Personal watercraft racing is commonly compared with motocross racing because that is where it was derived. During the 1970’s, motocross riders referred to it as mx on the water. They were also the pioneers of the sport of watercraft racing.
Still, there are no PWC’s exclusively designed for kids and there are no youth specific races in which to prepare them for the big leagues, so veteran IJSBA professional racer, Chris Hagset began the Junior Stars Program in 2007.
His idea was to provide the junior riders with knowledge that he and other pro racers gleaned from their years of competing. This would also help them grow the sport and give the up and coming generation of riders a smoother transition into the elite levels of racing.
The JR Stars Program has grown immensely due to the support from individual donors and companies within the jet boat industry. The program has become a staple of the IJSBA World Finals held in Lake Havasu, AZ in October of every year. Young riders from all over the world attend the event.
The program takes place on the starting line of World Finals where the youngsters are given an opportunity to grab priceless insight from their mentors. The kids learn about race prep, starts, strategy, fitness, eating healthy foods, sponsorship, and how to strategically use social media. It is an awesome program for everyone involved.
Yesterday’s JR Stars day at Lake Havasu offered a series of clinics, which were particularly informative as IFWA World Champion Mark Gomez walked the budding racers how to self-represent via social media, as well as other clinics on how to conduct an after-race interview (with IJSBA freestyle champion Jason Stoyer), and tips for mastering the starting gate with multi-time World Champions Mike Klippenstein and Josh Block.
If you are interested in attending or becoming a sponsor of the program, contact [email protected] or phone (928) 255-0230.
Whoa. If you were considering either purchasing, leasing or trading in your old watercraft for a new 2016 WaveRunner, then you’re in some serious luck. Yamaha is going full throttle in making it incredibly easy and affordable to take an all-new PWC. How? Through special financing on an exclusive Yamaha Card issued by Capital One. After opening your new Yamaha Card account, qualified buyers are eligible through 12/31/15 to capitalize on some serious savings.
If qualified and you’re looking for a new 2016 model, you could be eligible for 4.99%, 9.99% or 14.99% APR with minimum payments of either 3.01%, 3.20% or 3.44% of the purchase amount (based on your credit) until the purchase is paid in full. Now, if you’re in the market for a 2015 or older model still sitting at your local Yamaha dealer, then you could score a sweet deal (through your Yamaha Card) of 3.99%, 8.99% or 13.99% APR with minimum payments of 3.01%, 3.20% or 3.44% (on all new 2011-2015 WaveRunners – excluding V1 & V1 Sport).
So what happens if you’re just looking for something new but you just don’t have a lot of cash to drop on a FX SHO or that VXS you’ve been looking at? Well, eligible buyers can qualify for an incredibly low payment of $95 a month on select new V1 and V1 Sport models! Depending on your credit, you can qualify for an intro APR of 2.49% – that’s some seriously quality savings!
And don’t worry, Yamaha WaveRunners is continuing the industry’s only true Guaranteed Buyback program and one of the industry’s best watercraft leasing programs, for those who just aren’t sure if long term PWC ownership is right for them. There’s just a lot going on so check out Yamaha WaveRunners’ website for more info.
“The law of diminishing returns states that in all productive processes, adding more of one factor of production, while holding all others constant (‘ceteris paribus’), will at some point yield lower incremental per-unit returns,” so states digital info-dump Wikipedia. This constant looms over the heads of all companies, regardless of product, service or holdings. It is the point wherein doing the “same ol’ thing” no longer works anymore. Many are lucky, and can whether the storms of economic ebbs and floes without needing much change. Others live and die by the smallest twitch in the market. The personal watercraft industry is somewhat of an anomaly: although reticent to accept new technologies (ie. digital magazines), it’s enthusiasts have fully embraced them (ie. digital magazines).
Chances are, if you’re a manufacturer, a dealership or a custom shop within this niche industry, you’ve read the writing on the wall. Traditional print advertising yields little to zero result as so few would-be new customers subscribe to paper magazines. So you turned to Facebook (it’s free after all – well, to start that is), and that’s been good. Here’s the problem though, unless you’re aggressively pursuing, cultivating and feeding that Facebook/Twitter/Snapchat/Instagram/Google+ account, your reach will run out. Again, it’s the law of diminishing returns. So where to turn? The days of “build it and they will come” are gone. Today, we need to build it and take it to them. If you’re looking for fresh faces, you need to go to where the people are.
So where is that? Your best, easiest and most reliable source in this industry is The Watercraft Journal. No other outlet reliably produces more content, welcomes more new and returning PWC enthusiasts, and delivers more confidently on its obligations than any other magazine, forum or media outlet. Producing fresh, entertaining and informative magazine-quality articles each and every day, The Watercraft Journal has escalated to become the single-most popular personal watercraft magazine in North America (and is quickly zoning in on Australia) in just two short years. With nearly 1,000 articles published thus far, The Watercraft Journal also wields one of the largest catalogs of professionally-written “evergreen” PWC content on the Internet today.
You want your company to grow, to reach new and returning customers and a third-party resource to advocate and present your products. We at The Watercraft Journal want to continue to cultivate and support this intimate, niche industry and all those companies within it. This is a partnership ready to happen. Already over 20 companies have come to support The Watercraft Journal, and in return have been rewarded with high impact digital advertising, up-to-the-minute time-sensitive news posts, and intelligent and enjoyable feature-length content, all of which to direct its 200,000 annual readers to their storefronts. Let The Watercraft Journal be your partner and resource in helping grow your brand today. And here’s why:
September 2015
A Paradigm Shift In Trend
The above graphs might not mean much to the untrained eye, and that’s OK. What’s important to note is how September’s performance numbers stack up against August’s (which are compared below). Although more “users” or “unique visits” came to The Watercraft Journal in August, you’ll note that September’s readership read more articles and came back more often than ever before. Why is that? Well, there’s a multiplicity of reasons, but we wager its because no other publication was first or more thorough with some of the industry’s most important announcements, race coverage or product reviews. That always seems to be the case.
August
Total number unique readers: 33,396*
Total number of articles read: 79,334
Percentage of new readers: 63.5%
September
Total number unique readers: 31,502*
Total number of articles read: 81,373
Percentage of new readers: 55.5%
*This number is considered equal to an individual sale of a single copy of a magazine.
When Quality Matches Quantity
It’s important to note that in this day of immediacy that there is a reliable source for top quality, professionally-written magazine content that is published each and every single weekday. Pending a national holiday, you won’t see a day go by without new and uniquely-written articles from The Watercraft Journal. Providing coverage from the entirety of the personal watercraft industry – be it touring, fishing, racing, freestyle/freeride, or do-it-yourself tech – we bring the enthusiast the widest array of coverage possible. And we produce more sustainable content than any other publication, be them print or memory-sapping downloadable PDFs – both of which we don’t do.
News articles published in August: 22
Feature articles published in August: 16
Total feature word count: 13,899 words
News articles published in September: 21
Feature articles published in September: 17
Total feature word count: 17,261 words*
*When this number is translated to print publication standards equals a 136-page magazine. Please note that this number does not include an average of two uniquely-written news articles published daily.
Social Animals
As we’ve said before, 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. What that has done is make us the single-most popular outlet for PWC news, reviews, tech and coverage in North America. We’re the first source that people check (we know, we have the data to prove it). And with our Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and weekly newsletters, we bring our content directly to them. No waiting around for updates. No checking the mailbox. If they’ve got a computer, a laptop, tablet, smartphone or Apple Watch, they can read The Watercraft Journal
September Facebook likes: 14,438
Top Five countries: United States, Australia, France, United Kingdom, Canada
Changing Seasons
With the upcoming World Finals and the new 2016 models coming out, it also marks the slow closure of much of this continent prime riding season (yes, we know. All of you in Florida and California can still ride any time you wish. Quit rubbing it in). Yet, that didn’t stop The Watercraft Journal from growing during last year’s winter and it won’t for this year. In fact, this past January, February and March actually eclipsed 2014’s June, July and August! That’s an incredible indication of the power of this audience. 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.
The Watercraft Journal: Tell our readers a little bit about yourself, and about who first got you riding.
Wyland Reden: [I’m] 11-years-old, and lived on the big island of Hawaii for almost four years. I was in the ocean everyday during that time. My dad bought two 550 Kawasaki’s, he gave me the 1989 ski. By his mistake, he gave me the faster one! His was slow as molasses. Sometime at the end of 2013, we started riding at Lake Elsinore and Oceanside harbor.
WCJ: What got you interested in racing? Where and when was your first race? What class did you race? How did you do?
WR: My uncle Shaun used to race way back in the day. He gave my dad some buoys to help him learn to ride. But instead, it helped me more. My dad is new to the race scene. He grew up surfing and was a pro surfer back then. He is great in the ocean, surfs, SCUBA dives, freedives and all the other stuff, but struggles to keep up on his ski. He cuts buoys to try and stay in front of me.
My first race was at Lake Perris in the 2014 Jettribe West Coast series. My friend/coach, former world champion Mike Yellich (known as “Mauler”) wanted me to race the juniors, just to get a taste to see how I would do and to see if I would like it. He told me I would get smoked by them since all kids were racing 800s and they had a lot of experience – but study the lines they were taking. He was right. I got “smoked” but learned a tremendous amount.
WCJ: Why are you choosing to race vintage? Have you ever been on an 800? How was it?
Well, I saw the all the legends racing 440s and 550s on YouTube. I wanted to ride like them. All my favorite riders raced 550s. 550s are the most challenging skis to ride. They are not stable and very squirrely which makes them fun. Yes, I have ridden a couple 800s, and even a 950. I like them, they are much easier to ride, they turn on a dime, much faster and plow through any chop. They will be fun to race in the future.
WCJ; Who are favorite riders?
WR: I have watched and learned the most from videos of Jeff Jacobs, Mauler, Chris Fischetti, Chris MacClugage and Victor Sheldon. I’m a big fan of Aaron Geweski and Brock Austin, and look forward to seeing them race GP class at World Finals 2015. My teammates Brooks D’Antonio and Brian Holland are awesome riders and great mentors. I think they are going to do extremely well at Finals. But by far, Mark Gomez is my all time favorite, a legend in the making. He puts on the ultimate show! Shreds anything he rides. Always positive and in good spirits and a great role model for all of us. He is the huge reason why I and my friends are so much into this sport. We all want to ride like him.
WCJ: Tell us about your race boat, what do you like about it? Who works on it? Do you wrench on it?
WR: Last year my dad upgraded me to a 1991 Kawasaki 550 with a reed motor that he bought from a really cool family that races the 800s. They no longer used it so they brought it from Utah to Lake Havasu, and met us at Chris Fischetti’s race. I raced it that day. It has a few aftermarket parts, like a factory halfpipe and dual carbs. It sounds really cool. Dad worked on all my skis but struggled with the major stuff. Mauler helped my dad build my ski. Now Jason with BJ’s Performance does all my motor work. BJ’s builds race skis and incredible 550s.
WCJ: What lakes you like to ride at?
WR: My dad calls it “Leech Lake.” And yes, there are lots of leeches. It’s always an adventure. We have to 4WD back there. It usually takes us 25-to-30 minutes on dirt roads. There is a shorter way we can take though its super gnarly. My brother and I call it “Heart Attack Hill.” Its super steep with huge roots and rocks next to a cliff. My uncle followed us one time and he ripped off his running boards. One time my mom was with us and dad decided to take her that way. Holy cow, she cursed him the whole way.
WCJ: Who would you like to thank? Sponsors?
WR: I am extremely grateful of my parents, without them I wouldn’t be in this sport. My sponsors have been a huge help! Mauler has been there since the beginning helping with ski and coaching. BJ’s Performance, Jason is a great mechanic/rider he works on my motor making fast and reliable. Team riders Brooks and Brian are always giving me great tips and help with ski, Impros Impellers, Havasu Watercraft Escondido, IPD Graphics, Jet Renu, C-57 and Charles Sims, JetPilot, Aquanuts, and Mark Gomez. I am so thankful of these people! I would not be able to race without their help.
Normally, this is the sort of stuff you’d expect to hear coming out of Australia, but not today. Lieutenant Gregory Rose with the Sarasota County Beach Patrol received a call that an alligator was swimming alongside the South Jetty in Venice, reported Fox 35.
“I have been there 20 years out here and was the first time I was ever involved with,” Rose told Fox. He raced aboard a Yamaha VX WaverRunner to confirm the sighting. Although the alligator was approaching a populated area of beach goers, it appeared not to be pursuing prey. Rose said, “It was just kind of doing its own thing there. Wasn’t aggressive or anything.”
Rose acted to mitigate the threat, jumping from his ski to wrangle the ‘gator until animal control could relocate it. “They are pretty stealthy. You won’t hear them and unless you are looking you won’t know they are there,” Rose explained. And while its unusual to see an alligator in saltwater, Rose said they have had a few similar calls before.
The greatest achievements are often born out of direst of conflict. It is no secret that late last year’s divorce of Pro Watercross Tour from the IJSBA was a messy one, with racers unclear as to which series to compete in, whether AJ Handler would have a rule book completed in time and if the IJSBA would even have a National Tour. By the first two Florida rounds of the 2015 Pro Watercross Tour, racers and crews alike had a pretty clear idea that Handler and his staff were putting on a quality series.
So when the 2015 Broward Motorsports Pro Watercross World Championships Presented by Yamaha were announced for Sugden Regional Park in Naples, FL, many arranged their schedules accordingly. Racers like James Bushell, much of the Kuwaiti race team, and Chris MacClugage, who was the tour’s Pro Ski GP leader until Lake Hartwell, GA. Macc had fought back Dustin Motzouris until exacerbating a back injury while competing overseas, causing the 19-time World Champion to sit out the rest of the tour. For the Championships this past weekend, Macc returned to his hometown to snatch the Pro-Am Ski GP title and $5,000.
Understand that the inaugural event also saw the return of a substantial cash purse for the Pro-Am Ski GP, Pro-Am Runabout Open, Pro Freestyle and Sport GP classes – totaling $19,000. That with Sunday’s “Pro Show” to air on CBS Sports, had racers vying for both big money payouts and telecast celebrity. Before then, the World Championships hosted Junior, Novice, Amateur, Veteran and Masters classes with hundreds of racers competing for a crack at a Pro Watercross World Championship title.
Beginning with a fresh sheet of paper, Pro Watercross’ selection of Sudgen Regional Park, proved an immediate success. In discussing the location with The Watercraft Journal, 2015 Pro Runabout Stock champion Troy Snyder beamed, “I tell you what, Naples, Florida, has a great race site. [The] best spot we’ve been in many years. AJ made some great leadership additions to his staff and that really brought the other staff members to a higher level. With out a doubt the best pro weekend of racing I’ve see in years. The future looks bright for years to come.”
Equally, Stan Hightower who won 2015 Pro-Am Super Stock championship echoed Snyder’s praise of the venue, track and staff, “[The] race site [was] awesome, [the] course was challenging (technical on one side, fast on the other). The rules were used a lot. I had fun racing.” James Bushell applauded, “It’s great news [that] they will be racing there for the next 3 years, I look forward to next year when it will be bigger and better.” And Motzouris’ younger brother Tyron said, “I though the world championships were awesome and have a lot of potential. I really liked the venue and will definitely be back next year!”
Tyron flew in from South Africa to join his sibling and fellow Rockstar Energy/Kommander Industries/Burn/Villon teammates before charging the Pro-Am Ski Open class. He explained, “It was a really close race. We had a few less guys in Pro Ski Open but the level was really high with David Redinger, Brock Austin, and Dustin, and I was really happy to get the overall win in that class.” Despite Sunday’s flash thunderstorms that delayed a few motos, the talent on tap never wavered.
Hidden Trails Pro Watercross National Champion Erminio Iantosca was a shoe-in for the Pro-Am Runabout Open class. For the Sea-Doo/Jettribe/Hydro-Turf/RIVA Racing/Villon racer, the race was going well. “I hole-shotted Bushell, was out front and on the fourth lap, broke a steering cable,” Iantosca lamented. “I really had a chance of winning but those are some of the things that happen when you start making more and more power, so we will get it sorted and be back stronger for the next race.”
Those who were competing in both the World Championships and the IJSBA World Finals had to put in double duty. “My Dad busted his butt on my skis to make sure I had the best stuff I could possibly have,” Iantosca said. Sea-Doo applauded his efforts and congratulated the Pro Watercross Tour on its first World Championship event in Naples, Florida this past weekend and X-TEAM riders James Bushell and Cameron Frame for claiming the Pro-Am Runabout Open and Pro-Am Runabout GP championships, respectfully. Frame was challenged by Stan Hightower who also participated in several classes on Jeff Dykowski’s machine built by Kerry Hibdon.
“I had fun in Pro-Am Limited,” Hightower explained. “I came down the front straight side-by-side with Cameron Frame (whose Pro Runabout GP class was combined with Limited) probably running 75mph and took the three reds [buoys] almost side-by-side for the holeshot. I [also] ran Pro-Am Runabout Open as a fill-in rider and finished 4th. I won Expert Limited but got docked for missing a buoy on the start.”
Snyder, who struggled to juggle two racing series as well as with health problems throughout much of this year questioned whether 2015 would be his last. “I told Tim Judge and Bo Dupriest, ‘I’m not quitting. That’s not how I roll. The slugger is a fighter not a quitter.’ We made some changes on my RIVA Racing/Judge Motorsports/Hydro-Turf/JetPilot 2015 Yamaha FZR with some new props I had been developing, and BAM! I’m the 2015 Pro Watercross World Champion in Pro Stock.”
Those who arrived for the first annual Pro Watercross World Championships were also rewarded with some other perks. “It was cool having CBS Sports there. [It’s] definitely going to help grow our sport,” Iantosca concluded. “[We] had a sit down dinner awards banquet. [It was] nice.” As each winner was presented with a special trophy and congratulated each one on their achievement, Chris MacClugaged echoed the sentiment shared by all in attendance, “[It’s] how the awards should be.”
Sunday, September 27, 2015: Pro-Am Runabout Open – James Bushell, Cambridge, UK, Pro-Am Ski GP – Chris MacClugage, Lake Havasu, AZ, Pro-Am Runabout Stock – Troy Snyder, Bradenton, FL, Sport GP – Billy Dearman, Madison, MS, Pro Freestyle – Jason Widdes, Chicago, IL, Pro-Am Ski Open – Tyron Motzouis, Empangeni, South Africa, Pro-Am Women’s Ski Ltd – Bibi Carmouche, Phoenix, AZ, Pro-Am Runabout SS – Stan Hightower, Lindale, GA, Pro-Am Runabout BOX Stock – Billy Dearman, Madison, MS, Junior Ski 10-12 Stock – Haden Skellett, Port Charlotte, FL, Junior Ski 13-15 Limited – Matt Richuk, High Point, NC
Saturday, September 26, 2015: Amateur Freestyle – Jason Widdes, Chicago, IL,
Friday, September 25, 2015: Pro-Am Ski Limited – Bibi Carmouche, Phoenix, AZ, Pro-Am Ski Lites – Callaway Turner, Apex, NC, Pro-Am Runabout GP – Cameron Frame, Charleston, WV, Pro-Am Runabout Limited – Travis Zielasko, Lake Worth, FL, Women’s Runabout Limited – Shante Bukes, South Africa, Sport Stock – Sam Nehme, Cooper City, FL, Junior Ski 10-12 Lites – Haden Skellett, Port Charlotte, FL, Junior Ski 13-15 Lites – Matt Richuk, High Point, NC, Junior Ski 13-15 Stock – Matt Richuk, High Point, NC
Thursday, September 24, 2015: Amateur Ski GP – Jordon Carroll, Fowery Branch, GA, Expert Ski Limited – Pete Kuncinski, Largo, FL, Expert Runabout Limited – Victor Nolan, Expert Runabout Open – Jeff Dyckowski, Rydel, GA, Runabout N/A – Rob Greenwald, Marietta, GA, Throwback Thursday Classes: Runabout 800 Superstock – Tim Ducat, Belleview, FL, Vintage X2 – Gary Burtka, Rolling Meadows, IL, Vintage Ski 550 – Clay Barbee, Houston, TX
Tuesday – Wednesday, September 22-23, 2015: Amateur Runabout Box Stock – Rashed Aldawas, Kuwait City, Kuwait, Amateur Runabout Stock – Juan Rada, Medellin, Colombia, Amateur Runabout 2-stroke Limited – Robert Sayah, Naples, FL, Amateur Runabout 1000 cc – Robert Sayah, Naples, FL, Amateur Ski Lites – Callaway Turner, Apex, NC, Novice Runabout Limited – Rashed Aldawas, Kuwait City, Kuwait, Novice Runabout Stock – Rashed Aldawas, Kuwait City, Kuwait, Novice Ski Limited – Laura Milone, Delray Beach, FL, Novice Women’s Ski Limited – Laura Milone, Delray Beach, FL, Masters Ski GP – Kirk Britto, Bradenton, FL, Runabout Lites – Paul Green, Toronto, Canada, Veterans Runabout SS – Jeff Dyckowski, Rydel, GA, Veteran’s Ski GP – Pete Zernik, Sacramento, CA
Maybe it’s because we’ve become jaded from spending too much time on the Internet, but we’re a little dubious of this “super ski.” Unveiled publicly at the Frankfurt Motor Show, but announced shortly before, German luxury car customizer Mansory Design & Holding, are known for their heavy modification of already stellar machines. Looking to expand their reach to illustrate their range of personalization, the carbon fiber specialist applied their skills to a Sea-Doo RXT-X 260 RS (the “RS” signifying an un-USCG-regulated international model).
As per Mansory’s statement, “During the refinement process, Mansory were able to fall back on their experience of the material carbon fibre, accumulated over decades. Use of this extremely strong, ultra-light material has saved up to 10 kilogrammes in weight – and at the same time, the Mansory designers have given the jet ski a significantly more dynamic, aggressive design.”
Unfortunately, upon closer inspection of the two videos here, it appears that much of the carbon fiber used was mainly an overlay atop of the factory gel coat with some added embellishments to the already angular BRP design. Added louvers, coves and extended blades add to the ski’s uniqueness, but overall doesn’t truly reveal any actual replaced panels – except for the hood, as it now features twin LED light banks. The customizer claims a total of 10 kilos (20 pounds) have been shaved from the ski. Not a significant amount.
As to further modifications made to the Sea-Doo, Mansory stated, “The carbon-made structures, combined with the precise, hand-crafted modified seat made of special, seawater resistant artificial leather, make the Black Marlin a luxurious eye-catcher. A powerful engine conversion up to 550HP is in the final testing stage.”
Alas, there’s the ringer: “A powerful engine conversion up to 550HP is in the final testing stage” with emphasis on the words “up to” and “final testing stage.” Many tuners make claims before actually delivering on their promises, and it would appear that Mansory was no different in this case. Besides replacing the panel latches, gas cap, and iBR cover with Mansory badging, a lot of carbon fiber wrapping and a few bits and pieces recast in the lightweight material, the Black Marlin has yet to be proven as a true performer. So before the Internet is set ablaze with claims of another “super ski” make sure you do your due diligence first.
Yes, it’s only September, but planning for the 12th annual Daytona Freeride is well underway. Thanks to all the effort of event promoter Nicholas Foederer, next year’s Daytona Freeride is shaping up to be the biggest yet – and not just in the US, but across the globe (according to Nicholas). Scheduled for January 14th-through-17th, 2016, the Daytona Freeride has also one very big announcement to make: an all-new title sponsor!
According to a Facebook post by Nicholas, Blacktip Jetsports is the event’s new title sponsor. He writes, “Super stoked to announce the new title sponsor for 2016, Blacktip Jetsports distributed by Watercraft Superstore and SBT. Watercraft Superstore and SBT have been an integral part of the Daytona Freeride since the very beginning and have always stepped up and shown huge support for the ride. I’m proud to have this organization be a part of the 2016 Daytona Freeride.
“Look for lots of killer deals from them and as usual they will be there providing great products and killer deals. Get ready for the best freeride yet: 2016 Blacktip Jetsports Daytona Freeride! I will be working with them to make the ride better and more fun for everyone. Dates are: January 14th-17th 2016, don’t miss it!”
Blacktip Jetsports is quickly becoming a premier brand within the personal watercraft industry, offering both OE-level and high quality, hand-stitched and/or laser-cut replacement seat covers, handlebar covers and traction mats, as well as ski covers, storage covers and vinyl graphic kits for nearly every make and model of PWC imaginable.
Wow, just wow! This is one of the most ridiculous contraptions we have seen, a lawnmower turned into possibly, the loosest use of the name “jet ski.” A YouTube video from Erik Moorhouse shows his contraption “built this from an old lawn mower using 55-gallon drums for the wheels.” Seated on the riding lawn mower surrounded by four big blue 55-gallon barrels at the axles, the machine sputters and coughs. It gives the video a sort of foreboding feel, like we know that the thing is going to eventually peter out, leaving Erik stranded.
And sure enough, that is exactly what happens. After Erik carefully backs the “ski” around using his steering wheel and one of his hands to guide the barrels so he can straighten out his riding machine,.he gets it moving very slowly for a few seconds and then finally bogs the engine in the middle of the pond. As Erik writes, “it worked pretty well until the welds broke on the barrels and the rear axle housing broke in half.”
In desperation, Erik can be heard asking, “Grab the toaster from my tool box and throw it to me!” No, not twine, not string, not even an extension cord. No, grab the toaster. The video is absolutely absurd. We guess creating fun toys are one of the many things that people in the country do when bored. At least Erik was innovative and the machine may have been successful if the he had his welds held together.
“God must love crazy people,” Masoud, the Afghani Mujahideen freedom fighter goads Sylvester Stallone’s John Rambo, “…because He makes so many of them.” If the Internet has shown us anything, it’s that there are far more crazy people out there than many of us would have expected. And in the case of high performance machines – from supercars to personal watercraft – there is no shortage of crazies who only want the absolute fastest machine they can get their hands on. And chances are, you’re one of them. And this review of the 2016 Sea-Doo RXP-X 300 is for YOU and why you are probably not the right person for the RXP-X 300.
So when we were first introduced to the most powerful machine ever built by Sea-Doo, we were understandably excited and equally cautious. Well, most of us that is. There’s a lot to be said for someone being able to master this level of performance. (Undoubtedly, we’ve seen our fair share of pictures of crashed Ferraris and totaled superbikes.) Step One in operating a machine of this caliber is respect. If you think you can just jump right on and let ‘er rip, you might want to think again.
Thankfully, many of us allowed to test ride the RXP-X 300 had no such misconceptions. In fact, you could say that it was more towards the opposite. As we could observe, only a handful were truly willing to push the new 300-horsepower Sea-Doos to their engineered limits, and for more than a single day at that.
And as it is our job to present a comprehensive, true hands-on review of the RXP-X 300 (with the RXT-X 300 to follow shortly), all of us at The Watercraft Journal want you to know that we truly beat on this machine as far as Sea-Doo would let us. This is no “general feel” review culled from after a few sparse minutes of moderate weaving and brief blips of the throttle, but hours of full-throttle flogging. Why? Because if it doesn’t scare you, you’re not going fast enough.
Now, there’s two kinds of scary: scary out-of-control, and scary beyond-your-ability. The RXP-X 300 is clearly the latter. In fact, the level of control imbued in this machine far surpasses anything – and we mean that with exaggerated emphasis – on the market today. Improvements made to the 2016 RXP-X are primarily internal, as its current external form is all but flawless for its purpose; and the RXP-X was built for a specific purpose: cutting a corner with X-Acto knife-like precision.
First introduced in 2012, the current T3-hulled RXP-X is a creation of years of competitive honing, refining and polishing. Riding on a tall center keel that enhances lean-ins and executes neck-snapping corners, the RXP-X’s multistage design features very pronounced chines aft and and progressively softer chines forward. Three-way adjustable sponsons feature canted winglets that only add to the RXP-X’s ability to dip in and carve with indignant prejudice.
The total effect is akin to an aquatic sportbike, doggedly egging to lean hard and snap a hairpin turn, its rolled outer edges literally creating a surface-tension-borne vacuum suctioning the RXP-X’s rail to the water. This machine is not interested in slow, meandering cruises through the mangroves and will, in fact, actually rebel against lazy sweeps, bucking and twitching when ridden by a Sunday driver. The absence of Cruise Control should convey this message enough.
Appropriately first to receive Sea-Doo’s now across-the-S3 line Ergolock seat, the RXP-X prompts the posture of an aforementioned street bike, its foot wedges angling the rider’s knees inward, pinching the padded saddle. The narrow bench eases tension on the driver’s hips, allowing for a more aggressive, forward-leaning posture. The forward stance that the RXP-X 300 requires for maximum performance is contrary to the slacked “Easy Rider” cruising position we’ve seen so many RXP-X 260 owners take, so make note.
Bringing the rider’s chest and shoulders forward not only improves the craft’s weight distribution (and thereby, handling input), but also emphasizes the ergonomic engineering poured into the craft’s fixed-position AES (Adjustable Ergonomic Steering) handlebar. With eight points of adjustment allowing for dozens of configurations (to handlebar grip width and angle), the rider is placed in direct control of a thoroughbred performance craft. New palm wedges molded into the grips provide some ease to the wrists.
As is with all other Sea-Doos, the iControl controls are wisely integrated into the handlebars, allowing the rider to input iTC commands for Touring, Sport and Eco engine tunes, on-demand trim settings via the VTS system, and toggles for the in-dash controls (RPM, MPH, MPG, and fastest lap time counter). A linear boost gauge and digital compass fill out the rest of the LCD screen, flanked by an easy-to-read analog speedometer and tachometer. And with these controls, Sea-Doo continues to lead the industry with the best button feel and response, allowing you to never have to look down to confirm your input was received.
Besides an option of either Lava Red/Satin Black or White/Dayglow Yellow liveries, the outward appearance of the RXP-X 300 remains nearly identical to the previous models. Yet it is worth noting that the RXP-X 300 has packed on some additional weight over its previous iteration (850lbs. dry weight over the outgoing 812lbs.) due in part to the new FMC fiberglass material introduced when the manufacturer moved its full production to Mexico. The added weight is actually a boon to the RXP-X’s ability to cleave through chop and remain planted. Constant pump engagement is imperative to a craft of this magnitude, and the slight weight gain is principally a positive.
Below the transom, Sea-Doo’s engineers heavily reworked the already industry-leading iBR (Intelligent Brake & Reverse). Integrating into the pump, tunnel and ride plate, the new iBR rides on a beefier frame saddling the 10-vane stator, multi-diffuser venturi, new 159.5mm prop and larger diameter wear ring. A redesigned three-piece bucket system deploys to slow the RXP-X a staggering 160-feet shorter than conventional non-brake equipped PWC. Gone too is the nose-plowing characteristic to the previous iBR system as well.
But alas, it is what lies beneath the saddle that is what matters most: As you’ve might’ve already read in our comprehensive unveiling of the complete 2016 Sea-Doo lineup earlier this month, BRP heavily reworked its 10-year-old 1503 4tec Rotax (which remains in all non-300HP 2016 models) into the all-new 1630 ACE 300. The re-engineering resulted in a deceptive package: Externally, much remains seemingly the same – apart from a larger heat sink and redesigned supercharger (more on that in a minute). Internally, the new 1630.5cc features the same 100mm bore but an increased 69.2mm stroke (over the previous 63.4mm), providing 9-percent more displacement, and subsequently, 15-percent more power.
The pistons are more robust, but are 20 grams lighter and feature longer, coated skirts, and spin on lighter, shorter connecting rods. Surprisingly, the pistons slide inside of a coated cylinder, not a pressed-in steel sleeve. A new plasma coating (applied via a proprietary thermal spraying process) was exclusively developed by Rotax’s team in Gunskirchen, Austria, to replace the heavy steel sleeves to not only cut engine weight, but to improve surface durability and heat transference and minimize friction. Combined with an additional cooling circuit, a hybrid dry sump oiling system, the aforementioned heat extractor, and a new, larger intercooler that is 2.2-times more efficient with over double the cooling capacity, totals up to 33-percent improved engine cooling.
The dramatically improved centrifugal supercharger produces an impressive 30-percent more boost (18psi) via a more efficient, compact wheel that spins 8-percent faster at 47,000rpm. The new wheel features double the blades of the outgoing design – increased to 32 – and features a revised drive system comprised of 8 steel washers and two composite bearing packs at either end of a near inch-thick shaft. As per Martin Lachance, BRP’s Engineering Director for the new powerhouse, all superchargers are dynamically balanced prior to assembly.
Final improvements to the new ACE (Advanced Combustion Efficiency) engine is in its a single-camshaft valvetrain configuration: The cylinder head has been improved with a new combustion chamber quench, new larger injectors, and new direct-ignition high-intensity coils that produce double the ignition energy for a hotter, cleaner and more efficient burn. The result of all of this is a dramatic increase in throttle response, assaulting acceleration and an ever-ascending torque curve that peaks at a United States Coast Guard-mandated 68mph (we reached a best of 68.6mph at 7,700rpm). As a rule of thumb, it doesn’t matter if the dang thing made 600-horsepower, it’s still going to be capped at 68.
The only gripes we had were minor: we felt that the new hand grips were somewhat limiting for standing upright or riders who move their grip during tight turning; and prolonged reverse (while under throttle) will noticeably submerge the transom of the RXP-X (and all 300HP models we tested). But our biggest concern was not for the ski itself, but the person controlling it. Days’ worth of testing revealed a craft that was not suited for all audiences. Of course, a Suzuki Hayabusa was never meant for general consumption either.
So, if you do think you’re good enough a rider to fully appreciate the potential in the 2016 Sea-Doo RXP-X 300, if you’re committed to riding this ski as it is meant to, then yes. This is RXP-X that you’ve been waiting for. In our view, there has never been a Sea-Doo to better blur the line between showroom stock and a full-tilt racecraft. The new 300HP model supersedes the outgoing 260 by $300, bringing the total to $15,199 MSRP (or an extra $100 per 100-horsepower).
There are plenty of folks who will read this article, watch our video below and start to salivate. Good. We hope so. But according to the law of averages, most of you just aren’t that good of a rider to fully handle what Sea-Doo has produced here. And that’s OK. But we hope that if you’re feeling up to the challenge, you ease into it. Be safe. Be smart. Because what Sea-Doo has built here is a Stinger missile with handlebars, and that’s all that’s need to be said.
