Water skiing

Water skiing (also waterskiing or water-skiing) is a water sport in which a person is pulled behind a motorboat over water, skimming the surface on two skis or sometimes one ski. It is most common to do on lakes, but can also be done in rivers and oceans.

Water skiing

In the United States, there are over 11 million water skiers.^[1] In Australia, there are 1.3 million water skiers.^[2]

Criticism

While water skiing is very popular, not everybody thinks it is a good thing. The fast, powerful boats make a lot of noise, cause waves which can cause beach erosion, and sometimes hit swimmers, other boats, or marine life. People often drink alcohol which increases the chance of accidents. Sometimes the person water skiing is injured by falling and hitting the water. Water skiing is also criticized for air pollution from the boats' engines, and the unnecessary use of fuel (usually gasoline) which increases climate change (global warming.)