Proposed No Wakesurfing Zones Smith Mountain Lake, VA

[Neptune442]

No dropping of skis is allowed?

[75Tique]

No dropping of skis is allowed?

Yeah, that's kind of an odd one, but I guess I see where they are coming from. There are very few, and I mean very few, like me and a few friends, slalom skiers on the lake so we kind of stand out, so I like to be a good ambassador of the sport and and as such, try to be a good example and follow the rules. I have to confess, I dont pay much attention to the dont drop skis rule tho, when the need arises. Some of our goofy rules (unlike the rest of north carolina, we need to have an observer, I cant do dock starts....) are worth tolerating tho, because along with the goofy rules, we have no jet skis or wake barges.

[hal2814]

Good question. I am on a small neighborhood lake, governed by an HOA. Surf barges have no place on our narrow, 150 acre lake. We dealt with the surf barge issue over 10 years ago. Language has been adjusted over time. Used some of the ideas you mentioned. Must use a rope, rope has to be over 30 feet. Originally rule said no fat sacs (which allowed factory ballast, which was crazy, but rules were made by unknowledgeable people) Ignorant people who didnt know intent of rule language squawked about my barefoot boom and no or 5 ft ropes. I actually got the language changed to address that. We also recently changed the language to include ballast tanks and wave enhancement. And a final separate rule simple states no wake surfing.






There are a couple guys that ride surf foils on our lake. Just recently they got so they could ride with out a rope. (I dont understand the underwater physics of waves well enough to know how they do that??) Since they are just doing that behind either a pontoon boat or a deck boat, we didnt really want to prohibit it and tried to temper the new language accordingly, as those boats dont generate huge wakes. So far, a few people have questioned if they are in violation, but not enough fuss yet to have to address it. Since people talked about banning "surf boats" we also wrestled with that definition. But isnt a surf boat with no ballast or devices deployed, just a boat, and if they are 23 feet or less (our restriction) they should be good to go. Thats why rule doesnt ban "surf boats" but rather activities that generate huge waves.

I just hope the state of Virginia is as vigilant at updating their definition of wake surfing as your HOA is. Something tells me they won’t be and these laws will become very outdated when whatever comes after wakesurfing or even wake foiling becomes the new thing.

[Neptune442]

Yeah, that's kind of an odd one, but I guess I see where they are coming from. There are very few, and I mean very few, like me and a few friends, slalom skiers on the lake so we kind of stand out, so I like to be a good ambassador of the sport and and as such, try to be a good example and follow the rules. I have to confess, I dont pay much attention to the dont drop skis rule tho, when the need arises. Some of our goofy rules (unlike the rest of north carolina, we need to have an observer, I cant do dock starts....) are worth tolerating tho, because along with the goofy rules, we have no jet skis or wake barges.

Ok, just checking because the last few times out our 10yo daughter has been trying to slalom by dropping a ski. It's how I learned how to slalom years ago as a child - but wasn't sure if maybe I missed something since then and it had become universally frowned upon or something. Wow no jet skis...that sounds heavenly!

Anyways, sorry way off topic from the original post!