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The Great Compromise of 2018... Ski and surf review added!


ahopkins22LSV

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So if you are like me I see a new ski tug the year daughter and any coming children take off for college. My son left in Sept. and I had the new ski tug to replace or V drive ordered early December.  ;)   Looks good enjoy!

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Congrats on the new ride!:thumbup: all that room you have now!  Better find some more friends :)

I have a question for VTX owners.  After working the Sacramento boat show I was surprised how many people are still interested in slalom skiing.  My big question on the VTX is does it produce a quality slalom wake at 30-32 mph.  Even comparable to a slalom DD? I  have never even been in a VTX and the video is hard to tell how fast they are towing the pro skier.  Had a few people ask about a v drive slalom boat or true crossover boat with respectable slalom wake.  Just wondering on how the VTX performs for slalom and also surf/wakeboard waves.

Edited by Fman
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ahopkins22LSV
3 hours ago, Woodski said:

@ahopkinsTXi:  Congrats and keep your ski buddies (the ones w/ a 'proper' ski boat) close :whistle:

Haha I plan to! Luckily I have this as an option!

3 hours ago, Sixball said:

So if you are like me I see a new ski tug the year daughter and any coming children take off for college. My son left in Sept. and I had the new ski tug to replace or V drive ordered early December.  ;)   Looks good enjoy!

That basically exactly what my wife and talked about. It’s famliy time now. Not 100% focus on running up the line. I can always jump back into competitive skiing later in life. 

17 minutes ago, Fman said:

Congrats on the new ride!:thumbup: all that room you have now!  Better find some more friends :)

I have a question for VTX owners.  After working the Sacramento boat show I was surprised how many people are still interested in slalom skiing.  My big question on the VTX is does it produce a quality slalom wake at 30-32 mph.  Even comparable to a slalom DD? I  have never even been in a VTX and the video is hard to tell how fast they are towing the pro skier.  Had a few people ask about a v drive slalom boat or true crossover boat with respectable slalom wake.  Just wondering on how the VTX performs for slalom and also surf/wakeboard waves.

Honestly, that’s a big question mark for me. Based on what I’ve read, you can get a pretty good wake for skiing in the 34mph range at the right rope length to avoid the bump. But no idea how 30-32 mph will be. Definitely not comparable to a response though. I will be doing a ton of experimenting and will be reporting back here. I’m confident I can tweak this into a pretty good slalom tug. It’s on a slightly modified TXi hull so it should be possible. 

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ahopkinsTXi, thanks for starting this thread.  This past fall sold my Response LXI for a new VTX.  I probably should have demo'd it prior to purchase however winter hit hard and early in MN.  I had driven (but not skied) a 21VLX and it was pretty clear this was not a great slalom option.  I am really hoping that the wake at 28' or even 32' off at 34mph is good enough to free ski aggressively without getting launched, and at slower speeds, I hope it is fun for my younger skiers.  I certainly didn't purchase this boat  with course skiing in mind as I have friend's boats for that!  Hopefully within the month I can provide some actual footage and commentary on my experience so we can compare notes.

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ahopkins22LSV
5 minutes ago, thealy said:

ahopkinsTXi, thanks for starting this thread.  This past fall sold my Response LXI for a new VTX.  I probably should have demo'd it prior to purchase however winter hit hard and early in MN.  I had driven (but not skied) a 21VLX and it was pretty clear this was not a great slalom option.  I am really hoping that the wake at 28' or even 32' off at 34mph is good enough to free ski aggressively without getting launched, and at slower speeds, I hope it is fun for my younger skiers.  I certainly didn't purchase this boat  with course skiing in mind as I have friend's boats for that!  Hopefully within the month I can provide some actual footage and commentary on my experience so we can compare notes.

For sure! I’ve heard 34mph -28 is good for this boat. That’s where I’m going to start. This isn’t going to be a course boat I completely agree. But I feel with the right setup it can be a good open water boat.

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8 hours ago, Fman said:

Congrats on the new ride!:thumbup: all that room you have now!  Better find some more friends :)

I have a question for VTX owners.  After working the Sacramento boat show I was surprised how many people are still interested in slalom skiing.  My big question on the VTX is does it produce a quality slalom wake at 30-32 mph.  Even comparable to a slalom DD? I  have never even been in a VTX and the video is hard to tell how fast they are towing the pro skier.  Had a few people ask about a v drive slalom boat or true crossover boat with respectable slalom wake.  Just wondering on how the VTX performs for slalom and also surf/wakeboard waves.

I have a 2018 VTX, had a 2016 VTX and before that a dedicated Slalom boat. I have skied a 2017 Txi and I found the wake to be very "hard" small but hard. The VTX wake is taller but feels softer if you get behind the rooster wash. 34 - 36 mpa, 50% ballast in front tank it is skiable. I did the same as @ahopkinsTXi is doing upgraded since we had kids. The boat is awesome for family, high sides, plenty room, A1. But we sacrificed a ski wake. With young kids (1yr old and 3yr old) we don't get a chance to ski anyway. The 6-7am morning skis are gone, the last ski of the day (ie last boat out on the water) are gone, kids already in bed by then...... So the VTX is good for family (PS we are teaching the 3yr old to observe / spotter.....;), we spend most of the time with the inflatable easy ski out the back with the 1 yr old and 3 yr old. Our 3 yr old is already knee boarding a has great water confidence on the easy ski..... to us that's what its all about....

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ahopkins22LSV
17 hours ago, AussieSkier said:

I have a 2018 VTX, had a 2016 VTX and before that a dedicated Slalom boat. I have skied a 2017 Txi and I found the wake to be very "hard" small but hard. The VTX wake is taller but feels softer if you get behind the rooster wash. 34 - 36 mpa, 50% ballast in front tank it is skiable. I did the same as @ahopkinsTXi is doing upgraded since we had kids. The boat is awesome for family, high sides, plenty room, A1. But we sacrificed a ski wake. With young kids (1yr old and 3yr old) we don't get a chance to ski anyway. The 6-7am morning skis are gone, the last ski of the day (ie last boat out on the water) are gone, kids already in bed by then...... So the VTX is good for family (PS we are teaching the 3yr old to observe / spotter.....;), we spend most of the time with the inflatable easy ski out the back with the 1 yr old and 3 yr old. Our 3 yr old is already knee boarding a has great water confidence on the easy ski..... to us that's what its all about....

Awesome I will try the 50% out too. Luckily I still have friends with responses that Ski early am so I will just bring some fuel. But this is definitely about the family and I can’t wait. 

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I would assume the VTX is the best crossover boat Malibu offers outperforming the 21VLX?(slalom wake) or are they comparable?

I don't blame you guys for going to a VTX, those responses are so limited on space.  Can't imagine trying to take your family out for the day. @ahopkinsTXi this is only the beginning for you, I see even larger boats in your future :)

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ahopkins22LSV
1 minute ago, Fman said:

I would assume the VTX is the best crossover boat Malibu offers outperforming the 21VLX?(slalom wake) or are they comparable?

I don't blame you guys for going to a VTX, those responses are so limited on space.  Can't imagine trying to take your family out for the day. @ahopkinsTXi this is only the beginning for you, I see even larger boats in your future :)

Haha we shall see. We thought about the 21 vlx. I really like the boat but there just isn’t enough info out there on it and I don’t really feel like being the guy to try it out. 

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On ‎3‎/‎15‎/‎2018 at 10:34 AM, ahopkinsTXi said:

Also, working with Skiers Pier and Tommy's has been awesome. The transition seems to be going great and I have nothing but good things to say so far.

That is great to hear.  I'm pulling my boat up there Monday for her first ever trip to a dealer in hopes they can fix my power wedge.  Brian in service seems like a great dude.  In a few years I think I will upgrade with Skiers Pier/Tommys as well

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ahopkins22LSV
25 minutes ago, Nitrousbird said:

Wasn't the '16+ hull change a big negative for the ski wake?  Why not get a 2013 - 2015 - cheaper and a better wake for the slalom and still get SG.  

It definitely took away some of the ski wake. We looked into it because t would be better for skiing. A few factors:

1. I’d want a 2015 and 2015 only because it has zero off cruise and power wedge II. I haven’t looked in the past week but there were zero for sale in the United States and there are only one or two pop up each year. They are very tough to come by. I think t would have also seriously complicated the deal as I’d most likely have to buy it out of dealer territory. 

2. We did look at 2013-14’s as well but even those are few and far between. My wife liked none of them on the used market and I don’t really either. 

3. Five year factory bow to stern warranty. I’m going to like having that in my back pocket again. 

4. You have no idea what we are paying, maybe I worked out such an insane deal that id really not be saving much money at all. I know of a few 15’s that have sold around here without even hitting the market for 69-71. Or I’m paying full msrp on a note with zero down and I’ll be filing bankruptcy in two years.

5. Ignore number four...

6. I’ve been obsessed with boating my entire life and I’ve been building Boats online since we the first boat builder was available. It’s been a life long dream for me to order our own boat. The opportunity presented itself, why would I not jump on it? I know the ski wake is not as good as the previous gen but I will have multiple friends on our lake and lakes that are very close to us with responses or similar direct drives.

7. I’m not going to lie some of the stuff on these new boats is very cool and I wanted them. Not that I wouldn’t be happy with a 2015 but see #6.

8. Imo there hasn’t been a ton of experimenting done with the new hull for skiing. Or at least that has been shared. They took the TXi hull I had on my response and modified it to fit the extra width of the VTX. I’d bet there is a combination of weight distribution, speed and line length that I can find to make it ski very well. And see #6. 

Edited by ahopkinsTXi
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