Bringing extra fuel to the lake or along with you for a long ride can be daunting. Even with the best in today’s portable fuel cans, refilling your tank while afloat (in those places were on-the-water fueling is permitted) or on the shore can often be a messy experience. For those stand-up riders, this experience is all too common, as replenishing your ski’s spent tank happens quite often while you’re enjoying the day with friends and/or family. Nobody wants spill-over and cutting off the flow of fuel before it bubbles over isn’t as easy as you think.
Simply point the swivel-mounted spout at the bottom of the can directly into your ski’s filler neck, and depress the trigger to control the flow of fuel! It’s really that easy. And when your tank starts to fill to the top, release the trigger. No more spills on your ski, the beach, into the water, on your trailer or even on you!. The SureCan is 100-percent American made and can be purchased for 2.5- and 5-gallon sizes, and also is available for Diesel and kerosene applications.
Lastly, the SureCan is also one of the most awarded products we’ve had featured on The Watercraft Journal, earning the “Most Innovative New Product” Award 2014 by The National Hardware Show, “Retailers Choice” Award Winner 2016, Edison Awards Silver Winner 2016, Lawn & Garden/Outdoor Living “Best In Show” Award Winner 2016 and featured on DIY Network’s “I Want That” show. Expect to sure more from SureCan in the coming weeks and months as we make this amazing product part of our regular repertoire.
With the 2016 IJSBA World Finals completed, it looks like Yamaha prevailed. In nearly every class that a Yamaha Watercraft participated in, they won a title. Titles were won in Women’s Runabout, Pro Runabout Stock, Pro Runabout Spec and Pro Runabout Limited. These classes are not easy and it showed that Yamaha’s Research and Development team has created many different crafts to suit all of their racers needs.
With Chris MacClugage and Abdullah Al-Fadhel having record-breaking years aboard their Yamaha FZR WaveRunners, they were able to win gold this year. It had been a long year but winning was all that mattered. MacClugage dominated the closed course Pro Runabout Stock class and was accompanied on the podium with Al-Fadhel and Aero Aswar.
Dean’s Team Racing gained more recognition with Al-Fadhel racing in the Pro Runabout Spec and winning the world title. This established him as the “one of the best riders ever to compete on the International stage,” according to Yamaha’s press release.
Shante Bukes, Yamaha Racer in the Women’s Runabout was the champion this year. While this is a predominantly male sport, the women are turning in some fantastic times. Mohammed Burbayea came out as the Pro Runabout Limited Champion.
As many of you have heard, the 2017 GP1800 is definitely going to give the FZR a run for its money and be chasing it for new titles. While there is most likely going to be a few FZR’s at the starting line next year, Yamaha’s Race Director Scott Watkins is very excited to see how well the GP1800 will perform in the closed course racing that Yamaha has dominated for so many years.
Yamaha had a terrific year and would like to thank everybody who has helped the Yamaha Racers get to the top of the podium!
Havasu isn’t the mecca of personal watercraft racing for just any reason. Dreams are made and crushed all in one week’s time. Nothing can compare to a year’s worth of work that leads to the jubilation of a world title for anyone in the personal watercraft racing community, but there also many fires fueled for the next season by missed opportunities. If there was one word to describe the racing in the past week at the 35th annual IJSBA World Finals in Lake Havasu City, Arizona it would be “electric.” Electric because of the importance placed on a one weekend shot at a world title.
In the ski classes there was a triple log jump to navigate which humbled many competitors. In Pro-Am Ski Stock, a familiar face stood on the top after Moto 1: Mike Klippenstein from Canada. He has been a staple at World Finals for much of its 35 year history. Marten Manni Saku from Estonia took second in the first moto and looked to keep Klippenstein honest in Moto 2 on his quest for a world title. But it wasn’t enough, because in Moto 2 Saku finished third and Klippenstein got the win. This gave Klippenstein another world tile to add to his mantle with Saku in second. Rounding out the top three and playing spoiler in Moto 2 was Bousselmon LLias Brueller from Belgium making it an all-international top three.
Sport GP – a class that was for the most part dominated throughout the year by Broward Motorsport’s Sam Nehme – turned into one of the best battles of the week. After being T-boned earlier in the week in Sport Spec, Nehme shook off some injuries to put in a flawless Moto 1 and grab the victory. Moto one had a three-way battle all along that went back and forth between Andrew Bezan, Tyler Hill and Denny Janeway. After a big battle, Moto 1 ended up with Bezan, Hill, and then Janeway, respectively.
The finishing sequence was very important because in Moto 2, Nehme once again pulled the holeshot but as the race went on, his injuries caused him to fade allowing Hill to make the first pass and grab the Moto 2 victory. Bezan also got by Nehme and grabbed second. Janeway, in a mad dash to secure a podium spot, got by Nehme at the end but it wasn’t enough to get him on the podium. Hill’s big time performance landed him on the top spot and secured the world championship. In second it was Bezan and third was Nehme.
Pro-Am Runabout Stock turned into a Yamaha display of power. The Top 6 spots all went to Yamaha watercraft but that didn’t mean there wasn’t some drama in finding out who finished where. All-time watercraft legend Monster Energy rider Chris MacClugage out of Naples, Florida, decided this is the class that he would make his mark on for the week. In Moto 1, after a bad start, Macc moved through the pack methodically on his way to a huge win. Just behind him was young superstar and fellow Dean’s Team rider Aero Aswar out of Indonesia; following him was another Dean’s Team rider Abdullah Al-Fadel from Kuwait.
In Moto 2 things would shake up a bit and add some intrigue to the podium for the overall. Al-Fadel grabbed a big Moto 2 win beating a second place Macc in a upset with Yamaha rider Brian Baldwin playing a bit of a spoiler finishing third. In a bit of strategy to oust Macc from a first overall, Al-Fadel attempted to slow him enough to permit Baldwin to pass, giving the Kuwaiti the win. The plan failed, and after tallying the finishing scores, Macc stood on top and added another world title to his resume, with Al-Fadel falling just short in second place. Aswar finished up the podium with a very respectable third place finish.
In what was widely regarded the most exciting class of the week, Pro Ski put on a show. The triple log jump crushed some championship dreams for more than one rider in this class. Last year’s champ Jeremy Poret out of France had one thing on his mind and that was to repeat. He came out of the gates in a fury and grabbed two early moto wins to start his weekend off quickly. His consistency was not mirrored by the rest of the class which led to some serious battles. Moto 1 log jump victim was Hidden Trails/Judge Motorsports rider Jimmy Wilson, who broke all three motor mounts after a tough hit on one of the log jumps.
After that bad luck, Wilson used the log jumps to his advantage passing multiple people and looking like he was the only that had seen a log jump before. This lead the way to a Moto 2 and 3 third place overall but wasn’t enough to compensate for the bad luck in Moto 1 to get Wilson on the podium. Shotaro Kokumun from Osaka, Japan was the only other rider to have two Top 3’s in the three moto format, with a second in Moto 1 and a huge Moto 3 win. Quinten Bossche from Belgium turned in a seventh, second, fourth on his quest for a podium. After some big time moto math, Poret once again reigned supreme with Kokubun in second and Bossche in third overall.
As for the indisputably fastest class of the weekend – Pro Runabout Open – a repeat championship was once again on one rider’s mind. Gyorgy Kasza out of Hungary looked to repeat and continue the Sea-Doo domination of this class. Kasza did things that were almost superhuman while making more than one outside pass on the famous front straight horseshoe turn and that ignited the crowd into a frenzy. Kasza did not disappoint on his way to two moto wins and another championship. After a solid Moto 1 for class favorites James Bushell and Dustin Farthing, ski issues removed them for the running in a podium spot.
As for the Sea-Doo domination of the class it was in full effect in Moto 1 with two Kawasaki’s and one Yamaha rounding out the last three spots. Mohammed Burbayea out of Kuwait had some amazing holeshots on his was to a third and second place finish respectively in the two motos giving him second overall. Jun Ikoma from Japan used consistency to earn himself a third place finish in the prestigious class.
Upsets abounded in Runabout GP, as a world championship was just out of reach for Dustin Farthing, who merely needed to finish Moto 2 mid-pack to best UK’s James Bushell. His and several other breakdowns (including Gyorgy Kasza) rearranged the podium with Waleen Alsharshani in first, James Bushell, and Erminio Iantosca rounding out in third. Pro Freestyle was a sight to behold with tricks never before seen on flat water being dished out by surf rider Mark Gomez, and the UK’s Jonathan Kavanagh filling his entire routine in nearly one single unbroken procession of tricks. Fatefully, the title went to Lee Stone for a third time, with Japan’s Taiji Yamamoto in second and Kavanagh in third.
Overall, the week was a success for many riders while others look towards next year. We look forward to a great 2017 and cant wait to see what that brings.
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35th annual quakysense IJSBA World Finals results (Top 10 per class):
Novice Women Ski LTD: 1. Thidapach Srivaurai, 2. Anna Glennon, 3. Morgan Jones, 4. Camilla Herfindal, 5. Casey Leech, 6. Trinity Klecker, 7. Meg Conroy, 8. Laura Trevizo, 9. Reanna Wilson, 10. Kori Zabala; Expert Vets Runabout: 1. Pancho Marjak, 2. Antonio Claros, 3. Chris Saxon, 4. Adrian Wilson, 5. Leonel Morelli, 6. Enrique Chia, 7. Eidner Rainer, 8. Anthony Radetic, 9. Eric Senko, 10. Pichet Settura; Masters Ski Stock: 1. Yukiko Kume, 2. Deri Attica, 3. Alejandro Playan, 4. Gerry Wong, 5. Marshall Brown, 6. Scott Benson, 7. Michael Prodanovich, 8. Robert Hyde, 9. Aaron Sanchez, 10. Take Ohara; R/A Naturally Asp Stock: 1. Tyler Hill, 2. Abdulrahman Al Omar, 3. Eduardo Lopez, 4. Nawaf Al Farhan, 5. Dylan Puglisi, 6. James Alamillo, 7. Zaid Al Zaidi, 8. Brad Rickaby, 9. Barak Al Qabandi, 10. Bill Wilson; Novice Ski Stock: 1. Kadidit Teeraprateep, 2. Salman Alawadhi, 3. Chaudic Rivarola, 4. Paul Harding, 5. Colin Raisig, 6. Kyle Disney, 7. Davi Prado, 8. Preston Matzdorff, 9. Harry Robinson, 10. Trinity Klecker; Amateur Runabout 800 LTD: 1. Thipmongkol Khemart, 2. Abdulrahman Al Omar, 3. Tapatarawat Josannusont, 4. Kevin Nitschke, 5. James Alamillo, 6. Bart Muerrens, 7. Jonathan Rivera, 8. Nawaf Al Farhan, 9. Larry Letke, 10. Ryan Willows; Novice Runabout Stock: 1. Feetu Rajajarvi, 2. Ali Allanjawi, 3. Pichet Settura, 4. Enrique Chia, 5. Kelly Church, 6. Jason Lester, 7. Jonathan Ariel, 8. Bendrioch Badr, 9. Kristiyan Kirov, 10. Thanarit Sathauorn; Novice Ski LTD: 1. Theo Beaumer, 2. Kadidit Teeraprateep, 3. Christopher Steenbock, 4. John Gasperone, 5. Pasha Kolotovkin, 6. Duane Bascom, 7. Laura Milone; Novice Runabout LTD: 1. Abdulrahman Al Omar, 2. Zaid Al Zaidi, 3. Kristiyan Kirov, 4. Feetu Rajajarvi, 5. Antonio Claros, 6. Jonathan Ariel, 7. Jason Lester, 8. Jordan Lilley, 9. Kevin Sullivan, 10. Raymund Dela Vega; Classic Ski 2 Stroke LTD: 1. Anna Glennon, 2. Ryan Mifflin, 3. Scott Benson, 4. Branden Edwards, 5. Todd Valentino, 6. Jeff Wright, 7. Lauren Conroy, 8. Billy Shaw, 9. Tyler Riibe, 10. Lauren Jones; Am Runabout 1000 SS: 1. Attapon Kunsa, 2. Ekachon Kinachansjlp, 3. Teerapong Khunjeng, 4. Jonathan Rivera, 5. Tanapat Thipprapai, 6. Larry Letke, 7. Kevin Sullivan, 8. Permpon Teerapatpanich, 9. Robert Clowe, 10. Cory Dickson; Expert Ski LTD: 1. Jesper Hermansen, 2. Dardillat Valentin, 3. Maximiand Martinelli, 4. Bousselmon Ilias, 5. Deri Attica, 6. Tasahong Saenguthai, 7. Robert Langley; Expert Runabout LTD: 1. Marcus Jorgensen, 2. Supak Settura, 3. Teera Settura, 4. Matt Brunt, 5. Eidner Rainer, 6. Jonathan Ariel, 7. Holdin Stockman, 8. Ian Jensen, 9. Thaweephol, 10. Gergely Jaranyi; Masters Ski Open: 1. William Haig, 2. Daniel Martinelli, 3. Troy Armstrong, 4. Dave Davidson, 5. Matt Legerski, 6. Shigeharu Yamamoto, 7. Yuji Shiroki, 8. Graham Leeh, 9. Steven Chestolowski, 10. Aaron Sanchez; Amateur Runabout Spec: 1. Travis Zielasko, 2. Ali Allanjawi, 3. Daniell Wagner, 4. Pancho Marjak, 5. Biondi Sebastien, 6. Abdulrahman Al Omar, 7. Yahya Rammah, 8. Zaid Al Zaidi, 9. Jason Lester, 10. Holdin Stockman; Amateur Ski Lites: 1. Kole Cramer, 2. Sultan Alhammadi, 3. Vegard Liseth, 4. Goncalo Rodrigues, 5. Viljar Berntsen, 6. Phil Segers, 7. Gabe Hooper, 8. Oliver Liseth, 9. Colin Raisig, 10. Salman Alawadhi; R/A Naturally Asp Limited: 1. Nawaf Al Farhan, 2. Zaid Al Zaidi, 3. Renee Hill, 4. James Alamillo, 5. Jasem Alrujaib, 6. Eduardo Lopez, 7. Barak Al Qabandi, 8. Gergely Jaranyi, 9. Fabio Incorvaia, 10. Robert Gladecki; Amateur Vets Ski LTD: 1. Gerry Wong, 2. Billy Shaw, 3. Steven Chestolowski, 4. Kim Richardson, 5. Flyin Brian Smith, 6. Vesa Salonen, 7. David Fekete; Pro Am Ski LTD: 1. Mike Klippenstein, 2. Curtis Pitman, 3. Kacper Kania, 4. Tim Ottesen, 5. Jesper Hermansen, 6. Bousselmon Ilias, 7. Glenn Powell, 8. Marten Manni; Junior Ski 13-15 Stock: 1. Marten Manni, 2. Kadidit Teeraprateep, 3. Theo Beaumer, 4. Davi Prado, 5. Viljar Berntsen, 6. Gabe Hooper, 7. Ben Morris, 8. Aj Luinstra, 9. Brady Courson, 10. Harry Robinson; Amateur Vets Ski Open: 1. Peter Zernik, 2. Daniel Martinelli, 3. Rick Trevizo, 4. Troy Armstrong, 5. Shigeharu Yamamoto, 6. John Gasperone, 7. Jeremy Poper, 8. Ian Benson, 9. Jason Carlton, 10. Matt Legerski; Pro Am Ski 2 Stroke Lites: 1. Tayne Lemon, 2. Phil Segers, 3. Mike Klippenstein, 4. Mike Wendricks, 5. Vegard Liseth, 6. Goncalo Rodrigues, 7. Quinten Bossche, 8. Ulrik Berntsen, 9. Benjamin Scharff, 10. Curtis Pitman; Pro Am Runabout Spec: 1. Abdullah Alfadhel, 2. Teera Settura, 3. Aero Aswar, 4. Chris Saxon, 5. Aqsa Aswar, 6. Waleed Alsharshani, 7. Mohammad Al Baz, 8. Supak Settura, 9. Yahya Rammah, 10. Roland Soos; Amateur Freestyle: 1. Justin Sylvain, 2. Evan Krefski, 3. Vaclav Zacek, 4. Hassan Abudawood, 5. Luke Stocks, 6. Taylor Kress, 7. Albert Van Heijningen, 8. Michael Demauro, 9. Kelsey Albert, 10. Michael Bevacqua; Expert Runabout Open: 1. Mohammad Al Baz, 2. Jonathan Ariel, 3. Marcus Jorgensen, 4. Adrian Wilson, 5. Dan Silva, 6. Leonel Morelli, 7. Ryan Smith, 8. Roland Soos, 9. Andros Lutt; Amateur Ski Open: 1. Kole Cramer, 2. Daniel Martinelli, 3. Yoann Tollemer, 4. Kacper Kania, 5. Maurin Raphael, 6. Mateo Juarez, 7. Nuttakorn Pupakdee, 8. Blake Wicklund, 9. Curtis Pitman, 10. Jeremiah Marino; Amateur Rec Lites: 1. Jon Hoffer, 2. Tapatarawat Josannusont, 3. Tanapat Thipprapai, 4. Andrew Bezan, 5. Abdulrahman Al Omar, 6. Bart Muerrens, 7. Vandersteegen Dennis, 8. Bendrioch Badr, 9. Pasi Vuorela, 10. Attapon Kunsa; Junior Ski 13-15 Lites: 1. Theo Beaumer, 2. Kole Cramer, 3. Salman Al Awadhi, 4. Gabe Hooper, 5. Sultan Alhammadi, 6. Davi Prado, 7. Viljar Berntsen, 8. Oliver Liseth, 9. Carson Hughes, 10. Preston Matzdorff; R/A Naturally Asp Open: 1. Brandon Warner, 2. Tapatarawat Josannusont, 3. Fabio Incorvaia, 4. Josh Janeway, 5. Jon Hoffer, 6. Nawaf Al Farhan, 7. Zaid Al Zaidi, 8. Abdulrahman Al Omar, 9. Barak Al Qabandi, 10. Robert Gladecki; Pro-Am Runabout LTD: 1. Mohammed Burbayea, 2. Eric Francis, 3. Mohammad Al Baz, 4. Marcus Jorgensen, 5. Waleed Alsharshani, 6. Leonel Morelli, 7. Ian Jensen, 8. Jonathan Ariel, 9. Cory Rarick; Junior Ski 10-12 Lites: 1. Mattias Reinaas, 2. Julien Beaumer, 3. Corban Farnley, 4. Nantawat Singurai, 5. Abdalla Alhammadi, 6. Dag Martin, 7. Jake Pearce, 8. Revin Harris, 9. Haden Skellett, 10. Dominic Cannady; Pro-Am Ski Stock: 1. Mike Klippenstein, 2. Marten Manni, 3. Bousselmon Ilias, 4. Claudio Rivarola, 5. Alejandro Playan, 6. Steven Chestolowski, 7. Justin Treder, 8. Vegard Liseth, 9. Tim Warner, 10. Jesper Hermansen; Ski Open Slalom: 1. Shotaro Kokubun, 2. Toshi Ohara, 3. Rui Sousa, 4. Tera Laho, 5. James Wilson, 6. Tiago Sousa, 7. Jeremy Poret, 8. Ulrik Berntsen, 9. Brock Austin, 10. Villat Vincent; Sport Spec Slalom: 1. Thipmongkol Khemart, 2. Tapatarawat Josannusont, 3. Ekachon Kinachansjlp, 4. Abdulrahman Al Omar, 5. Mohammed Burbayea, 6. Hunter Dunn, 7. Kelly Stone, 8. Derek Lofftus; Runabout Open Slalom: 1. Gyorgy Kasza, 2. James Bushell, 3. Jun Ikoma, 4. Dustin Farthing, 5. Mohammed Burbayea, 6. Erminio Iantosca, 7. Mohammad Al Baz, 8. Waleed Alsharshani, 9. Marcus Jorgensen, 10. Permpon Teerapatpanich; Ski Stock Junior 10-15 Slalom: 1. Salman Al Awadhi, 2. Viljar Berntsen, 3. Kadidit Teeraprateep, 4. Dag Martin, 5. Julien Beaumer, 6. Nantawat Singurai, 7. Theo Beaumer, 8. Mattias Reinaas, 9. Tallon Chambers, 10. Mitchell Farnley; Pro Am Runabout 1000 SS: 1. Nopphadon Sapmunsaem, 2. Teerapong Khunjeng, 3. Jayme Cheney, 4. Danai Viviyasahakit, 5. Larry Letke, 6. Eric Lagopoulos, 7. Permpon Teerapatpanich, 8. Cory Dickson, 9. Attapon Kunsa, 10. Robert Clowe; Sport GP: 1. Tyler Hill, 2. Andrew Bezan, 3. Sam Nehme, 4. Denny Janeway, 5. Aaron Dellinger, 6. Glen Jung, 7. Johnny Smith, 8. Justin Laczynshi, 9. Tony Martinez, 10. Tommy Bonacci; Vintage Ski: 1. Michael Prodanovich, 2. Tommy Bonacci, 3. Mark Gomez, 4. Wyland Reden, 5. Michael Demauro, 6. Jason Tebbutt, 7. Cory Vancleave, 8. Chad Zeman, 9. Aaron Sanchez, 10. Becky Cooper-Powell; Pro Freestyle: 1. Lee Stone, 2. Taiji Yamamoto, 3. Jonathan Kavanagh, 4. Mark Gomez, 5. Jace Forest, 6. Tanner Thomas, 7. Justin Sylvain, 8. Jason Widdes, 9. Chris Anyzeski, 10. Jason Bleasdale; Junior Ski 13-15 LTD: 1. Salman Al Awadhi, 2. Marten Manni, 3. Theo Beaumer, 4. Carson Hughes, 5. Brent Disney, 6. Oliver Liseth, 7. Troy Van Niekerk, 8. Reanna Wilson, 9. Harry Robinson, 10. Aj Luinstra; Pro-Am Runabout Stock: 1. Chris MacClugage, 2. Abdullah Alfadhel, 3. Aero Aswar, 4. Brian Baldwin, 5. Pancho Marjak, 6. Yahya Rammah, 7. Brad Rickaby, 8. Teera Settura, 9. Phil Pope, 10. Travis Zielasko; Junior Ski 10-12 Stock: 1. Tallon Chambers, 2. Julien Beaumer, 3. Peyton Chestolowski, 4. Abdalla Alhammadi, 5. Corban Farnley, 6. Mattias Reinaas, 7. Nantawat Singurai, 8. Dag Martin, 9. Haden Skellett, 10. Stevie Bascom; Vintage X2: 1. Daniel Ortega, 2. Masao Ikeda, 3. Greg Sommers, 4. Doug Wolff, 5. Charles Sims, 6. Steven Girling, 7. Jackson Rod, 8. Brian Toline, 9. Lauri Ortega, 10. James Gagnon; Women Runabout: 1. Shante Bukes, 2. Tammy Rarick, 3. Renee Hill, 4. Ildiko Vasari, 5. Evelyn Managan, 6. Leslie Nadeker-Adams; Pro-Am Women Ski LTD: 1. Julie Bulteau-Poret, 2. Kazuko Mukai, 3. Thidapach Srivaurai, 4. Yukiko Kume, 5. Lauren Conroy, 6. Tracey Lathwood, 7. Morgan Jones, 8. Anna Glennon, 9. Sophie Perrin; Pro Runabout: 1. Gyorgy Kasza, 2. Mohammed Burbayea, 3. Jun Ikoma Funabashi, 4. Waleed Alsharshani, 5. Eric Francis, 6. Craig Warner, 7. Phil Pope, 8. James Bushell, 9. Dustin Farthing; Pro Ski: 1. Jeremy Poret, 2. Shotaro Kokubun, 3. Quinten Bossche, 4. Toshi Ohara, 5. Brock Austin, 6. Villat Vincent, 7. James Wilson, 8. Tiago Sousa, 9. Tera Laho, 10. Yoann Tollemer; Endurance: 1. Mike Klippenstein, 2. Aero Aswar, 3. Yahya Rammah, 4. Ali Mohammad, 5. Aqsa Aswar, 6. Ahmed Al Dawas, 7. Dean Harrison, 8. Zaid Al Zaidi, 9. Filipe Filipe, 10. Barak Al Qabandi
Back in June, The Watercraft Journalshared the news that Arctic Cat Inc. had won a massive multi-million dollar lawsuit against Bombardier Recreational Products Inc. (BRP) over their “controlled thrust steering system” patents. Originally, Arctic Cat was awarded $15.5 million in damages over the patent lawsuit. Shortly after, the jury ruled that because the patent infringement was done willfully, BRP was ordered to pay triple the damages in the amount of nearly $47 million dollars! That’s not where the hurt to BRP’s pocket book ends though.
In August, Arctic Cat Inc. also put in a request to the courts for supplemental damages claiming that because BRP had sold around 5,000 patent infringing Sea-Doo units since the original court verdict. This request for damages totaled $1.5 million dollars. It was granted on August 12th, according to a report in American Snowmobiler.
With that decision, the court also ordered both companies to sit down and negotiate a royalty rate for future sales of infringing Sea-Doo units until the expiration of the 545 patent. A royalty amount of $102.54 per unit was given by the courts as a basis to negotiate off of. Arctic Cat Inc. had requested that the court set the royalty rate, but that request was refused with the courts explaining that it was better for both companies to negotiate themselves.
Now that the dust in the pits has settled and the waters of Lake Havasu have calmed, people are just starting to get back into their regular daily duties as “respectable” members of society. So while trailers are being unloaded and loads of laundry being washed, many are waiting for the full recap and results from this past week’s 2016 IJSBA World Finals. While The Watercraft Journal will have its full report in a day’s time, we do want to congratulate our friends at Dean’s Team for an absolutely stellar showing.
As per our most recent publishing, multi-time World Champion Chris MacClugage took home the overall in Pro-Am Runabout Stock aboard a Dean’s Team-built, Broward Motorsports/Monster Energy-supported Yamaha FZR. But Chris was not alone in his victory and was joined on the podium by two other Dean’s Team racers Abdullah Al-Fadhel and Aero Aswar. In a celebratory post on Facebook, Dean’s Team own Dean Charrier wrote:
“Congratulations to Chris MacClugage for winning the Pro Runabout Stock World Title at the 35th Annual IJSBA World Finals jet ski Competition at Lake Havasu City, AZ on his Dean’s Team Yamaha! It’s always great working with Macc and watching him race as he keeps proving he’s the best to ever do it. Congrats to Abdullah Al-Fadhel and Aero Aswar for rounding out the podium finishing 2nd and 3rd on their Dean’s Team Yamahas! All three racers ran hard every moto and stepped up the pace in the most biggest and most competitive runabout class of the week.”
That means that Dean’s Team Yamahas swept all three podium positions in Pro Runabout Stock class at IJSBA World Finals, with MacClugage taking the title, Al-Fadel taking silver and Aero Aswar bringing home the bronze. Yet, for the latter two racers, these weren’t their only titles. The Dean’s Team racers dominated Pro-Am Spec class, with Abdullah Al-Fadhel in first, Aero Aswar in third and Aswar’s younger brother Aqsa in 5th. Additionally, Travis Zielasko crushed it in Amateur Spec taking first, and impressively, Jeff Dyckowski claimed World Championships in Vet Box Stock, Pro-Am Limited and Pro-Am Box Stock.
The title of this article undersells the absolute dynasty that the Sea-Doo RXP-X holds over the Pro Open IJSBA World Championship. In its sixth year in a row, the RXP-X has swept the title from any other contender. Moreover, the RXP-X has almost dominated the Pro GP class for the past six years, making it the runabout of choice for the world’s fastest, most aggressive racers bar none.
Hungary’s György Kasza and Waleen Alsharshani of Qatar brought the heat to the Pro Open and Pro GP classes, respectively. In Pro Open, Kasza was not the only Sea-Doo racer, but was joined by both Mohammed Burbayea of Kuwait and Jun Ikoma Funabashi of Japan, who also piloted RXP-X’s through the finish line ahead of a field of the world’s most impressive runabout contenders.
Here’s the press release issued earlier today: The Sea-Doo X-TEAM continued the domination of world finals watercraft racing, claiming 11 championships*, nearly double that of the closest competing brand. György Kasza of Hungary continued to build the Sea-Doo RXP-X watercraft dynasty with his repeat win in the premier Pro Open class bringing the total in that class to six years running. Kasza was joined on the podium by RXP-X mounted racers Mohammed Burbayea of Kuwait and Jun Ikoma Funabashi of Japan for a Pro Open clean sweep for the Sea-Doo X-TEAM.
Also adding to the dynasty is the sixth consecutive PRO GP championship win with Waleen Alsharshani of Qatar, taking the top spot on his Sea-Doo RXP-X followed by fellow X-TEAM riders, James Bushell of the UK and Erminio Iantosca of the US filling out the podium. The event, attended by the top riders in the world, proved the dynasty of performance dominance lives with the Sea-Doo 300-HP watercraft models. The 2017 Sea-Doo RXP-X 300 and RXT-X 300 come equipped with a new ROTAX 1630 ACE engine, that together with the new Ergolock system, allows riders to enjoy more performance, confidence and greater control to push limits even further.
It’s a terrifying reality, but some accidents you simply don’t walk away from. Thankfully, two European racers, Johan Johansson and Marcin Senda sustained only relatively minor (non life-threatening) injuries during a high speed impact at the start of Moto 1 of the UIM-ABP Aquabike Grand Prix of Liuzhou.
Of the two, Senda walked away uninjured with Johansson suffering four broken ribs. The 42-year-old is currently mending in a Liuzhou hospital “for further precautionary scans and supervision” according to UIM’s media outlet, before being permitted to fly home to Gothenburg, Sweden in a few days.
The collision between three runabouts piloted by Mattia Fracasso, Marcin Senda and Johansson, occurring during the race’s “high speed rolling start.” Fracasso was shown clipping the back of Senda’s runabout which caused it to veer “violently into the side of Johannson,” according to UIM.
“The impact launched machines and riders skyward with Johansson immediately taken off the water to be assessed by Dr Pija Sumer and the on-site medical team, and then transferred to hospital. Senda and his badly damaged machine were towed back to the pits, with Fracasso able to continue in the race.”
Thankfully, all three racers involved will be back in competition soon enough with Johansson requiring a few more weeks before being able to suit up again. Until that time, new machines are being built and tested.
There’s a reason why you don’t tug on Superman’s cape. Nor should you ever pull the mask off that old Lone Ranger. And you never, ever mess with Macc. Chris MacClugage’s 19 World Championships prove that the Broward Motorsports/Dean’s Team/Factory Yamaha racer is a force to be reckoned with this year, and especially during the Pro Stock Runabout races at this year’s IJSBA World Finals.
Macc met some resistance on his path to world domination aboard his Stock class Yamaha FZR SVHO WaveRunner, particularly during the second moto of the class’ two day weekend. Viewed from the back of fellow racer Pancho Marjak, Macc’s white-and-blue FZR (with the neon yellow #46 on the hood) can be seen closing in on Marjak’s tail more than once. In one daring move to overpower the Helsinki, Finland native, Macc not only closes in, but literally runs up and over the back of Marjak’s ski.
While nothing to get too wound up about, Macc did address his fellow racer (and friend) in a post on Facebook stating, “Sorry Pancho Marjak, but it was great to race with you again. Next time don’t use so much brake!”
Much of Marjak’s moto can be seen below including the hair-raising start where several racers nearly parked their machines on Marjak’s swimstep. But Macc’s persistence and dogged determination is what earned him the points overall win for his sponsors, which shared in his celebration.
It is with great pleasure to have been the editor of Personal Watercraft Illustrated when we published Taylor Curtis (now of TC Freeride fame) on his honeymoon in Tia’apu when the daring freerider rode his custom built ski into the crystal blue waters of a 12-foot-high barrel on the cover. Curtis’ daring and his wife’s talent at snapping the pic gave us one of the magazine’s best images of what the perfect blend of surfing and jet skiing can accomplish.
Unfortunately, opportunities like that don’t come together often. In a segment called “Sequence of The Week,” ZigZag Magazine published a series of sequential images showing a monster swell pounding on the KwaZulu-Natal (a province of South Africa) shoreline, and a lowly Sea-Doo Spark daring to stick it in the greenhouse, so to speak. Pilot Sipho Ngwane charged the barrel and was photographed by Neil H Photography, but Ngwane wasn’t up to the challenge.
As the story goes, this was Sipho’s first time at tow-in, towing-in surfer Quinton Shabalala. Quinton is shown in the sequence (found by clicking here) above the wave and out of harm’s way, choosing not to ride it after all. Apparently Sipho wasn’t able to avoid the barreling wave, and attempted to steer clear of it, instead getting stuffed deep inside and eventually pulled over the lip. It’s a heck of a sequence and definitely worth clicking the link to ZigZag to see it in its completion.
The love of being on the open water and creating lasting friendships is what our yearly trip from Long Beach Island, NJ to Ocean City, MD is all about. It’s 140 miles one-way and countless hours later we make use of our 3 day trip during the summer to cap off the joy of riding our PWC. It all started in 2009 with John’s adventurous nature. The pioneer has continued the tradition all these years. I joined this trip in 2010 with John and Nick, at which time Bar Bay Riders (Barnegat Bay, NJ) was formed. The following year, Alex joined us for the next adventure. John, Nick, Alex, and myself continue to spread the love of this sport by means of Bar Bay Riders.
Fast forward to 2013, the Northeast PWC group joined this trip. I’ve been riding with this group since 2009 and try to join as many trips that they have planned for the year as they always have a schedule of planned rides throughout year. As our group of riders has grown, so has the knowledge of staying safe and being prepared on the water to insure a trip no one will forget. Ed and Alan from NEPWC were a welcome addition to our group as they bring a lot to the table for the love of riding! Thanks to them, we decided to extend it to 4 days so as to enjoy our trip to the fullest instead of feeling rushed. (Or maybe as we get older we need more recovery time!) This year’s trip was by far the most epic ever.
Six riders left at sunrise from Long Beach Island, NJ, riding through the bays in NJ afforded the opportunity to be sheltered from the winds (or the total opposite). Luckily the winds were in our favor and the bay was as calm as one could wish for. We took a chance and shot out to the ocean at Little Egg Inlet to see if we could shave some time off the ride – so we could avoid all the intercostal slow/no wake areas. Bad move. Our moving average was probably closer to 10-15mph in the ocean.
We shot back into the bay at Absecon Inlet, Atlantic City, NJ and enjoyed the calm waters that the bay offered. We coordinated a meet up with 2 more skis in Ocean City, NJ to extend our riding family. The more skis in our group the better! Our last stop in NJ was Cape May before we crossed the opening of the Delaware Bay into the ocean. Crossing the Delaware Bay is roughly 25 miles of open ocean before hitting land again in Delaware. We remembered what the ocean was like and were not looking forward to this crossing at all! Steady 20mph winds out of the south meant we were riding directly into the angry ocean. Slow and steady we went. I’ve been through worse but this crossing was up in the Top 3 for bad conditions.
Luckily we all made it across with no issues and had a decision to make: stay in the ocean or tuck into the bay at Indian River Inlet near Rehoboth Beach, DE. No thought needed on that decision. We shot into the bay even though this route took us down the Assawoman Canal which is a 4-mile-long No Wake Zone. Riding 2mph-3mph for 4 miles. You do the math how long it took.
The tides were extremely low that week of the trip. We didn’t expect what happened in the middle of the Assawoman Canal that’s for sure. The water level was just above the calf/mid-calf in the middle of the canal for about 20 yards! Off the ski to push we went. It was barely enough water to push the skis at some points. Due to the low water a couple of skis ingested foreign material that required on the water surgery after we exited the canal.
We all came prepared for the worse expecting the best. Being 140 miles from home I better come with everything I could need to pull the intake grate (and pump as well) as to deal with small mechanical issues. After performing open water surgery and clearing the pump, off we went to our final destination, Seacrets Ocean City, MD. Nine hours and 140 miles later we tied up to the mooring stations and rested from getting beat up on the ride down.
The ride home was the complete opposite in terms of water conditions. All ocean riding back to Long Beach Island with the flattest, calmest ocean we could ask for. Barely a ripple of a wave. A perfect way to end this epic adventure and to have memorizes for a lifetime.
“Congratulations to Chris MacClugage for winning the Pro Runabout Stock World Title at the 35th Annual IJSBA World Finals jet ski Competition at Lake Havasu City, AZ on his Dean’s Team Yamaha! It’s always great working with Macc and watching him race as he keeps proving he’s the best to ever do it. Congrats to Abdullah Al-Fadhel and Aero Aswar for rounding out the podium finishing 2nd and 3rd on their Dean’s Team Yamahas! All three racers ran hard every moto and stepped up the pace in the most biggest and most competitive runabout class of the week.”
