Measuring Towlines
- All ropes must be measured under 44 lbs. of tension for at least 30 seconds.
- Air temperature, water temperature, and relative humidity
will all affect how much a rope will stretch.
- Some colors will stretch different amounts than others,
and the way a rope is braided and twisted will also affect
the stretch characteristics. The older a rope, the “stiffer” it gets,
and more force is required to produce the same amount of stretch.
Therefore, it will be harder on your body at shorter line lengths.
- Before measuring a new rope, lean against the outstretched rope
and give about a dozen very hard tugs with full body weight.
This will tighten the knots, where the sections join together
making a difference in the measurements. It is also important
how the knots “seat” together.
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- Record the measurements at each line off loop, and save it
for later comparison. It is always helpful to see how much
a rope will stretch over time.
- After skiing on the rope for at least 20-30 passes,
repeat the measuring process, and see how much the rope has changed.
It is advisable to allow the rope to “rest” for 30 minutes
after skiing, before measuring it.
This is actually a requirement at tournaments
where a record has been set.
- Our ropes are designed to be SHORT initially. It may even be out
of tolerance on the short end, and you can expect
it to change after it is skied on.
- After being skied on for a reasonable length of time,
the rope should be longer by approx. 2-3 inches at the shorter loops,
(39, 38, 35 off) and 3-5 inches at the longer loops
- At the end of the day, our ropes are designed to be right at
or very near “actual” when properly pre-stretched, broken in,
and re-measured.