Can anyone recommend a leash for a ski?

Can anyone recommend using a SUP or Longboard type leash for use with a Ski? OR a supplier of Surfski leashes in the UK?

Thanks

You can always use just about anything you are comfortable with. String, rope, bungi cord, dog leash etc.
An SUP or longboard leash will work but are typically quite long, thick and cumbersome. I use a coiled surfski leash attached below my knee and find them quite comfortable. When remounting in rough conditions they tend to follow you back in the boat. You may be able to find or order an extra long coiled boogie board leash at a local surf shop if surfski leashes aren't available. Maybe a surf shop can find a surfski leash from their surf leash suppliers?
Good luck!

Faith2o nailed it.
FWIW I use a Mocke life line which can be purchased online. mockepaddling.com/product/mocke-life-line-calf-leash/
There are plenty of others out there.

A leash attached to the calf with me tends to either remain overboard or get under my legs interfering with leg drive. I therefore use a belt around my waist (similar to this one www.sport-schroeer.de/online-shop/boote/...hf-buddy-sup-guertel) and a coiled leash attached to the rear of the ski with a piece of rope that just comes under very light tension when I'm in normal paddle position. With this setup I never had any problems up to now, swimming, remounting and paddling, I just forget it.

^ +1

This one is quiet on the back of the ski and gets me to to and from the water without clipping out. Calf leashes were a hassle to unclip in rough conditions when I was a beginner and downright dangerous if caught out with whitewater bearing down on me.

I think I may get a helmet too for surfing. I got beaned on behind the ear last winter and it hurt for a week. A few inches forward could have been lights out.

My vest is the Wingman. I got it for 150 as a kickstarter. They are 250 now, which is too bad. Great vest, rugged etc, but spendy. It's tiny and I can swim in it if need be. The paddle loop on my belt is just big enough to drag a blade if my leash ever breaks. I've tried several and broke them all somewhere except this one. So far.

One other item I won't go far without is my PLB.

www.amazon.com/ACR-PLB-375-ResQLink-Buoy...rsonal/dp/B006JXY0CQ

www.hyde-sportswear.com/

www.northshoreinc.com/store/pc/viewPrd.a...ct=351&idcategory=86

This is a great combination with great safety features that can be used for both ski and SUP.
www.fitnesslifestyle.com.au/safety-produ...-and-body-leash.html

The XM brand is my preferred big wave surfboard leash cause it has a quick release pull ring for when it gets wrapped around a reef, much better than drowning. Again, the leash JML recommends may be available through a surf shop if that makes things any easier.

LaPerouse,
I finally get the blade pocket/strap idea and being able to swim. Brilliant!
Anyway I am curious, You say you have broken a lot of leashes. Did they break in the surf zone or offshore?
Don't think I have had one fail offshore and I won't use a leash in the surf zone just for that reason.

Fath2o wrote:
I finally get the blade pocket/strap idea and being able to swim. Brilliant!

I got that idea from the standup surf gang. Some shorts have a dedicated loop for dragging a paddle.

Fath2o wrote:
Anyway I am curious, You say you have broken a lot of leashes. Did they break in the surf zone or offshore?

Both, but only once downwinding. I got lucky, a windsurfer grabbed my ski. I swam about 5 minutes but seemed like an eternity. Swimming with a wing and a PFD is tough sledding. I was getting mauled in white water too. I've yet to swim in the new vest, but it should be far easier.

Fath2o wrote:
Don't think I have had one fail offshore and I won't use a leash in the surf zone just for that reason.

The end of some of my downwinders are on beaches with reefs. People snorkeling, little kids in the shorebreak, swimmers... I'm usually exhausted, navigating around people, dealing with wind and swell, sometimes kids way inside breaking surf. I can't lose my ski. It could kill somebody. I won't clip out before my feet are on the ground.

Occasionally, shorebreak is big and dangerous. I prefer to zoom right in and get out without concern for a calf leash. I hate those things. It made learning ski all the more difficult.

I don't surf much, but when I do, it's a long swim if you lose the boat. No thanks.

Thanks for all your messages they have been really helpful. I have gone for an ION - SUP Core Leash RACE 2.0 coiled hipbelt. This is following on from JML and LeParouseBay s comments.

I've got a race next weekend so will let you know if the leash is a disaster

I'm curious how well the hip belt attached to the stern works for paddlers, like me, who do a straddle remount vs a side saddle remount?

I'm a side entry, so can't speak from experience on the straddle entry.

It should be very easy to straddle entry with a belt/trailing leash. The only thing to be aware of is not allowing the leash to get around the rudder. There is enough slack, it happened to me - once. It's easy to control the leash as you get in. Just be aware of it. Reach back, or look back if you can, and make sure it's on top of the deck.

I can't imagine a straddle entry with a calf/ankle leash that has a small, tight coil. It may not have enough stretch to get the leg behind the bucket. The advantage of small tight coils is less mess in the cockpit. Big sup coils on the calf will allow a straddle entry, but that's a big mess in the cockpit. They stretch out and get nasty hence the need for small tight ones.

I fell a lot as a beginner, so I'm an expert at mistakes with a calf leash. I remember having one wrapped around my neck. I put my ego far, far away when chatting with beginners.

I have a great deal of empathy for beginners in ski. I think this is my 5th year, so I don't fall much unless I'm pushing angles in a "safe" environment. I silently despise good paddlers that put a strong athlete from another sport in a skinny boat, then laugh as they struggle. Assholes. I've heard stories of super strong guys laughing at 50+ ladies taking gas. Can you imagine? Truly bizarre.

Oscar sort of did it to me (nobody was laughing of course, and the other students were elsewhere) But I needed to hear it. It was a simple drill I had never tried before and it was brutal. I remember when he took me aside and said "when you can do an entire maliko run sitting on all 4 pads, without ONE brace stroke, THEN you are ready to get into a faster boat. I've remembered that over the years and it's helped a great deal. That's why those top coaches get the big bucks.

I jump out and practice remounts all the time. It's good for my old legs to stretch a bit. It's easy to remount in my 2gen V-10L. It has a very shallow bucket.

I recently tested and ordered a V-12. Nice boat, can't wait.



The first time I tried to remount the 12 it was "whoa, this is different!" (Nice high sides).

I think remounting is the most important skill in downwinding. Oscar says it's bracing, but he's crazy. (little joke there). I'll be the first one in line with cash in hand if he comes back to teach us how to paddle. I'll eagerly anticipate the chance to interrupt him and shout out "BULLSHIT" if he says "bracing is the most important skill when downwinding."