Water skiing

Water skiing is a surface water sport in which a skier rides over water on one or two skis while being towed, usually by a motorboat.

Water ski: A buoyant, shaped board worn on the feet to support a person moving across water. Its planing surface supports the skier as the towline pulls forward.
Water skiing equipment: The skis, bindings, towline, flotation gear, and boat equipment used for water skiing. Equipment choices shape how the skier is towed and what maneuvers are possible.
Waterskiing: The international competitive sport governed by the International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation. Its rules define the main competition formats and standards for the sport.
Ralph Samuelson: An American credited with developing water skiing in 1922 on Lake Pepin, Minnesota. His early experiments established the sport’s recognizable boat-towed form.
Tow rope: A strong rope used to pull a person or vessel behind a boat. It transfers the motorboat’s pull to the skier.
Slalom water skiing: A water-skiing discipline in which a skier rides one ski through a course of buoys. It is the one-ski form centered on carving around buoys.
International Waterski & Wakeboard Federation: The international governing body for water skiing, wakeboarding, and related tow sports. It oversees international rules and competitions for water skiing.
Lake Pepin: A naturally widened section of the Mississippi River along the Minnesota–Wisconsin border. Ralph Samuelson tested early water skis on this lake in 1922.
Planing: A hydrodynamic state in which a moving surface is supported substantially by water pressure and rides near the water’s surface. Water skis rise onto the surface as speed generates hydrodynamic lift.
Water ski jumping: A competitive water-skiing event in which a skier uses a ramp to jump for distance. It turns the tow and a purpose-built ramp into a distance jump.

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ParasailingRelated: Boat-towed water sports provided an existing recreational setting for experimenting with airborne towing.