Crazy water tricks

[Steveo]

There was a very interesting picture in the Gallery that showed a water skier landing on a beach. It would have broken all sorts of rules today but it was taken in the 60's. So I thought it would be fun to talk about all the crazy things we did on the water and in boats in the days before 150' and other inhibiting rules. So I'll start:

1. Water skiing without getting wet. Rope slacked and jump start off the dock and then time your landing to sit on the dock in the end.

2. Water ski long jump contest - whip your skier hard into the beach and measure how far they fly and land on the beach.

3. Build various skiing apparatus like planar boards out of old doors, chairs on planar boards, planar boards with hydrofoils (that one totally destroyed itself on first try)

4. Boat jump contest - Drive boat at continuing higher speeds and jump out. Winner is last to chicken out (I think winning speed was around 40mph but the injuries I attained has clouded my memory)

5. Bury ski rope on beach and hide in woods with skiis on and wait for your Mother and her friends to sit in their usual spot on the beach. Then bring boat in to pick up end of rope and take off. Watch the ladies fly! Then get grounded for two weeks.


There was so many more but I thought I would let others share.

Have fun but don't let your kids read this stuff.

[robmac]

If only the bones would still take the abuse.

[fatlazyless]

Originally Posted by Steveo

3. Build various skiing apparatus like planar boards out of old doors, chairs on planar boards, planar boards with hydrofoils (that one totally destroyed itself on first try)

Over in Wolfeboro, Mitt Romney likes to waterski an old six foot wood step ladder that's attached to an old wood aquaplane. Just like a waterski show!

And that's why I voted Mitt in the 1/06/08 NH presidential primary.......go Mitt go!

[Lakesrider]

OMG. I thought we were the only ones to do the "bury the rope in the sand" trick........

[sa meredith]

I love reading stuff like this...things we all did "back in the day". It was good fun, although highly irresponsible, and possibly dangerous.
And then I wonder why many poeple (including members of this forum) go all into a hissy fit, when todays teens, do the same type stuff, only with a modern day twist.
I site as my example the thread a while back on the skimobiles skimming the lake in July. Dangerous? Of course. Irresponsible? Obviously.
But no different. In 20 years or so, those kids are going to ask each other "hey, remember the day we skimmed the lake on sleds, and got busted for it? Man, what great memories".
Same deal.

[dpg]

What - I'm not supposed to do these things anymore???

[Lakesrider]

SA...LOL. Too true. But I don't think my 1974 John Deere 300 could make it 30 feet on the water.... Well maybe I could skim a pot hole if it wasn't too big.... I wonder if that sled is still around. Probably dust by now.....

[KBoater]

What is the name of the board? Wood aquaplane, planar boards, Water board are some of the names. Do you know any others?? I can not remember what we called them but not these names? They were also sold commercially.

[Rattlesnake Guy]

I remember my cousin hounding my uncle for months to let him ski bare foot because he knew he would be great at it. Eventually, my dear uncle gave in and let the lad have his way. That was a spectacular fall. Needless to say, the subject never came up again.

[malibu]

I use to start barefoot off of Governors Island Bridge back in the 80’s and 90’s. We would get there very early in the morning before the fishermen. I also started off of Black Cat Island Bridge once, which was a hard landing. Maybe some day my kids will be trying it!!!

[Pepper]

Some of the favorite stories in this house revolve around by brother-in-law many many many many years ago bringing his own brand of parasailing to the lake. This involved several people in the boat, a very long rope, and a fool standing on top of the boathouse with a parachute. The boat would speed up, the rope went taught, the fool went flying, and when it was time to stop somebody in the boat cut the rope with a knife, and the fool with the parachute would come floating (read crashing) down. This went on for quite some time (until there was no rope left, and the boathouse railing was broken) until logic, reason, and sore bodies prevailed.

This family has been on the lake for a long time, and the stories of tomfoolery are endless. When we all get together, and the "memories stories" start, we laugh so hard we're crying and holding our bellies.

Oh how times have changed. *sigh*

[Flylady]

My sister and I still have some great laughs when we recall the times of our skiing take-off and landings on the dock when the water was still too cold to get in. My Uncle always pleaded with us not to land on the dock although he felt OK for us to take off from it. Well as luck would have it one day my sister mis judged her release and came into the dock too fast and straight on. She looked like a seal coming out of the water and sliding down the length of the dock. The battle bruises on her legs took all summer to go away and she quickly lost all interest in dock landing from that moment on.

[Redwing]

...we thought they'd never end. My Father made a surf board (which is what we called it) out of a marine plywood material... quite fancy, actually. He was very much the athlete and acrobat and we would pull him around Blanchard island while he was standing on his head the whole while! He could also stand on his hands while walking down a flight of stairs.

I am ashamed to admit this, but one early summer morning several of us stole a Stop sign from Barnard Ridge Road in Meredith, and in the middle of the night we proceeded to nail it into the blinking buoy at Marker 52. We laughed ourselves silly the next day as we watched many boats creeping through the channel and actually coming to a halt at the stop sign. That stop sign is long gone, but every time I drive by Barnard Ridge I think back to that night so many years ago.... with a little twinkle in my eye.

[sa meredith]

Originally Posted by Redwing

...we thought they'd never end. My Father made a surf board (which is what we called it) out of a marine plywood material... quite fancy, actually. He was very much the athlete and acrobat and we would pull him around Blanchard island while he was standing on his head the whole while! He could also stand on his hands while walking down a flight of stairs.

I am ashamed to admit this, but one early summer morning several of us stole a Stop sign from Barnard Ridge Road in Meredith, and in the middle of the night we proceeded to nail it into the blinking buoy at Marker 52. We laughed ourselves silly the next day as we watched many boats creeping through the channel and actually coming to a halt at the stop sign. That stop sign is long gone, but every time I drive by Barnard Ridge I think back to that night so many years ago.... with a little twinkle in my eye.

Now that's funny!!!!! What a great idea!

[chipj29]

We used to ski from the dock or swim raft all the time when we were kids. Seemed to be the norm back then. Beach landings as well. I never really liked to try the dock landings, too much potential for bad things to happen.
Hard wooden dock=bad
Soft beach sand=better

[gtagrip]

Originally Posted by Redwing

...we thought they'd never end. My Father made a surf board (which is what we called it) out of a marine plywood material... quite fancy, actually. He was very much the athlete and acrobat and we would pull him around Blanchard island while he was standing on his head the whole while! He could also stand on his hands while walking down a flight of stairs.

I am ashamed to admit this, but one early summer morning several of us stole a Stop sign from Barnard Ridge Road in Meredith, and in the middle of the night we proceeded to nail it into the blinking buoy at Marker 52. We laughed ourselves silly the next day as we watched many boats creeping through the channel and actually coming to a halt at the stop sign. That stop sign is long gone, but every time I drive by Barnard Ridge I think back to that night so many years ago.... with a little twinkle in my eye.

Awesome idea! I wish I had been there to see it all.

[6meter]

Always took of skiing from the end of the dock or skipping in 6" of water to get up. That was easier on the arms. Better though was when Dad pulled 8 skiers a once with one spotter. It was legal back then, mid 60's. The boat couldn't pull all 8 out of the water, only 5. Two other boats pulled the other 3. They all lined up and transfered to the end skiers, who had 2 ropes. Pretty stupid but I didn't know any better. 150' rule....HA!

[bocooee]

Originally Posted by 6meter

Always took of skiing from the end of the dock or skipping in 6" of water to get up. That was easier on the arms. Better though was when Dad pulled 8 skiers a once with one spotter. It was legal back then, mid 60's. The boat couldn't pull all 8 out of the water, only 5. Two other boats pulled the other 3. They all lined up and transfered to the end skiers, who had 2 ropes. Pretty stupid but I didn't know any better. 150' rule....HA!

Would love to have a pic of that, We were pulling 2 kids on one tube this year and nearly got a ticket. I can remember not even having a spotter nevermind the1 to 1

[Greene's Basin Girl]

Originally Posted by bocooee

Would love to have a pic of that, We were pulling 2 kids on one tube this year and nearly got a ticket. I can remember not even having a spotter nevermind the1 to 1

We use to ski through the channels in and around Green's Basin. We called them narrows back then. No one cared what we did. We also had the wide wooden surf boards with ropes that we would stand on a go behind the boat. We also use to go horn pout fishing with drop lines in the 50's and 60's.

[coltgov101]

We were lucky to have a celebrity skier as a neighbor.This guy and his brother were single and ski jumpers! Champions in there day. Local celebrities as it was. The salom skier was just amazing to watch. This man's shoulder's were never six inches from the water.The spray he put up was unbelievable! He never got wet, jumping from the raft as the rope grew tight. What a sight , what a athlete!

[trfour]

and some of us were saved somehow through no fault of our curriculum... And very clearly there must be a higher ( Of The Great Spirit ) that continues to Smile on us, and keep us safe!

Many a soft landing in and around Paugus Bay, yours truly!
Terry

[Janet]

I'll never forget the first time my elderly uncle tried skiing. With the fear of losing his upper dentures in the middle of Meredith Bay, he proceeded to take out his plate, got up on the skiis the first try, went all around the Bay and made a perfect landing right back at the dock. What a laugh we all had! We still talk about the afternoon and Uncle Roy skiing without his teeth.

[Fishy Cover]

Late 50's- we put two 7 1/2 hp outboards (one a Martin, one a Scott Atwater) on a row boat and borrowed Johnny Holmes' dad's homemade water skis, one of which had been broken and was mended with an aluminum plate in front of the rubber foot holder. We found an old clothesline for a tow rope and used a stick for a handle. I was chosen as the first skier because I was the smallest and lightest. My brother drove the boat and got both motors started and amazingly I popped up out of the water on the first try. We went around in circles for several minutes and then I pointed to the jump in front of Robert Gregory's house so my brother steered for it and I made my first jump.

Well, actually a half jump because the bolts protruding from the bottom of the mending plate dug into the jump and the skis stopped immediately but I did not because I did not let go of the rope. This ended my jumping career and broke both skis. Sounds a little stupid today but boy, was it fun.

[Island Life]

Originally Posted by Fishy Cover

Late 50's- we put two 7 1/2 hp outboards (one a Martin, one a Scott Atwater) on a row boat and borrowed Johnny Holmes' dad's homemade water skis, one of which had been broken and was mended with an aluminum plate in front of the rubber foot holder. We found an old clothesline for a tow rope and used a stick for a handle. I was chosen as the first skier because I was the smallest and lightest. My brother drove the boat and got both motors started and amazingly I popped up out of the water on the first try. We went around in circles for several minutes and then I pointed to the jump in front of Robert Gregory's house so my brother steered for it and I made my first jump.

Well, actually a half jump because the bolts protruding from the bottom of the mending plate dug into the jump and the skis stopped immediately but I did not because I did not let go of the rope. This ended my jumping career and broke both skis. Sounds a little stupid today but boy, was it fun.

How come no one mends things anymore? My dad was a great one for making things himself and fixing them (like with the aluminum plate) when they were broken. Now we just throw it away and buy new stuff.

[trfour]

Here's one that is still enjoying fix'in & repairing things and have been for most of my life.

I was well schooled, licensed, certified, protected and insured.
It's a whole new world today in that, there are a ton of lawyers out there just waiting to slap some poor unsuspecting fixer upper with a lawsuit should anything go wrong.
How should I say this...
Not intending to wake up a sleeping monster, over here...

Sometimes it's easier to just chuck it, and buy a new one.
Forever a gearhead,
Terry

[Pricestavern]

Originally Posted by Green's Basin Girl

We use to ski through the channels in and around Green's Basin. We called them narrows back then. No one cared what we did. We also had the wide wooden surf boards with ropes that we would stand on a go behind the boat. We also use to go horn pout fishing with drop lines in the 50's and 60's.

Maybe that explains what the homemade surfboard-type thingy is for that is up in our rafters. We purchased our little cabin on Rattlesnake a few years ago and up in the rafters is this huge yellow thing that looks like a homemade surfboard. It's about 10' long, 2.5' wide, and about 2 inches thick. It's hollow and has canvas stretched across the wood on what I suppose is the top. Never seen anything like it. Perhaps an attempt at a windsurfer or something to be pulled around by a boat?

[ApS]

After the first occasion, I never much cared for the "multi-skiers thing". There was never really anywhere to go after getting ski-borne. You could pull up on your towline and switch places with others, but to avoid collsions with each other, that was it. (Except it was kind of fun to all go one direction, panicking the boat's operator!)

My single-best specialty was being towed by my teeth! Alas, without my glasses, I couldn't tell that my friends never saw that one performance—and my gums got to aching afterwards.

Originally Posted by sa meredith

"...I love reading stuff like this...things we all did "back in the day". It was good fun, although highly irresponsible, and possibly dangerous..."

A missing stop sign is a definite "no-no" but it's been apologized for.

After reading this—which followed the reading of Pineneedles' account:

"...Dad does his best to stop the blood and the boat. If it wasn't for his injury, 5 stitches, it would have been comical to watch..."

These comments had me do an "inventory-count" of my bodily scars, stitches and broken bones. (Bruises DO go away).

I accounted for ladders, staircases, bicycles, attics and automobile hand tools, but I can't trace a single one to stunts on the Lake.

Have I stumbled onto the elusive definition of "Using Common Sense on the Lake", or is this Forum's collective scarrings a good source for the "grist-mill"?

[BroadHopper]

Taking off from the dock or beach, coming on to the beach, barefoot skiing. on and on. laws are outlawing the fun we had.

I even talk to a the folks who's daughter is the world champion wakeboarder. They move from the Wolfeboro area to Lake Norman NC. They move just because of the laws. It is very difficult to train under the current laws. There is a championsip waterskier on Rocky Pond in Belmont. They say the MP is rarely on the pond and he can practice his tricks without worrying about breaking the laws. I guess there will never be a champion from lake Winni anymore

[KBoater]

I'm sure we called it a surf board. Thanks for jogging the mind.This was before the California wave crazy.
The boards were about 4 ' wide by 6'. You used a wide stance to ride it.

[Steveo]

Back in the 40's my parents and their friends would put on impromptu ski shows in front of the Weirs. Trick skiing, multiple skiers, grabbing bottles off the top of a piling, etc. But one time they got a brilliant idea! Why wouldn't it be possible to ski behind a low flying aircraft. So they collected about 500 feet of ski rope, a seaplane (which back then you could rent in the Weirs) and sent my uncle out to try it. The seaplane could fly at about 60 mph so they all thought no problem. So the seaplane starts out, my uncle gets up right away and waits for the plane to get airborne. These guys were not the brightest in Physics and the effects of friction. They did not know that when the plane's pontoons finally leave the water's heavy friction it literally "jumps" in the air. They say my uncle did at least a dozen cartwheels before he stopped and was lucky he didn't get his arms pulled out of their sockets.

[SIKSUKR]

The memory gene is kicking in. I was one of 10 to ski behind one boat. 5 of us got up on 2 skis behind one boat and dropped our skis. Then two other boats brought in the other 5. We had 10 slalom on 1 boat. We also use to make all different things to pull behind the boat. There was the chair on top of the board with a ladder with somebody on it thingy. I made my own smiley face disk out of plywood. We would get out on the early calm water to do triple barefoot. Although I couldn't do it, friends were able to backwards barefoot. I remember using my boat to transport my motocross dirtbike to the other side of the lake so I could ride in the sandpit with my best friend. That was interesting getting that into our 16 foot Arkansas Traveler.Some of best times are a definate no-no now. 2 of us in different boats circling each other, making waves to jump and spraying each other within 5 feet or so and almost swamping dads toy. I remember making my own spear for spear fishing bass out of a cue stick. We would take a coat hanger and pound the end flat and shape it into a spear head and install it in the end of the pool cue. I only caught one with that thing. That's all for now. More later.

[WinnDixie]

This is jaw-dropping fun to read, but just thought I'd ask...are some of you posting from Heaven???

[Island Girl]

I grew up on a lake in MA. We had the homemade plywood surfboard, then the wooden skiis, and the round plywood disc. That disc is still at my mother's place on that lake. I towed my 55 year old brother on it last summer. He stands on it holding a ski tow line. Then the puts the front of the disk under the water and dives it down so that he is under the water up to his neck, still holding on the the line... then comes up again. I don't think anyone in the world does that. He started that before he was a teenager.

We did the ski jump thing a bit... We never started skiiing from the water, always from the dock or shore. My brother jumps off the dock with one ski. I was always too chicken to do that so I would stand in water just below the knee with the slaalom ski on the other foot raised above the water... with about 5-6 feet of slack, yell "Hit it!!!!" and the driver would go full blast and I leaped up and landed on the one ski on top of the water. I did not get wet or most importantly, get my hair wet... We did not have much of a beach so we landed in the water very close to shore... standing up.

Who made up all these new rules... it was so nice to ski that way. I was never very good at getting up deep in the water on one ski so the shore was great.

We also did the multiple (7) skiiers. That was not much fun as someone always fell. Three skiers was fun with three different length ropes, criss-crossing. So much fun!!!



I have not skiied in about 5 years... with sciatica I am thinking my skiing days are over... I sure would like another run though!!!

IG

[Redwing]

Ah, yes.....I recall avoiding getting my hair wet, at all cost! And I always had a comb in the boat, just in case. My parents purchased a new Correct Craft Atom Skier in the late 1950s, with powder blue faux leather seat cushions.. we thought we were the cat's meow and that boat was able to pull 4 skiers. Along with our Correct Craft, my Father decided it was time to buy a pair of trick skis (we called them banana peels)...we had more fun with them! My brother was an outstanding waterskier and would cross the wake, back and forth, with his body just about parallel to the water. It was a thrill to watch him ski. I spent too much time worrying about my hair to become a very good skier I could slalom but only by dropping one ski.

[KBoater]

IG I remember falling of the disc. I could never master that. I do remember a neighbor built a thingie that looked like a 10" by 5" plank with door knobs on the side. We pulled it behind the boat and we would turn the board down and go under the water then turn it up to get air. I'm not sure if anyone else had one of these.
We also ued a canoe paddle as a ski.

[tis]

IG, we followed the same sequence. My parents used the old fashioned surfboard, by the time we started it was skiis. That old surfboard was so heavy and just huge! When we first learned to slalom we of course started in the water, then mostlly did beach starts and only a few dock starts as it was pretty shallow at my folk's dock. I tried barefoot, did it for a while but it was very scary, and hurt my feet like crazy. Also did the trick boards for a while but fell one time and that water can be hard! So kind of gave up on that. Slalom skiing was my first love of them all!
I don't know how your brother, held on to the rope! Did he do that trick at 55? He must have some strong arms!

[Steveo]

Originally Posted by FLboater

IG I do remember a neighbor built a thingie that looked like a 10" by 5" plank with door knobs on the side. We pulled it behind the boat and we would turn the board down and go under the water then turn it up to get air. I'm not sure if anyone else had one of these.
We also ued a canoe paddle as a ski.

Yeah we had it (and made it). It was a blast. You would wear a mask and go slow. You would turn the board so it would force you down and "sail" over the bottom. It felt like you were flying. It got interesting when you were around rocks though.

Not sure how good it would be to do today with the water clarity as it is. Water was a lot clearer back then.

[BroadHopper]

back in the 50's and 60's Northland Ski Company made water skis at the Laconia plant. My uncle was a testor for the alpine skis. he was able to get test and demos for my dad and we use to try them out and give feed back. Before the company folded, they made a tunneled, grooved, cancave slalom ski out of hickory. It was well mannered and hook like crazy! I had that ski for years until it started to delaminate in the mid 90's. Everyone loves to borrow the ski.

The old wooden Chris crafts made excellent ski boats in the days. Nice solid boats that runs true when you turn sharpely on slalom. Later the Glastrons were the best in fiberglass boats.

Everyone in the family was good at taking off on one ski, standing on the dock. And landing on the beach running. Pretty slick. Skiing at sunrise and at sunset was the best. As the water most of the time is like glass.

C'est la Vie.

[Cobalt 25]

Lots of great stunts and posts!

The disc thing must have been more popular than I thought because my brother-in-law and I had one, too. It delaminated after a few years of hard use, even though it had a few coats of polyeurthane on it.

My favorite trick, though, involved a boathouse. We rented a house near the Graveyard one year that had a nice boathouse. I sat on the deck of the far end of the boathouse and skied all the way out on a slalom ski. It's a good thing the owner of the house never found out about that one!

[Boston Fireguy]

On Sabbatia Lake in Taunton MA I was able to bring our 16' tri hull into our cove and whip it out into open water, accelerating the skier towards the beach with enough momentum to step out of the skis and not touch water much above the ankles. If you've never ridden in a tri hull, they slap in rough water but they can carve a square corner. I did once come in a little too quick, launching my brother with skis still attached onto the sand! The skis stopped, but he didn't.

We also did a lot of tubing back when tubing meant using a large truck tire tube, complete with its protruding valve (late 60's-early 70's). We took great pleasure making decreasing radius turns at full throttle (boat speed 35-40 mph) with the tuber literally being at a near 90 degree angle to the gunwale of the boat at the end of a 100' tow rope. When you flipped (which happened often at speed) the water seemed as hard as concrete. Flipping one off - the tube that is, was a sport all in itself. I once dislocated my shoulder after getting flipped.

We shouldn't be alive today........

[winnidiver]

I love all the water ski stories. My favorite memory is skiing though the Black Cat bridge. We always skied around Black Cat, then one year they built the bridge. When my father took us to Center Harbor, one of us would ski over and the other ski back. Well my brother skied over and as we can back it was getting dark. As we approached the bridge, I was expecting my father to stop and pick me up. He just kept going, so I tried to stay straight behind the boat.On we went, right through. Unfortunately the MP was sitting on the other side of the bridge. He was not amused. He let us go after he yelled at us for awhile. He seemed more upset that it was almost dark, then the fact we had come through the bridge.

[SAMIAM]

There was a small marsh/swamp about 1/2 mile from our house and I used to love to make a sudden turn, decelerate and drop one of the kids right in the weeds(with the snapping turtles,alligators and snakes) as I used to tell them. I can still hear their screams.