Skiing from your Fly High X-Pole?

[aswinter05]

Hey all, just ordered a brand new Fly High X-Pole and a B202 Boom with extension from Barefoot Intl. (super friggin' excited!)

 

I was wondering if anyone ever skies from their Fly High? I know that wakeboarders and surfers use the elevated rope position for lift out of the water and help getting air, etc.

 

The only time I've seen someone ski from the extended pylon is when they "ski around the boat".

 

Also, the Fly High has an eyelet in place of the standard pylon position. Has anyone noticed a difference skiing from this as opposed to the standard pylon?

[PBD]

You probably don't want to do it from either the top or the eyelet. Unless you are really just hanging behind the boat, the forces generated by slalom will put more stress on the pole or the eyelet attachment than I would feel comfortable with. Also I wouldn't want to adjust to a pull coming from such a high point on the boat. It would be difficult to get in a strong pulling position with your hands at your waist when the pull is coming from a point high above your head.

[boarditup]

Yes, I have done it. You cannot drive the boat with a decent slalom skier pulling from the side in the course. The driver will be all over the place. The eyelet can be used and is strong enough, but for shortline, it will really wear out the rope. It is also higher than the usual pylon mount, so it feels just a bit different to the driver. If you are just free-skiing, it works well. In the course, take the pole down and ski conventionally. Of course, my sample size is one boat (MC), so you may experience something a bit different.

[escmanaze]

My dad just got a tower on his stern drive. He is 67 and has been struggling the last few years to get up. We hooked his rope to the tower and he said he was amazed at how much easier it was to get up. He's not course skiing, or even skiing aggressively for that matter, so for him it works great as his whole goal is to get up, turn in and out of the wake a few times, and be done. Now we're hoping to have the same result with my sister who has also had trouble getting up ever since she had kids and put on a few pounds. Once again, she's not an aggressive or a course skier.

 

I would never hook it to the top when I'm skiing as I have to imagine it would kill my leverage, not to mention what it would do to the driver and his tracking.

[aswinter05]

Thanks for the input so far. I didn't plan on skiing from the extended pylon unless I was attempting to ski around the boat (which sounds and looks terrible dangerous). We wanted the Fly High for guests that like to wakeboard, for surfing, and for tubing. Other than slalom skiing, we tube the most. The Fly High should help get the ropes out of the water which get annoying to a tuber taking on splashes to the face. Also I would imagine you can get more air on a tube that way.

 

I guess it's nice to know that we could ski from the Fly High if we wanted. We don't do any course skiing yet. @boarditup, I'll be carefull if skiing from the eyelet. I've noticed our tube ropes get torn up really quickly when being pulled from the rear eyelet near the teak platform. I also own a MC. As mentioned we can't course ski on our lake but we like to try open water skiing as if we are on a course :) @escmanaze, that makes sense. I'm guessing that elevated rope position would greatly aid in deepwater starts.

[balsamcutter]

I would agree that pulling a strong slalom skier from the pole or eyelet is a mistake. It does make it easier to get up though, especially with a shortened rope. when starting a beginner we always go boom 1st then boom with handle, then from the tower pole.

 

my kids do not like tubing from the tower it scares them tube gets airbourne and often flips over. to keep ropes out of water we like the "booster ball" its like a big football that floats in the middle of the tow rope. works good,opens up the boat seating area as you can pull of the back cleat, and it makes pulling multiple tubes easier because you still only have one rope attached to boat.

[aswinter05]

Also, I'll throw another question out there....

 

Let's say we have a loaded boat (which we always try to avoid)... which would you rather slalom ski from: the rear eyelet above the platform, or the top of the Fly High? My instincts tell me the rear eyelet would still be better, but I would like to hear input from others with experience.

[escmanaze]

Pulling tubes from a tower or fly high pole is a risky proposition. If a human is holding on to the other end, then I know the rope isn't going to put more than let's say 400 pounds of pressure (If I have my big strong brother in law riding) on the rope. However, with tubes, where they are attached permanently, the tower or pole could see a lot more pressure than that if the rider or the driver does something stupid/wrong. That being said, I have done it back in the day behind another dude's boat and is indeed way better as your air is bigger, smoother, etc.

 

Do you need a fly-high for surfing?