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After the 2006 Nationals I started calling around to the 2006 Test Team to see if everyone wanted to get together in the spring to do the tests again. When I called Todd at WaterSki Magazine he gave me news that I was not ready to hear. The magazine needed the article at least 8 weeks earlier then last year. The 2006 Tests were done the first weekend in April, 8 weeks earlier then April is WINTER. Everyone involved had an option but in the end we planned the tests for the first weekend in November. We watched the weather reports in the weeks leading up to the test weekend and exchanged a lot of nervous emails. Ward McLain was sure it would be 80 degrees and Joe Darwin was predicting a blizzard.
At the same time I was on phone with all the factories and dealing with the odds and ends needed to make the test weekend work. We were ecstatic to have Fischer commit to send skis and disappointed to hear that D3 would not. I expect there will be discussions on the internet about why D3 did not send skis. All I know is that they made a marketing decision not to send skis. I have great respect for Denny and the D3 product. Beyond that I really have nothing to add.
As for the odds and ends, we received help from a number companies. Wiley’s sent some custom bindings to help accommodate the needs of the team. JetPilot sent along sweat shirts and such to help us stay warm. H2Osmosis helped us out with Fogman needs as well as other miscellaneous bits. Malibu supplied us with a Boat for one of the lakes and covered all the fuel.
With all this in place I left sunny California and flew to not so warm north Louisiana. Friday morning everyone wanted their wetsuit but everyone also wanted to get going. By the end of the three days each ski had been evaluated by at least 6 skiers and some skiers had ridden more. As a group we pondered the ranking of the skis. As the saying goes “It is what it is” and in this case the data was not always what was expected.
As administrator I did not participant as a test team member but did manage to sneak in rides first thing and last thing every day. My favorite skis of the test are not necessarily the highest ranked by the team. The 9700 is not for me but the 9800 blew me away. Ward McLain had the exact opposite feeling about the two Goodes. Ward nearly ran 39 1/2 his first set on the 9700 but was lukewarm over the 9800. I nearly ran a best ever score on my first set with the MPD but the ski did not rate as well with some of the team. I did not ride the F1 but was struck by how much more popular it was than in the 2006 Test. The standout of the test was the Fischer #1, but for me it was not love at first ride. Believe me, I want a Fischer but it was not a ski that I am going to run a top score on with my first set. On the other hand most of the team was deeply impressed with it right off the dock. As for the Monza, fin settings seem extra critical. Everyone liked the ski much better with Mark Schneewind’s settings then the stock numbers. I will not comment on the O’Brien’s since that is what I ski on at home.
John T. Horton
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