ShipStore.com Beacon: Looking for a Ski Buddy?
Issue 90, August 11, 2006
http://www.ShipStore.com
Floating your boat since 1982 TM


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IN THIS ISSUE:
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~ WELCOME ABOARD: Looking for a Ski Buddy?
~ CAPTAIN'S SPECIALS: Chapman Piloting & Gull Sweep Sale
~ CAPTAIN'S CONTEST: "Win a Shopping Spree" Drawing

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~ WELCOME ABOARD: Looking for a Ski Buddy?
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It's funny, the number of times growing up that I yearned for one or two fewer ski buddies. It always seemed like there were too many people who wanted to go waterskiing...

Now it's swung in the other direction. It is actually challenging to find a third! Seems that adulthood fills up many peoples' time: work, parenting, home maintenance, etc. There are always plenty of friends who want to be contacted for an impromptu ski, but few who are actually available when that silky smooth water beckons.

This weekend, my wife and I had swarms of friends visiting, waterskiing, wakeboarding, tubing, sailing and watersport-ing in general. Once more with a surplus of eager skiers visiting, hoping to get hauled around the lake, I was reminded of the irony. The old "feast or famine" phenomenon. It occurred to me that it might make sense to spend a little time considering viable ski-buddy resources.

Julie Bostian's article, "How To Find People to Ski / Board With" http://waterski.about.com/cs/accessorieswate/ht/FindBuddies.htm at About.com is a good place to start. She offers nine good pointers for how to find people to waterski or wakeboard with you including the following:

- Post your search on the About.com Waterski / Wakeboard Forum in the "Looking for a Ski Buddy" folder. (See link below.)
- Join a local waterski club.
- Ask the folks who work at the marinas. They see who leaves the docks with ski equipment.
- Participate in a waterskiing / wakeboarding online discussion lists.

Here's where to find About.com's Forum: Waterskiing/ Wakeboarding

http://forums.about.com/n/pfx/forum.aspx?nav=start&lgnF=y&webtag=ab-waterski

And while you're surfing online for helpful waterskiing and wakeboarding resources you should swing by these websites:

Google Directory > Sports > Water Sports > Water Skiing and Wakeboarding
http://www.google.com/Top/Sports/Water_Sports/Water_Skiing_and_Wakeboarding/

WaterskiOnline Forums
http://www.waterskimag.com/forum/forum.jbb

Aquaskier Discussion Board
http://aquaskier.com/discus/

Waterski Forum
http://www.waterski-forum.com/

And, as a final image, check out the wakeboarding snapshots we received from a ShipStore.com customer the other day.

http://blog.shipstore.com/

Beacon subscriber, Craig Russell, had offered to send us photos of his daredevil son flying high above Lake Champlain on the Wego Kite Tube. I even headed out on the lake one afternoon/evening to snap digitals of him myself, but I decided not to run them when SportsStuff withdrew the Kite Tube from the market.

When I told him that we weren't going to run any photos to avoid encouraging what was deemed to be a dangerous product, he promised to send me some pics of his son, Kevin Russell (top), and his son's friend from Connecticut, JJ Rohmer (bottom), wakeboarding. Both boys, friends from Camp Normandie, are impressive on the phat plank, questing for ever higher adrenaline highs.

Have some great snapshots of your own? Send them along so we can see what you're doing out on the water. Please include your full name and any other relevant information.

George Davis, Beacon Editor
editor@shipstore.com

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~ CAPTAIN'S SPECIALS: Chapman Piloting & Gull Sweep Sale
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CHAPMAN PILOTING
Sale Price: $ 43.79
Only August 11, 2006 (Sale ends at Midnight Eastern Time)
http://www.shipstore.com/SS/HTML/CHA/CHA148928.html

GULL SWEEP COMPLETE
Sale Price: $ 36.99
Only August 12, 2006 (Sale ends at Midnight Eastern Time)
http://www.shipstore.com/SS/HTML/TRI/TRIGS1.html

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~ CAPTAIN'S CONTEST: "Win a Shopping Spree!" Drawing
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Win a $100.00 credit at ShipStore.com. To be eligible for future "Win a Shopping Spree!" drawings all you have to do is subscribe to the Beacon. All current subscribers are eligible for the random drawing. If you're not already subscribed, then visit http://www.shipstore.com and scroll down the light blue column along the left hand side of the page until you see the link "Win a Shopping Spree!". Click on the link. A new window will open with an email addressed to beacon-on@list.shipstore.com and "Subscribe" written in the Subject Field. All you have to do is hit send.

You'll be sent a confirmation email which you must respond to in order to activate your subscription and be added to our mailing list. This double opt-in procedure enables us to prevent accidental subscriptions and spam. As soon as your confirmation is confirmed, you will be entered into the "Win a Shopping Spree!" drawing for a $100.00 free merchandise from ShipStore.com. Good luck.

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If you prefer not to receive to the ShipStore.com Beacon newsletter, please send a BLANK e-mail to beacon-on@list.shipstore.com with "Subscribe" (remove the quotation marks) in the Subject Field. If you wish to UNSUBSCRIBE, please send a BLANK e-mail to beacon-off@list.shipstore.com. If you have any questions or suggestions contact the editor by e-mail editor@shipstore.com. Please include a helpful subject like "Question for the Captain", "Suggestion for Article" or "Remove Duplicate Mailing" to help us sort through the e-mails more easily.

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COPYRIGHT INFORMATION
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COPYRIGHT 2006 ShipStore.com (tm) ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Permission is granted to electronically copy, print or forward this newsletter for use as a shopping, boating or travel resource as long as it is not altered in any way and sent in its entirety. Any other use of materials on this Web site--including reproduction for purposes other than those noted above, modification, distribution, or republication--without the prior written permission of Westport Marina, Inc. is strictly prohibited.

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CONTACT INFORMATION
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ShipStore.com
6039 Route 9N
Westport, NY 12993
Telephone: 518-962-2700
Toll Free: 877-SHIPSTORE (US and Canada)
Fax: 518-962-4582

E-Mail sales@shipstore.com with any questions.