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"Currently there are two types of cores used to construct waterskis -- urethane foam and honeycomb...The difference between the two materials on impact is interesting. It takes a hard blow to effect either one, but at forces above 700 to 800 psi, aluminum honeycomb will crush resulting in a dent, when foam core will not. ...At higher impacts, though, the foam will fracture internally...the reduction in the fatigue life is unquestionable."
--"At the core of it -- The innards of skis", Roger Teeter, World Water Skiing Winter 1984
Let us have a moment of silence for my ski. It has passed on.
And I have a rather amusing story about its passing.
It was a beautiful sunny Sunday out on Middle Bay. My family gathered a rather large posse of people consisting of Dad, Mom, Brian, myself, Joslyn and her man Kevin. Ann was not in attendance. And so the posse did depart for a fine afternoon of skiing.
It was lovely. Everyone skiied and we have the videos to prove it. Yes kids, some day when I'm rich, I'm going to get a Snappy and make you good little boys and girls and avi of cute little me skiing. But the point is everyone had fun. Then I decided to work on my slalom.
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For those of you not familiar with this sport, slalom on waterskis mean one ski. You put both feet in the little binding and hang on tight, doing some cool turns in the process if you're good. I'm not good. I start on two skis because I'm not strong enough to get up on one. Then I curl up my toes, the second ski slides off, and I'm all set for slalom.
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Except that the other ski hangs out in the water until I get back.
You see the problem here right? All the other boats.
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So after I fell down (Inevidiable, I'm afraid) we went back to fetch the ski so I could go again. We buzz off to the other end of the cut (the 'cuts' are the parts of the water between the grassy islands where we ski) and find the ski. I peer over the bow and then turn to my dad and say:
"Dad, is that the back end of the ski...over there."
Yep kids, you guessed it. My ski had been cleanly sliced in half. A boat probably drove right over it and WAABAMM! Bu-bye ski.
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Bu-bye engine too, but that's another story. The villian who did it had enough go left in their engine to bolt and we never saw them. I hope their propeller is folded into a little ball and there's a hole the size of a bowling ball in their engine.
But I'm not bitter.
And so ended my glorious slalom career. Two runs. Can't ski if ya can't get up. Can't get up if ya ONLY GOT ONE SKI!!!!
There are OTHER skis I can use, but no matched sets except Brian's combo skis...the Skis That Suck. Hear this -- Taperflex bad, bad Taperflex. Connelly good, good Connelly. There are also the trick skis, and two slalom skis -- Brian's which isn't adjustable and is a men's large, and my father's friend Drew's ski which IS adjustable and may work, but is a distinctly different ski. We shall see next time we go out.
It should be noted the core of my ski is some kind of foam, and the ski itself is at least 22 years old. I have no idea what the common core materials where in 1976, or what they are today.
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