I'm new, I've searched, Now I have specific ?s

[geissap]

The wife and I are on the hunt for a Jet Ski. I was laughed at over in the wakeboard forums, as they told me that I should look at wakeskating instead with a jet ski. Now I've already seen on here that you all are getting up off a Jon Boat with a 25 so I'm guessing practically any Jet Ski will do the trick. The question I have is how necessary is the ski pylon. I was going to get the Sea Doo Wake for awhile, but is it even worth it or will any decent 150 HP+ 3 seater do the trick just fine?

Will I get up just fine with a tow harness and rope at water level.? I've never wakeboarded/wakeskated before but I snowboard, skateboard and have water ski'd before so I'm thinking I'll be fine?

How hard is it to keep the throttle steady when pulling a rider on a ski? Should I invest in something with cruise control/cruise assist?

I wanna spend under 200 bucks on my first wakeskate. It looks as though many of you recommend a wood concave for first-timers but how do I tell if it's concave? Usually it has picture of the top and bottom and it's hard to see if it has concave. Anyone got some specific recommendations? I'm 5.11 170ish, and my wife is about 5.5 130. Is it possible to get a board that we can both ride? Or not really?

[mojo]

ski pylon is not needed. it's nice, but not needed. just get one of those setups you hook on either side of the engine. usually has a pulley or something to help it move. i'm not sure about ski's, but i liked the honda turbo 3 seater i used to get to ride behind. as for a skate, flat decks are going to be cheaper than most boards. concaves are going to usually be over 200 unless you find a close out deal. as for size ya'll can both ride the same board. since you're just about to learn i'd get a 41 or 42" concave. search key words on here like "wood works", remote, new, oak, byerly, etc.

[<MikeG>]

any ski will work fine and the pylon is definitely not needed. my ski doesnt have one and i like it better than skis that do. I just hook my rope up to the little tow hitch loop right behind the 3rd seat. Its really easy to maintain a speed on the jet ski. As long as you can hold your finger kind of still, you will be able to maintain a constant speed. and if you change the speed on accident, its super easy to get back to where you want to go. and for your first board, anything will work, a wood concave or flat deck is a good start for sure. and like mojo said a 41 or 42 will be fine for both of you especially when your first learning.

[mojo]

i don't have much ski riding under my belt, but i also don't like using a pole on ski's. it seems to pull the ski noticeably more than using the lower tow point.

[zip]

geissap,

welcome man yeah wood concaves are sweet but any skate even a flat deck will be fine just to get the taste of it. then if you love it as much as the rest of us then purchase a quality concave whether it be wood or composite.

im excited for you.....to fall in love with wakeskating

[geissap]

Wow thanks for all the quick replies! I think I'm just gonna invest another couple bucks and get a concave. I like the way these oak skates look. Does the whole griptape vs foam matter all that much? Also I was checking out ropes and there outrageous! 60 bucks for a handle? Is there really that much difference in handles and such? I need the rope breakdown...what do I need to know about ropes?

[bmosing]

geissap, welcome! you will find that most everyone on here is willing to help. as people have said, ski pylon is not necessary. it sounds like most of their skis have the "eye" style tow hook on the back. my buddy's did not so we just rigged up the rope to where the back seat hand hold is on the very back and it worked just fine. as far as ropes go, definitely get something that doesn't stretch. you can find a good deal on a handle/rope combo on boardersmall.com
as for skates, stay away from liquid force unless you want to deal with warranty issues after only riding it a few times. oaks are nice, as well as the others people mentioned (new, devotid, woodworks)
good luck and the most important thing is get out and ride!!!!

[Raven]

forget about the foam........leave that for the boogieboarders

the rope.......u want something non stretch......there are some decent ropes out there for like 40 bucks ...check ebay.


handles........take a nice stick and an 8' length of rope///////boom! free handle. might not be the flash but it is luhghit


welcome my friend........and enjoy the water and slashish often

[RC]

I have a '94 and a '03 Sea-Doo GTX and neither of them have the pylon. It's makes no difference.

http://cgi.ebay.com/WAKEBOARD-SKI-ROPE-EVA-HANDLE-WAKEBOARDING-75-FT-RED-/320542403907?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aa1d0ed43
^Rope and handle for $60^

+1 for grip.

http://cgi.ebay.com/GATOR-WAKEBOARD-80D-41-WakeSkate-/270537708332?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3efd4dd32c
^Wood Concave for $149^

Welcome to ws.com brother. You're gonna love this amazing sport.

[geissap]

I already like this sport just based on you guys. This is fantastic. People are so anal on forums these days I usually don't even bother posting..."use the search" "your a noob" blah blah blah. You guys are feeding me all kinds of info.

I'm looking heavily at this a Yamaha SHO FX 2008 http://www.topspeed.com/boats/yamaha/2008-yamaha-fx-sho-ar42833.html

Which I'm guessing will do the trick just fine!

That gator looks decent it's kinda of unisex on the graphic as well. She sees Hot Pink and I see punk rock skater boy.

What's the deal with these woodwork wakeskates? They got a sketchy website. I've heard you guys throw this name out like crazy maybe I got the wrong homepage? http://www.woodworkswakeskates.com/ What do they run, and there all custom?

[wakemitch]