Skiing the course

[ghaskett]

I'm wanting to build my own slalom course. anyone have any good websites or anything to get some easy plans to follow?

[Fredk]

RE: Skiing the course

www.ez-slalom.com

They sell courses, kits, parts and plans. We bought a kit 5 years ago and it works great! They supplied the small stuff we bought the big stuff at Home Depot. They were great at responding to the few questions we had and tips to make it easy.

[jedgell]

RE: Skiing the course

Agree, buy the book from EZ slalom. I built my own course last year, and it works great. I ended up costing more than I thought, maybe around $400

[east tx skier]

If you're planning to replicate a portable-style course with PVC buoy arms, etc., then by all means, buy the stuff from Ed. There's also a "how to" on www.themalibucrew.com that provides info to consider along with using the EZ slalom guide.

I built one in 2005 with individually anchored buoys because the site had shallower water than was recommended for a portable style course. We laid it out using measured lengths of rope (slalom course dimensions are available on www.about.com) and aligned it by sight (although clearly having it surveyed is ideal). Our boat's baselines, which had been set on a surveyed course, ran good times when all was said and done.

The buoys are removed from the subs when the course isn't in use. We have a reference line from the dock to find one, and using the measured rope, we can locate the subs and swim the course out in around an hour (that's with one person swimming). With another person, the time can be cut significantly. The buoys can be retrieved in about 15 minutes.

The cost will vary, but I think we got it done for $350 or so including buoys. Add $80+ for magnets.

A year later, when the lakes were down, and the vegetation was way up, we sprung for a portable to have as a backup.

Here's our course. As you can see, because of shallow water, there are issues with water lilies. And this picture was early in the year.