The 2018 race season was undoubtedly exciting for the P1 marine motorsport brand. Between the sanctioned events of P1 AquaX, JetCross, and Powerboat Superstock, the organization had a successful year.

Well for the 2019 race season, P1 has announced the biggest-ever race calendar. Between April and November, P1 is unveiling more than twenty international events that will take place on three continents.

For more details, you can read the press release below or check out the full calendar here. As always, stay tuned for the latest details:

The world’s leading marine motorsport brand has unveiled an extensive 2019 race programme that will see the international promoter stage more than 20 events on three continents from April through to November.

The season will comprise powerboat championships in the United States and personal watercraft racing in the shape of P1 AquaX action and the Jetcross stand-up ski series in a total of nine countries.

Announcing the calendar at P1’s race headquarters in Florida, P1 chief executive Azam Rangoonwala said: “Since we began racing in 2003, we have staged more than 600 races in 18 countries and, without doubt, the coming season is going to be the most challenging, competitive and entertaining. Our aim has been to put together an expanded programme of powerboat action, featuring one-design and multi-hull offshore racing, and personal watercraft racing across our two disciplines.”

A significant development this year for P1 is a new partnership in the United States with the Offshore Powerboat Association to create the APBA Offshore Championship. The aim is to strengthen the future of racing in the country by delivering an expanded, cohesive, world class race series split equally between northern and southern states. The six championship venues feature major, high profile events in Florida, Missouri and Michigan, with the action kicking off at ‘Thunder on Cocoa Beach’ in May, and the belief is that the partnership will deliver significant results commercially and also in terms of the sport’s organisation and profile.

This year the P1 Panther race boats in the SuperStock USA national championship are going to look very different. Following the P1 fleet being fitted with new carbon hulls a year ago and the announcement last June that the boats will be repowering in 2019 with the new Mercury Racing 4.6L V-8 four-stroke 300R outboard, P1 announced plans to revolutionise the one-design series and attract a new set of racers by converting the Panther to a canopy race boat. That upgrade programme is in full swing, with on-water testing in Florida commencing later this month.

The SuperStock series will run from May to September, with racing on East Lake Tohopekaliga in Central Florida getting the season underway before the action moves to Cocoa Beach a week later. In early July the teams will head to southwest Florida’s Gulf Coast where the 35^th Annual Sarasota Powerboat Grand Prix Festival will once again attract tens of thousands of spectators to enjoy the outstanding racing and carnival atmosphere.

In some American venues this year, P1 will serve up a double bill of powerboat and personal watercraft AquaX racing. Global Head of P1 AquaX, Lisa Barsby explained: “In the eight years since its launch, AquaX has grown significantly and achieved its goal of staging a world championship event in 2017. Discussions are taking place to stage another world championship in November and we will be announcing details within the next few weeks.

“It’s been a natural progression from the opening race season in the UK in 2011 to the series expanding to the USA two years later and then into mainland Europe in 2017. The rapidly increasing number of riders, partners and fans has been tremendous and our close relationship with the leading manufacturers has added considerably to the legitimacy of our series. We attract world class riders to all our championships in the USA, Europe and UK, and we are expecting a great response from riders to the season opener in Daytona Beach in mid-April and to the first round of the EuroTour in La Seyne-sur-Mer in south-eastern France in early May.”

The 14-event AquaX calendar includes four race weekends as part of the EuroTour, with the riders competing in countries across Western Europe including France and Spain. The Sprint series will feature at several events in Florida and Europe. Feeding riders into the EuroTour, the UK race series will consist of three rounds, with Colwyn Bay in North Wales hosting an AquaX event for the first time.

Continuing to reinforce P1’s growing personal watercraft presence in Europe, the Jetcross series features stand-up circuit racing on rivers, lakes and the sea. The French-based personal watercraft promoter joined the P1 family of marine racing brands in July 2016 in a move that was a significant statement of P1’s commitment and expansion plans for personal watercraft racing.

P1’s European Head of AquaX and Jetcross racing, Julien Bastien comments: “We enjoyed significant growth in the number of Jetcross riders last year and expect this to continue. We are delighted to be returning to La Seyne-sur-Mer on the Mediterranean coast for our season opener and later in May we will head north to race in Basse-Ham on the river Moselle. The calendar will also include race events in central France and Belgium.”

“Building the reach and credibility of our race series and growing the marine motorsport sector are priorities for P1” added Rangoonwala. “Partnerships are at the heart of our business, and our events are designed to excite and entertain, ensuring spectator enjoyment and sponsor value with a significant impact for the local economy.”

If you’ve ever had the desire to emulate Mark Gomez, Australia is not the place. Tom Aiken lost his jet ski license after a video of him went viral. The Daily Telegraph reported that the clip showed Aiken riding a vintage 1995 Yamaha Wave Raider out of a river and into a parking lot in Sydney.

Aiken, who rides professionally is also an apprentice marine mechanic. He was riding a Yamaha in the Port Hacking River in Grays Point and decided to ride up a boat ramp and pulled off a high speed skid into the parking lot.
After the police saw the video of Aiken’s wild ride, they began an investigation into the incident.

Aiken turned himself in and told officers,“I’m not going to deny it was me.” I didn’t know it was being filmed and I didn’t know it had been posted on social media until I woke up the next day.”

Sutherland Court magistrate Jayeann Carney convicted him of recklessly operating a jet ski, driving an unregistered craft, and driving without a license. Unfortunately for Aiken, his license expired a week prior to the event. A license is required to operate a PWC in Australian waters.

Aiken was fined $1,950 and lost his PWC license for three months as another consequence of his actions.
Aiken believes he was doing about 20 miles an hour when he hit the concrete lot. He rode about a 150 feet before the ski came to a stop and he said he didn’t mean to slide into the parking lot.

We’re sure this isn’t the welcome home Tom Aiken hoped for. He had a good run in Thailand, placing fourth in his class. As a result of his suspension, he will miss Variety Australia‘s Jet Trek fundraising ride for charity.

https://www.facebook.com/SutherlandShireNews/videos/312926972813994/

The ordeal this family survived demonstrates why it’s imperative to take a safety course before launching a PWC or other watercraft. Knowing how to operate your craft, understanding water conditions, and making safety a priority are of utmost importance. Fortunately, the family knew to wear PFD’s while on a PWC.

An Auckland man named Gerald, purchased a new jet ski and took his wife, mother, and daughter for a ride. Four people were aboard the ski when they launched from Greenhithe. They were underway when Gerald stopped near Herald Island in Auckland’s estuary waterways. The family was about 500 from meters form shore when a rogue wave flipped the machine. The jet ski was too heavy for the family to upright so they clung to it, hoping for rescue. Gerald’s father, older daughter, and a son were left stranded in a dinghy 300 meters away. The son jumped off the dinghy and attempted to swim to help the family. Fortunately, Ramon Saxon and friends were sailing by and spotted the family in the water.

Saxon and his friends pulled them aboard and wrapped them in blankets before helping Gerald right the ski. They then sailed to Herald Island where they met with a waiting Coastguard team. The team checked out the family and returned them to Greenhithe.

Coastguard Duty Officer Hemi Manaena stated that if the family hadn’t been in lifejackets, the outcome may have been much more serious. Manaena encouraged inexperienced boaters to take a course in boating education. Gerald will soon register. He learned the hard way as to why it’s important to put safety first. He and his family were very lucky that a Good Samaritan sailed into their lives.

Knowing how to properly correct a capsized personal watercraft is important, and believe it or not, manufacturers have placed decals on all new units giving step-by-step instructions on how to do it. Here’s also a great video demonstrating the process:

With winter in full force in many regions, some of you might be daydreaming of the warm springtime weather. If you are anticipating getting back on the water, now is also a nice time to find good deals on a watercraft.

Sure a brand new PWC is nice to have and gives you peace of mind but you can also find very reliable used watercraft that have been cared for at a fraction of the price of a new unit. So how do you make sure you aren’t buying a lemon?

We found a good article from Steven in Sales that lists some good tips and things to check before buying that used watercraft. These tips can be especially helpful when buying from a private seller.

A first impression will give you a lot of information right off the bat. Sure all used watercraft will have some sort of bumps or scrapes but you want to make sure that it’s limited to the main wear areas such as the side bumper rails. Check the hull and deck for any major damage or holes.

A clean watercraft including the engine bay, pump intake, and outlet areas will tell you how well-maintained it was. Some minor corrosion on fittings or bolts might be normal depending on the number of hours on the unit, but it is recommended to steer clear if you see major rust in any areas.

Start the watercraft and perform a test ride if possible. If you must buy something with higher hours, check the compression or ask the seller if you can have a mechanic check it out. If the seller gives you a hard time, chances are they may be trying to hide something.

There are many other helpful tips and guides online and videos on Youtube as well as some of our previous articles . For more details, you can check out Steven’s full guide here.

Every year, the Watercraft Superstore hosts the Skyway Ski Show in Tampa, Florida. The collaborative effort with Cycle Springs Powersports, welcomes half a dozen PWC enthusiasts of every stripe, skill level and interest to test ride some of the newest models from the major manufacturers – Kawasaki, Sea-Doo and Yamaha. There, these riders test out each unit, evaluate it one on its own merits, and the winner is crowned in the Watercraft Superstore’s annual magazine/catalog hybrid.

This year, The Watercraft Journal is happy to invite one lucky reader to be a guest judge at the Skyway Ski Show! You’ll be flown in, set up in a luxury waterfront hotel room, fed some seriously great food, and get to spend the day riding brand new watercraft – all at zero cost to you (except for a couple vacation days at work)! You’ll then be featured throughout the Watercraft Superstore’s massive “magalog” as well as an article here at The Watercraft Journal. It’s pretty much the jet ski lover’s dream come true.

All it takes to enter to win is 1. log on to Facebook; 2. visit The Watercraft Journal’s official Facebook page; 3. click the “Like” and “Follow” buttons; 4. Comment on the Facebook post with this picture why you should be chosen as the winner and “Share” the same Facebook post to your wall. 5. Finally, visit the Watercraft Superstore’s official Facebook page, and 6. click the “Like” and “Follow” buttons as well. We will be checking to make sure that entries fulfilled all of these steps!

The winner will be selected one month from now, on February 15th, 2019 and announced on The Watercraft Journal’s Facebook page. We’ll also be privately messaging you to let you know that you won. Oh yeah, and you’ve got to be 21-years-old and living in the continental US to enter.

Late last year marked the final moto of 2018 in the Grand Prix of Sharjah. After ten years of determined competition, Jeremy Perez finally took home the overall victory becoming the UIM-ABP Aquabike World Champion.

Snatching that title meant so much to Perez because of all of his hard work. After capturing the moment, Perez stated “Finally after all these years I have done it. I am so happy I just can’t explain it.”

The press release details can be seen below and to check out the overall race results, you can visit aquabike.net.

Friday, 14 December, SHARJAH (UAE): France’s Jeremy Perez kept his nerve in today’s final moto of the year finishing in second to secure overall victory in the Grand Prix of Sharjah and, after ten years of trying, became UIM-ABP Aquabike World Champion.

Perez went into the final moto with an 11 point margin over defending champion Yousef Al Abdulrazzaq and after leading at the end of the start lap let the Kuwaiti through knowing that a top four finish would seal the deal. “Finally after all these years I have done it. I am so happy I just can’t explain it,” he said. “I let him go because it would not change anything and there was no need for me to push too much and risk everything. The last lap felt like ten minutes but when I cross the line it was amazing.”

The two title rivals traded Grand Prix wins in the early part of the season and continued their intense rivalry in Sharjah, Perez finishing ahead of Abdulrazzaq winning motos 1 & 2 with Abdulrazzaq winning today but it was not enough. “At the end Jeremy deserves the title 100%. He has worked so hard for this and he is a really great sportsman. We have made some mistakes but that’s racing and we can always come back next season and try to win it back.” said four-time champion Abdulrazzaq.

Lars Akerblom fought his way up from starting on the outside of 19 riders to finish in third and secure third overall in the world championship standings, but narrowly missed out on the Grand Prix podium to Lorenzo Benaglia who rounded off a remarkable few days with his best performance of the season finishing fourth, with Andrzej Wisniewski fifth ahead of Mattia Fracasso.

Wu Ronghua looked to be on course for a top three finish but his moto ended on lap 7 of 13, James Bushell’s charge from the back to fourth ending on lap 10.

In Ski GP1 Victory Team’s Kevin Reiterer was once again in a class of his own producing a faultless performance to win the Grand Prix title and seal his second UIM-ABP Aquabike World Championship.

Second place went to outgoing champion Quinten Bossche to end the year in third place, with Raphael Maurin coming home in third to secure second overall in the Grand Prix and world championship standings.

Reiterer controlled the race from the start and was five seconds clear by the end of lap 1 and disappeared in to the distance to run out the winner by 32.76s. Maurin kept Bossche at bay for 4 laps then made a mistake and dropped a place, Steven Dauliach maintaining fourth throughout the race, with Anders Keller’s fifth place putting him onto the podium.

In the Ladies division Latvias’s Krista Uzare produced the ride of a champion to win the Grand Prix title with victory in the final moto and clinch her first UIM Aquabike World Championship.

Uzare went into the final moto with a seven point advantage over two-time champion Emma-Nellie Ortendahl and only needed to finish in second but took the title in style, leading from the start to beat her title rival and win by 3.89s. “I don’t know what to say at this moment,” said Uzare. “I really believed I was going to win the title but I wanted to do it the right way by winning the moto. It has been a wonderful season for me and everyone who has helped me to get to the title.”

Third place in today’s moto went to Jonna Borgstrom, with the final podium place and third in the championship standings going to Jasmiin Ypraus who finished fourth.

Freestyler Rashed Al Mulla celebrated his world title by closing out his year with another characteristically flamboyant set of tricks to record his highest points’ score of the Grand Prix and extended his perfect unbeaten run to six. Portugal’s Paulo Nunes recorded his best result of the season finishing second ahead of Alexander Kuramshin, and moved into second overall in the championship standings ahead of Roberto Mariani.

Can’t wait for racing season to pick back up? Well, have no fear! The 2019 Hydro-Turf Jet Jam Racing Series is closing in fast – so much so that registration is now open for Rounds 1 & 2 at Lake Havasu City’s Nautical Resort this coming March 30-31st. All the details are listed below:

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! We have opened registration for Rounds 1 & 2 of the 2019 Hydro-Turf Jet Jam Racing Tour presented by Bud Light and River Rat Motorsports on March 30^th-31^st, 2019 at the famous Nautical Resort in Lake Havasu City, AZ. There is a large amount of information to go over so please read below:

1. Please get your membership with the AWSA. If you do not have this, you cannot race the Jet Jam Series. It is important to get this ahead of time!!  We are expecting a very large turnout for this event so please save us all time by doing this early!  You can get registered at www.awsa.racing. You will receive a card, a t-shirt and decals with each paid membership.

2. Like last year, your second class of the day will be 50% off.  This will only be for this first race! After the first race, each additional class after your first, will be 25% off for the rest of the season. This will be discussed at riders meeting if you have any questions. So please take advantage while you can. 

3. Payment Options: There are now 3 ways to pay for your races. Credit Card, PayPal or Pay onsite. So please know that you are not obligated to pay until you arrive at the race just like before. 

4. On the registration form you will see that we are hosting a Friday night opening social dinner at the Nautical. This dinner is free to the rider plus 1 guest. Every guest thereafter is a $5.00 charge per person. Please choose the correct option when registering so we can get a correct headcount. This will be pizza/salad dinner. Alcohol is not included, but you will be able to purchase it at the Turtle Bar.  

5. Hotel information: Please we encourage you to stay onsite as we are trying to build up a relationship with the Nautical so they will have us back year after year.  Room nights count towards better discounts for all of us.   We have secured buildings A, B and C for our group rooms in the cove area overlooking the start area. This will give you, our riders and their families great views of the race.  Please use BOOKING CODE #376887 when making your reservation.  Reservations must be made BY PHONE at (928)855-2141 and must be made at least 15 days prior to the event to get the discounted room rate of $169.00 + tax for up to 4 people with a 2-night minimum.   After that the room rate will increase. The more people that book as soon as possible the better chances we have of getting a better rate. There are PET rooms available but these will sell out fast so if you plan on bringing your pets please book ASAP. If you absolutely must camp, please call Kary @ 801-647-0767 or Nicole @ 714-875-8200 to discuss this.  

6. Parking/Pits – We will have a large pit area for parking. More info to come as we get closer to the date.  We will post a site map.

7. Vendors – We will have a vendor ally at this event. If you know of anyone who would like booth space, please contact Kary at 801-647-0767 or [email protected] for more information.

8. If you have questions regarding what class you should be in or where to fit your ski, please call Matthew Goade asap at 928-208-2211 or email [email protected]. He is our Tech Director and is here to help you!

9. If you have any questions regarding registration or any other information, please contact Nicole at 714-875-8200 or email [email protected]

We are very excited to get this race season underway! 

The annual Sea-Doo Boat Shows may have already started, however, there’s still plenty of time to get in on the action. See the complete line up of 2019 Sea-Doo models in a city near you. Check out the all new Fish Pro and the new gadgets and accessories that Sea-Doo has on offer. Get a hands on experience attending one of the boat shows. Test rides will be available. The boat shows are family friendly events with plenty of fun and food on offer for everyone.

The shows kicked off January 4 in Houston and will end at the Atlantic City Boat Show in New Jersey. The last day to catch a show is March 3,2019. A complete schedule is listed here. If you can’t find a show in your area, choose your Sea-Doo life by visiting a dealer show near you. People visiting the regional dealer shows are eligible to receive the exclusive boat show offers.

The highlights this year include the BRP Audio-Portable System, and LinQ accessories. The LinQ system and accessories are now available for all Sea-Doo platforms. Sea-Doo is also ringing in the new year with the Fish Pro. It is the latest addition to the Sea-Doo line up and the base price is $14,799. The PWC comes standard with many key features, including trolling mode, a bench seat specific to fishing, and a Garmin Navigation and Fish Finder. The list of add-on accessories is incredible. This machine can be totally decked out for the serious fisherman.

The usual suspects from 2018 will be in the show. Those categories include the Rec Lite, Recreation, Touring, Tow Sports, and Performance. All of the models have been updated to reflect Sea-Doo’s 2019 drive to take their machines deeper into the watercraft industry.

While at a show listen to the all new portable audio system, ride some new skis, and try out the LinQ system; no tools required, just snap and attach. Have fun! Also, make sure you fill out an entry form for a chance to win a 2019 Sea-Doo. If you don’t enter, you can’t win.