Water Skiing

It's not exactly walking on water. But it's close -- and you might even say it's better. Gliding across the surface of a lake at 20 miles per hour (32 kilometers per hour) with the wind in your hair is definitely a unique feeling. And you can thank water skis for giving it to you.

Waterskiing is pretty simple. A person, wearing what looks like snow skis, is pulled behind a motorboat across the water. The water sport has about a century's worth of history. Its development has paralleled the development of motorized water crafts. You can't waterski behind a canoe; you must be pulled by a motorboat going at least 20 miles per hour. So, technological advancements in motor crafts have only contributed to waterskiing's evolution. The faster the boat, the faster the skier. And speed also translates to new tricks and maneuverability.

Water skiing is a sport which is played in the surface of the water. Water skiing was developed by Ralph Samuelson in the 1920's. He used a pair of boards to ski, and a clothesline as a towrope.

Usually, a rider is pulled behind a boat or pulled by a cable ski installation. Riders skim the surface using one (slalom) or two skis. Most of the time, the double skis are used by beginners, and then they progress to a single ski. Waterskiing is usually played in lakes, rivers, and sometimes the ocean.

There are rubber-molded bindings on water skis to keep the feet in place. Doubles skis has a single binding for each one. Waterskiing can be done by more than two persons at the same time. Water skiing usually begins in deep water, though they can also have a "dry start" which starts on the shore.

Water Skiing