One thing that Oswegatchie has offered for decades has been a Ski Boat for water skiing, knee boarding, and recently TUBING! It was deemed as a good fit for the camp because our main pond is so long and has such little traffic on it.
Our main pond, Long Pond is 1.5 miles in length and over half a mile wide. Its the perfect distance for teaching skiers. Plus, Oswegatchie owns 99% of the lake front property so we are not competing with other pond traffic.
Historically, water skiing was the main purpose for this boat and that was great for the educational goals of this program. It takes work to become a water-skier. Somewhere around 2004, a "tube" was purchased for the ski boat. We field tested it for the summer and received clear feedback from campers that tubing was way better than skiing. To this very day we still offer skiing and kneeboarding, but the tube has become more demanded from campers. Once we figured out you could safely put multiple campers on bigger tubes, the campers really started to love this experience.
A few years back I got a chance to ride double on the tube with my nephew. It is a bit awkward to be holding on to the tube next to another person while holding on for dear life. What I realized is that all of a sudden you will start giggling and then the other person will start giggling,and then you start laughing more. It goes back and forth till you are having the time of your life!
Sometimes it feels like the driver is trying to throw you off the tube. but typically the driver is trying to take you to the limit of excitement with out you falling off.
Comparing it to the ropes course seems like a stretch, but the excitement of tubing is equal to that of the Giant Swing or the Zipline. The true magic comes when you don't think you can handle the tube ride or learn to ski, but when you do, the exhilaration stays with you.
Excelsior,
Bill Waite
Camp Director
Our main pond, Long Pond is 1.5 miles in length and over half a mile wide. Its the perfect distance for teaching skiers. Plus, Oswegatchie owns 99% of the lake front property so we are not competing with other pond traffic.
Historically, water skiing was the main purpose for this boat and that was great for the educational goals of this program. It takes work to become a water-skier. Somewhere around 2004, a "tube" was purchased for the ski boat. We field tested it for the summer and received clear feedback from campers that tubing was way better than skiing. To this very day we still offer skiing and kneeboarding, but the tube has become more demanded from campers. Once we figured out you could safely put multiple campers on bigger tubes, the campers really started to love this experience.
A few years back I got a chance to ride double on the tube with my nephew. It is a bit awkward to be holding on to the tube next to another person while holding on for dear life. What I realized is that all of a sudden you will start giggling and then the other person will start giggling,and then you start laughing more. It goes back and forth till you are having the time of your life!
Sometimes it feels like the driver is trying to throw you off the tube. but typically the driver is trying to take you to the limit of excitement with out you falling off.
Comparing it to the ropes course seems like a stretch, but the excitement of tubing is equal to that of the Giant Swing or the Zipline. The true magic comes when you don't think you can handle the tube ride or learn to ski, but when you do, the exhilaration stays with you.
Excelsior,
Bill Waite
Camp Director
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