How To Water Ski In 1 Hour Without Falling

The single biggest problem with learning to water ski is that so many people have tried the wrong way and then told all their friends about the experience. It is too easy to just give up or never even try if you get taught by one of these people. But what if success was guaranteed? What if you could learn without ever falling?

Learning by simply trying harder or getting the boat to go faster are for amateurs. You are about to get insider information that will help you look like a pro. Do not listen to the stories your friends tell you, and avoid anyone who has never taught someone else to water ski without falling. You are going to blow past their failures as if they did not even exist!

Learning to water ski or teaching someone else is easy if you master the 4 Keys to learning without falling. If you master the correct standing and sitting positions that are critical to all water skiing disciplines, then you will be able to learn and teach others effortlessly.

Here is lesson number one. While sitting at your computer, you can practice the basics of good form. By simply rolling your shoulders back and lifting your rib cage up, you can learn the correct "Posture" of the upper body. This should put a curve in your back as if you are at attention in the military or that you are showing off your massive chest.

While holding onto a ski handle, I want you to get into good Posture and then lean way back until your hips come within 8 inches of the handle. If you are holding the exaggerated upper body posture, and are learning back enough to get your shoulders behind your butt, then you should feel like the pull of the rope is going directly to your hips. This is called "the Power Band Position."

The third part of the standing position is all about your knees and ankles and is called "Glide." While holding the "Posture" and "Power Band Positions," adjust your ankles so that they are slightly behind the front edge of your knees. This will put your shins in a slightly forward angle and this is how you achieve great "Glide" that will make you feel light on the water!

Lesson number 2 is also done out of the water. Now that I have shown you what position you will be in while you are on top of the water, you need to learn the sitting position which is called "The Three Point Position." While still using your ski rope, sit down with your knees together, handle out in front of your knees with arms totally relaxed, and your feet as wide as your hips and as close to your butt as possible. It is similar to the starting position for rowing. This is the critical position that must be learned off of the water and while the boat is "in gear."

Lesson number three is a major breakthrough in technology. The only safe way to learn to water ski without falling is to take advantage of a barefoot boom. While everyone of your friend's horror stories came from trying to water ski behind the boat for their first time, you will not be making this same mistake. Simply knowing this will make you safe as well as a great teacher.

A barefoot or ski boom is a solid aircraft aluminum pole that attaches to the front of the boat by two stainless steel cables. Designed originally for beginning barefoot water skiers, it is now the biggest insider secret to learning to water ski without ever falling. After mastering the correct technique on land, the barefoot boom is the next safe step to mastering water skiing. After that, you can add a five foot rope to simulate skiing behind the boat. Only then, are you ready to go behind the boat where you will make your very first attempt.

Are you ready to get in the water? Let's practice by only using the Three Point Position while holding directly onto the boom where you will be able to see and talk to the driver. Simply keep your knees together, sit on the ski, and let your arms relax. When you feel calm and relaxed, have the driver put the boat in the slowest possible forwards speed. We call this "in gear" or at an idle speed. As the water pushes against the ski, learn to relax in the Three Point Position without the fear of the boat taking off and accelerating.

If you are learning with only one foot on the slalom ski (what I recommend), simply let your free foot drag in the water while trying to sit on the ski. If you can hold this idling position in total control for at least 5 seconds, then it is time to move to the acceleration stage where you will stand up.

Once you have earned your badge for proper form on the Three Point Position, have your boat driver accelerate moderately to the slowest possible speed in which you can keep your form. As a basic rule try 10-12mph for kids (some slower), for medium sized kids add 5-8mph, and for larger adults go 20-25mph. I always watch form to determine the correct speed. If the form decays in the least, reduce speed, but if the skier confidently holds form you can increase the speed accordingly.

Once you have established the fact that you own the correct standing position, have the driver slow down and see if you can get comfortably back into the sitting position. If you can go fluidly from sitting to standing and then back to the sitting position, then you are ready to move on to the five foot rope. The same rules apply to getting to behind the boat without ever taking a fall.

The key to learning without falling is to have the boat driver shut down the skier (decelerate completely) whenever he or she tries to pull in with the arms, bend over, or stand up before the boat has pulled them up. Although this can be aggravating for an over anxious skier, it will keep them from ever taking a fall while mastering the form of every champion on the water.