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WATERSKI Magazine
“I feel the need for speed.” Long before Goose
muttered that famous line in the blockbuster movie Top Gun,
water skiers have felt the need. There’s nothing quite like
the electrifying sensation of zipping across the wakes at what
feels like Mach one, is there? But skiing has a love/hate
relationship with speed. It can be your best friend or worst enemy
– just ask Goose.
That’s why we asked five of the world’s best skiers
to give us insight on how they view the battle for speed. We also
clocked their speed measurements with a hand-held sports radar gun
to find out just how fast they’re really moving across
course. For the complete story and incredible photos, pick up the
July 2003 WaterSki magazine. Included here is commentary
from pro skier Wade Cox, plus a streaming video of Wade powering
through some high-speed action.
“#0000ff”>TO SEE VIDEO, click here
Wade Cox
Shortline equals fastline
What I find most interesting after looking at my recorded gate
speeds into one ball is that between 15 off and 35 off I was
traveling at almost exactly the same speed. However, as soon as we
shortened the line from 35 off to 38 off, my gate speed increased
nearly 4 mph (from 49.7 mph to 55.2 mph respectively). This big
jump made in speed made me wonder if that’s why so many
amateur skiers run 35, but rarely learn to master 38 off.
In a perfect slalom world, the skier would want to achieve a
180-degree arc on the boat from one buoy to another. The key to
reaching this 180-degree arc on the boat is obviously speed. The
only real way to keep up with the slalom rope shortenings is to
travel faster.
So how can you travel faster as the line gets shorter? Gate
tempo is the key. Your gates will allow you to create maximum
speed, which in turn will allow you to ski the best possible arc.
By relaxing your legs you'll be able to get into a more athletic
stance. This lowered position will allow you to create maximum
leverage, which in turn produces a release. The better you release,
the more run time you have out to the buoy, increasing your chances
of skiing closer to that 180-degree arc.
Wade's Speeds
15 off – 49.8 mph
28 off – 49.3 mph
35 off – 49.7 mph
38 off – 53.5 mph
39½ off – 54.6 mph
41 off – 55.2 mph
Animals of Speed
And you thought you skied fast until you saw a cheetah pass you
up on the shoreline on your approach to three ball.
Cheetah 70 mph
Downhill skier 80-plus mph
Freddy Krueger 57.5 mph
Jamie Beauchesne 55.2 mph
Jaret Llewellyn 57.6 mph
Wade Cox 55.2 mph
Karen Truelove 50.3 mph
Lion 50 mph
Wildebeest 50 mph
Windsurfer 40 plus
