learning to barefoot

Snap the handle in half then stick it up your candy ass TRB.

Do you have a picture or video of a LL attempt to post? I'll bet your feet are too wide. Step offs (front and back) for the win! You can tell Tim (bhp) is also a show skier.

I compiled a video of clips learning the back deep from last october to last week. I have a hundred or so clips that never made it into the video due to the constraints of time. This did not come easy for me. What I lack in ability I made up for in determination:

Learning to Barefoot Bacerds!

Roy, excellent compilation. Congratulations on your progress and success. Being in the middle of that process, I felt every one of those falls. Especially the video you posted the other day with the long line work. I'm not to the long line point yet, but my neck and back hurt watching every one of those falls.   

Quick synopsis of my progress status.

End of 2007 season: Just one evening, hooked up with TRBenj and his trainers. Not much progress, bouncy glides, a few feet plants, no stand ups.

Summer 08, Using sneakers, after surprisingly few attempts, actually stood up and went very short distances, Everyone flamed me for using sneakers so I ditched them. Limited success that summer up until getting hurt with a real bad split and quitting for the summer. Probably 5-6 outing total.

Summer 09. Went up to Brads (Barracuda) the friday everyone was in GL. He put me in those rubber shoe type trainers. After about 5-6 failed attempts, I had three long runs, quitting because of the end of the lake, not falling. Brad gave me the tip that made a huge difference, which has already been stated here. Don't stand up by pushing down on your chest, stand up by swinging your legs in and down and feet down, all simultaneously. Worked like magic. Also ended the painful splits of trying to stand up with legs spread wide!!

Rest of this summer: Back home and back on bare feet. (only 3-4 outings since Brads, 5-6 attempts each...I have to wait till evening and run out of daylight) Hit almost every start, but not steady on my feet yet. I think at this point its just a case of fine tuning body, leg, rope, feet position. I'll be there before summer is out.

Question: What do you guys mean by break the handle: Ends up, away from back or toward back?

Good work Roy!!

For me the "deal makers" were:

-long relaxed arms
-get the feet planted fast; avoids bouncing
-wait, wait for speed, feel the pressure on the feet
-when it is time, pooch the ass, press (medium) on the chest
- bring the feet in and keep the head, low, low low for a while.
- ski it away...

Next for me: knee bend, and relax the body, starts behind the boat, and enjoy the ride...bacerds!

Nice work Kristof! Take it slow, you will get it.

nice job Kristoff. Try your deep start with a handle and 5 feet of rope on the boom. Get that wired so you get up every time, and then go behind the boat.

Take your time on the plant. Most beginners stab their feet in. You can get away with it hanging on the boom. Also wait for full speed, set the feet in gently.

Looks like spring has sprung in the Argentine! Where's Kapla?

I wasn't using that piece of advice myself so I offer it free of charge to Kristoff!!! LOL....Now where are my five-finger shoes...ROFL...

Roy, do you notice that when you bring your left foot up to the toe strap you bring your leg straight forward, but then your right one goes out to the side first... I do the same thing and really need to focus on just getting on one foot the proper way, both sides.

Your chest pushes the water out away from your face. Your head is "up" and looking away from the boat path. You can breath just fine and even open your eyes! I still tape my nose shut with the 3M stuff backfoot100 has recommended, I have very annoying allergy problems.

C-Bass wrote: Okay as a non-footer, this may be a stupid question. But on those back-deep starts...how in the #&%# do you keep the water from giving you a nasal enema. Everytime I watch one of those starts, it looks like you would've drown by the time you even start to plant the feet...It's impressive though watching you guys come up out of the water.

It is a crazy start, I will tell you that. when your face is in the water, which is only for a moment, you are so slow it doesn't get in your nose, once you plane out you are riding the chest and your face is out of the water.

Once when learning, trying to push off with the chest, I stuffed my face in the water and got about 28 MPH of water up my nose whick blasted up my ear canal, rang my bell like vertigo, and then gave me a 24 hr headache/earache until the water drained out. Never do that again.

Riding backwards (bacerds) is BADASS. No 2 ways about it. Not easy, but a blast when you get it!

Mark Mel wrote: I used to get sinus headaches - pretty much every day. Also a stuffy nose after skiing or footing - I called it lake nose or lake face because it felt like I had half the lake up there. Then I went and bought this; Sinus Rinse I recommend it to anyone with sinus, allergy or frequent cold problems. Rinses it all out. I haven't had a cold since I started using it the middle of last winter.

I use it too to beat back sinus infection to which I am prone, and have been even before I started footing. GlassSeeker always wears a nose clip.

Makes sense I guess, thanks for the clarification. You're right though, it looks really bad with all the spray, especially since your face is right in the middle of it. I assume the neck brace is for those falls where you flip backwards (which is really forwards, or with the travel of the boat), and your neck looks like it would get some serious whiplash?

The BF bug has yet to bite me, partially because of all the "injuries" you hear/read about from people doing it or learning it. However, it is starting to look more and more appealing and I'm afraid that if I started trying, I wouldn't stop until I was knee deep in debt from the purchase of a boom, suit, and many gallons of gas.

^^^

Yeah that's a perfect example of what has kept me from anxiously starting my barefoot career. Of course I wouldn't jump right into trying back deep starts.

I'm on sinus spray cocktail of Nasonex and Astepro, when combined have a 40% increase in performance (so the Dr. says) and I've never felt better!

Roy, your legs looked very wide on that LL attempt, ripe for a groin pull. You can get away with the super wide 3-point shortline but LL you don't have the power to pop off the water like that either.

Hollywood wrote: I'm on sinus spray cocktail of Nasonex and Astepro, when combined have a 40% increase in performance (so the Dr. says) and I've never felt better! Roy, your legs looked very wide on that LL attempt, ripe for a groin pull. You can get away with the super wide 3-point shortline but LL you don't have the power to pop off the water like that either.

Hollywood: I've been on the sinus rinse and the Astepro and neither really have done too much good or bad. You are right on the legs too wide. My trouble is when I bring them in closer they either get pushed out anyway or my feet point down too much and I stick a foot in. I did jack my groin a bit yesterday. LL back deep is vicious, violent and lonely!