Ski-boating’s historic wake

THE EVOLUTION OF THE SKI BOAT

From a work launch to a glistening, sleek design

story by Dari Mullins

In 2018 Nautique introduced a mostly carbon fiber ski boat. Two years later they would produce this GS22E, an electric boat that can operate for 2-3 hours on a 90-minute charge. Photo courtesy of Nautique

You might think water skiing originated in Florida or California, but it actually had its beginning in Minnesota.

Ralph Samuelson believed, “If you can ski on snow, then you can ski on water.”

At 18, Samuelson was an expert at the aquaplane — a big, flat board that looked like a large door. It was towed behind small, open motorboats called launches. He first tried to fashion skis out of barrel staves and then snow skies. When those didn’t work, he purchased two boards, each eight feet long and nine inches wide. After boiling the tips and using clamps and braces to curve them, he painted them white and used scrap leather to make binders for his feet. He had an iron ring fashioned by a blacksmith and purchased 100 feet of sash cord to make a tow rope.

On July 2, 1922, after multiple unsuccessful attempts, he decided to try starting with the tips of the skis out of the water. It worked! His brother towed him at 20 mph behind a work launch powered by a converted Saxon truck engine.

That day forever changed water sports for millions of people. Samuelson went on to become the first ski jumper, speed skier and slalom skier. However, he never sought a patent on his design and was not recognized as the “father of water skiing” until the 1960s.

While Samuelson traveled the East Coast demonstrating his talent, Fred Waller obtained the patent and went to market with his design. Water skiing became a popular exhibition sport. In 1939, the American Water Ski Assn. was formed to help promote the sport, and the first National Water Ski Championships were held with competitors towed by a wooden boat built of overlapping boards and powered by a four-cylinder outboard engine.

Correct Craft of Orlando, FL, was advertising a complete line of inboard ski boats and speedboats in 1962, the year after they had purchased Leo Bentz’s Ski Nautique mold and brand. Photo courtesy of Nautique 1922 – Ralph Samuelson attaches two boards to his feet and becomes the first person to “ski” on Lake Pepin in Minnesota. 1925 – Samuelson becomes the first person to ever jump a ramp on waterskies. He also skies at 80 mph behind a WWI Curtis flying boat. 1925 – W.C. Meloon forms the Florida Variety Boat Company that later becomes Correct Craft. 1932 – The first two “official” ski shows are hosted in Atlantic City, NJ. 1936 – Correct Craft becomes the first boat company to use tow pylons. 1939 – The American Water Ski Assn. organizes the first National Water Ski Championships in Long Island, NY. 1940 – Jack Andresen invents the first trick ski. 1947 – Dick Pope Jr. is credited as being the first man to successfully ski barefoot. 1948 – Correct Craft begins production on the first completely mahogany inboard. 1949 – The first World Water Ski Championship is held in France. 1952 – Correct Craft incorporates swim platforms into their boats. 1957 – Leo Bentz builds the first fiberglass Ski Nautique. 1950s-’60s – Mostly twin rigged outboard boats are used for waterskiing. Outboard companies invent the concept of promotional boats. 1961– Leo Bentz sells the Ski Nautique mold and brand to Correct Craft. 1961– Correct Craft becomes the first boat manufacturer to integrate tracking fins into its boat designs. 1968 – Mastercraft builds its first ski boat in a two-stall horse barn in Maryville, TN. 1977 – Ski Nautique establishes its first ski team. 1980s – Wakeboarding debuts. 1981 – Nautique unveils the Ski Nautique 2001. 1982 – Malibu begins building ski boats. 1983 – Mastercraft debuts the first fiberglass stringers and all fiberglass structural construction. 1993 – Mastercraft produces the first fuel-injected engine in the marine industry. 1995 – Mastercraft introduces the ProStar 190, reducing spray and wake. 1997 – Nautique introduces the first wakeboard specific boat. 1997 – Mastercraft introduces the X-Star wakeboard boat and pulls the first X-Games wakeboard event. 2004 – Nautique introduces the first “crossover” boat that allows the wake size to be modified for different experiences. 2010 – Nautique introduces the Ski Nautique 200 available in open or closed bow. 2011 – Mastercraft produces the first optional retractable wakeboard tower. 2012 – Nautique launches the first G23, pushing wakeboarding to new levels. 2016 – Nautique introduces the GS series crossover boat providing technology and design for skiing, wakeboarding and wakesurfing. 2016 – Mastercraft introduces the XT crossover series. 2018 – Nautique introduces the first mostly carbon fiber ski boat. 2020 – Nautique introduces the electric GS22E.

As water skiing gained popularity so did the purchase of personal boats. Wooden inboards made by Chris-Craft, Century Resorters and the Atom Skier made by Correct Craft were the most preferred. These boats were powerful, but they created a large wake that made skiing more difficult. Outboard motors produced smaller wakes but lacked the horsepower needed for towing a skier. A twin rig concept that became available in the 1950s provided the horsepower needed and dominated the market through the 1960s. Manufacturers such as Mercury Marine, Johnson and Evinrude developed specially equipped boats for tournament use, in the process creating the concept of promotional boats. Still these boats were difficult to set up and had high fuel consumption.

Leo Bentz ran a water ski school in Miami Beach. After attending the 1959 Water Ski World Championships in Milan, Italy, he visited a water ski school in France called L’ecole de Ski Nautique. Upon his return, Bentz produced his first prototype fiberglass ski boat named after that school. The boat, sold under the company name Glass Craft, debuted in spring 1960. Correct Craft would later purchase the mold and the rights to build the new boat. As part of the deal, Bentz received a free boat,

Little could Ralph Samuelson have imagined in 1922 what the boats would be like that would be pulling skiers some 50 years later, as this 1973 model indicates. Photo courtesy of Nautique

{at left} This vintage 1977 Mastercraft 119 Skier debuted in 1977, the same year in which its competitor, Ski Nautique, established its first ski team. Photo courtesy of Peter Biever • {below} This 1986 Ski Nautique 2001 was one of the company’s most popular models and pulled countless competitive skiers at tournaments across the country, including Upstate Lake Living writer Dari Mullins. Photo courtesy of Nautique

three years of maintenance and servicing rights for the 12 boats he had already produced. Correct Craft promptly refined the design and performance of the Ski Nautique, making it the gold standard of that time. Retail cost for the boat with trailer was $4,500.

The Correct Craft Ski Nautique was the preeminent towboat for competitive water skiing throughout the 1960s. In 1968, however, Rob Shirley, a former teacher at Bentz’s ski school, noticed a lack of competition in the ski boat market and founded Mastercraft. His first boat was built in a two-stall horse barn in Maryville, TN. During the 1970s and 1980s Correct Craft and Mastercraft dominated the market and led the industry in technology and innovations.

Ski boat research and development was focused mainly on providing better ways to create the best pull for skiers on private lakes. Success would mean securing the unofficial title of “official towboat” for tournaments around the world. The result was closed-bows boats with direct drive, inboard engines mounted in the center of the boat to provide the best balance and performance. The ski pole was mounted directly behind the engine and passengers could not sit in the back when a skier was being

The 1989 Ski Nautique 2001 was also a tournament favorite on the competitive circuit. Photo courtesy of Gene McLeod

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towed. This design was cramped and not conducive to passengers. The suspension on these boats gave them a sports car-like handling suited to navigating the tight spaces traditionally found on small lakes. The flat-bottomed hull formed a low and soft wake desired by slalom skiers, but in the larger lakes the ride was often harsh and rough.

In the 1990s wakeboarding gained popularity, and recreational boat sales skyrocketed. Boat manufacturers focused their attention on developing wakeboard boats, which were much larger with an open bow and a V-drive engine mounted in the back of the boat. The larger design allowed for more passengers and a smoother ride on public lakes. They included built-in ballast systems and flight towers that allowed boarders to “catch air” as they launched off the bigger wakes to do spins, twists and flips.

The three main ski boat builders — Nautique, Mastercraft and Malibu — continued to work on design and innovation resulting in technology that provided smaller wakes, less spray and open bow designs for more passengers.

At the turn of the century boat manufacturers introduced surf systems that could throw a wave similar to an ocean wave, which allowed surfers to find the “pocket” and drop the rope while remaining behind the boat. “Wakesurfing” quickly caught on and is currently the most popular water sport among boat buyers — slower speeds create less stress on the body and allow people of all ages to participate.

Many water skiers took an interest in the sport but did not want to give up skiing, so Mastercraft and Nautique both introduced crossover boats in 2016. Malibu followed shortly thereafter. These new boats were smaller than wake boats and more nimble, but still had ballast and surf systems to provide a larger wake when needed, allowing water enthusiasts to enjoy multiple sports behind one boat.

While waterskiing became less popular, competitive skiing still existed. So, in 2018, Nautique shook up the competitive market with a

mostly carbon fiber ski boat. It was much lighter with a sleek design and is used in many tournaments today. The latest edition in the evolution of the ski boat debuted in 2020 when Nautique introduced the first electric propulsion crossover boat, the GS22E. This craft allows for 2-3 hours of normal watersports use and can be recharged in as little as 90 minutes.

Clearly, Samuelson had no idea what he was starting when he decided to strap boards to his feet and skim across the water in 1922. But, millions of people are thankful to him, and equally thankful to the boat manufacturers who make the boats that allow them to enjoy this historic sport in modern ways. n

MasterCraft would debut new fiberglass model ski boats throughout the 1980s. By 1992 when this Ski Nautique model was introduced, fiberglass was the industry standard. Photo courtesy of Nautique

Ski boat design had come a long way by 2020 when Mastercraft debuted this ProStar version. Photo courtesy of Christine Albanese