Barefoot Skiing - Equipment

Equipment

Equipment required for barefooting:

• Boat – Barefooting requires a boat or other towing object that can travel to a speed of (30-45mph) with a barefooter under tow. Some boats are made specifically for barefooting, as they have small wakes and can travel at fast speeds. For a current list of boats approved by the American Barefoot Club, visit ABC Boats.
• Handles and ropes – Normally a handled rope is used but may be optionally replaced with a ski boom (see below). A safety release may be used with the rope so that it can be detached from the boat in the event the barefooter becomes tangled in the rope. Though is it possible to barefoot with a normal 75 foot nylon tow rope and handle, many skiers use special ropes made out of Poly-E or Spectra to reduce spring. Barefoot handles have plastic tubing around them, so the skier can wrap their feet around the rope without getting rope burn and can have small modifications for frontward and backward toe holds.
• Personal Flotation Device – It is recommended and in many locations required that skiers and barefooters wear a flotation device or padded wetsuit.

Optional equipment:

• Barefoot wetsuit – The skier wears a fitted, padded neoprene barefoot wetsuit which has built-in flotation so that the need of a life jacket is unnecessary. It is possible to ski with a Coast Guard approved Type III flotation vest though this does not pad the skier well and the skier will not be able to perform many tricks. Some barefoot wetsuit manufactures include Eagle, Vortex and Barefoot International.
• Padded shorts – Though not necessary, many barefooters wear padded neoprene shorts. These help pad the skier's buttocks which is very helpful in performing the deep water start and tumble turns.
• Booms – Barefoot booms are used for learning barefooting and also, learning new barefoot tricks. The boom is a long pole that hangs over the edge of the boat and allows the barefooter to ski directly alongside the boat. Because the pole is fixed the barefooter may lean his or her body weight onto the pole and recover from falls more easily than on a rope.
• Shoe Skis – Shoe skis may be used for training. Shoe skis are small 'skis' put on the foot that are only a few inches longer and wider than the skier's foot. Shoe skiing is performed at a much lower speed (approx 18 mph) than barefooting because of the increased lift provided by the surface area of the ski. As an intermediate step to barefooting, flat soled street shoes may also be worn. This provides more lift than bare feet, but a more similar experience to barefooting than actual wooden 'shoe skis'.