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Video: CRT Racing Mourns Tragic Loss of Teammate After Fatal Accident

By
Kevin Shaw
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0

[Correction as of Monday, November 5th at 10:45am CST] Previous reports both here at The Watercraft Journal and those made by 7 News Miami (from whom we quoted extensively) were incorrect pertaining to the nature and results of the accident that claimed Manuel “Lito” Aladro’s life on Thursday.

Emergency response found Lito unresponsive, but showing no physical injuries. Rather, the cause of death was attributed to cardiac failure, particularly tragic considering both Lito’s age and physical fitness. CRT Racing’s own Carlito Del Valle stated that Lito was wearing a helmet as was his commitment to safety.

The red Sea-Doo RXT-X 300 shown in the video by 7 News Miami was that belonging to the riding partner accompanying Lito on the ride, who dove in to rescue the downed rider.

Obviously, this is a tragic loss and all of us at The Watercraft Journal want to express our condolences to Lito’s family and friends, and want to thank them for helping quickly correct this report, particularly as the original report improperly represents Lito’s commitment to safety.

[Original report published Monday, November 5th at 12:01am CST]

Late Thursday, word went out that famed top-speed PWC performance-tuning shop CRT Racing had lost one of its key tuners and team members to a fatal accident. According to 7 News Miami, “Miami-Dade Fire Rescue responded to the scene off Krome Avenue, about two miles north of Okeechobee Road after a jet ski rider fell off the watercraft and suffered severe head injuries, just before 5 p.m., Thursday.”

First-responders found Manuel Aladro, known as “Lito” to friends and the racing community, unconscious with several cuts to his face. The Sea-Doo RXT-X 300 he was riding was filmed still idling nearby, the lanyard still attached to the handlebars. Lito was loaded onto a rescue helicopter and airlifted to Kendall Regional Medical Center where he was pronounced dead a short time after arriving at the hospital.

A memorial service was held yesterday for friends and family, and a GoFundMe page has been launched to raise the money necessary to return Lito’s remains to his mother and wife in Cuba, which you can support by clicking HERE. Amid this tragedy, it bears recognizing that Lito had substantial experience riding incredibly fast machines, and yet suffered a horrible accident. Please, always wear the proper safety gear, always attach your PWC’s lanyard to your vest or person, and when possible, always ride with a friend.

Video: Krash Riders Display Aerial Superiority at Blowsion Surf Slam

By
Kevin Shaw
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0

Undoubtedly, there’s no company in the sport of freeride more dedicated to revolutionizing the industry than Krash Industries. In recent years, the company has not only developed and produced a series of lightweight and affordable skis for an entry price of $8,500, but has engineered its own super-efficient 2-stroke KV997 powerplant and introduced to the world the first turnkey freeride ski for $12,000. Heck, they’re even launching their own web series to watch the brand’s team riders.

So it comes as no surprise that at this year’s Blowsion Surf Slam that Krash riders Tom Scaccianoce and Ryan Savage took control of the waters of Pacific City to display their aerial wizardry. Krash Industries helped commemorate their performances with this cool video that’s already tracking nearly 8,000 views (and hopefully many, many more after this). Freeride is easily one of the most impressive and visually stunning forms of athleticism in the sport of jet skiing and these two are some of the best. Enjoy!

https://www.facebook.com/krashindustries/videos/496710444146842/

Video: Timelapse Blacktip Seat Cover Installation on Sea-Doo Seat

By
Kevin Shaw
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0

If left out to the elements, it won’t be long before your brand new watercraft’s seat will lose its luster and vibrant colors. That’s just a fact. No matter how much time and development the OE manufacturers put into developing new and advanced materials, if the owner doesn’t keep the ski covered, some degradation is going to happen.

Equally, contaminants like sunscreen, gasoline and even harsh cleaners can discolor and even leech out essential oils in the vinyl to keep it soft and pliable, resulting in cracking and tears. That’s why BlackTip Jetsports offers such a massive array of quality seat covers – not only to return the once-new look and feel of your PWC but also a chance to toss in a little personal flair.

Believe it or not, recovering a cracked, torn or discolored seat cover is surprisingly easy. We’ve shown you how to do it before. And thanks to BlackTip, installation instructions and tips are at the ready as well. Recently, they even published this video showing a timelapse installation of a new cover on the front and rear seats from a pre-2010 Sea-Doo GTX – illustrating that a new BlackTip cover can be installed after removing the old cover, or directly over the existing cover.

The latter is not ideal, because of fitment and increased chance of moisture penetration and collection, removing the existing cover is the preferred method. Yes, removing all of the staples can be tedious work, but beginning with a nice, clean working surface is always the preferred way to do things. So check out the video below and head on over to BlackTip’s webstore to see what patterns and colors would look best for you!

https://www.facebook.com/BlackTipJetsports/videos/307234416745359/

Video: Emerald Grand Prix Returns For 2019

By
Brice Leckrone
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0

Located literally on the Florida-Alabama state lines, the Flora-Bama Lounge and Bar will again be hosting the Emerald Grand Prix which is returning for the 2019 season.

This unique IJSBA-sanctioned event is geared toward younger, junior riders with the aim to expose the growing sport of personal watercraft racing. You can check out the full press release below and see the video teaser at ijsba.com.

https://www.facebook.com/EmeraldGrandPrix/videos/308822369932525/

The Emerald Grand Prix is returning in 2019 to that quintessential American landmark, The Flora-Bama Lounge and Bar. With dates booked in for Mar 15-17, The Emerald Grand Prix aims to grow jetski racing for junior riders as well as expose the sport to members of the military, in a professional, IJSBA sanctioned event over the St Patrick’s Day weekend.

The Emerald Grand Prix is all about providing opportunities for those who are curious about jetski racing. It is a great chance for seasoned jetski racers to warm up before national tour season kicks off but is also a unique chance for new riders to come along, give racing a go or even just see what it is all about. The Emerald Grand Prix committee has appointed several ambassadors who will be here exclusively for the event to mentor new riders, answer questions about getting into watercross racing and help guide new racers into the sport. Along with racing events, The Emerald Grand Prix will be hosting a Military Day, exclusive to members of the military, who will have the opportunity to get a glimpse and have a hands-on experience on our world class racing boats.

Often called ‘America’s Last Great Roadhouse’, The Flora-Bama consists of 6 bars in one and gets its name by being located close to the interstate line between Florida and Alabama. It is always bustling with frequent live entertainment (music 365 days a year!), it is even kid friendly (until about 6pm!) and has been mentioned in various rave reviews on USA Today, The New Yorker, Rolling Stone and the Huffington Post just to name a few.

With a stellar location such as this, even more talented and new racers than ever, and watercross experts putting on the anticipated race of the season, it is an event not to be missed.

For more information and to register, please visit www.watercrossworld.com

Video: Sea-Doo Celebrates Halloween With FishPro Trick-or-Treating

By
Kevin Shaw
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While the kiddies are preparing for a night of free candy and chilling thrills, Sea-Doo is offering up some thrills of their own with its all-new 2019 Sea-Doo FishPro 155. The only PWC designed specifically for the personal watercraft fishing enthusiast in mind, the FishPro is what we at The Watercraft Journal are thinking to be the next been game changer in the PWC industry. Effectively opening up the multi-billion dollar recreational fishing market to a mainstream, OE-built watercraft is already a hit with “jet anglers” in the Southern Hemisphere as the first shipments of FishPros have entered Australian and New Zealand dealerships.

We’re hard at work editing, trimming and mixing over 3 hours of footage from our exclusive test day on the FishPro 155 and will have an all-new episode of “Long Haul” reviewing the machine in two weeks’ time. Until then, the crazy ghouls at Sea-Doo have whipped up yet another spooky Sea-Doo snippet showing the return of the Frankenstein monster doing his best to land a tasty treat from a skeletal vulture. Landing his reward, ol’ Frankie drops the candy in the massive FishPro’s 13.5-gallon cooler – which by the looks of it, appears to be several cavities-worth of sugar!

https://www.facebook.com/SeaDoo/videos/1377005212436898/

Two Single-Place Trailers Become One Double: Cool Double Trailer Hitch Idea

By
Brice Leckrone
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12

So you bought two brand-spankin’ new personal watercraft sitting on a nice double trailer. Now your family and friends can go with you when you go riding. Well what happens when nobody is available to tag along or you simply want to go tear up the local waterway and blow off some steam by yourself?

In the past you would either have to unload one watercraft onto a rolling cart before heading to the boat ramp or take your chances that nobody will drool on your spare ski as it sits patiently in the parking lot.

Even worse, how about those would-be thieves who will surely take notice of your beautiful new ski sitting all by its lonesome self? Well now you don’t have to think twice because you can pick up this double/single conversion trailer posted by Robert Buduen of Florida PWC Riders.

This cool idea gives you the option of taking either one or two watercraft with you. You can check out the full description below.

2018 magic tilt Single/Double Combo Jet Ski Tr Magic Tilt, Single/Double Combo Jet Ski Trailer WOW! New product [that] we’ve put together a very competitive single aluminum trailer and built the conversion kit to mate two single trailers into a tandem. Standard features: fully grounded wiring, tongue jack, LED clearance lights [with] incandescent tail lights, plastic fenders, galvanized torsion axle with lifetime bearing system. Great look with hidden mounting hardware. Options include LED taillights, aluminum fenders, aluminum rims. For the customer that wants to pull one jet ski sometimes and two at other times here’s your chance. Easily stores in your garage. $2,000. For more information call 786-617-3237 Hablo Espanol.

Real Review: Slippery Breaker Wetsuit & Jacket

By
Kevin Shaw
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0

Just by glancing outside the office window, it’s easy to tell that Summer has been over for a while now. Northern states and our friends in Canada are reporting snowfall already (making the prospect of having to rake leaves this weekend seem not so daunting). What that also means is that many are quickly prepping their personal watercraft for a long hibernation as temperatures continue to plummet. But what about those who choose to brave the winter’s chill and continue riding? What about them? We at The Watercraft Journal typically find ourselves with little choice, as we publish new articles every day, Monday through Friday, all year long. We have to ride. It’s our job. So cold weather gear is just part of the package.

Unless you’re an avid gym rat or naturally blessed with stellar metabolism, wetsuits are not everybody’s cup of tea. They’re form-fitting, uncomfortable and often leave little to the imagination. We’ve had readers say, “I’d rather wear a pair of jeans and a down jacket before squeezing myself into a wetsuit.” Normally, we’d feel the same were it not for Slippery Wetsuits, one of the sport’s longest-running developers and manufacturers of PWC-focused wetsuits. We recently got our hands on their Breaker Wetsuit & Jacket combo and were surprised to find it both uniquely comfortable and even a little complimentary. Sure, we were quickly reminded to drop desserts from our diet, but the Breaker didn’t have us feeling naked as a jaybird.

In the realm of wetsuits, 2mm-thick neoprene isn’t what would be deemed a cold weather suit; but for most, a wetsuit is the last line of defense before wrestling into a rubberized dry suit. The Slippery Breaker is designed to retain body heat while not raising your core temp while active. Slippery has always kept its more active and athletic riders in mind, and the rest of us simply reap the benefit of large arm and neck openings for maximum range of motion without chaffing or itchy patches. That’s accomplished through flat-stitched seams that don’t rub and also protect those high-friction areas. Rather than other manufacturers who try to focus on gimmicky features, Slippery puts all of its focus into excellent molding and superior materials.

The heavy silk-screening or busy patterns is gracefully absent on the Breaker, giving a nice, vertical design to the wetsuit, which also helps us more self-conscious types. (Believe us, modeling a wetsuit to a worldwide audience is embarrassing enough.) While the wetsuit itself is cut into a john pattern, entry is made easy by a large “hook and loop” shoulder closure. The neoprene jacket fits snug and a little like a compression garment, drawing everything in (again, that’s likely not the intent but it helps). A single, large zipper runs up the center and is backed by a flap to keep from snagging chest hair (for you fuzzier riders). The collar is low and open at the throat. Although deceptively simple in its appearance, the attention to detail is noticeable.

The rubberized traction padding on the knees don’t necessarily provide any cushion, but do give some added grip, which we liked while riding our Ergolock-equipped 2018 Sea-Doo RXT-X 300. Standup ski riders will be all-too-familiar with the necessity of this added traction while climbing into the tray, particularly in deep water. Comfortable, confidence-inducing and protective, we’re frankly surprised at how much we enjoyed the Slippery Breaker Wetsuit & Jacket. Priced at $124.95, it’s an investment worth having particularly if you’re like us and planning on riding all season long. For the racer, range of motion is key and Slippery has it in spades.

RIVA Racing Rolls Out Full Performance Line For 2019 Yamaha EXR

By
Kevin Shaw
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0

You may not know it, but one of the most exciting new watercraft to hit showroom floors for 2019 is the radically retuned Yamaha EXR. Wanting to seriously make the “R” designation mean something, the newly minted EXR takes the already super-fun EX, shaves off an impressive 60-pounds, spools up the 3-cylinder, 4-stroke TR-1 EX engine to 110-horsepower, bolts in a top-loader intake grate and extends the prop back to give the lightweight go-kart some serious hook-up.

We’ve got an upcoming episode of “Long Haul” coming specifically on this machine, as well as a full-length feature review on The Watercraft Journal coming in a few weeks. But before that time, there’s something else to get you all revved up: RIVA Racing already has a full line of performance parts ready to go. That’s right! Wasting no time, RIVA went to work developing a EX Stage 1 Kit (remember, we already test rode that) that fits the EXR perfectly – including a Solas Yamaha Concord 144mm 12/17 impeller, a RIVA Free Flow Exhaust Kit, a RIVA Power Filter Kit, and a MaptunerX TR-1 bundle.

Now, considering that the EXR already comes tuned from Yamaha (over the 100-horsepower EX), we’re expecting an EXR tune to show up soon. But hey! That’s not all they’ve got! RIVA also whipped up a set of EX/EXR Pro Series Sponsons, a EX Ride Plate, an aggressive Top Loader Intake Grate, Mirror Block Offs, and a super-trick billet aluminum EX Steering System. There’s a lot of stuff there capable of seriously making the EXR a race-ready performer, as well as a buoy course contender and we’re excited to see starting lines filled with these new machines in 2019. Check it all out HERE.

Freestyle World Champion Lee Stone Undergoes Major Shoulder Surgery

By
Kevin Shaw
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0

Being a world championship-winning competitor takes its toll on the human body. World renown big wave surfer Laird Hamilton has broken his ankle so many times that the bones fused together after not healing correctly. Jet skiers are no different, and we’re sorry to hear that Lee Stone, fresh from winning his 6th IJSBA World Championship, recently had to undergo some severe surgery to repair damage done to his shoulder.

Regarding the top image, Lee Stone wrote, “This is one of my [favorite] shots from World Finals. However, this shows just 1% of the story. Behind the scene the blood, sweat and tears that goes into making this happen. Over the last several years I have pushed myself behind limits in order to try and bring you all innovating and previously thought impossible tricks. Unfortunately, all this comes at a high price. Leading up to this year’s world championships I was suffering a major shoulder injury and at times I questioned if I’d make it [through]; multiple times during training I dislocated my shoulder and with no other option than to put my shoulder back and continue to train if I wanted to win the championship.

“Tomorrow I’m in surgery having a shoulder reconstruction and a bone graft to repair the damage I did. I’m going to have a long road to recovery and it’s definitely not going to be easy but having that World Number 1 trophy to look at each day makes every paracetamol I had to take worth it! No matter what, I’ll be back on the start line next year ready to bring you some more crazy [stuff].”

That post was followed up by a second that earlier today, writing, “It’s been a rough few days but I’m back home and resting up! Surgery went well, slightly more complex than they thought but they were able to replace the damaged anchors and re attached the labrum successfully, a ton of stitches and a bone graft from my collarbone which they fixed with screws into my shoulder to [stabilize] the movement. I have 6 weeks in a sling with no movement then I can start physio [physical therapy].”

All of us at The Watercraft Journal are sorry to hear of Stone’s injury and wish him a very speedy recovery. Lee is a true champion both on and off the water and off. And for those who didn’t get to see what elevated Lee to superstardom at this year’s World Finals, watch the video below of his flatwater double barrel roll, below.

 

Lee Stone | Flatwater Double Barrel Roll

Case of The Mondays: Is This The Ultimate PWC Parking Garage?

By
Brice Leckrone
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1

A recent Facebook post caught our attention as it is a pretty unique idea. The video begins by showing a Yamaha FZR Waverunner as it is being lifted out of the water by an electric lift.

As the ramped lift continues to elevate the watercraft, its vertical motion transitions into horizontal motion as the watercraft is recessed into the housing unit. As the camera pans around, we immediately begin to see a whole new take on this video.

The situation becomes clear. We are not only dealing with an average PWC lift system, but an entire PWC storage phenomenon. It is essentially a parking garage for personal watercraft.

From what we can gather by the post, this appears to be at a marina located in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The elevated storage system is packed full of watercraft clearly designed to minimize the overall floor space needed.

The design concept has been around for years in mega cities around the world where cars and other storage items are placed in elevated unit spaces however this is the first time we have seen such an application applied to personal watercraft storage.

We imagine the design is related to a vending machine such that your watercraft has its own slot assignment. When that “parking space” slot is called upon, the robotic elevator arm knows exactly where to go to retrieve or store your watercraft. Simple concept, yet ingenious design.

https://www.facebook.com/100003153403623/videos/1830029870445442/UzpfSTE3NjExNDc3NTI6MjQ3OTAyNjk1ODgzNzY1/

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