[In the very first installment of “Join The Club,”The Watercraft Journal welcomes Julien Bedard from the Club Motomarine Montreal and there astounding 1,000 members! With weekly meets, monthly rides and some of the biggest events in Quebec, it’s no wonder they’re one of the largest groups in the sport! -Ed]
“My name is Julien Bedard and I am the administrator and co-founder of the Club Motomarine Montreal since its creation in 2014. The club is located in Canada, in the province of Quebec and has more than 1,000 members. More than 200 members are very active members and present at events and daily activities. There is a wide variety of personal watercraft in spite of the majority of BRP; old models, new, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Honda, Polaris, a couple of stand up jet skis.
“The river is very popular there are many boats, steamships, yachts, many islands, many small rivers, you can enter the old port of Montreal, Quebec, Trois-Rivière; you can go down to Lac Champlain and Ontario, its very huge. We offer a range of clothing and stickers as well as discounts for some retailers related to personal watercraft and photo/video experiences. We have a many videos on our Facebook page. We also have a nice forum filled with content and everyone can also follow us on YouTube and Instagram.
“For most of us, we often ride in the Saint-Lawrence River, east of Montreal, but the club is separated into three Facebook groups to facilitate travel and meetings all around the province. The club organizes a very popular meet every Friday night on an island on the St. Lawrence River. Make friends, eat some pizza, races on water, water sports, campfire, bring your guitar, your tam tam and bring your navigation lights because sometimes we go late.
“We have many events during the summer. Practically every weekend is busy. The Grand Prix of F1, crossing the Lachine Rapids, Sorelooza (the most popular meeting of the season), the ride with the RPQ, Flow Rider amateur races, and many others are becoming more and more popular years after years.”
If you’re a PWC riding club president, group and/or event organizer who regularly hosts rides and is looking for greater access to a larger audience of potential members, and would like to be featured in a segment of “Join The Club” please email 300-500 words about your group, a minimum of 3 high-resolution images, and hyperlinks to your social media pages to [email protected].
Sydney Sea-Doo Performance is proud to offer the brand new range of carbon fiber products designed in-house by Sydney Sea-Doo Performance. This beautiful lightweight product line is manufactured by one of Australia’s premiere carbon composite engineers who has 20 years experience working with some of the finest factory supercar and superbike teams, according to a piece published by ozpwc.com.
“When starting out this project, our goal was to manufacture carbon fibre products of the highest level,” says Sydney Sea-Doo owner James Masterton “this meant not only did they need to be lightweight but also structural. We wanted to produce the same quality as being used by factory race teams on two and four wheels and price was no option.”
It took more than four years of research, development, and testing on and off track before these pieces were available for use in building the 2017 Sea Doo RXP-X models, which are featured in the latest Sea-Doo catalog. Among the products listed are the “WF” hull series, which showcases the highest quality components and best Japanese woven fabrics available. Sea-Doo really upped the ante with its all new hand built carbon fiber line. The Sea Doo RXP line weighs in at close to 662 pounds fully loaded! According to Sea-Doo, this PWC is the ultimate racing craft.
Sydney Sea-Doo Performance showed off the entire new product line during UIM Aquabike World Championship Tour in Porto Cesareo, Italy and will continue to do so during the rest of the Aquabike tour. The Sea-Doo RXP-X is a fine looking machine with its beautiful sleek lines and precision craftsmanship; it’s obvious that a lot of forethought and care went into building it. Check out Sydney Sea-Doo’s Performance 2017 catalog in PDF format HERE.
It’s hard to believe, but Can-Am’s three-wheeled Spyder is a decade old! The innovative trike surprised all when first introduced, and now, celebrating 10 years of fun and thrills, Can-Am kicked off the festivities with a first-of-its-kind Homecoming Event and Gala welcoming Spyder owners from across the continent to partake in the celebration. In addition to the Valcourt, Quebec gathering, Can-Am also rung in the decade with the unveiling of three 10-year anniversary editions: the RT Limited 10th Anniversary edition, the F3 Limited 10th Anniversary edition and the F3-S 10th Anniversary edition.
“The collector models are a celebration of ten years of redefining the open road,” said Josée Perreault, Senior Vice President, Can-Am Spyder. “Since the beginning, Can-Am Spyder owners – including more than 100,000 today – have been passionate about the Spyder’s unique combination of wind-in-your-face exhilaration, together with the stability and peace of mind of its Y-shaped stance.”
Here’s the original press release:
Valcourt, Quebec, June 5, 2017 – This past weekend, BRP (TSX:DOO) welcomed nearly 3,000 Can-Am Spyder owners and guests from around the globe to its headquarters in Valcourt, Quebec, for a Can-Am Spyder 10th Anniversary Homecoming Event. It marked the largest single gathering of owners in the history of the brand, which launched in 2007.
Festivities kicked off with the unveiling of three special edition Can-Am Spyder models custom-designed for the milestone – the RT Limited 10th Anniversary edition, the F3 Limited 10th Anniversary edition and the F3-S 10th Anniversary edition. The commemorative models each feature premium jet black metallic and liquid gold satin colors, along with a beautifully-embossed 10th anniversary logo and stitching, a luxurious Can-Am satin gold logo, and exceptional new “Y” design wheels. These exclusive models will be built to order, and BRP has started taking orders immediately following the announcement.
“The collector models are a celebration of ten years of redefining the open road,” said Josée Perreault, Senior Vice President, Can-Am Spyder. “Since the beginning, Can-Am Spyder owners – including more than 100,000 today – have been passionate about the Spyder’s unique combination of wind-in-your-face exhilaration, together with the stability and peace of mind of its Y-shaped stance.”
Following the product unveiling, event attendees enjoyed VIP access to BRP’s award-winning Design & Innovation Center, its R&D facilities, the Can-Am Spyder factory and the world- renowned J. Armand Bombardier Museum. All of the weekend’s activities were socially-driven, including guided rides, celebrations and opportunities to meet like-minded friends.
“Celebrating this milestone with so many Can-Am Spyder owners was incredible,” said Josée Perreault, Senior Vice President, Can-Am Spyder. “For the past ten years, we’ve focused on empowering the masses to ride and explore the open road together. We welcomed people who were new to riding, experienced motorcyclists who’ve transitioned to the Spyder, women who’ve moved from being a passenger to the driver and much more. It was a true representation of all those who are passionate about the Can-Am Spyder.”
Thousands of people become Can-Am Spyder owners each year and make lifelong friends by either joining a Spyder owners’ club or simply riding and interacting with people on the road. Some of the many owners’ clubs around the world rode together to the Homecoming event, including cross-country rides across the U.S. and Canada.
Today, there is a Can-Am Spyder model for every lifestyle and definition of adventure. Since the first Spyder model, BRP has expanded its Can-Am lineup to cater to numerous riding preferences and needs. Find out more at www.canamspyder.com.
An article was recently published on aquabike.net concerning the injury-plagued Mickael Poret, a two time Aquabike World Champion from France. Poret was gunning for another world title this year when he took a fall in a recent race. The fall aggravated an old back injury and may have beached him for the season.
Here’s what he had to say about the incident: “I fell while competing and took a big hit recently and aggravated an old disc injury to my back and now I have squeezed a vertebrae which is causing me big problems down the back of my leg,” Poret said. “I am really not sure if I can start, but will see how it goes in practice and qualifying. For sure after these races I will need an operation.”
If Poret can’t make it to the opening races his title chances are out the window. The two time world champ was stoked prior to the opening race in Porto Cesaraeo. He switched from riding Yamaha skis, which to him were like runabouts after his riding experience on the new Kawasaki SX-R JetSki with it’s powerful 1500 4-stroke engine. With that said, he believes the ski will offer him much more power and stability no matter what the sea surface state is like.
Poret’s confidence was extremely high until the fall and re-injuring himself. A downtrodden Poret isn’t even sure he’ll make it through the next practice runs much less the qualifiers. We wish him the best!
Looking for some killer hats to keep you shaded and cool this summer? Love Hydro-Turf products? Hydro-Turf has exactly what you are looking for! Show your support with Hydro-Turf’s new trucker hats. They have just been added to their already huge product catalog and have arrived just in time for summer! These hats look absolutely awesome and are guaranteed to look better on your head. They are available in a few different styles, sizes and colors and are sure to catch people’s attention.
These hats will be available on their website for purchase soon however if you want to get one soon, give them a call today at (714) 635-8429. Pricing hasn’t been announced yet however pre-existing hats on their website range from $10.00 to $15.00 so we figure they’ll be in the same price range!
RIVA Racing has been around for many years and has greatly helped this sport. They provide awesome gear, high-quality performance parts and have a excellent customer service center that is always able to help. They are now offering a limited time offer that you do not want to pass up on. Now with every purchase of a Solas Performance Impeller it will come with a free Impeller tool. In purchasing a new impeller you are giving your personal watercraft a new set of shoe, allowing it to pick up some lost speed. There is no doubt that the first ride you go out on, you will feel a huge difference.
Solas Impellers are made from very high quality, high strength stainless steel, offer a burst of low-end power and to see higher numbers in doing high speed runs. Solas has been a industry leading for performance impellers thanks to a dedicated employee staff that loves this sport.
RIVA Racing prides itself in offer free shipping on every purchase over $150 so you will be guaranteed to not pay any shipping or handling charges with your new impeller purchase.Installing a new impeller can allow you to gain more top end speed, have a better hole shot or overall have better performance. Whatever your preference is, be sure to check out RIVA Racing and don’t miss out on this great opportunity. Remember, when installing your new Solas Performance Impeller you will need a Impeller tool so what better time is it to take RIVA Racing up on this offer and make this riding season one to remember.
This might not be the right venue to discuss it, but it’s been a relevant point for a while: professional racing no longer dictates the current of the industry. In tracing the behavior of nearly half a million annual readers, we’ve noticed that racing coverage, albeit popular, pales in appeal, attraction and retentive interest than nearly anything else we publish. Case in point: because of extraneous circumstances, we weren’t able to provide coverage from the second round of Pro Watercross racing two weeks ago, and we witnessed no undulation in readership. When a review of a gas can can eclipse that of our IJSBA World Finals coverage, we know for certainty that racing is no longer the “taste maker” in our industry. Consumer interest is.
In fact, that is why The Watercraft Journal excels over those few remaining publications who focus so tightly on racing coverage. The wide appeal simply isn’t there. The recent upswings in riding groups, social media organizations and those peddling lifestyle over competition are seeing marked growth over racing venues and starting lines. Sure, we’ll never argue that a leisurely 3-hour cruise is nowhere near as exciting or captivating as standing on the shore watching a full lineup of Pro Open standups roar off of the line, but that’s not the point we’re arguing. When it comes to producing a publication with significant and widespread appeal to the largest audience of personal watercraft enthusiasts it’s a matter of “the less helmets, the better.”
Yet, here’s where things get sticky: performance enthusiasts love to know what the latest go-fast performance parts used by the professional racers are. They want all of the performance of a Pro Limited or GP Runabout without the actual talent or fitness to properly compete on them. We’ve ridden side-by-side with 50-year-olds touting the very best parts from RIVA Racing or Dean’s Team, who by at intents and purposes couldn’t cut a buoy if $100 bill dangled in the balance. While racers will sneer at this prospect, this fact is no different than millions of motorcycle, UTV and automobile enthusiasts. The point is to be able to balance that line and provide readers the information they crave, and companies with the clients they need.
May 2017
May 2016
On The Road to Half a Million Annual Readers
While projections are often always wrong, most well-informed projections (based upon recorded trending and consistent experience) are usually directionally sound. In following the steady growth of The Watercraft Journal over the past five months, as well as our previous 3 years of publishing, maintain that we will reach half a million unique readers this year alone. That is a number never before achieved by any personal watercraft (PWC) publication. Be it a digital or printed publication. More importantly, when a digital magazine within this industry continues to draw in new and return readership every single month since launching its launch in 2013, it’s uncanny. More and more PWC enthusiasts are coming to The Watercraft Journal, and why? Because we provide this industry a level of professional and consist publishing unlike any other.
May 2016
Total number unique readers: 28,672*
Total number of articles read: 57,120
Percentage of new readers: 69.7%
May 2017
Total number unique readers: 35,809*
Total number of articles read: 65,270
Percentage of new readers: 63.8%
*This number is considered equal to an individual sale of a single copy of a magazine.
Quantity In & Quality Out
While there’s certainly something to be said for raw, natural talent, it’s ability, commitment and professionalism that elevates The Watercraft Journal above the rest. There is no more reliable source for top quality, professionally-written magazine content in our industry, particularly one that produces said content each and every single weekday. Regurgitation, cut-and-paste and blatant plagiarism are the trades of our competition, and it’s a sorry state of affairs when we are compared to such persons. Nevertheless, we pride ourselves on delivering on our promises, satisfying the requests and needs of our advertising partners, and providing our readers with the most satisfying and entertaining content available today.
News articles published in April 2017: 27
Feature articles published in April 2017: 10
Total feature word count: 9,478 words*
News articles published in April 2017: 24
Feature articles published in April 2017: 13
Total feature word count: 12,889 words*
*When this number is translated to print publication standards equals a 118-page magazine. Please note that this number does not include an average of two uniquely-written news articles published daily.
Always Active & Ever Present The Watercraft Journal doesn’t require any sort of download, or paid subscriptions or even a password to log in and access our industry-leading content. That’s right! We’re 100-percent free to you! And in addition to publishing our content across more social media outlets – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and weekly newsletters – we also are actively producing quality video content unique to our written articles on our YouTube channel. That’s right, we not only maintain the most active PWC magazine in the world, but also its own YouTube channel wherein new videos are uploaded every 5-6 weeks. If they’ve got a computer, a laptop, tablet, smartphone or Apple Watch, they can read The Watercraft Journal
May Facebook likes: 22,701
Top Five countries: United States, Australia, France, United Kingdom, Japan
Looks Like I Picked The Wrong Week…
We’re not going to go so far as to say you must be sniffing glue to not be advertising on The Watercraft Journal already, but we are going to question how you expect to reach the most potential customers without access to our half million readers. Don’t be satisfied with buying a few digital ads on a forum or a luckluster Facebook campaign, begin a program with The Watercraft Journal and start an active relationship with a media outlet that is working together with you to get your company out in front of more eyes than anywhere else in the personal watercraft industry. And we both know that there are still plenty of people that you’d like to reach. So again, if looking to grow your clientele, reach a broader audience of would-be customers and spread the word about your brand, product and services, let The Watercraft Journal be your resource and email [email protected] about advertising your company in the single-most popular PWC magazine today.
Last week the city of Nazaré, Portugal hosted the 3rd stop of the Freeride World Championship. Nazaré is home to beautiful beaches, world-renown seaside resorts and home to one of the best stops along the freeride tour. With swells being known to beat world record heights each year, every freerider yearns to go out and ride at this location.
This year’s event went well but the swells were not what they were hoped to be. This made it difficult for the riders as they had to pull every trick out of the bag and show the judges what they could do on small swells. The crowds expectations were met when they were able to see Abraham Hochstrasser/Bruno Jacob, Joel Barry/Brandon Lawlor, Hugo Goirre/Gil Beurnier and François Lavergne/Mark Gomez battle it out for the quarterfinals.
After a great performance by each rider, the semi finals were set and the Brazilian Bruno Jacob, the Ivorian Hugo Goirre and the Americans Brandon Lawlor and Mark Gomez were left but only one would be crowned champion. It was a sad sight as the famous local rider, the “flying Mexican” Abraham Hochstrasser was unable to perform completely because of mechanical problems. After the semifinals, it was the Americans who were left to battle it out. Ultimately, Mark Gomez was able to secure the victory.
All of these riders are extremely thankful for their sponsors as it allows them to ride some of the industry’s leading equipment and be able to travel around the world to do the thing they love most and help grow this sport.
It’s always great to share something you love with others who just seem to get it. Others who also get ride withdrawals. Others who wait for rides season with child like anticipation, others with the same passion for jet skiing. Others who also look for a safe way to explore and to do what one might not normally do by ones self. That’s what the watercraft community and ride groups offer. It’s a place for everyone to get together and just ride. It’s awesome to see new riders who come out for the first time and get hooked on what some of us take for granted and to see others who were thinking about getting out of jet skiing have an epiphany and their passion reignited while riding in new areas with fellow cool people. It’s also special when local businesses see the value in it and support the ride community with cool events. So to kick off our season, Beach Boulevard Motorsports, or BBMS for short, sponsored a jet ski Poker Run.
For those that may not know, a poker run consists of several stops along a route where you gather playing cards to make up a poker hand. The better your hand the better your chances to win prizes. The event was actually postponed due to Hurricane Matthew, which also forced several local restaurants to temporarily close from storm damage. We figured what better way to get back in the saddle that to pick up where the hurricane left off. This time the weather still had something to say and we had to reschedule the event two weeks later due to a storm. This time when the event day finally came the weather report showed 15 to 25 mile an hour winds with gusts in the 30 plus mile per hour range. At this point we decided to take advantage of that earlier favorable conditions and ride!
As this was our first ride of the season, we had many new riders who along with us were very eager for this event. The ride itself was from Jacksonville to San Augustine, which is about 30 miles each way. With a 10 AM launch time and other riders coming from other ramps in the general area, we headed south towards Saint Augustine down the Intracoastal Waterway. The initial wind and chop gave way as we got to sheltered waters and made for better conditions that we had imagined. After our first rider checkpoint and after a quick headcount, we were off to our first Poker Stop at a ramp near Aunt Kate’s. Aunt Kate’s is another great place to eat on the Intracoastal, but be careful of fishing lines! The public ramp provided a dock for the skis to swoop in and for riders to collect to their first card.
The next stop was at Conch Island near the Vilano Inlet. The stop also served as a place for riders to get off and stretch their legs. After a quick recharge, jokingly too quick for some, it was a short jog to the Vilano Boat Ramp which also provided another easy access dock for the riders to get their third card. Fellow group riders who didn’t mind paying it forward for others to enjoy manned the stops and they helped to make the event awesome for others. At this point, everyone’s poker hands were shaping up and it was off to the fourth stop. The weather picking up and our lunchtime being upon us, stops 4 and 5 were consolidated to make time for lunch. No worries there as Andy, the owner of BBMS, made sure that all had a full hand before the drawing.
Beach Boulevard Motorsports sponsored a fantastic event at the local hot spot Beaches in Vilano. Beaches is a rider favorite for its spacious beaching area, great food and awesome atmosphere. The Beaches in Vilano management also had over 10 loads of sand brought in to replenish their beach area from the past few storms and to ensure everyone’s skis won’t get banged up. How’s that for service! The BBMS crew had several of the 2017 watercraft for everyone to check out as well as sponsored all the food and prizes for the Poker Run.
We can’t say enough about BBMS and other businesses that show their support for the watercraft community. This was their first watercraft Poker Run, but they’ve done it many times with their motorcycle riders. We call that progress! One of the JJR riders, Ben had trip kings which ended up being the winning hand. There were many other prizewinners even down to a pair, so everyone had a shot. You really can’t lose when you’re hanging with friends and making new ones. After lunch and with the weather picking up, it was time to get on back. All riders know the ride back is usually the best part and with the weather picking up, we was about to get our fair share of it. This is where group riding soars, as it’s an all for one and one for all mentality, which made for great riding.
In group riding, we also ride for each other, making sure everyone is OK, accounted for and that no one is left behind. Adverse rides that we make it through as a group creates memories and camaraderie. The new riders were literally baptized and many felt that anything better in the future would be a breeze! How’s that for a winning attitude! On the home stretch and with the ramp in view, everyone was still all smiles. The first group ride of the season was in the books and what a time it was.
Even with two storms that caused it to be rescheduled and with unfavorable ride day weather, the riders showed up strong! Many were glad to be riding whole again with riders they haven’t seen in a while and some were glad to have made their first successful ride with their new group. Ride leaders were glad everyone was in and accounted for, but really it was more than that. It’s why we catch ourselves with that jet ski grin and doing it with others that get it, makes it even better. So here’s to great rides, great friends and great times along the way! Let’s Ride!
If you are a fan of Chris Lauber, we have the eBay auction for you! Chris Lauber was the premier jet ski racing photographer, having been around since the late 1970s. Chris was never without his camera and quickly became well known for his talented camera skills. If you didn’t already know, it was Chris and his brother Mark that were the ones that founded the USJSBA (United States Jet Sport Boating Association) in the early 1980s before the IJSBA (International Jet Sport Boating Association) was formed and absorbed them.
Over the years, Chris has built quite the collection of photography prints, signs and banners among lots of other racing memorabilia. Recently, Chris has decided to downsize his collection and take to eBay with a lot of his stuff. Some of the stuff he has and is selling you will never find again! It’s definitely worth looking at!
Back in January, he listed some of his incredible photos on eBay. Now, he’s listed a set of 8 World Cup WaterCross Tour race programs from 1991-1998. These programs are from the IJSBA Super Jet Ski. Priced to sell at just $40 (plus shipping), these programs are from when the sport was at its highest peak. The World Cup Tour was staged entirely in Florida and was second only to the IJSBA National Tour in terms of prestige, prize money, pro racers, and television coverage. These programs are in excellent, brand new condition! According to the ad, this set of race programs captures the sport in all its glory from that period and feature;
• Gorgeous color photography of the sport’s stars
• Tour schedule each year
• Historical stories, facts, and photos
• Champion Title Contenders
• Lists of champions from prior years
• Ads of the day
• Welcome letters from Florida Governor Lawton Chiles
• Improvements in racing, including introduction of the split course design, computerized scoring, contingency award programs, etc.
• Specialty awards like Pro Rookie of the Year Awards, Factory Team Awards, the Rusty Simpson Novice of the Year Award
In addition, this set of programs feature profiles of defending World Cup champions: Chris MacClugage, Tina Martinez, Tim Judge, John Stevens, Lloyd Burlew, Tera Laho, Bo Dupriest, Dustin Farthing, Jeff Jacobs, Dan Fitzgerald, Kelly Kurpil, Rick Roy, Frank Romero, Jojo Ludwig, Emmett Hood, Chris Mays, Karen Contryman, Mark Rodgers, Matt Alligood, Team RIVA Yamaha, Team Greater Yamaha, Team Westcoast Sea-Doo, Team Rocketship Racing, Team Butch, Team Kawasaki.
To make the deal even better, Chris will also include the 1998 Calendar of Champions that features his race action photography!
