Baller Jboss Posted March 4, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 I feel like I just hit the jackpot! (and a heads-up to you other Wisconsin-ites) I was just made aware today that Wisconsin passed a law this past year eliminating the requirement for a spotter when skiing. This is HUGE for me because it's me and my wife at our lake house 90% of the time. I've always had to scramble for a spotter. Not anymore! href="http://https://www.wjfw.com/storydetails/20180420180825/a_new_law_eliminates_the_requirement_for_water_skiing_spotters">https://wjfw.com/storydetails/20180420180825/a_new_law_eliminates_the_requirement_for_water_skiing_spotters Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller skiinxs Posted March 4, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 Great news! Wisconsin is now on the list for posible vacation destinations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jboss Posted March 4, 2019 Author Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 @skiinxs LOL. Good to hear! Hey, you have great taste in colors. Looks somewhat familiar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jetsetr Posted March 4, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 IDK- we ski a small lake and the driver is plenty busy watching where they are going all the time... I guess if you’re just in the course that would be one thing, but free skiing a small lake in traffic is a different animal. JMHO.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jboss Posted March 4, 2019 Author Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 @Jetsetr You are spot-on. In our case, we have a 540 acre lake that is totally empty most days. Nearly every time I go out, my wife will not have a single other boat to contend with. On a "busy" day, there may be a few. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller ScottScott Posted March 4, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 Its often just me and my girlfriend out skiing. My biggest consern is in the event of an injury whether she'll be able to drag my unconscious, or broken, body up onto the swim platform by herself..... but, it can be tough enough to coordinate schedules with one ski partner, much less 2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Orlando76 Posted March 4, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 I’m a BIG safety guy but requiring a spotter is a rather dumb idea. Glad a burden has been lifted for you cheese heads. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jetsetr Posted March 4, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 @Jboss yup...we ski a 85 acre lake and even with a few other active boats, fishermen, paddle boards the driver is busy enough...BUT the caveat again is depends on traffic and a host of other variables. We don’t even TRY to ski on weekends, only during the week, and a lot of times we have the lake to ourselves. I would be ok with that, or when we drop the course... Which lake you on? We ski Lily Lake in Kenosha county. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller igkya Posted March 4, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 4, 2019 Reminds me of a time when I lived in PA. and a spotter was required. The Corp. of Engineers, that policed the lake, docked their boat right next to mine. After an evening of skiing (just me and the wife), we were pulling into the dock just as the Corp was about to leave, and they asked how the skiing was... had to tell them we just joy riding. I don't think they believed me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klindy Posted March 4, 2019 Share Posted March 4, 2019 @jetsetr @jboss the new law eliminates the requirement for a spotter, common sense should decide whether YOU feel you need one or not. Traffic, lake size, other obstacles all play into that decision. As far as paying attention to the driving vs the skier, I'd say pay 98% of your visual attention to the lake in front of you (with a spotter or not). And it's rare that a driver can't "feel" the skier behind the boat. if the skier falls or stops loading behind the boat, a quick glance into the mirror will let the driver know if the skier is still on the line. Obviously that makes coaching more difficult but if you're skilled enough to drive and coach (and do a good job of both), I also bet you're cognizant of boat traffic and busy lakes, etc. In MI we always had "no observer" permits and skied like that for 25-30 years. Never had a problem but certainly you have to prioritize what you need to do in the boat without an observer. The only real challenge was trick practice doing toe turns. That requires basically full-time attention on the skier. As a skier, when practicing toe turns, you tended to watch the water like you were driving and maintain good eye contact with the driver thru the mirror. If it looked like boat traffic was going to be a problem, grab the rope and point so the boat driver knew what was happening. Also tend to error on the safe side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klindy Posted March 4, 2019 Share Posted March 4, 2019 Interestingly the law itself says that a local governmental unit can prohibit skiing without an observer on a particular lake if the lake has a "water safety patrol unit" operating at least 1500 hours a year. Guess that eliminates the big, popular lakes in many cases. Also specifically says that no observer is needed for waterski tournaments as long as there is adequate light. One surprising thing is they define waterskiing, aquaplaning or similar which I assume would include tubing, etc. Either way it seems like a mostly sensible law. Here's the text of all of Wisconsin's boating laws - https://docs.legis.wisconsin.gov/statutes/statutes/30/V/69/1/a The important stuff starts in paragraph 30.69 and continues in 30.71 & 30.79 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Robbo5252 Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 Having been in a boat when someone broke their leg skiing, I would never be without a spotter on the water. We ski on a river so granted it is slightly different to a small lake. In Aus, kids can be a spotter from Age 12 once they pass the boat license test, but I am hesitant to go out with 1 adult & a child because if something was to happen they are not going to be much help. Cheers Robbo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrators Horton Posted March 5, 2019 Administrators Share Posted March 5, 2019 Goode ★ HO Syndicate ★ KD Skis ★ MasterCraft ★ PerfSki Radar ★ Reflex ★ S Lines ★ Stokes Drop a dime in the can Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jboss Posted March 5, 2019 Author Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 @Jetsetr We're on Lost Lake in St. Germain. It's an amazing place. @klindy Keith - Thanks for all the info. This is great. This law is most certainly going to result in a major increase in my ski time this summer. I'm so pumped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Sethro Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 It's pretty rare that I can't find a spotter, but it would sure be nice to not have to worry about it here in Illinois. Water patrol isn't an issue, but I don't like the image purposefully breaking laws portrays. Our law would have to start with "in counties with a population smaller than 5 million" like so many of our other laws read to separate Chicago. Or in this case, in counties bordering counties with populations greater than 5 million as I'm sure there isn't a whole bunch of waterskiing in Cook County itself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller BrennanKMN Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 Have a lot of you gotten in trouble for this? I guess if I was on a big name lake I'd follow the rules more closely, but if I am at a 'cabin' spot or a small ski site I don't think that law would have ever stopped me from skiing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller jhughes Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 We have a place in Eagle River so this is key for us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jetsetr Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 @Jboss Know where that lake is...we sled up that way quite a bit...been a awesome season for winter sports this year.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Zman Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 So, now you cheeseheads don't need your blow up dolls or crash dummies in the passenger seat anymore? Cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Chef23 Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 We ski without spotters regularly even though it is against the rules. There are rarely patrols on our lake and it is generally early morning or midweek when there is little to no competing boat traffic. In the last 15 years only once has one of our crowd been caught and it was a holiday weekend when he shouldn’t have been skiing without a spotter. I do drive my son doing toes without a spotter or as the release person when my wife is in the boat. I use a Masterline Robbins release and put an extra section of rope and hold it with my foot. If he falls I can’t possibly hold him in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller oldjeep Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 Nice, now my wife and I will be legal when skiing at my folks place. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller swc5150 Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 This law was in effect last summer fwiw. Very awesome for us. My brother and I were pinched several times over the years. Lol and my good buddy here in Eau Claire did have an old JC Penny manniquin bungied to his obvserver seat, so yes that’s a real thing here. He was actually the guy that spearheaded getting this law rolling with Terry Molton. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller teammalibu Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 We used to use a mannequin back in the day in S.E. Wis. didn't take long for the lake patrol to figure it out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jboss Posted March 5, 2019 Author Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 @Jetsetr always good to meet another sledder! My wife and I are into it big time. We just passed 2,000 miles for the year and 5,000 miles on our 3-year old sleds. Time to trade them in! So, the $1,000,000 question is do you ride Arctic Cat, Ski Doo, Polaris, or Yamaha? I ride an AC ZR6000 Limited. My wife rides a Polaris 600 Rush Pro-S. This is what my backyard looks like right now. CRAZY snow this year. Love it, but now it's time to melt so I can put my ProStar in the water. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jmoski Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 Sweet - Maine has a similiar but more restrictive law - you can ski the course without a spotter if you have a wide angle mirror. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller swc5150 Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 @Jboss Polaris:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller PacMan Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 I think this was passed a year or two ago. My brother and I have issues finding spotters for our early AM course skiing so we figured what would be the harm in going no spotter as the lake is empty at 6 am. We both had the worst OTF's we've ever had and we think he had a minor concussion. Last time I'll ski without a spotter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller skiinxs Posted March 5, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 5, 2019 @Jboss The Nautique color is called "Solar Red", looked like orange to me:) Nautique marketing picked all the colors on the new boat for the promo team last year. I woudln't have picked it myself, but I do have to say that it looked good. As far as the no spotter rule, I was serious, any state that requires a spotter to ski is off limits when my wife and I take a week to go out of town to ski. MO has always been skier friendly requiring only a wide view mirror, so that is where we usually went. Now areas like Wisconsin Dells are much more attractive to couples who want to take a skiing vacation, toursism should benefit from this rule. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jetsetr Posted March 6, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 6, 2019 @Jboss I have a Ski Doo ETEC 600 Renegade and a 800 Grand Touring. Also have a ‘70 Evinrude and a ‘73 Johnson. Don’t get to ride as much as I like, too many irons in the fire. Going to ride in the Pembine area next week...I’ve had many 1000 mile years, never a 2K year. But I live waaaay south. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller teammalibu Posted March 6, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 6, 2019 @Jetsetr do either of your old sleds have the orange track! We sold Evinrude snowmobiles when I grew up at the Silver Lake Marina Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jetsetr Posted March 6, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 6, 2019 No, they’re both original and black. Never have seen an OMC with orange track. Orange seats, tanks and skis on the Johnsons but not tracks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller UWSkier Posted March 6, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 6, 2019 This was in effect last year already. And I took advantage of it when I was back there in the summer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Ski_Dad Posted March 6, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 6, 2019 i wish they would do this in Ohio. My youngest gets tired of spotting as the season goes on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ DW Posted March 6, 2019 Baller_ Share Posted March 6, 2019 IIRC there were statistics presented regarding incident rates across various states that do / don't have spotter laws. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller jhughes Posted March 6, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 6, 2019 By the way, we need to figure out a way to get a nice permanent course up in northern Wisconsin somewhere. This is an absolute dead zone of course skiing. I know there is a course up on Big Stone lake in Three lakes but its out in open water, has no pre-gates, and the owner doesn't want anyone on it. There is one on the Minocqua chain but it's usually in tatters, has a lot of rollers too. I have a portable course on a smaller lake but it has to be deployed every time and I usually don't have many takers to help deploy it early and of course wind conditions have to be perfect, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klindy Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 This list doesn't appear to be completely up-to-date but I'll bet it's a great start to do some research. Clearly the Wisconsin law update isn't even included. uscgboating.org/regulations/state-boating-laws-details.php?id=17&title=[4.1]Water%20Skiing It comes from this US Coast Guard page which should be reliable. The general links on this page have a lot more info too - uscgboating.org/regulations/ One thing to remember that the "no observer" rules kinda cut both ways. While they make it easier for those of us who are dedicated to get some decent practice on public waterways, it also makes it possible for a personal watercraft to pull tubers and others with only a driver. The mirror (especially convex mirror) requirement may help but I believe the specific language in the rules is very important to understand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller swc5150 Posted March 6, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 6, 2019 @jhughes You're so right. Our place is on the Spread Eagle Chain, not far from you. We put our EZ in when we can, but that entire area is starving for a permanent. It also feels like every 3rd dock has a DD ski boat on a lift, so the fact that there are so few courses amazes me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ DW Posted March 7, 2019 Baller_ Share Posted March 7, 2019 @klindy : A solution, which is in the Michigan regs, a big mirror is required to allow one to pull a skier w/o a spotter (there are a few more requirements to allow one to do it). Wouldn't prohibit one to install one on a jet ski. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ MISkier Posted March 7, 2019 Baller_ Share Posted March 7, 2019 @DW, can you give me a link to that law? The only “no observer” option I am aware of in Michigan requires that you are a tournament skier and apply for a special “no observer” permit. I’m not aware of any broad regulation allowing just anybody to ski without an observer, regardless of the mirror. The worst slalom equipment I own is between my ears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jboss Posted March 7, 2019 Author Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 @jhughes and @swc5150 You are both spot-on about the Northwoods. I'd be happy to help put something together up there if you guys are in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller swc5150 Posted March 7, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 @Jboss I'd help out any way I can. I know a few others from our chain that may be interested too. We put our EZ right in front of our house, which works out great. I've wondered before if we could get a permanent, sinkable course in that spot, but never tried. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klindy Posted March 7, 2019 Share Posted March 7, 2019 @MISkier you're correct as far as I know. The link above on my post has a good summary. For MI, observer required. However when I lived there I did have a "tournament skier - no observer" permit too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller wilecoyote Posted March 7, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 My uncle used to put a hat and sun glasses on the dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jboss Posted March 7, 2019 Author Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 @swc5150 Maybe we could get a few of us together to make something happen. It could be a blast. I plan to be up there a lot this summer. Looking forward to putting some serious hours on my new ProStar. Here is a link to the Wisconsin process for officially establishing a course. https://dnr.wi.gov/topic/boat/slalomBuoys.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller swc5150 Posted March 7, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 I have 26 hours on my '15 Prostar, so I clearly need hours too! Boat isn't even broken in yet:( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller Jboss Posted March 7, 2019 Author Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 @swc5150 Mine is a '17 ProStar with only 45 hours. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller swc5150 Posted March 7, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 @Jboss PM sent... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller skiinxs Posted March 7, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 @swc5150 Wow, only 26 hours, I did the 25 hour oil change on my (first) 2019 the second week I had it! Of course it pulled my Swervin Weekend and a jump clinic the first week I had it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller_ DW Posted March 7, 2019 Baller_ Share Posted March 7, 2019 @MISkier: you are correct as it stands now, a few years ago it was more lenient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baller jercrane Posted March 7, 2019 Baller Share Posted March 7, 2019 By the way for anyone reading this that skis in NH we have a little known, more restrictive version of this law on the books. If you are driving/skiing a competition ski boat with a wide angle mirror in an approved slalom course (permitted) you do not need a spotter in NH. Found out about this law from Marine Patrol last year. I had no idea. Immediately bought myself a set of 4 of these https://www.leadwake.com/collections/frontpage/products/25-lb-bag?variant=35497736336 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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