's. Just met Pat Shull last week--seems like a real nice guy. There are 3 courses scattered around Table Rock Lake. There's a handful of guys that ski in different areas on the lake. Too bad the weather's headed down the tube while you're here or I'd take you for a ride. I skied Saturday but between the wind and the spoonbill fishermen I didn't have a chance. Now we have 6" of snow headed out way. Shout back if you'll be here any length of time or if you come back and we'll go for a ride. Grant Miller

Probably going with the wife. We're both fairly aggressive free skiers and wanting to break into the course and maybe some tournaments. Just looking for good coaching and maybe on site accommodations.

Thinking about going to a ski school this spring. What school would you reccomend and what do you like about it? Thanks!

I have an 01 Sunsetter Lxi and definitely recommend you snag one if you have the chance. My in-laws have an Air Nautique and that wake is just about unskiable compared to the Sunsetter. I ski with some guys; one who owns a Response (wake very comparable to Sunsetter) and one with a MC 197 (he much prefers to ride with the Malibu boys if given the choice). Get the 'bu!

I'm in the market for a new rope and handle and looking for suggestions on what others like. The only thoughts I have so far are a handle with no end caps and a knotless mainline. Would like to know what other folks' favorites are and what you like about them. Thanks!

2001 Malibu Sunsetter LXi. Found it in 2011 with 100 hours.

@madcityskier I'd like to know about those gloves. Got a goal of skiing in every month of the year and it will eventually get cold in MO.

Ski'd in southern MO in a shorty suit today. Not bad at all.

There's an article from Waterski magazine with an interview of Bob Lapoint--legendary skier and ski designer--where he recommends that if ever in doubt, go to the longer ski. There is a link to that article on one of the posts that's still on the first page here. Can't remember which one, though.

@6balls--good eye. Guess I left out that key info! It is fun; I'll have more hours on it in my first 2 years of ownership than the previous owner had in 10!