Who's Footin

Willie takin it easy and stayin in footin shape, what a great lookin drysuit!

very interesting Al Bundy

I don't think I would try that at those tempetures something else might freeze fall off and hit the ground.

Thats brutal, Dan. You're still in big time winter.

Hey Andy, nice side slide behind the boat in that latest video.  Your front foot looks pretty close to 90 degrees to me... you gonna argue with me on that one?

my student and partner in crime Roy gets better and better, improving his reverse one foots, his wake crossings, his backdeep attempts, his tumbles...we are going out again today for a 1pm glass breaking...more video to follow...here is some of his wednesday set

I have requested a wipe outs video...we'll see what he puts together...

I got out 3-15 09 in WI. The water was Just above freezing and I was the lucky one in the water when the rope got wrapped around the prop shaft. I think the oil in the tranny was so cold that even in neutral the prop was turning. So I got to spend some time under water  untangling that mess GOOD TIMES I'll Post a video

I'm touched...really....the water just hit 61.8 so it is nice, we did have 20-35 mph winds but our favorite slough runs perpendicular to the wind so the water stayed relatively flat, it did blow the boat off course and the water was full of wood, bark, branches and entire trees....

Edited by Bftskir - March 30 2009 at 1:14pm

I've ben out 5 times this yr already but Friday the temp was finally above 65 air and the water was above 60. It felt great to ski in just my barefoot suit and heater shirt. I really can't wait to get behind a sanger. Not that Free's Response is bad and it has heated drivers seat,shower ,and htr but I just miss my sanger.

Originally posted by TeddyK I've ben out 5 times this yr already.

Edited by Bftskir - July 18 2009 at 2:52am

another 3 vids from Sacfooter...keep on footin!

nice highlights video from Sheridan Lake....just a bunch of happy campers...plus my ugly flyer off the houseboat roof.

Here's the freshly baked videos from today hot out of the oven

Man I'm jealous of you guys with year round footin seasons.  I drive by glass calm lakes everyday, only problem is the water temp is 32.1 degrees F.

Andy
Slalom is like paint.. It takes a few coats to cover a problem and you can only apply one coat at a time.. You are a typical slalomer at your stage in the progression towards open slalom.. I dont mean to be derogatory at all but you have more problems than a math book, like everyone does at your stage of development..
Your forward has a problem with negative lean.. Look at your vids and you will see your spine is not vertical, your shoulders not level.. Your spine leans away from the crossing.. The harder you go, the slower you go.. This is a typical issue that can be easily fixed but until you recognize and correct it you will NEVER get past 12 or 13 crossings.. These tips will get you to 15-16.. Then a whole new set of rules apply.. but these changes will still apply as well.. Kind of like going from Newtonian to Einstein to Quantum physics.. Some rules remain, some conflict as you move up the chain

The big issue is you *and every other slaomer on the planet) started tricking before you started slaloming and we all start by useing a trick posture for slalom.. Wont work for open slalom..

In tricks we teach to get your weight over the supporting foot by tilting the handle, the hip and shoulder over the supporting foot.. In open slalom it is the opposite.. But you cant possibly make the change until you are where you are now.. You gotta learn "wrong" so you can get to where you are now.. NOW is the time to revamp your slalom..

Get some slalom vids of great slalomers.. Fuchs, DMJ, Sandsy, KSO, Derry Jr... Look at the spine angle.. Look at the hip angle.. Completely different from their one-foot tricks postures.. Spine will be vertical or actually leaning towards the lifted foot.. Hip will be down on the lifted foot side.. A completely unsustainable posture for tricks.. Controlled falls across the wake..

Try this to get the concept cemented in.. Dry land practice, try to get as much of the instep rolled onto the ground as possible.. Start by pointing the lifted KNEE towards the other wake.. Feel how that turns the hips (the ultimate issue in slalom is HIPS).. Imagine someone grabbing your knee and pulling it to one side.. It WILL turn your hips to that side.. Thats a good thing in slalom.. Now roll the supporting knee into the lifted knee.. You will feel that rolling your supporting foot onto the instep edge.. Think stick fag slalom ski.. Write HO or Connelly on the bottom of your supporting foot and try to show as much of your "ski" as a magazine cover shot of Andy Mapple.. Really roll it over so your almost skiing on the inside of your ankle.. But do it by just rolling the knee into the lifted knee.. Now drop the hip on the leading side a little.. You will find you cant support your self in that position.. You will slowly fall over toward the lifted foot...  THAT IS OPEN SLALOM...

My advise for the first coat of paint on your slalom is get rid of the negative lean...start "steering" the handle....  You have been taught to lift the handle on the leading side.. FORGET THAT CRAP.. It was absolutely necessary for you to get where you are now, but it is now a problem that needs fixin.. Steer the handle like your driving a race car.. Drop the handle on the leading side.. That will help you get to a neutral lean (vertical spine, level shoulders) and eventually you will even get a positive lean (spine leaned to the crossing, leading shoulder dropped a little)

Visualize this.. Really exaggerate your lean.. If you have a positive lean you will be pushing your instep into the water (like on a back deep).. If you have a negative lean you will be putting weight on the outside knife edge.. Thats the wrong edge.. Wont work on a stick ski so it wont work for us.. same physics apply..  Dont resist the crossing.. Give yourself to the crossing.. The first time you get it right it will absolutely FREAK you out.. You will cross so fast you will be completely out of control.. PERFECT.. Dont get hung up on transition yet.. Just find the way to get that "shot out of a cannon" speed going in both directions.. Just one crossing at a time... Next phase will be to learn to control that speed and bring a transition into it.. But for now its all about HIPS, SPINE and EDGE..

ANDY,
DO NOT try that behind the boat yet.. It will HURT.. Ya gotta get your body used to the new position on dry land before you go out and do it behind the boat.. Just too many changes at once and you will be thinking about one while the others bite your ass...

10000 drylands then go out and do it as cut aways.. Cut aways offer more support and you can adjust a little and see the difference by how wide you can get on the boat..

Heres another way to gauge your improvement.. Do cut aways today on both sides of the boat using your current style.. Have an observer put a piece of waterproof tape or use a marker on the gunnel right under the rope when your maxed out.. Then do the 10000 drylands and get a feel for the new skiing on instep, hip low, neutral lean posture and then do some more cutaways... I think you will find you can cut past the tape after you get the feel of the new posture.. That will tell you when youre getting more edge and applying more power..
For now just try steering the handle behind the boat to try to get shoulders level, spine vertical.. That will make a big improvement in your crossing speed and stop the mid crossing stalls..

Thanks DMJ and Foot,

Edited by Bftskir - October 24 2009 at 7:35pm

All I can say is AWSOME!! the water is to cold here to do any real skiing not to mention training.   But that video made me smile. Thanks. I find it refreshing to watch a video with guys skiing at a level around me or that I might reach. The freestyle stuff is cool but at my age unattainable 

Gotta disagree with DMJ about one item.. I know what he means to say but what he said is misleading.. Lifting the foot higher than the knee will not ALWAYS cause a shoulder drop and edge change.. Sandsy lifts his foot over his head and still cranks out 20+.. BUT he bends it mostly at the knee..

If you lift FROM THE HIP and get higher than the knee youre in deep stall territory.. That goes back to the spine angle thing I said was just too involved for this forum.. But I will gloss over it and maybe you will get it.. If you had a laser scope pointing down your spine the red dot should always be somewhere between your supporting foot and where your lifted foot would be if it was still on the water.. When you lift too high from the hip, break sideways at the waist or drop a shoulder the red dot will end up out in never never land someplace.. Not good style unless you like going slow.. 

Edited by lovatoj - March 01 2010 at 1:44am

Still frozen in Colorado for the most part though I did see a bit of open water on a small pond this weekend. Should not be long now. Usually we're foot'n out here at the end of Feb. So much for global warming.......

Some footage from last Sunday:

Edited by lovatoj - March 10 2010 at 11:13am

My wife and I skied today but in dry suites, I hate cold water.

I actually broke a BI front toe handle, first time I have ever seen anything from Mike break.