DFC 58 - Swiss Pro preview and “Boat Path Measurement System” rules update

[Horton]

 

[Horton]

Here is the same show but in YouTube form

 

[skierjp]

Running order

[prk]

you guys didn't mention whit has she hung them up after that nasty crash at the worlds

[Horton]

what?

[dvskier]

@prk Whitney is the number 1 seed at Swiss.

[Slalom.Steve]

Yeah I heard the same though - Whitney hung them up (her life vest and gloves) after a practice session for this tournament season :D

[mmosley899]

@prk I visited/skied with Whitney & Matt a couple of months ago, she did not say anything about hanging it, just slowly getting back into it...

[rico]

pretty much everyone is there in the Elite skiers outside of Jaimee, Rob P and Sacha!

[Horton]

Little birdy tells me we may be missing a key player. We will see.

[AdamCord]

Apparently Swiss made the decision to only use the ML Optimized rope this weekend. They also chose not to disclose this to any of the skiers. So anyone who hasn't been training on that rope is screwed. No idea why they think this is a good idea.

[Mastercrafter]

.

[Jody_Seal]

Oh! My god!!! The world is coming to an end! The ropes are different then what others ski on.

 

Analisim at its finest, or is it just plain whinging??

 

Wait! I know! why not throw your ski down on the dock and go win the event!!

 

 

[AdamCord]

@Jody_Seal I appreciate your nuanced and thoughtful perspective on this. Here's my take-

 

This event is obviously very early in the season, so anyone who doesn't live in FL is already going to be on the fence about going. That as well as the fact that it is a lower payout event makes it less of a priority. So at the end of the day a skier has to decide if it's worth the flight/drive, hotel, car, entry fees, etc. If you then find out 2 days beforehand that they are using a rope that you are either uncomfortable with or you know you don't ski well on, it's a pretty easy decision not to go. I think if Swiss had announced this decision a few weeks ago it would have been a non-issue.

 

That's just my perspective, I wasn't personally planning to go this year but this is the calculation I've always had to make when deciding whether on not to go to this event.

[Drago]

I thought there was an organized pro tour

[Jody_Seal]

I know right? Probably should not hold a pro event in May in Florida.. not really fair to those that don't live in Florida........ way to early......

 

Oh well!! Anyway good luck to those skiers that don't reside in Florida. Those that are residents need to maybe spot a couple buoys to these non resident skiers. How would that be?

 

 

[ScarletArrow]

Guys, we're burying the lede here. The real story is the rules to the boat path measurement system and how clear and understandable they are to everyone.

[skierjp]

Swiss Pro has been the same date for years. I think it’s more about the win and the competition then the money. After all, the first Masters Qualifier is at Pickos the very next week then the next Qualifier is at Drews the week after that then the final qualifier is at Jacks the week after that then The Masters. I’m sure all those tournaments will be MasterLine. It would only make sense for Swiss to use ML.

[AdamCord]

@skierjp agreed but the issue isn't that they are using ML, it's that they are only offering the soft "Optimized" variant, instead of the normal ML rope. All other tournaments that use ML give the skier the option to use either one. I can say from experience as a bigger guy that the softer rope can be downright dangerous at the shorter lines when I'm putting a 900+lb load on the rope.

[Horton]

@AdamCord just try to be lighter on the line

[rockdog]

@AdamCord early in the season like Moomba? The event that Nate ran 10.25 and won in his off season? Freddie and Tgas running high scores also? Is the rope more of an issue than that?

[Bruce_Butterfield]

Wow. Wasn’t it just a few years ago that skiers had to live with whatever rope the host had on hand that complied with AWSA/iwwf rope specs? Now there are options and some skiers aren’t happy? Sorry but I’m with Jody that the analites are taking over. Yes, ropes make a difference, but at some point you have to suck it up and ski.

 

@AdamCord its a good thing you weren’t around in the ‘80’s and 90’s before there were little if any rope specs. It was frequently a surprise, and not a good one.

 

For any given skier, If the deciding factor to go to a tournament is what rope they are using I doubt that skier will be missed.

[AdamCord]

@Bruce_Butterfield meh.

 

I don’t have to do anything unless my wife tells me to, and I certainly don’t get paid to ski.

 

@Horton you first

[Bruce_Butterfield]

:D @AdamCord maybe you should have consulted your wife before stirring the pot?

 

[AdamCord]

@Bruce_Butterfield sometimes the pot needs a stir or two. We can only discuss @Horton’s onside turn for so long. Is it summer yet?

[Horton]

@AdamCord well if nobody else will talk about their skiing I will talk about my on-side turn until the end of time

[bigtex2011]

i just hope their using 93 octane

[Rednucleus]

I am not a tournament skier, but this rope issue seems so easy to resolve. It's a piece of our equipment, just like a ski, bindings, vest, gloves, handle, ZO setting... we all have individual equipment preferences. If a rope brand/type meets tournament specs, why can't a skier be given their choice of rope for their pull, as long as it's available?

[Horton]

@Rednucleus I can argue both side to this.

 

From the tournament organizer perspective less ropes (likely) means more consistent ropes. If you pull the entire event with three ropes that are the exact same spec it's just one less thing to keep track of.

 

From the skiers perspective many events in the last few years have provided two different ropes specs for the skiers to choose from. For some skiers it has been an expectation that when they show up to the event they can choose one or the other.

 

I was talking to @twhisper about ropes recently. His take is that he should always practice on a softer rope than what will be provided at a tournament. The logic is no one is thrown off by a stiffer rope but few skiers like transitioning to a softer rope. So if you practice with the soft rope you will never be caught off guard at a tournament.

[Broussard]

@Rednucleus While I get your point, your examples don't exactly hold up.

 

Ski, bindings, vest, gloves, and handles (for the most part) are all skier supplied equipment. Allowing all skiers to bring their own rope would be a disaster.

 

The rope is tournament supplied equipment and for a pro tournament you would need 3 ropes. Having multiple options available would increase that number to six ropes which has been done in the past at events but can make things a bit messy at the dock.

[AdamCord]

I think the closest equivalent for ropes is ZO setting. It's like going to a tournament and finding out you're only allowed to use A1. Yes you could probably learn to ski on A1, but it would be nice to know ahead of time.

 

@Horton I think Terry's idea makes sense, but it also draws attention to the fact that a lot of people struggle on overly soft ropes...why are these being pushed as a premiere product?

[skierjp]

In a event like Swiss I’ve seen multiple records broken where we nearly ran out of ropes. When you have a large international running order it can get crazy.