Dean Banyon and the WaveRunner Fishing Family have done it again! They put together another outstanding video. This clip showcases a fishing trip aboard their two Yamaha WaveRunners. Dean and son ventured 22 miles offshore in the Florida Keys. This would be the furthest they’ve gone.

They rigged two Yamaha WaveRunners for a day of trolling for Mahi. The Banyons were underway before sunrise with food, fuel, and a good amount of tackle. Motoring out, they captured some nice footage of dolphins breaking the water with the sun just peaking in the background. The water was slick glass, making for a great ride well offshore to prime fishing grounds. It is hard to believe that while filming this video, Hurricane Dorian was looming in the distance. The guys were fishing 20 miles off Islamorada, FL under beautiful blue skies

Fifteen miles offshore, in 600 feet of water, they wet some hooks baited with dead ballyhoo in hopes of reeling in Mahi or king mackerel.  The area didn’t have a weed line and they weren’t getting any hits, so they left there in favor a spot in 900 feet with a weed line. Bam! Fish on, one right after another. Mahi and Kings all day long. Using dead ballyhoo and cut up tuna, the guys scored fish after fish, so many that Dino ran out of room in his cooler. He handed off a good-sized Mahi for his dad to put on ice.

Shortly before heading back, Dean showed off his sweet tackle center which doubles as a leaning post for when a fish is hooked. The post helps to keep the ski stable while fighting a fish. A few hours later, they headed toward home with six nice sized fish. They made a pit stop along the way at sandbar popular with the locals. They were greeted with cheers as they floated into the cozy little spot to have a drink. These guys are living the dream! After taking a nice break on the sandbar, they made their way back home after an epic day of fishing.

Sometimes bad things happen to good people. Thankfully, in this case, we’re here to help make things better. Over the weekend, the world witnessed a record-shattering top speed run of 135 miles per hour on a Yamaha GP1800R WaveRunner during the IJSBA Hydrodrags in Tavares, Florida. While trying to capture this historic event, the official event photographer almost drowned while trying to save his camera equipment (and footage) as it fell from the side of a PWC.

Manuel Valdes of MVP Productions fell from the side of the watercraft he was filming from, and being laden down with expensive camera equipment, quickly submerged below the waterline. Noticing the fall, others quickly jumped in to rescue Manny, who was nearly as concerned with saving the footage on his cameras as he was not drowning. Thankfully, much of the footage was saved (The Watercraft Journal will have a full report and interview with the record-breaking team shortly), but the expensive camera equipment wasn’t.

Angelica Racing & Repair have organized a GoFundMe to help raise the $10,000 necessary to repair and replace the water-damaged equipment. Manny and MVP Productions have been a major part of the Hydrodrag community, and the response has already been overwhelming. Please share this link if you can. Thank you everyone!

Sea-Doo recently wanted to ask the question ‘what happens when you take a bunch of Redbull athletes and put them to work using Sea-Doo Wake Pro’s?’

Well not only did they ask that question but they answered it in reality. Sea-Doo recently teamed up with some professional athletes including wake skaters and skateboarders and went out for an awesome day in Miami.

The experience was nothing short of amazing so keep reading the below Sea-Doo content alert to find out what happened and to check out a link to the video.

What do you get when you give some professional skaters and wake skaters a new Sea-Doo Wake Pro in Miami? You get an amazing day filled with incredible tricks and a great time living the Sea-Doo Life!

Professional Wake Skater and Sea-Doo Ambassador Nick Taylor recently met up a star-studded crew of Redbull athletes for an adventure in Miami, Florida. The crew was a mixture of athletes from different sports are here to see what the Sea-Doo Life is all about. Professional skateboarders Leticia Bufoni and Jamie Foy were among the athletes who were stoked to cool off and give wake skating a try behind the 2020 Sea-Doo Wake Pro. With natural board sport talents, the pro skaters learned quick with the help of the Sea-Doo Wake Pro pulling them with Ski Mode. Ski Mode allows the riders to set a preprogrammed acceleration and speed to keep perfect for the individual getting pulled.

Next stop on the adventure was a short Sea-Doo cruise over to a local skate spot right in the heart of Miami Beach. The crew pulled up to the skate ledge on water, hopped off the Sea-Doo’s and went to business. Both skaters got a trick then jumped back on the Sea-Doo’s to head to lunch. The accessibility and ease of operation of the Sea-Doo’s made this unique quick stop possible. The day was epic to say the least.

Check out the full adventure video at the link below:

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A post shared by Sea-Doo (@seadoo) on Jul 2, 2020 at 11:37am PDT

It’s official, with COVID-19 still wreaking havoc across the nation, the 2020 Pro Watercross National Tour will be making its third stop in Saint Augustine, Florida’s Vilano Beach with Liqui Moly onboard as the title sponsor. The race runs August 8-9, and this will be the first time the tour has stopped in northeast Florida.

Airstream Ventures partnered with St. Augustine Pointe Vedra and the Beaches Visitors Center and Convention to bring the race to Florida. It will bring much needed revenue for area since most big events are canceled during these pandemic times.

With more than 400 hotel rooms expected to be filled for this event; tourism will get a nice boost. Moreover, a recap of the Pro Watercross race will air nationwide on CBS Sports Network.

This year also marks the 25^th anniversary of Pro Watercross, a non-profit organization focusing on safety education, amateur riders, and preserving the environment.

The event will open Saturday morning with practice beginning at 9:15 am. Races will begin late afternoon.  Sunday, racing will get underway at 8:45 am. Both days will be jampacked with six hours of racing. Vilano Beach offers incredible views of the entire course so spectators can catch all the action.

“We are excited to add another sports event to our area in bringing Pro Watercross to Vilano Beach,” said Alan Verlander, Founder and CEO of Airstream Ventures. “Thanks to AJ with Pro Watercross and Richard and his team, we are going to provide a first-class experience and look forward to making this an annual event. Bringing another national televised event for our region continues the push to make our area of Florida a true sports destination.”

For more information on Pro Watercross and the Vilano Beach event, visit prowatercross.org.

We recently informed you about the three Red Dot Awards that BRP took home this year from their various product lines. One of those awards came thanks to the 2020 Sea-Doo GTI. So why was this platform worthy of such a prestigious award?

Well the BRP and Sea-Doo design teams made it an easy decision thanks in part to the all new design of this watercraft as well as a plethora of premium yet budget-friendly features all listed below in the Sea-Doo content alert. Continue reading to see what the panel jury had to say.

In the great words of legendary Sea-Doo Fan DJ Khaled, “Another One!” Sea-Doo has brought home yet another award in 2020, this time from Red Dot. BRP won a total of 3 Red Dot awards. The spotlight this time was on the Sea-Doo GTI SE, for obvious reasons.

The GTI SE has blown away the competition this year in the recreation class of personal watercraft. The amount of value and innovation packed into each of these machines is incredible. The BRP design team completely redesigned this model and gave it some higher end features without breaking the bank. With features like the LinQ System, speakers, larger storage, swim platform, and Ergolock seating, the innovation and value on the GTI SE is clear. We will certainly be seeing more awards this year for the Sea-Doo GTI SE

Here’s what the Jury had to say:

“Sea-Doo GTI impresses with a generous amount of space and a distinctive design, which gives the jetboat its dynamic, spirited appearance.” For more details and info on the Sea-Doo GTI, check this link

Have you dreamed of exploring exotic destinations aboard a Sea-Doo?  Perhaps you would be interested in carving through Rocky Mountain snowy terrain with a brand new Ski-Doo snowmobile or even meandering a desolate western landscape using a Can-Am off road vehicle.

Well if you’re like most folks, buying one of these vehicles to make a once in a lifetime trip is out of the question.  Let’s face it even if you lived in North Dakota, owned a couple of Sea-Doo’s and wanted to take the family to explore the Gulf of Mexico, it would take you an extra week of travel there and back causing you to burn through your time off of work.

Now BRP is testing a new solution to all of this.  They have launched a pilot project called Uncharted Society which aims to offer these unique experiences.  Experiences that allow you to explore epic playgrounds in various locations using their different powersports vehicles.

Whether it’s exploring the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, the Rockies and more, BRP thinks they have a solution and frankly we think this is an awesome opportunity.  From the sounds of it, BRP is poised to unlock a market of potential that has never before existed.

Now you can own the moment without having to own the ride.  Check out the full press release below.

Valcourt, Quebec, Canada, July 9, 2020 – Today, BRP (TSX: DOO, NASDAQ: DOOO) launched a new pilot program, Uncharted Society, that will offer more than 40 expertly curated experiences using powersports vehicles in the United States. From the Grand Canyon, Zion National Park, the Gulf of Mexico, the Rockies, Joshua Tree, and many more bucket-list destinations, you will be able to live out unique experiences on Sea-Doo watercraft, Can-Am off road and on-road vehicles, and Ski-Doo snowmobiles.

At a time where everyone is looking for accessible and local options while respecting social distancing, these packaged adventures are the perfect solution. Convenient, easy and affordable, every outdoor enthusiast will find the adventure they’re looking for. Uncharted Society gives adventure seekers an outlet to explore the unexplored in totally unique ways, and make what was once only accessible to a few, accessible to anyone. This new platform also allows BRP to give consumers the power to own the moment without having to own the ride with experiences enabled by the full line of BRP powersports products.

With these packaged adventures, we expect to encourage more outdoor enthusiasts to experience the thrill of powersports and for new audiences to live awesome adventures.  This will in turn increase awareness of and access to BRP vehicles, and introduce them to a new generation that might not have had traditionally been exposed to the thrill of powersports.

“Over the past few months, we have been working with some of the best outfitters out there to reimagine powersports adventures and what they can offer to guests. Uncharted Society is our first step in making experiencing our products more accessible by bringing to the market a curated premium collection of adventures for all,” mentioned Simon Cazelais, Director, Content Strategy & BRP-X Innovation Lab.

Our renowned expert outfitters
For each of our adventures, we are collaborating with the best certified local outfitters to ensure we provide the best, most memorable experience possible. Wilderness Collective offers a wide variety of adventures on various terrain types using different BRP product lines. “Our collaboration with Uncharted Society and BRP goes so much further than offering the best machines to our customers; we align on a passion for adventure, a deep understanding of our customers and a bold vision for the future of powersports adventures.” Steve Dubbeldam, CEO of the Wilderness Collective.

Uncharted Society also announced an exclusive collaboration with GetMyBoat, the world’s largest boat rental and water experience marketplace, to launch a series of Sea-Doo experiences and rental options to make the most of your summer on the water. “We are thrilled to team with Uncharted Society. Together, we are exposing a new generation to countless options of water experiences,” Doug Bird, VP of Sales and Business Development, GetMyBoat.

For more information, visit unchartedsociety.com
IG: @UnchartedSociety
FB @UnchartedSociety

There’s no sugar-coating it, kids. For the most part, PWC racing has taken a massive hit this year. From local and regional events, to even the National Tour, racers have been hamstrung by states’ responses to the COVID-19 panic. Promoters desperate to maintain their events are working closely with local officials to abide by any rule and restriction that will permit the event to carry on.

In no small part has the IJSBA worked closely with the authorities at Lake Havasu City, AZ to preserve the annual event. Here is the latest announcement from the IJSBA pertaining to this October’s IJSBA World Finals:

Greetings to the Personal Watercraft Racing Community. As you may have read, on the first business day of Summer, 2020, IJSBA signed a historic agreement with authorities in Lake Havasu City providing for the World Finals to be based in Lake Havasu City for the next ten years- with a goal of the event being there indefinitely. This agreement was something that IJSBA had been working on for more than two years and the announcement was intended to start big momentum for racing this Summer. Unfortunately, the Summer has also seen devastating results from the COVID 19 pandemic that had places severe obstacles in the way of our Sport. This bulletin is the first release of IJSBA’s plans to operate the world’s largest watercraft event under the conditions we face this year.

Several parties worked tirelessly to come together and create an agreement to ensure World Finals stayed in Lake Havasu City. One of the key principals in turning the contract into a reality was Terence Concannon, the President of Go Lake Havasu. His experience in tourism and recreation was instrumental in creating the opportunities for several key provisions in the agreement. Mr. Concannon’s support for Personal Watercraft Racing, and IJSBA’s contributions to the economy of Lake Havasu City were noticeable all through the negotiations. He, along with Mayor Cal Sheehy, are also committed to the safety and well being of Lake Havasu City residents, as well as visitors. Therefore, in keeping with their goals and ensuring that the competition community enjoys the safest possible opportunities, IJSBA is now announcing these minimum standards and expectations for the 2020 World Finals.

World Finals Minimum Precautions
In order to prevent the potential introduction of COVID-19, IJSBA is making changes and implementing restrictions in relation to the normal operation of World Finals. This list is the start of our process to design the mitigation measures. These announcements should be considered the very basic of what to expect at all times during the event.

1. Registration and Sign In will be extended by an additional day. Initial practice is expected to be pushed to Tuesday, with registration to take place Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. This extra day will allow for more distancing and less intermingling of participants and crew.
2. The riders’ briefing, normally held on Sunday night will now take place on Monday afternoon, at the race site.
3. Volunteer medical professionals will be at the entrance to the pits. Temperature controls will be in place. Random screenings are to be expected.
4. There will be one grandstand. Volunteer medical professionals will be stationed next to the grandstand. Grandstand entry will require a daily temperature check. Persons who receive the temperature check will receive specific colored wristband for the day. No person will be admitted to the grandstand who does not have the correct colored wristband.
5. VIP area, as well as the area where the second grandstand normally sat, will be turned into lawn chair seating in both reserved sections as well as a “first come first served” section. Distancing will be required between lawn chair placements with only members of the same household, or similar regular contact, will be allowed to place lawn chairs in a close proximity pod arrangement.
6. VIP hospitality will be a daily snack and gift along with a reserved observation area. Buffet food will be suspended for 2020.
7. Award ceremonies will not take place on Friday and Sunday nights. Instead, awards will be given daily on the beach with proper distancing.
8. Food service providers will be required to maintain enhanced precautionary measures during the event including facemasks, gloves, and regular sanitizing. This will be the case irrespective even if local and/or state laws no longer require the use of such measures at the time of the event.
9. Vendor placement will be staggered, in the trade show portion of the event, to allow for regular distancing. All vendors must employ daily sanitization measures.
10. Hand washing stations will be present throughout the event.
11. Persons not complying with mitigation measures will be removed from the event without exception.
12. Technical and safety inspections will be staggered in a larger area to allow for distancing to be maintained.

What you can expect at the 2020 World Finals
IJSBA is preparing a plan that relies, primarily, on federal, state, and local guidelines and requirements. As these rules are constantly evolving, so too will our plan evolve. What is being reported here are the minimum precautions IJSBA will be taking to ensure that we deliver you the best possible World Championship. Make no mistake, amenities will likely be cut in order to prepare for producing the event under difficult financial conditions. Do not expect the same World Finals you normally see. Do expect great racing, the world’s best staff, and the push to return back to normal, next year, for our 40^th Anniversary event.

IJSBA is charged with the obligation to ensure that Personal Watercraft Racing is maintained as a constant, sustainable, and prestigious sport. This obligation extends to competitors, the support industries, the numerous tradespersons who make their living in the watercraft business, the fans, event organizers, International Affiliates, and the OEM Manufacturers which govern IJSBA. The lead agency of nearly every major sport, around the world, has either started back up or has announced their intentions to operate, this year, under restrictive conditions. IJSBA believes it is in the best interest of the PWC community to hold the 2020 World Finals and to continue to demonstrate the resilience of the sport and to maintain the confidence of all participants that PWC racing will persevere even in the most complicated times. The PWC Racing sport, and PWC performance industry, are no less significant than any of the other sports and industries that are making a commitment to carry on this year. We will get this done, and get it done correctly, so that our special 40^th celebration, in 2021, is everything it should be.

This week, IJSBA will be contacting immigration officials in the USA, as well as other countries, to prepare the proper environment for attendees to obtain travel permission. We will have more announcements on the subject of mitigation measures at World Finals as things develop from planning to implementation. We will also have announcements of more fun and exciting things that have to do with PWC Racing, too.

For questions or comments about this bulletin, please email [email protected].