what best describes a skier-down flag?

Water Skiing

is a sport which is played in the surface of the water. Water skiing was developed by Ralph Samuelson in the 1920’s. He used a pair of boards to ski, and a clothesline as a towrope.

Usually, a rider is pulled behind a boat or pulled by a cable ski installation. Riders skim the surface using one (slalom) or two skis. Most of the time, the double skis are used by beginners, and then they progress to a single ski. Waterskiing is usually played in lakes, rivers, and sometimes the ocean.

There are rubber-molded bindings on water skis to keep the feet in place. Doubles skis has a single binding for each one. Waterskiing can be done by more than two persons at the same time. Water skiing usually begins in deep water, though they can also have a “dry start” which starts on the shore.

How to Get Up on Water Skis

1. Begin with a deep-water start, with your legs together.
2. Let the boat do the work—stay in a crouched position until you’re up on a plane.
3. Once you’re up, straighten your legs.
4. Coach your boat driver on the proper speed for towing—around 30 MPH for water-skiers.
5. Once you feel comfortable on two skis, you can transition to slalom-style skiing by dropping one ski.

With kids, the best water skiing tip is to start with the skis that are tied together with nylon rope. This keeps their legs together, and keeps them from doing a split as soon as they get on plane—then doing a face-plant. Even adults first learning to ski can feel like their being split from the groin up. Skiing on two skis will work muscle groups in your legs and back that don’t normally see that much stress.

The hardest part of skiing is the hardest part of any water sport, and that’s the deep-water start. The important thing is to let the boat do the work. Trying to stand up too quickly makes things more difficult than they need be. Stay in the crouched position until you’re up on plane, then straighten your legs.

How to Get Up on Water Skis

Of course, we all want to go water skiing with one ski. One good way to learn is to get up on two skis and then drop one. If you’re on a lake or lagoon, just remember where you left the ski. If you’re skiing on a river, take the current into account when you go back to try to find the other one. This gets you accustomed to slalom-style skiing, and getting up in a deep-water start on two skis is much easier than trying to get up on one ski. Deep-water starts on a single slalom ski are more difficult, and that’s where the deep-V-handle ski rope can help.

Once you’re up and running, the average water ski speed is around 30 MPH. Competition speed for pro slalom skiers is 36 MPH, but you can signal to your driver what speed your comfortable with.

A Little History

Ralph Samuelson is regarded as the inventor of Water Ski. He first performed skiing on the Pepin Lake in Minnesota. Back then, the water bodies were mainly used for commutation and transportation. Ralph kept on trying various positions for various days.

Ralph also noticed that leaning slightly backward while skiing can give his ski’s tip an upward movement and keeping the ski’s tip out of the water was good. With his brother Ben, Ralph successfully achieved the speed of 32 kmph.

The American Water Ski Association formally acknowledged Samuelson in 1966 as the first recorded water skier in history.

Pope Dick Sr., the father and promoter of water skiing, attracted international attention towards this extreme sport during 1940 to 1950. He also competed first jump of 25 feet on water skis.

During those times, the ski ropes were made up of long window sash. World’s first patent ski was made by Fred Waller in 1925, marked as Dolphin Akwa Skees. A finless shorter water ski was patented for the first time in 1940 by Jack Andresen.

Safety tips

• The tip of the ski must always be showing before the boat starts.
• After a fall, a skier should always clasp hands over head if unhurt until seen by the observer and boat driver.
• A fallen skier getting into a boat should leave their skis in the water and swim towards the boat.
• The driver should always stop the engine(s) before picking up skiers in the water.
• Skiers should enter a boat over the stern whenever possible.

Steps to Water Skiing Success

The water skier should enter the water and move away from the boat before the boat’s engine is started. When starting the engine, the boat operator should make sure no one in the water is near the propeller.

Wait for the skier to signal that he or she is ready to go. You can use verbal or hand signals.

Move the boat forward slowly until the ski line is taught. When the skier gives a thumb’s up (power up) signal, take off in a straight line with enough power to raise the skier out of the water. Once the skier is up, adjust your speed based on the skier’s signals.

In areas where water skiing is common, a traffic pattern may already be established. Pay attention to what the other boaters are doing and don’t jeopardize your skier’s safety by pulling in front of other boats.

The skier should never wrap any part of the tow line around his or her body. It’s also a good idea to take off all jewelry and secure life jacket straps that might become loose in the wind and whip at the skier.

Steps to Water Skiing Success

The skier should stay aware of surroundings and potential hazards. As soon as falling, the skier should look behind to assess if there is a danger of being run over. If the situation seems safe, he or she should give the OK sign to let the boat know there are no injuries.

After falling, the skier should hold a ski up out of the water while waiting to be retrieved, and if necessary waves his or her arms.

The boat should circle the skier slowly to either return the tow line or pick up the skier. In some states, the boat must fly a skier down flag while retrieving a skier.

When approaching a skier, always keep the skier in view and on the operator’s side of the boat.

Always shut off the engine before allowing the skier to board the boat. Once the skier is onboard, retrieve the towline.