International Water Ski Racing Online Since 1996

Changes people want in ski racing

On 25th April, the World Water Ski Racing Survey was launched. To date, 115 people have completed the online survey. Survey data will be available here later this week, but for now, here are 49 suggestions about how some people think our sport could be improved.

1.  more careful readings on the depth of the water in all areas not just the middle, skiers should have to ski inside the wash at all times 

2.  stricter penalties for drivers and observers who ignore signals and also ban drivers who come to close to fallen skiers when they can see them 

3.  Ski racing is turning to more of an international sport for better competition. I belive that the host country of a world event should have money, product or services built into there budget to be made avalable to the teams travaling to there event. I also think we need to look at the F/1 boats as far as some kind of power limitation and number of drives that can be run. I know this would take a lot of conversation and I’m not sure if the world councl without imput from all the regions has the back ground to create those guide lines. The F/1 boats of today are to fast and far to expenseve to build and maintain. 

4.  I think unlimited should be unlimited i think the isurance issue in australia needs to be addresed 

5.  bring it back in the usa 

6.  More thought given to coarse design and rules to accomadate a shorter/smaller area. Reason being better spectator viewing, closer racing, easier?cheaper to televise. Short coarse = rougher water = shorter distance to accelerate = slower speed.Also design a coarse which negates pole advantage ie; L or C shape instead of triangle or saugege shape 

7.  For competitors to try to see things from a race organisers viewpoint. It is very difficult to promote an event in a professional manner when the “stars” of the event behave in such an amateur manner. 

8.  More checking of skiers safety equipment. Limits to the size of boat motors grading of skiers & drivers & observers with years of experience & age 

9.  Safety equip has to be worn. Its saved my a…so many times. I know that ins. prohibits this but come on common sense now if we have the equip why not use it all. Maybe more double ups like AU, Sorry but I like $ for trophy than a bag all the time. 

10.  bring the price DOWN!!!

11.  I think the sport should aim for a max speed of around 110mph – however needs to be goverened by boats and not skiers equipment. This would require a big step down in current horespower, so changes would require long term notice. I would suggest this is achieved by removing forced induction, ie: turbo’s and super-chargers 

12.  allow bigger boats to compete on a regular basis. when I go to the lake , its getting rare to see a boat the same length as our racing boats. most people have larger boats now. we need to entice them to compete also. 

13.  I would like to see more racing less politics !!!

14.  In the UK, more clear and open communication to all those in the sport (that is those who are active, i.e. members of BWSF). An agreed approach to raising profile of the sport .i.e why arnt we at any of the boatshows? 

15.  Tighten the rules for F2, currently to open with no horspower checks being done. I look to NZ to see what happens. 

16.  Other engine classes at an international level to allow the up and coming racers to strive to be better but at a slower speed and with slower boats. ie, 2.5 litre and smoc, as they do in australia. 

17.  Much sorter races Maximum 1/2 an hour but more of them. Lets move the sport on, every other sport evolves to suit let not be left dead in the water! 

18.  inclusion of more countries. Masters (over 40) class included 

19.  Formule 3 for the whole world!!! in europe its a succes and an improvement for skiracing! 

20.  making more races better for spectator? 

21.  international classes changed to suit more common motors used at present 

22.  the minimum distance between the skier and another boat should be much further than 2m away. it should be minimum the length of a boat incase it loses its steering or hooks sideways. in races such as worlds things like this can happen so quickly and the next thing you know the boat next to you has run over your skier. for the safety of the skiers the minimum distance should be made far larger – theres is plenty of water out there so why do they need to be so close to each other? it is too dangerous 

23.  Limiting rigs and equipment either by specification(preferable) or financially to open up the ‘sport for all’ aspect along the lines of A1 Motor Racing. 

24.  In world water ski racing – not sure about – but in Australia, I would like to see them not try and change the rules so often and think about the ramifications of the rule changes. 

25.  The sport desperately needs to get a clear direction of where it should go and then that ‘policy’ to be driven from the top. More sympathy to environmental issues and particiation costs may induce more newcomers and address ‘speed’ concerns. Shorter races at domestic level may also help, particularly newcomers and youngsters. This may also enable more races over a weekend, giving more spectator appeal. 

26.  more media coverage and more entry level classes such as a 75 MPH class like the 60MPH class here in Aus 

27.  love to see more people in the sport that is so amazing… 

28.  A short course world championships which involve a greater number of people from different age groups. It is too restricted at moment and limits involvement from so many people who could compete at a world level ie have age classes instead of F! or F2 only. 

29.  I think that the sport needs to look at the sport in two different areas. International and Nationally (club level). First, at the international level I feel that a big step would be removing the alternate position from the F1 division for both men and women. The alternate is a useless position. Teams are allowed 3 skiers in F1, but only two skiers earn points for the team. So the alternate really is the 3rd skier. Most Countries don’t even have a 3rd skier, let alone an alternate. With this being said, I think each country should be allowed to bring a 3rd skier in F2 to World Titles. F2 has more people competing than F1, it is more affordable (although it is getting out of hand just like F1), and the racing tends to be more balanced and competitive. I truly believe this will improve participation at the International Level and the National Level. With that being said, races at home need to stop catering to the World Team Members. Marathon races are generally too long for the casual skier as they don’t want to race for 45 minutes to an hour. Shorter races, better race locations, and most importantly trying to make the sport more affordable. 

30.  More competitors! sponsors more incentive for people to ski…like cash prizes (from sponsors) more spectators more advertising 

31.  I would like to see class divisions becoming more even. Limiting not only engine sizes but horse power as well. For example I ski in the very competitive 6ltr class in Australia and in most of the classic races we are finishing well in the top 10. Our class is spending huge amounts of cash to try and get an advantage over other competitors. Our class is how hitting speeds of over 106mph towing two skiers which is alot faster than most of the other boats in the classes above us. The crews in our class have been spending up to $400,000 Australian dollars to get the boats on the water. What will happen is that while the class is strong at the moment other competitor who cannot afford to spend this kind of money on their boats will end up stop competing as they will get sick of going flat out for a whole race and still finishing at least 5+ minutes behind us and the other top teams. 

32.  Less emphasis on the elite skiing events and more on welcoming newcommers, and/or families. 

33.  more club interaction amongst members while encouraging promotions. 

34.  professional ski schools for our up and coming champions or just competitors 

35.  1. To make the social and 60mph class more attractive, the engine capacity should be limited to 6 Lt. Skis should not be race hybrids…the rules are too loose. 2. Its good to see skiers now staying outside the wake a lot more. When I was skiing, there was no way we would say right behind the boat because we could not see the water conditions ahead, we liked clean water, and we did not want to be hit by engine bits if the motor blew. In turns or corners the ski bit into the water better too than when the surface tension was broken up by cavitation etc. Its now a regulatory issue, but one I tell my guys about, and I think they turn better and are more stable that way. 3. I think its very dangerous for observers to be seated up really high in boats…sometimes their waist is level with the front deck. I know they have to be high to see the skiers if the motor etc is huge, but these motors are just lazy design for the intakes. You can have the turbos down low and a plenum that is low profile if you are a good designer. Have a look at MercForce. Its even a stock Mercruiser. There you have a 1200hp motor that is only 20cm higher than the rear deck. This allows the observer to get down low in the boat. It is much safer, provides a better aerodynamic profile, reduces the roll centre so the boat is more stable in turns and allows the downforce built into the hull to work. The only problem is its too noisy at the moment. 

36.  I have been involved at a competitive level for over 30 years and the sport has become too expensive and the top runners have made it where the average person cannot compete. Even the Formula 2 class, which is gaining in America, is now too expensive for the average person to build a boat to compete on the same level as the front runners. Only the well off and boat manufacturers are able to keep up and they keep changing hulls and engines where the average person has to keep the same rig for years, and cannot afford to keep buying new motors and hulls. 

37.  More shorter sprint races 

38.  in world selection events family members of people who are skiing in the events have no say in incidents that occur during a race. have seen in 1 to many times. 

39.  Have F1 limited to an affordable engine configuration to allow the sport to be more obtainable to the average person, and make worlds racing more about team work and skier ability than money. 

40.  All ages in world titles so EVERYONE has a chance of repping their country. More people in the worlds better money sharing for the teams competing. Shorten the time or length of race as well so it is not a total life stopping committment(mums and dads can compete as well) to get there 

41.  Only possible way of limting that I think would be beneficial is to have the rope and ski length limits for age group skiers, i.e introduce the limits only for kids. If I listed the other changes I wouldn’t get any work done for the next week :-) 

42.  None I think the sport tends to look after it self so why change it. Small changes in gear and equipment will come with time and as the sport continues to evolve. 

43.  the lenght of boat increased especially in f1 I think boats are far too fast for a limit of 21 ft, the rule is years old and engines are much faster. alternitively limit hp of f1 and reduce f2. 

44.  Bring F3 and Seniors into the worlds, increase boat length, all classes should be the same in all countries. 

45.  Here in the states I would like to the the sanctioning body have a more hands on approach to recruiting new skiers, observers, drivers etc. The approach being used (i use this term loosly) is cater to the big name teams only. Sure the big name teams contribute to the sport, but in my opinion it is negatively. It makes them appear elitest. The body needs to do more to make a new/perspective skier feel comfortable and welcome in this sport. At the rate they are doing things here this sport is not long for this world. Perfect example is Catalina which used to routinely attract over 110 teams, the last few years have been in the low 80s.The state of ski racing here is piss poor at best. No one listens to any imput. There are a few people that go out and try and recruit (Jeff Barrus) and the sanctioning bost gives him ZERO support. The state of ski racing here is piss poor at best. Well thanks for listening to my loosly assembled, rambling rant. I hope it helps. 

46.  shorter lines for the next generation 

47.  People should stop **** with F2 engines. They’re ruining the sport. F2 is supposed to be cheap and affordable for everyone. 

48.  Shorter races, but two on one day. Like in motrocylce racing. If you have bad lunck, you can still make up in the other heat. Also at the end of a long race when some teams fall out it gets boring for the public with too few competitors on the water. 

49.  More promotional effort 

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