We often get stuck into doing generic trick runs because everyone else is doing them and it seems like the right thing to do, but with a little bit of experimentation and trial and error an efficient, personalised and higher scoring run can often be made. So here are some ideas to consider when putting your trick run together and also an easy way to calculate it.
1) Easiest to hardest: it seems obvious but by putting your hardest tricks at the end of your run there’s a higher chance you will land more tricks. Hardest trick doesn’t necessarily mean the highest scoring trick, this is personalised to you. For example you might be more comfortable and confident doing an O (surface 360, 90 points) compared to a WB (wake back, 80 points) so I would put the O earlier in my run.
2) 12 tricks: as a general guide for skiers who have two full passes 12 tricks is a good to fit into 20 seconds. This works for beginners to advanced trickers as advanced trickers are often faster but it balances out with the longer duration of the tricks and transitions. This allows for 1.6 seconds per trick (this also accounts for positional backs and fronts within the run that might not be scored in some advanced runs).
3) First trick: It may be more efficient to put a slower trick or a wrapped up trick at the start of your run to save time. For example WO (360 over wake), WLO (360 over wake + leg over rope), TO (toehold 360) and T7F (toehold 720) are a few examples of tricks that can start wrapped up in the rope. It may be a tough decision to put these types of tricks at the start of a run as due to the high difficulty if it has just been learnt. A positional back might also be worth considering as it saves time and allows for a more controlled approach to a trick that may be rushed if it was in the middle.
The attached file on the home page (only works on computers) is a basic trick run calculator that also explains each trick. A great exercise is to try to make a number of trick run combinations that might work for you then try them out next time you’re on the water! (Emmanuel Lion’s programme is the gold standard of trick calculators)
Written by Patrick Crisp
Australian water skier
Crisp Water Sports
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