Feedback on the Connelly F1X Ski

[Joeprunc]

Here's a few more from this weekend at Bullards Bar. I'm still pretty tail heavy. I seem to be pulling up towards my shoulders to pick up the slack. Still awkward on the right hand cuts (but getting slightly more cumfy). No videos sorry .

...oh wait that was my friend trying to get his GF to try the double skis.

[zad0030]

Tell him to hold onto the rope lol.

Critique time...

From the first picture I can tell that you are getting ahead of the ski. It might be because you are trying to hook the turn and go. You really want to focus on making a NICE and EASY turn. Keep the ski out in front of you and just keep bringing it around. Judging by the amount of slack, you may have been pulling too hard and long outside the wake coming into the turn. But here is the good news, you got the front of the ski in the water thats good, you dont want to be on the tail because then you fight the turn. The whole ski is meant to turn, not the tail.

2nd pic you really are leading the turn with your shoulders. Keep your shoulders back and keep the ski out in front of you. Remember nice and easy turn. Looks like you dug in your back foot too.

3rd, you dropped your hips and got your butt back and that put you way back on the ski making it hard to turn. Thats why your arms are in to fight the turn.

Your doing great! Keep it up! In short I would tell you to keep your shoulders back, your hips up and your knees bent. Make slow and easy turns, dont try to hook it. You dont have any balls out there to distract you so just focus on nailing your form down.

[Joeprunc]

Thanks Zad for all the advice and help. I think this is the best advice for me Make slow and easy turns, dont try to hook it...just focus on nailing your form down

I feel like sometimes I get out in the water and just want to cut and turn as hard as my body/skill/ski will let me. I think that is great advice to slow down and focus on form.

Hope to get some more pictures up soon.

[Joeprunc]

Alright I finally got a bit of footage from this weekend at the Delta. Please critique away. This was the second time I was out on the day...after lunch and two beers. I've got some more footage if you want, but I figured I was doing enough wrong in this clip to get you started.

[zad0030]

Short and simple...

Keep you hips up, shoulders back and knees bent. Thats the name of the game right there.

Edge through the wake. Your ski goes flat right at the spray off the boat. Turn, point, and go. Look down course.... Errr um... At the boat. Hold that edge all the way through the wake. You will have an explosion of speed and believe it or not the more on edge you are through the wakes the less you will feel them.

Other than that you look good. Keeping your hips up and shoulders back will help you from getting pull forward at the end of your turn.

[bolo]

i agree with the aforementioned tips, esp the hips forward. You are also 'double pulling' which means you are edging against the boat after the wakes. 100% of the pull and acceleration is done on the front side of the wakes. You then 'pop' across the wakes and use this time to start changing edges and initiating the next turn. This will prevent slack in the rope which makes smooth, hard turns impossible and tons of work.

the pros make it look easy because they initiate the turn on the wakes and are carrying enough speed from the short acceleration to take them wide.

While learning to pull only once, don't worry about getting wide, just focus on linking and initiating smoothly. You'll feel it and then work on pulling harder (on the front side of the wakes) which will take you wider

[Joeprunc]

I never really understood what "keeping your hips up" meant. Well now looking at the video (and especially my earlier still pictures) I now understand. That will help me stay over the top of the ski.

That makes sense too with double pulling. I'm loving all the help. Its really humbling watching yourself on video. You always suck way more than you were expecting.

[zad0030]

Bring the hip to the handle... Not vice versa

[Bakes5]

Z1 Cuts plenty hard. I run it at 35-36. Even jolly old fat men can cut

[TeamAllen]

Nice pictures Santa, I mean, Bakes5. Is that behind your 22V?

[Joeprunc]

Hell yeah...that looks fun out there Santa!!! I've been loving my ski more and more, and getting more and more cumfy on it each time out. I'm only skiing at 32+ but hey with only one season on a ski I think I'm doing alright. I'll try to get some more shots the next few weekends.