Basic Kid Skiing questions

Confession time...   I have only ever skied behind someone else's boat; therefore, Since I am hoping to get my boat on the water this year (first time since I have owned it),   I was thinking about skiing gear and what I need to purchase.   I have 2 wakeboards, an *Gasp* inflatable towed device, and life jackets, but not much else.    So, looks like I need a couple of ropes and eventually a ski or two..   
My kids are 9,7, and 2, so I am not expecting them to do much besides stand up, if they can even do that this summer. We are going to be super budget conscious with all of this stuff, so used gear is a good possibility, especially for ski's.

- What kind of trainer skis do I need to look for?   
- How do I go about selecting a ski/wake rope?
- How do I make the rope float?   I've seen floaters and sinkers, and want to make sure the kids can find the rope on the water when we do have them attempting to ski or wakeboard.   
- anything else I need to look for?

for 9 & 7 a pair of junior ski's, ideally a parabolic or wider set is ideal for getting them started and work best for teaching.
A decent 75' line with take-off loops is all you need and can be used for boarding or skiing, wherever you purchase just make sure to ask if the handle is a floater, that is important.
Are you an experienced driver?

My driving skills consist of several bayliner I/O runs in college with my older friends, and a couple of trips in the '82 before I pulled the stringers out.    I haven't driven the 94 yet, and don't have any experience with younger kids.   it'll be a learning experience all the way around.    

Budget wise - I just spent $800 of our boating budget for the year on getting rid of the protec ignition, and replacing the 22 yr old exhaust/cooling hoses so we don't get a close up view of the bottom of the lake .   Were going to be more in the $50 - $150 range for gear for this summer, so it may take some time to get all set up...

Hey Kris,

I bet you are glad you got all that off your chest... LOL.

Probably wanna find some jr trainers but your older ones (if bigger kids) should be fine with adult skis. Hard to say as my 9 yr old uses little one but there are kids on his baseball team that weight 125 lbs and wear size 11 shoes!

try these!

budget skis!

whew,   I do feel better     I follow craigslist often, so I had seen those free ski's, With my kids being on the littler side, I wasn't sure what to even look for on the skis.   I'll continue to watch craigslist for a boom and kneeboard and kid trainers. There was a set on consignment just south of me that looked kid friendly, I'll try and check those out this weekend.     Both kids are near the 60# range and are still in the size 2 range for shoes.

These are from when my daughter was 8. We pulled them two at a time and let the more experienced one tell the other what to do.

My daughter used a set exactly like these until she was about 70 lbs. Nice setup.

http://portland.craigslist.org/clc/spo/5630679899.html

BKH

garbage days in lake communities have produced 8 or so skis for me, perfect for beginners. Last week I pulled a clean cheap pair of HO's out of the garbage a few doors down. If you pay for the shipping I'll give them to you.... But the shipping may be more than you could find a local pair for.

Dreaming wrote: My driving skills consist of several bayliner I/O runs in college with my older friends, and a couple of trips in the '82 before I pulled the stringers out.    I haven't driven the 94 yet, and don't have any experience with younger kids.   it'll be a learning experience all the way around.

Before you even put the kids in the water I would spend at least 5 to 10 hours piloting your boat understanding how it handles, its turning characteristics, how to approach a fallen skiier, etc, etc. Several Bayliner runs in college does not qualify.

Understand that boats don't have brakes. DD inboards also have certain handling characteristics much different than I/Os do. When you pull back to an idle in a DD you will lose a considerable amount of directional control direction as water is no longer being pushed past the rudder. Unless you understand how to approach a fallen skiier, circle around and stop the boat you are headed into dangerous waters and might likely injure one of them.

I would practice using a fender. Run up to a speed you intend to pull your skier, throw the fender overboard, then go retrieve it. I am willing to bet the first couple of times you attempt this you will run over the fender. Better the fender than a kid.

Oh and by the way , , , leave the beer on the dock for the time being.

a0128 wrote: Before you even put the kids in the water I would spend at least 5 to 10 hours piloting your boat understanding how it handles, its turning characteristics, how to approach a fallen skiier, etc, etc. Several Bayliner runs in college does not qualify. Understand that boats don't have brakes. DD inboards also have certain handling characteristics much different than I/Os do. When you pull back to an idle in a DD you will lose a considerable amount of directional control direction as water is no longer being pushed past the rudder. Unless you understand how to approach a fallen skiier, circle around and stop the boat you are headed into dangerous waters and might likely injure one of them. I would practice using a fender. Run up to a speed you intend to pull your skier, throw the fender overboard, then go retrieve it. I am willing to bet the first couple of times you attempt this you will run over the fender. Better the fender than a kid. Oh and by the way , , , leave the beer on the dock for the time being.

Thank you,    the last thing I want to do is hurt someone...   We will be taking the boat out for a shakedown cruise prior to actually having kids on board even.   I will plan for a day of Buoy retrival as you suggest.    My wife and I did take the trailer and previous boat out for a shakedown in much the same way, practiced docking, trailer backing etc... We'll do the same here too.   There won't be any beer for our outings, water safety is far too important for us to add the extra element of distraction.   

rebel skier wrote: Issue I have found with some of the newer wider skis for a 9 or 7 year old is how darn buoyant they are. It can be hard for the kids to hold them in position and underwater to get in starting form. Thus, I am also a fan of a nice pair of older wooden skis.

This can be a problem for younger skiers. It is tough for them to remain in the correct position due to the buoyancy issue. I always thought about attaching 5 lbs weights of some kind to the tails of the trainers to help the stability issue in the water, but never did.

I personally have not been a fan of the tow rope attached to the stabilizer bar on the trainers for several reasons, but everyone has their own preferences. It wasn't necessary with the boom option we used, but I realize that may not be in the cards for you. If you do use the rope to stabilizer bar method, as was mentioned earlier DO NOT attach the rope to the boat. Someone in the boat must hold the handle so they can release the rope if the child falls. If the rope is attached to the boat, you can end up dragging them under water if they don't come out of the bindings.

You do not want a typical slalom line with the colored sections. This rope is poly Propelyene and is made to have a certain amount of stretch to it. The reason booms are so great is there is zero stretch. It's a solid pull. Think of learning to ski holding on to a bungee chord. As GlassSeeker said get ploy Ethelyne or spectra/dyneema. These are wakeboard/barefoot lines. For you wakeboard will be better as you don't need the added length of a barefoot line. And, wake and barefoot handles float.

A high pole will also really help. It's crucial you don't use a stretchy slalom rope up on a high pole.

Get a boom as soon as you can.

My only issue with the boom is it only gets you 15% of the way toward your ultimate goal; there is still a lot of work ahead to have success behind boat! This holds true with skiing, slalom, barefooting, etc.

I see your point about having the skier right beside you... I am just saying a 40lb child can almost stand on the skis without moving while holding onto a bar... kind gives them the false sense of accomplishment.

I couldn't agree more with you on the teacher... probably makes ALL the difference. If parents coddle their kids or worste yet, yell at them... I just leave them on the dock and take kids with me... I had to do this with my brother who is too hard... I just want the situation to be fun but give them the impression we aren't going back till you ski, slalom, barefoot or what ever is at stake. I also like to get the rivalry between siblings, cousins etc working in my favor.

I remember a few years back teaching all the kids to slalom... my 7 yr old was dumbfounded when she could slalom on boom and was no where close behind boat. also have to be very careful child doesn't do pullup on boom and bang chin... seen it.

I also think we are over thinking this whole thing and a $600 boom is way overkill for teach a kid to ski... In my experience over the past 30 yrs of skiing and taking tons of newbs out... the usually just get up in a few tries :)

Kinda on the same level... I see kids at the ice rink use these things that look like old people walkers to hold onto while they skate... my friends kid used one 2 yrs ago... he did last year... and again this year... he still can't balance well... my kids weren't happy when I didn't rent them for them at the time... they have no problem skating, stopping, backward, forward, crossing etc...

At some point, you just have to let them do it!

In short... if you are on a budget, and never plan on barefooting and learning tricks... save you money... but if you come across one for cheap... pick it up or three of them LOL they are easy to sell.

Having taught lots of really young skiers to ski and having watched the best teach really young skiers, as Quinner says, a pair of parabolic kids skis that can be connected to prevent a the skier from doing a split, along with weight on the tails so the tails sink keeping the ski tips up (I made homemade weights). Finally a boom makes a huge difference. I found a beat up boom for $100. The boom is more stable, pulls the skier up instead of forward, keeps the skier close to the teacher, and allows an easy transition for the the boom to a short rope (handle only). For tiny skiers (less than 3 or 4 years old) a one piece skimmer (solid or inflatable) with the handle attached to the board is a good way to start; these can be pulled by hand or very slowly (5 mph) with a hand on rope from the boat staring from shore.

Having said all that, the most important thing I learned watching April Coble teach (who knows how many thousands she has helped get out of the water for the first time at her ski school) is familiarization on land before getting into the water. She does not use a boom, and gets skiers up long line behind the boat. Getting up on two skies that are connected to prevent the skis from splitting apart, initially, she emphasizes arms straight, knees bent , and looking up at the horizon holding that position until the skis are planing (she has the kids delay standing up by performing a count off of about 5 - 7 seconds). She practices the position and count on land with a rope/handle before putting the kids behind the boat. And, all of her drivers have driven inboards for many hours before pulling beginning skiers.