What Equipment helped you improve?

[Ryan]

Besides the obvious answer of your boat, what piece of equipment - ski, gloves, whatever - helped you improve the most?

For me it was the Hillbilly Video Trakker. I can't justify buying a new one, but probably will this thing is low on the cool factor - but the video results are perfect. No shaky hands, no vibrations, no zooming in on the back seat. To see my mistakes and work on corrections has been a huge help. Some day I'll actually get my design right and have a machine shop make something better.

Pantent pending --j/k

[ski_king]

Nice!

Actually I thought of the same thing 10 years ago, only to see it advertised the next mnth in Waterski magazine and it was patented.

I never did make one or use one. Looks great!

http://www.waterskivideo.com/

[JEREMY79]

Ryan, does that thing pivot with the rope?

[H20skeefreek]

I saw a great design, may have been on the old site for a pvc tracker design. I'll make one if I ever buy a camera.

[6ballsisall]

I found one of those Skivideo things in my boat when I bought it. Needless to say it's not going with the new owner. :D They work pretty slick!

[JEREMY79]

I saw a great design, may have been on the old site for a pvc tracker design. I'll make one if I ever buy a camera.

Any pics or ideas on how to make one

[Ryan]

Mine pivots and tracks perfectly - get the angle and alignment ready and it's set. This tripod has a quick release mount so I can pop the camera on and off easily. And the bobble bungee cords let me through up the air boom quickly too.

The rope guide used to be my wife's roller paint brush if you didn't already guess.

[mitch]

Ryan, That looks cool. Perfect Pass has been the most helpful thing I've bought

[Upper Michigan Prostar190]

THat looks great Ryan!! DO you mind if I try building one for personal use if I promise not to steal your design and go public with it ? ;) I am gonna try to build one.

For me, the best thing was my New Ski, the Siege. I skied for 17 years on my International Freestyle II. that was a big jump for me. that, and wet suit gloves for the frigid waters of Lake Superior.

[Ryan]

Upper - build away!

Like your Siege, this helped my skiing a TON!
04 Verdict

[Brent]

skiing with buddies that are better skiers then me , helped the most! Perfect pass second!

[Cloaked]

1) An AWSA approved tow line (minimal stretch. It's there when you pull on it for acceleration)
2) Good pair of well fitting gloves
3) A driver with tolerance to overlook my venting frustrations (Be kind to yEr driver!) and skills to give me a great pull for 855 feet.
4) My Mastercraft boat (powerslot).
5) Time

[jimmer2880]

1) A driver who knows how to drive straight & keep the speed at 30 mph.

2) Goode 9200!

[smsunman1]

Besides the obvious answer of your boat, what piece of equipment - ski, gloves, whatever - helped you improve the most?

For me it was the Hillbilly Video Trakker. I can't justify buying a new one, but probably will this thing is low on the cool factor - but the video results are perfect. No shaky hands, no vibrations, no zooming in on the back seat. To see my mistakes and work on corrections has been a huge help. Some day I'll actually get my design right and have a machine shop make something better.

Pantent pending --j/k
Hey guys I'm going to try and make a few, I'll see about getting the price down. Doesn't look too bad.

[parks_jr_55]

HO Phantom Truth with Animal Bindings
Accurate Camoto Gloves

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y163/vw_wr/phantomtruthlg.jpg
http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y163/vw_wr/gloves.jpg

[betsy&david Harrison]

For me it is lots of time on the water and a good teacher. My ski helps out a little too...I think! :D

[east tx skier]

1. MasterCraft
2. Ski Lessons
3. CDX
4. Pulled the wing off on saturday and got an extra buoy.

[Ric]

There was a drawing on the old TT site that showed dimensions and pics of a PVC Pipe style "trakker"
I printed it, tried to make one & never finished it.
Maybe MarkP could find the link for us????

In chronological order
1. Getting rid of my supra for a Prostar!
2. stepping out of my old school HO into a current design made worlds of difference
3. Perfect Pass!
4. getting rid of my clincher gloves has actually helped me ski better

[Workin' 4 Toys]

Besides the obvious answer of your boat, what piece of equipment - ski, gloves, whatever - helped you improve the most?

For me it was the Hillbilly Video Trakker. I can't justify buying a new one, but probably will this thing is low on the cool factor - but the video results are perfect. No shaky hands, no vibrations, no zooming in on the back seat. To see my mistakes and work on corrections has been a huge help. Some day I'll actually get my design right and have a machine shop make something better.

Pantent pending --j/k
Nice work on the custom build. Thats ingenuity!

[André]

Putting my wing back on the ski helped me making 28 off more often.1 out of 3.
Perfect Pass
Skiing the course
Good equipements and boat driver.

[tex]

I no particular order-197, Tower, Sky Ski, trick release, and of course Miller Light!

[Ryan]

No more hillbilly'n'it for me!

Much better looking don't you think?

[east tx skier]

Ryan, I made one one time and it had fallen apart after a long weekend with lots of skiing. Got my trakker on ebay a few years back. I think it's an older one, but with the newer design does the screw that tightens the plate loosen as the skier pulls the camera left and right?

[Kevin 89MC]

I got a "trakker" last fall, it's pretty decent. Great for course skiing. It was kinda pricey though. The filming has definitely made me see just how bad I am. Mine doesn't loosen up. I'm excited to get it dialed in this spring. Mine will jump if there's slack in the rope (duh), so obviously I work on not having much slack! Congrats on your purchase!

[Ryan]

Ryan, I made one one time and it had fallen apart after a long weekend with lots of skiing. Got my trakker on ebay a few years back. I think it's an older one, but with the newer design does the screw that tightens the plate loosen as the skier pulls the camera left and right?

I got mine off ebay and finally fixed it up for use (had some issues - that's why I got it cheap). I haven't tried it yet, but don't think it will come loose with a locking washer and an independent base on the head unit with a rubber piece to compress and give stable footing to prevent slippage. I'm trying it out Sat morning as long it stops raining here.

[tex]

Did I mention that I don't wear gloves.

[east tx skier]

I got mine off ebay and finally fixed it up for use (had some issues - that's why I got it cheap). I haven't tried it yet, but don't think it will come loose with a locking washer and an independent base on the head unit with a rubber piece to compress and give stable footing to prevent slippage. I'm trying it out Sat morning as long it stops raining here.

Would it be much trouble to get a picture of the wing nut under the mounting base so I can see what the setup is.

[Kevin 89MC]

Eastie, I'll try to remember to snap a pic of mine this weekend.

[east tx skier]

Thanks. To get it to swivel smoothly, I need the nut pretty snug. But after a few cuts, it's loosened up. But if it's too tight, if I recall corretcly, it doesn't turn well.

Maybe a double nut is in order.

[Rockman]

For me it was:

1.-1 week down in Florida to train
2.-BFI Boom
3.-5 Foot Handle
4.-Good Drivers
5.-Skiing (footing) with guys who don't act like a bunch of Sallys and give you the confidence to try new things and can back it up.

[erkoehler]

For me it was:

1.-1 week down in Florida to train
2.-BFI Boom
3.-5 Foot Handle
4.-Good Drivers
5.-Skiing (footing) with guys who don't act like a bunch of Sallys and give you the confidence to try new things and can back it up.



Thanks man :)

[Laurel_Lake_Skier]

The barefoot wetsuit is a big improvement over the extra pair of cut-offs we used to use. :eek3:

[rodltg2]

For me it was:

1.-1 week down in Florida to train
2.-BFI Boom
3.-5 Foot Handle
4.-Good Drivers
5.-Skiing (footing) with guys who don't act like a bunch of Sallys and give you the confidence to try new things and can back it up.


man thats a big handle :uglyhamme

[Ryan]

Would it be much trouble to get a picture of the wing nut under the mounting base so I can see what the setup is.

Here you go.

Do you have the model with the coiled cables that act as shock abosorbers? Does it have a bolt on the head unit? If it does, I'd do the double nut idea and also put big wide and thin urethane washer/ring between the head unit and the mounting bracket. If it's spinning any way, this would help it be smoother and tight enough to keep out vibration. Just a thought.

I'll keep your issue in mind when I finish designing the perfect Trakker.

[east tx skier]

Thanks for the picture. I've got a little wing nut on the underside of the curved piece that hangs over the pylon. Is there any hardware on yours that keeps that wingnut from turning?

No, I don't have the coils. Mine must be a much older unit.

[wakesport]

I built my own camera tracker out of some pvc, a 2x4, and the camera mount from an old tripod. When I can get a digital picture I'll post it. It mounts quickly to the pylon and stays out of the way when not needed. Total cost was under $10 in material that I did not already have. The biggest cost would be for the tripod mount.

Here's a link to some of the video I have shot with this setup.

http://personalpages.tds.net/~wakesport/Florida_d.WMV

[Ryan]

Thanks for the picture. I've got a little wing nut on the underside of the curved piece that hangs over the pylon. Is there any hardware on yours that keeps that wingnut from turning?

No, I don't have the coils. Mine must be a much older unit.

No more than the lock-washer on the winged bolt and the rubber piece that provides traction (I think that's the real key to preventing movement). Maybe you should try a rubber washer - I'm sure you can find a matching size in any plumbing dept. I moved the unit all over the place and have no slippage. I do however, need to find or make a lrge grommet that will sit between the rope guide so that there is no delay in repsonse to track the skier. The way it is now, my original setup had tighter performance to rope movement.

Anyone know where I can find a 3/4" rubber grommet? Home Depot, Lowes and OSH don't have them.

[east tx skier]

Yeah, if you get any slack in the line, the camera will have to do some catching up.

I'll revisit my setup this weekend possibly. We're hoping to get out tomorrow.

[H20skeefreek]

This is what helped me the most.....oh I'm refering to the private ski lake.

[Kevin 89MC]

Eastie (& Ryan), here are two pics of my trakker. Seems to look a bit different than yours . . .

[east tx skier]

Yeah, mine seems to be a much earlier incarnation.

[Ryan]

Eastie (& Ryan), here are two pics of my trakker. Seems to look a bit different than yours . . .

Wow, you're not kidding! The newest version, in catalogs, looks pretty cheap IMO. I think it's bizarre how often they change their head-units. I noticed on the instruction sheet/warranty booklet that came in my box there is a FAQ area that basically says "why doesn't mine look like the one in the catalog?" Explaining that they are constantly improving their product...or something. Trouble is it makes it dang hard to order replacement parts.

[Ryan]

Eastie (& Ryan), here are two pics of my trakker. Seems to look a bit different than yours . . .

Kevin, how long have you had yours, and what does that spring do in the back? I can't figure it out, unless it's for wave suspension or something.

[Kevin 89MC]

Kevin, how long have you had yours, and what does that spring do in the back? I can't figure it out, unless it's for wave suspension or something.
You know, I can't remember! I'll have to look at my instruction sheet sometime. I think it may be an easy way to adjust the angle of the camera mount (to view "more sky" or "more lake").
I got mine last year, late summer or early fall. IIRC I got it thru overton's, so I would hope it wasn't an old model sitting on a shelf for years!

[Rockman]

man thats a big handle :uglyhamme

"You should have seen the size of the toast, I couldn't even fit it through the door" -Uncle Buck :D

[Ryan]

You know, I can't remember! I'll have to look at my instruction sheet sometime. I think it may be an easy way to adjust the angle of the camera mount (to view "more sky" or "more lake").
I got mine last year, late summer or early fall. IIRC I got it thru overton's, so I would hope it wasn't an old model sitting on a shelf for years!

At $169 I suspect they have some slow selling velocity.

[Ryan]

Here is the one with the suspension cables. ISM - Isolator Shock Absorber up on ebay right now.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=7243482173&ssPageName=ADME:B:SS:US:1

[bigmac]

Eastie (& Ryan), here are two pics of my trakker. Seems to look a bit different than yours . . .I just bought a Trakker from Boardco - $149, no tax, free shipping. It looks the same as in your picture. They said it's their third generation. Early models of version 3 apparently had some problem with damper fluid leaking and supposedly that's fixed. The fluid damping is pretty stiff and not adjustable, but pulling a skier with the rope through the loop should be more than enough weight to get it to track appropriately.

The spring-loaded thumb screw is for adjusting camera angle up and down, to accomodate different planing angles, I guess.

I have some familiarity with camera accessories, especially tripod heads. This looks to be a very well-made device IMHO. One thing it doesn't mention that I definitely plan on doing is some kind of tether to the camera. One nut loosening up could conceivably mean glug-glug for the video camera.

[ajgressette]

Ummmm, the fiberglass ski. :worthy: