I'm going water skiing for the first time this afternoon, how do I do it?

[Red]

Going to water ski for the first time in my life this after noon. 3 of my family members tried yesterday and they "couldn't get up". I want to knock them off their socks by reading how to ski on the internet and then actually doing it. I'm not kidding =)

Jason

 

[Brutuskend]

Stay in the crouched position for longer than you think you need to, then stay that way a little longer.

Don't fall down.

 

[HardcoreRobot]

DONT pull on the rope to get yourself up. it doesnt work. you have to let it pull you up. just stay crouched and balance. you will know when you are up and then you can just stand up. have fun!

 

[Yossarian]

must learn balance, Daniel-san.

 

[courtjester123]

I echo the comments made earlier.....try to stay in a crouched, sitting position in the water and let the boat pull you up out of the water. While you are in the water, try to keep your ski tips straight "up" out of the water about 6-12 inches. You might have to fight the skis a little bit to do this as they will try to float back up into a horizontal position on the surface of the water. Keep the tow rope between your ski tips.

Assuming you get up, staying in the middle of the boat's wake is the safest place as the boat will cut the waves in front of it and make for a smoother ride back where you are at. If you get adventurous, go outside the wake to one side or the other.

Hopefully you will be pulled by a nice powerful boat....more power = easier to get up on skis. If the boat is too slow, it might be very difficult to get up.

Have fun!

 

[Shockwave]

Originally posted by: courtjester123
I echo the comments made earlier.....try to stay in a crouched, sitting position in the water and let the boat pull you up out of the water. While you are in the water, try to keep your ski tips straight "up" out of the water about 6-12 inches. You might have to fight the skis a little bit to do this as they will try to float back up into a horizontal position on the surface of the water. Keep the tow rope between your ski tips.

Assuming you get up, staying in the middle of the boat's wake is the safest place as the boat will cut the waves in front of it and make for a smoother ride back where you are at. If you get adventurous, go outside the wake to one side or the other.

Hopefully you will be pulled by a nice powerful boat....more power = easier to get up on skis. If the boat is too slow, it might be very difficult to get up.

Have fun!

Every boat on the water today has enough guts to get a skier up, barring the old dedicated fishing boats. I've heard of 40 horse boats pulling twin skiers. From what they told me, it took some interesting work to get them both up though.

To the OP: Dont forget to let go. And dont kick off on your first day.

 

[Red]

Originally posted by: courtjester123
I echo the comments made earlier.....try to stay in a crouched, sitting position in the water and let the boat pull you up out of the water. While you are in the water, try to keep your ski tips straight "up" out of the water about 6-12 inches. You might have to fight the skis a little bit to do this as they will try to float back up into a horizontal position on the surface of the water. Keep the tow rope between your ski tips.

Assuming you get up, staying in the middle of the boat's wake is the safest place as the boat will cut the waves in front of it and make for a smoother ride back where you are at. If you get adventurous, go outside the wake to one side or the other.

Hopefully you will be pulled by a nice powerful boat....more power = easier to get up on skis. If the boat is too slow, it might be very difficult to get up.

Have fun!

The boat is a 2002 Four Winds? It looks about 20 ft long and has an inboard motor.

 

[BillGates]

go wakeboarding instead - water skiing is lame

 

[Drakkon]

my first time waterskiing i nearly got up but then i hit something or lost balance and fell down and somehow managed to get tangled in the rope around my leg...pulled me along for about 100ft...came out with horrible rope burns and barely able to walk...didnt help i stayed on the boat for the rest of the day as well...

Good luck to you though!

 

[Shockwave]

Originally posted by: BillGates
go wakeboarding instead - water skiing is lame

:roll:

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Red

Originally posted by: courtjester123
I echo the comments made earlier.....try to stay in a crouched, sitting position in the water and let the boat pull you up out of the water. While you are in the water, try to keep your ski tips straight "up" out of the water about 6-12 inches. You might have to fight the skis a little bit to do this as they will try to float back up into a horizontal position on the surface of the water. Keep the tow rope between your ski tips.

Assuming you get up, staying in the middle of the boat's wake is the safest place as the boat will cut the waves in front of it and make for a smoother ride back where you are at. If you get adventurous, go outside the wake to one side or the other.

Hopefully you will be pulled by a nice powerful boat....more power = easier to get up on skis. If the boat is too slow, it might be very difficult to get up.

Have fun!

The boat is a 2002 Four Winds? It looks about 20 ft long and has an inboard motor.

Uhm, that won't have any trouble pulling you out! I've skied behind boatrs that you literally had to pull yourself up ... the boat was fine once you were up, but struggled to get you that way.

So yea, what everybody else said. When your ready to be pulled, lean back in the water a bit, pull your legs up in under you with the skis parralel, and the tips just above the water, tow line between them. Both hands on the handle, arms about halfway bent. Signal for the pull & hang on.

Of course it's easier to say it then do it!

And yea, don't forget to let go when you wipe or don't get up!

 

[Brutuskend]

Originally posted by: Drakkon
my first time waterskiing i nearly got up but then i hit something or lost balance and fell down and somehow managed to get tangled in the rope around my leg...pulled me along for about 100ft...came out with horrible rope burns and barely able to walk...didnt help i stayed on the boat for the rest of the day as well...

Good luck to you though!

Happend to me one time, except it was around my NECK! Pulled me for quite some distance and it looked like I tried to hang myself!:Q

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Brutuskend

Originally posted by: Drakkon
my first time waterskiing i nearly got up but then i hit something or lost balance and fell down and somehow managed to get tangled in the rope around my leg...pulled me along for about 100ft...came out with horrible rope burns and barely able to walk...didnt help i stayed on the boat for the rest of the day as well...

Good luck to you though!

Happend to me one time, except it was around my NECK! Pulled me for quite some distance and it looked like I tried to hang myself!:Q

Wow, I've never seen that kind of stuff happen :shocked:
Yet another reason to let go of the rope ASAP when you're losing it.

 

[Shockwave]

Originally posted by: Brutuskend

Originally posted by: Drakkon
my first time waterskiing i nearly got up but then i hit something or lost balance and fell down and somehow managed to get tangled in the rope around my leg...pulled me along for about 100ft...came out with horrible rope burns and barely able to walk...didnt help i stayed on the boat for the rest of the day as well...

Good luck to you though!

Happend to me one time, except it was around my NECK! Pulled me for quite some distance and it looked like I tried to hang myself!:Q

Too bad it didnt pull your stupid head out of your ass!!!


Sorry, I couldnt resist that. :beer:

 

[Brutuskend]

 

[Mr N8]

Originally posted by: BillGates
go wakeboarding instead - water skiing is lame

They're both fun, but skiing has a much lower learning curve. Learn to wakeboard if you are ready for some instant frustration and a great workout.

Oh, and if you fall, let go of the rope. Lake water up the nose sucks.

 

[slightlyhuman]

Originally posted by: BillGates
go wakeboarding instead - water skiing is lame

if their learning how to ski, wtf makes you think they can get up on a wakebord, getting up is the hardest part....

<wakeboarded for 3 yrs
i learned to ski at age 9, it helps a ton.


to the op, like the said DO NOT pull yourself up, it wont work, let the boat pull yourself up and lean back when your up and going, leaning forward will tire your back out.


gl and hf

 

[Ausm]

Close your mouth when you fall or you will get a backwards enema

Sysadmin

 

[Red]

Thanks for the tips. I'll have the trusty A70 with me so I'll bring back funny pics of me if the people on the boat and remember to keep the camera in "sport" mode! Maybe I'll just have them make some movies, lol.

 

[Brutuskend]

Originally posted by: Armitage

Originally posted by: Brutuskend

Originally posted by: Drakkon
my first time waterskiing i nearly got up but then i hit something or lost balance and fell down and somehow managed to get tangled in the rope around my leg...pulled me along for about 100ft...came out with horrible rope burns and barely able to walk...didnt help i stayed on the boat for the rest of the day as well...

Good luck to you though!

Happend to me one time, except it was around my NECK! Pulled me for quite some distance and it looked like I tried to hang myself!:Q

Wow, I've never seen that kind of stuff happen :shocked:
Yet another reason to let go of the rope ASAP when you're losing it.

Actually what happened was, the boat was coming around while I was in the water to get ready for another run. The water was choppy and the boat was going too fast hence the rope was just under the surface and I couldn't see it. The boat had made a complete circle around me so the rope had looped around my neck....

 

[Armitage]

Originally posted by: Brutuskend

Originally posted by: Armitage

Originally posted by: Brutuskend

Originally posted by: Drakkon
my first time waterskiing i nearly got up but then i hit something or lost balance and fell down and somehow managed to get tangled in the rope around my leg...pulled me along for about 100ft...came out with horrible rope burns and barely able to walk...didnt help i stayed on the boat for the rest of the day as well...

Good luck to you though!

Happend to me one time, except it was around my NECK! Pulled me for quite some distance and it looked like I tried to hang myself!:Q

Wow, I've never seen that kind of stuff happen :shocked:
Yet another reason to let go of the rope ASAP when you're losing it.

Actually what happened was, the boat was coming around while I was in the water to get ready for another run. The water was choppy and the boat was going too fast hence the rope was just under the surface and I couldn't see it. The boat had made a complete circle around me so the rope had looped around my neck....

ic, that makes more sense.

 

[DrPizza]

Originally posted by: Armitage

Originally posted by: Brutuskend

Originally posted by: Armitage

Originally posted by: Brutuskend

Originally posted by: Drakkon
my first time waterskiing i nearly got up but then i hit something or lost balance and fell down and somehow managed to get tangled in the rope around my leg...pulled me along for about 100ft...came out with horrible rope burns and barely able to walk...didnt help i stayed on the boat for the rest of the day as well...

Good luck to you though!

Happend to me one time, except it was around my NECK! Pulled me for quite some distance and it looked like I tried to hang myself!:Q

Wow, I've never seen that kind of stuff happen :shocked:
Yet another reason to let go of the rope ASAP when you're losing it.

Actually what happened was, the boat was coming around while I was in the water to get ready for another run. The water was choppy and the boat was going too fast hence the rope was just under the surface and I couldn't see it. The boat had made a complete circle around me so the rope had looped around my neck....

ic, that makes more sense.

okay, that one makes sense - and was the fault of the driver for going too fast.

But... whoever it was above who got his leg tangled in the rope... how the heck did he do that??

Oh, and if you've ever snow skied before or snowboarded before... it's natural during a mild wipeout to think you can get back up... and often you can. Wipe that idea right out of your head when you're on water skiis. You will NOT get back up. Holding on longer means a longer swim back to the skiis, plus about an extra gallon of water rapidly consumed.

 

[Kyteland]

When I learned (last summer) it took me a long time to learn how to get up, so hopefully you can learn from my experiance.

When you're in the water and just about to go your skis should be as close to vertical (up and down) as you can get them. Don't struggle to get them up like that, just relax and float. But you should at a minimum be past a 45 deg angle. More is better.

The start description is kind of what threw me, a "sitting" position. Its more like you're sitting (knees at a 90 deg angle) but your shoulders are touching your knees. You want to get your body as far forward as you can of the water will just beat you back down. Imagine sitting in a chair and touching the floor between your feet.

Don't pull or fight the rope. You should maintain the "sitting" position until you are going, which shouldn't take long. If you are still dragging in the water after 5 second, let go of the rope because you aren't getting up. Once the skis have gone from vertical to horizontal then simply unbend from the waist. Leave you knees as they are. (OK, you can unbend them a little from 90 deg. )

Once you are up and going DON'T BEND YOUR ELBOWS!! All this will do is put slack in the rope. When the slack pulls out you will get pulled off your skis.

That's all I can think of for now.