WATER SKIING

The inventor of water skiing is undoubtedly the Minnesota, Ralph Samuelson.  In 1922, a teenager at that time, changed his snow skis to be used on the surface of the lake. He is a recognized inventor of water-skiing.

It is estimated that 20,000 people water-ski for fun. Of course, it didn't take long and competitions were held. The world championship is held in several categories. From the humble beginning it developed now into a sophisticated sport and equipment industry. Skies are made of fibreglass and the binding is made of rubber which supports the ankle but releases the foot the moment the skier falls.

There are different skis for each discipline.

In a tournament of water skiing are three different events. It includes slalom, jumping and trick skiing. The skier wins points in every event and at the end there is one champion. The skiers in slalom have one ski, the competitors in jumping use two skies. The trick skier uses either one or two skies.

SLALOM

Slalom

The slalom is held on a 259m long course. The boat drives down straight but the skier rides from side to side going round the outside of the six buoys. The skiers continue until they fall or miss a buoy. After every buoy the difficulty increases because the boat either speeds up or the towline shortens. The winner is either of rounding the highest number of buoys or on a shortened line the most buoys

Ski Jumpers

Ski jumpers have short lines but face the fibreglass ramp. The ramp is waxed and has running water on it. For men it is 1.65-1.8m and for women 1.5m high. The boats have to pass on the right of the ramp and the skiers go to the left, racing up the slop and shooting into the air. They allowed three jumps and on record is the longest jump.

Trick Skiing

Trick skiing is on a straight 175m long course. The skier does as many tricks as possible in a 20 second pass. There are a set of points for every trick. Some tricks are only basic like turning and skiing backward. The high scoring points is a back flip. Another is leaping over the towline. Toe-holds are where the skier grips the handle with the feet. All these tricks are supervised by five judges to make sure it is done correctly.

Ski Racers

Ski racers are done with one long ski and the skier can lean back into supporting straps. In a competitor race, there can be up to 60 boats and the speed can reach 130km/h. The crew consist of two. One is the driver and the other the observer who is watching over the skier.

Freestyle

Freestyles are skiers who jump off the ramp and do daring tricks. The tricks are helicopters spins and twisting flips. They are judged on style and distance which can be up to 40m and they get points on that. This distance is incredible even without a stunt.

Barefoot

Barefoot water skiing is a serious and earnest business. They still get the old joke to hear - Hey, you've forgotten your skis. In 1991 John Kretchman (USA) managed a 26.3m jump. They also do stunts like the tumbleturns.

WATER SKIING -- FIVE PYRAMIDE

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