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.
That, and you can represent Kawasaki well before you take your new SX-R to the water thanks to Kawasaki’s new 2017 Apparel Collection! With pages upon pages of new items featured in the collection, you can browse the new digital catalog live on Kawasaki.com. It’s got everything from men’s and women’s, kid’s wear; gifts; officially licensed JetSki brand vests, items from the 3 Green Lines Collection as well as that from the World Superbike Collection – because let’s face it: if you’re gonna support Kawasaki, it’s a pretty good bet that you love their motorcycles too.
Before going forward, let’s take a minute and look back at how we got here, shall we?
Just two years shy of the Kawasaki JetSki’s 40th anniversary, 2011 marked the last production year of the SX-R 800. The 370-pound (dry weight), 7-foot-long SX-R (which was considered large for the time), with its two-cylinder, two-stroke pumping out a respectable 80-horsepower, made the SX-R the most stable and powerful two-stroke standup available. Unfortunately, politically-connected environmentalists eventually outlawed the commercial sale of the SX-R 800 in California and other progressive States, wounding sales and deflating the company’s enthusiasm to continue the ski that had gone unchanged for several years.
Last October, The Watercraft Journal was informed via sources inside Kawasaki that a new hull was coming for 2017. That’s it, just “a new hull.” Well that, and it would be “something to get people excited about jet skiing again.” That’s all we got. Then, in January of this year, we caught wind of a hush-hush meeting between Japanese brass and a major OE parts vendor where the first images of an all-new SX-R JetSki were shared. We already had a strong inclination that the SX-R was coming back, but this all but confirmed it.
By late summer, rumors continued to fly – accelerating from just “swirling around” to a Category 5 hurricane. Then, we published the reveal video, and things went to DEFCON 1. It was official: Kawasaki was bringing back the SX-R. So what on earth spurred Kawasaki, with so much ground to make up in the PWC market, to make this play? Although unofficial, we have an idea:
Surprisingly, very little was needed to make the new SX-R a reality, particularly as it uses many off-of-the-shelf parts. Take the engine for example: Directly lifted from the STX-15F, the new SX-R is powered by same digitally fuel injected 1498cc four-stroke, four-cylinder engine already in use for the past 13 years. Even its 60mm throttle body employs a mechanical throttle cable – no fly-by-wire here, folks. The oil collector/separator and composite resin-type intake manifold (taken from the supercharged 310X) are existing factory bits too. The waterbox though, is a narrowed piece that runs inside of the tray’s left rail.
Once inspired by the Ninja ZX-14R, the tried-and-true 1.5-liter weighs a spine-snapping 208-pounds when fully dressed, and accounts for much of the 2017 SX-R’s (unconfirmed) 550-pound heft. Inside information had it that hopes of the new 998-pound, 1,000cc four-cylinder, four-stroke from the new Ninja H2 could be re-engineered in time to meet the tight timeline imposed by Japan. Unfortunately, the SX-R was destined to be revealed at the 2016 IJSBA World Finals, and the new engine simply wouldn’t be ready in time.
Nevertheless, the new SX-R produces a blistering naturally-aspirated 160-horsepower, exactly double that of the previous SX-R, making it “the quickest and most agile personal watercraft in Kawasaki’s lineup,” not to mention the fastest factory-built JetSki to date with an unconfirmed top speed of 63mph. Processing all of that horsepower into thrust is a slightly reworked intake grate and direct drive axial-flow jet pump. The grate is based off of the previous SX-R design but lengthened. The oval-edge, stainless steel, three-blade 148mm impeller is also pulled from the STX-15F, and the steering nozzle increased from 76mm diameter to 87mm and a total 102mm nozzle length.
The 2017 SX-R was birthed in a surprisingly short amount of time. According to sources inside Kawasaki, the new SX-R is in some degree, based off of a prototype first developed by trusted Kawasaki standup designers Minoru Kanamori and Craig “Fuzzy” Boyd nearly a decade ago; stating, “one day the Japanese pulled [the prototype] off of the rack, crated it up and shipped it off to Japan.” Once there, a hull manufacturer was tapped to create a hull that could handle the weight and power, as well as be easy to ride, yet “capable of carving through a competition buoy course.”
What resulted was a massive 8-foot, 8-inch long (a full 20-inches over the previous SX-R), 30-inch wide craft with a V-shaped hull to both accommodate the massive engine and allow for deep, on-the-rail cornering. Close up studio photography and action photos reveal a ski that rides high on the water on a deeply-straked hull that displays far more STX-15F family resemblance than that of the outgoing SX-R. Shapers even incorporated Kawasaki Splash Deflector (KSD) tiers into the nose to cut down on bow spray, akin to the Ultra. Due to its bulk, the SX-R not only features molded-in “tubbies” but near full-sized runabout rear sponsons.
The ski itself is incredibly buoyant, allowing IJSBA Hall-of-Famer Victor Sheldon to stand comfortably upright in the greatly enlarged 16″ x 34″ tray with the engine off, according eye witnesses. The tray itself has been modified somewhat, with a 5-degree downward slope, angling the rider forward towards the bars. Soft, rounded edges at the tray’s opening and deck fins have the same Hydro-Turf traction padding on the inside as the tray’s floor, making for softer, easier reboarding too.
Fuel capacity has been increased from 4.5 to 6-gallons, as the new engine is significantly more thirsty. Another carryover is the in-tank fuel pump and the voltage regulator being shared with Kawasaki’s Teryx SxS. According to Kawasaki, “the engine is mounted as low and aft as possible to help the hull penetrate swells and waves with less shock to the rider.” For newcomers to riding a standup, this level of stability, comfort and ability to soak up bumps and chop will be welcome. Although the large Jaguar-esque front fender flares bespeak that of a larger runabout, the Ebony/Jet White and iconic “Kawasaki Green” livery shouts “JetSki” from the rooftops.
The final direct “parts shelf” carryover is the use of the same handle pole as the JetSki SX-R 800, but with what Kawasaki calls “additional reinforcements.” The handle pole chin pad incorporates amber and red fuel and engine warning lights (respectively) to “inform the rider when the vehicle is low on fuel or if there is a problem with the engine,” although there is no actual analog fuel gauge. The SX-R employs a pair of anti-corrosion motocross-style handlebars and a slim handlebar pad. In the tray, there is a keyed magnetic ignition switch allowing the rider to check the fuel warning light when turned to the “ON” position. It also serves as a handy theft deterrent.
Believe it or not, the 2017 SX-R also features non-waterproof storage located under the handle pole, attached to the hood. The rubberized netting is large enough to store a tow rope, GoPro camera, emergency flares, or other items. Further details such as the estimated MSRP (our guess of $10,995 was thankfully too high – so maybe $10,499) will be revealed after the 2017 dealer meeting scheduled for November 13, 2016; moreover, the media won’t be able to personally evaluate the machine until early next year, so until that time, we will have to wait and see if the resurrected 2017 Kawasaki SX-R JetSki is the returning king of jet skiing, or the emperor’s new clothes.
We got a first-person inside look at Freestyle champion, Tanner Thomas’ pre-World Finals prep recently, where he said:
“After some long days working on seemingly endless projects, ideas and maintenance that I have encountered, I am able to sit down and be proud of my path, my team’s path and our progress this year. I am excited to carry on into the future in this crucial short amount of time left before I compete for the 2016 IJSBA World Finals. With my mechanic Hiro and my teammate Mark Gomez here in Lake Havasu, it’s about time to put all the pieces together from the year and make some magic happen!
“We have been working hard are are fully prepared for anything and everything that comes out way. Between with three of us here in Havasu we have seen most every last minute challenge you can imagine and we are prepared for them to happen now. We have made an awesome shop space in the house that we rented that is very well organized with all of our tools, parts, riding gear, exercise and stretching equipment. We have done it this year like never before and I am very proud of it. Myself and my team I feel represent the true professionals of this sport and hopefully all of our hard work will pay off in the results.
“Recently, I just set my ski up with special titanium bars built custom by AZ FMX Works that allow me to attempt the “Superman” backflip trick. A trick that I had played with before when I rode in the surf and had a bad experience years ago with. This time I had to learn it on a much more powerful jetski with much less time in the air. So far the results have been good. The ski is running strong and I am finding more and more small things to perfect my riding abilities in the chase for my best professional world class performance.
Now it is Wednesday and I would like to tell you that everything is perfect and that I am going to do great…
The reality is, I am tired, I am sore, with many bruises, cuts and pains. I have been on a strong healthy diet with supplements and things to aid with my body. I have never been in better shape in my whole life. But I am beat down. The good part is the next few days I am preparing my mind and body for everything that I am going to do and I will do my absolute best for myself, my sponsors, my friends and my family to perform like the professional that I am.
I am very proud of my team mate Mark Gomez and myself for everything he and I have gone through together recently. We have the most prepared we have ever been, thanks to our amazing sponsors but this has been a long steep road to run up. The best part is we have these few more days to dial it all in, I am ready to make them count. See you on the water for the “firework” show.
Back in August, The Watercraft Journal published the rumors of the new 4-stroke Kawasaki SX-R. The anticipation that has lead up to this moment has been huge and every watercraft enthusiast is dying to see the research and development that has gone into this revamped SX-R. While Kawasaki’s previous 2-stroke SX-R was a huge success and a great overall craft, they stop producing them in 2011. Since then, Yamaha has been the only major company still producing factory 2-stroke stand-ups.
Kawasaki will be officially announcing the 2017 4-stroke SX-R this Thursday, October 6th at 8AM (PST). This will be a huge day for Kawasaki and the stand-up riding community. They may even convert sit-down riders over to the stand-up side. The reveal will take place by the Kawasaki Semi-Truck near all the vendors at Crazy Horse Campgrounds and Resort in Lake Havasu City, Arizona. For the rest of the weekend, during the lunch hours, Kawasaki Team Racers Craig Warner and Minoru Kanamori will be running exhibition laps for the public to view.
If Kawasaki gets this right, they can see a huge increase in sales. They have been behind Sea-Doo and Yamaha in sales for many years now but with this reveal they could generate people to see the Kawasaki motor and see the different aspects that makes it stand out. With multiple rumors the new SX-R is sure generating a lot of attention.
And pay close attention to The Watercraft Journal as we have the world exclusive inside look at the SX-R and will publish at the same time as the reveal. So if you weren’t able to take time off work and head to Lake Havasu, we have you covered.
If fans are wanting to test ride the Kawasaki JetSki Ultra 310LX or Kawasaki JetSki STX-15F they will have the chance to by swinging by the Kawasaki Dealer and registering to test the demos. Registers ill also receive $500 in Kawi Kash.
“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.”
