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Did you catch that video of Rachel Ray learning to waterski on the net? I think it was posted mainly because a few of us wanted to see her in a bathing suit, but got me thinking, how is Ray learning to waterski? Isn't slalom water skiing only for those daredevil junkies of the 1970s? Whatever system they had setup for her, made it look easy and pretty fun. Water skiing is something I had only attempted a few times, and that was mainly because my friends had badgered me into it. I did manage to get up on the skis, and I even made it around a few times, but it was always scary to me and I never really tried to seriously learn how to do it. When youare in the water feeling that rush of liquid beneath you, with your back hunched and a rope barely staying in your hands, it can get pretty nerve wracking when your friends decide to suddenly speed up. That was bad enough for me, so I never even tried to slalom ski. It took all my effort just to stay up and not crash face first into the rushing water! These days, water skiing is not as popular as some other water sports, such as tubing or jet skiing. But when you see somebody who is really talented at slalom water skiing, youall soon discover just how elegant and thrilling a sport it can be. And with the new aHollywooda style training that incorporates some of the latest technology, itas now much safer and quite a bit easier. The secret in this video I saw was this aluminum \"barefoot boom\" or \"Ski boom\" that attaches to the front of the boat by two cables, and can allow the new water skier to learn proper posture and get the feel of moving on the water (proper weight balance) at slow speeds, these can be as little as 10 mph for kids, or 20 mph for adults. The concept behind this waterski boom is that it offsets the sudden jerk that many skiers feel when the boat starts picking up speed, allowing you to get the skis in front of you while leaning back. You are then ready to practice dragging the rope behind you in order to simulate the feeling of holding onto a handle that isnat offering any real support. With enough practice, youall get behind the boat and be up on skis. With the barefoot boom, you can probably train yourself, as long as you have someone trustworthy at the boat controls. A trainer would still be helpful for teaching you the proper posture, but by using this boom, you could easily build enough confidence by yourself to try slalom water skiing on your own. The important things to remember are that you should always keep your shoulders back, keep the majority of weight on your hips, and have your back arched. Then when your ankles start to go in front of you and you start moving faster, youall be able to keep your balance and start to really ski. With Hollywood celebrities like Rachel Ray showing off over the internet, water skiing is sure to start becoming more popular again.
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