We’re not the types to sit around and pine for the “glory days,” but there’s something to be said when regional promoters put on full season schedules of heart-pounding races, all building up to a National Tour showdown, culminating in only the cream of the crop being permitted to race in the annual IJBSA World Finals. Not to mention the massive presence of big name race teams, sponsors and media outlets at nearly every stop.
We eyed this great bit of throwback fun over at WMF Watercraft’s website that should crank up the nostalgia for you too. You might be wondering, “What is WMF doing with a bunch of vintage racing videos on their site?” and you’d be interested to know that WMF Watercraft is one of the nation’s biggest RIVA Racing performance parts dealers as well as staffed with some of the best-trained technicians cranking out custom-built buoy burners for clients all year ’round.
So how about that video, you ask. A promotional reel for the RIVA Racing Team, the video is spliced together from awesome ESPN 2 highlights from the 1994 Bud Jet Sports Tour featuring some very familiar names: specifically Tim Judge, Rob Flores and Lloyd Burlew. Now you might know them for their current vocations, but back 21 years ago, we see as a very youthful Tim Judge takes the checkers in Pro Sport class, Lloyd Burlew wow audiences with some stellar freestyle trickery (including a very impressive handstand), and some very exciting footage of then-rookie Rob Flores aboard his signature bright yellow Yamaha SuperJet grabbing his first National Championship – making him the first rookie to win in five years.
For some, the cost of hauling their prized machine across half a continent (or even beyond) far outweighs that of crating it up and shipping it. Racers constantly box up their racecraft, loading them up in the back of a cargo container and meet them at a designated shop, dealership or depository. We know many adventurous PWC enthusiasts who regularly ship their skis several states over as they fly a day or two later to their desired group ride destination. The idea might sound alien to some, but the practice is more common than you think.
And there’s one guy who’s been doing it for more big names in the personal watercraft sport than anybody else. Unishippers’ own John Carter has been working from his Wichita, Kansas headquarters shipping PWC all over the continental United States and beyond. From bulk orders from aftermarket hubs like RIVA Racing and Jerry Gaddis’ PWCPerformance.com, to specialty crate motors and custom hulls, all the way to cross-country new unit sales and full-blown race-ready machines, he gets them loaded and safely shipped where they need to be.
But that’s his job, after all. Simply call (316-943-1468) or email John (at wichita@unishippers) and he’ll create a complete, individualized shipping solution that will save you time, trouble and money, because one size definitely doesn’t fit all, and John is more than happy to tailor a solution for your needs. Whether you need same day, overnight, and next day shipping through Unishippers’ relationship with UPS, or express, ground and international, all the way to heavy freight, John can provide you with a wide range of shipping options.
As it stands, the world’s fastest personal watercraft holds the record at 112 miles per hour. That number has yet to be officially repeated since Maikel Gonzales’ epic run this past July. Emboldening all of those in contention for the Speed Alley championship, Gonzales record run effectively painted a large red target on the drag racer’s back. Replicating that kind of speed requires the perfect blend of power-to-weigh-to-hull design and many feel they have what it takes to challenge Gonzales’ “Blue Zone” conversion ski.
One such machine stands out among the others, as it breaks away from the conventional Yamaha GP1300R hull-and-Rotax 4-tec 3-cylinder combination. Slidell, Louisiana’s Keith Salles‘ original plan was far removed from his final result, but the journey to a SHO-powered GPR capable of 107-plus-miles per hour is a tale all unto itself.
Procuring a Super High Output Yamaha engine was the easiest part of the build. Hours of customization when into making this SHO a turbo-powered beast capable of triple-digit speeds.
“I purchased the ski from a warehouse where it was stored and covered up on a pallet for approximately 7 or 8 years,” Salles began. “We had initially set the ski up with a stock motor and aftermarket supercharger impeller, our custom intercooler, a V-Tech ECU flash as well as miscellaneous other things and the ski ran 96mph on the GPS. After this, we wanted to step it up considerable so we built a custom turbo setup and had the motor fully built.”
Prior to deciding on the big displacement 1.8-liter Yamaha SHO motor, Salles sought about perfecting the hull for such high speeds. “I brought the hull to Ben Herman of Ben’s Performance Plus in Jackson, Mississippi. He’s known for building some of the world’s fastest two-stroke GPR skis. He basically set the hull up for me which included setting the shoe to his custom specs, installing a stainless steel GP800 intake grate with upgraded billet mounting bosses, installed a pump tunnel reinforcement, which is needed at the higher speeds the ski is capable of. He basically prepped the hull and made it safe at speeds at or over 100mph.”
A series of specially-crafted parts were needed for the turbo package, and Comp Turbo Technology was reached for custom components when required.
The engine was sent off to Brad Mattei of Mattei’s Cycle Supply in New Orleans East, Louisiana. Salles said, “Brad is also a long time friend of mine who has been with me for years in the sport bike drag racing scene. He has been my crew chief for years and has been a motorcycle mechanic and engine builder his whole life, specializing in late model four-stroke 4-cylinder motors.”
Pressing air through the SHO would require a lot of work. For that, Salles reached out to long time friend, Jesse Gonzalez. “[Jesse] shares performance interests with me. [He] completely fabricated the turbo kit and intercooler setup. [He fabricated] the merge collector (the V-looking funnel) for the header as well as the dump pipe off the turbo for the exhaust (the Y-looking piece). All the piping is fully water jacketed stainless steel and all one-off pieces.
Countless hours were taken in development of this kit in effort to make it as stock appearing as possible, even building it in a manner where the stock motor cover could be used.
On the hull, the GPSHO has a FF GPR Jim’s Performance modified ride plate. “The pump is a stock Yamaha SHO pump with a custom made prop, and modified venturi nozzle to achieve the desired ride plate angle we’re after,” Salles detailed. “[We] custom-made pressure relief valves mounted to the venturi nozzle as well as the bored aluminum steering nozzle.”
When it came time to prove the GPSHO, there was no time for testing. Arriving at the race site’s launch ramp on Saturday, at 3am the morning of the Hydrodrag World Finals, in Tavares, Florida, Salles and crew knew they had a full day ahead of them.
“His attention to detail is second to none and his craftsmanship and talents are expressed in his work as you can see. Funny thing is, he works at a family owned body shop, Alex’s Body Shop in Slidell, LA. He was a huge asset in this project and has his hands in just about anything pertaining to it,” Salles continued.
“We pulled into the race site around 3am and sat in the truck until we heard Kristian on the lake testing with his Silver Bullet turbo FZR. I said ‘We’re going to race, not to sleep.’ After finalizing a few things with Mike Young Sunday morning, …we decided not to test and race off the trailer, being we tuned the morning before in Slidell and I made adjustments relative to what the weather was scheduled to be in Tavares. This allowed us to hang out more and work less, which is essentially what we wanted to do.
“We didn’t run as fast as we tuned or planned to, but I’ve heard from several people that ‘this lake isn’t that fast’ and ‘don’t expect to make big mph on a GPR.’ The way I saw it was everyone is racing the same water, so we’ll give it a shot. It’s unfortunate we never had time to tune the hull between runs, because I’m pretty sure I could have gotten a handle on it and got that bounce out.”
A stand-alone Motec M400 was fitted to the front of the motor on a custom cradle Jesse fabricated (along with all of the other electronics generally housed behind the motor on a stock SHO ski). Salles added, “[Jesse] opened up the harness and rerouted wires where necessary to give a stock appearing look with all the wiring and electronics moved in front of the motor.”Salles continued, “Right as the ski started to make speed, it started bouncing, which it literally had never done before. We’ve been spoiled with flat water and generally don’t run when it’s windy, for more safety sake, not speed sake. That’s racing and I’m not complaining, we were just disappointed we never ran the speed we went to run.”
Nevertheless, at its debut run, the GPSHO ran a lightning-fast 107.4mph earning Salles and crew the coveted first place in the Unlimited Speed Alley competition. He beamed, “We’ll be back and look forward to hanging with all you guys again. Thanks to everyone who supports the events and has a hand in making them happen.” Between now and then, Salles plans on making a few more modifications to ion out the aforementioned “bounce” and eke out a few more miles per hour prior to the beginning of next year’s HydroDrag series. Until then, we’ve got a lot of videos and images of the build below to enjoy.
It’s a cold, hard reality, folks: the temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere are dropping (you know it’s bad when the Jetski Junkies are wearing thick gloves and fleeces on their rides). And for those residing in states where snow and freezing temperatures appear, it’s time to pack those skis up for the winter. Thankfully, the process isn’t too tough – especially if you’ve got all the right tools.
We spotted this sweet setup over on Aquacart’s Facebook page of loyal Aquacart customer Barry and his dockside davit in Chesapeake Bay, Annapolis, MD. Using Aquacart’s heavy duty Lift Harness/Sling and Shop Cart, pulling his Sea-Doo RXT in and out of the water is a synch. Using the same harness as major shops and dealers, the Aquacart sling is made of superior materials to ensure that your PWC will remain safe and secure whether being lifted by a winch, lift, cable or forklift.
Best of all, you don’t have to be shop to own one; all Aquacart Lift Harnesses are made with vinyl-coated steel brackets (with superior coating than on competitor models) for maximum hull protection that won’t scratch your ski, double stitching for added security and strength, UV protected ultra high strength webbing (up to 6,000-pounds), and thick double stainless steel lift rings (rated at 4500-pounds).
All of Aquacart’s products are made with the most durable of materials promising a long life of reliable usage. No matter whether you’re a professional shop, business or a dyed-in-the-wool enthusiast, Aquacart has the right equipment to keep you riding (and rolling) longer.
Good news in the world of personal watercraft! the Personal Watercraft Industry Association (PWIA) is receiving some national recognition for its PWC renter orientation DVD, earning the Seal of Safe Boating Practices from the esteemed National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) for its recent Personal Watercraft Renter Orientation DVD & Checklist.
In an effort to better acclimate first-time boaters and renters of PWC, the PWIA developed a thorough and thoughtful DVD walking through the major highlights of safe and considerate boating, best practices and major safety do’s and dont’s. The video, designed to be played for renters at resorts and other major rental outfits is not only an instructional tutorial, but a bit of liability coverage for the PWC renter themselves.
To help spread the word, the PWIA has distributed over 300 copies of their tutorial DVD to locations in as many as 27 different states. In conjunction with their “Safe Rider” pledge, the PWIA has made greater efforts to ensure safe riding practices are taught across the nation more than any other organization in our industry. All of us at The Watercraft Journal applaud the PWIA for their recent award and are sure many more are to follow.
Here’s the original press release:
PWIA Receives NASBLA Seal of Safe Boating Practices Award Award Presented For Association’s PWC Renter Orientation DVD & Checklist WASHINGTON, DC– The Personal Watercraft Industry Association (PWIA) announced today that it has been awarded the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators’ (NASBLA) Seal of Safe Boating Practices for its Personal Watercraft (PWC) Renter Orientation DVD & Checklist. NASBLA’s seal certifies that PWIA’s boating safety videos and other educational materials meet the highest standards in quality, accuracy and effectiveness. All materials must meet the requirements and guidelines set forth by NASBLA to receive the recognition. Recipients of this award include the National Safe Boating Council, the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary and numerous boating safety programs developed by government and private entities. “This recognition by NASBLA adds an additional level of credibility to our materials,” said David Dickerson, Executive Director of PWIA. “Now, liveries across the U.S. who use our free Renter Orientation DVD & Checklist, can be confident that our materials meet the high standards of NASBLA, a nationally-recognized, independent expert in safety education, Today, PWIA has distributed more than 300 of the orientation DVDs and other safety training materials to liveries in 27 states as part of its mission to promote safety and enjoyable experiences on PWC. Along with its rental education initiative, PWIA sponsors the “Safe Rider” pledge program to promote safe riding practices among PWC owners and riders. By signing the Safe Rider pledge, PWC riders agree to the take the following steps towards safety and fun on the water: · Scan the water for hazards and other boats · Avoid aggressive maneuvers · Follow local boating laws, including rules to prevent the transfer of invasive species · Examine your equipment · React to conditions · Insist on a safe distance from other boats, swimmers and fixed objects · Drive sober · Evaluate weather and waterways · Respect the environment by avoiding fuel spills and operating close to marine life The pledge form can be accessed at www.pwia.org, along with more information about the “Safe Rider” campaign. Information on instructional courses and downloadable safety materials, including a brief handbook titled Riding Rules for Personal Watercraft and PWC Orientation Checklist can also be found at www.pwia.org.
The Asian Beach Games though, are not merely a jet ski race. Hosting Olympic athletes from across the Asian continent, competitions are held in swimming, volleyball, water polo, track events, parasailing, basketball, handball, soccer, wrestling and a wide variety of other beach-centric sports, which includes PWC racing. Unlike Western Nations, Asian Olympic councils recognize the mental and physical prowess necessary to excel in jet ski racing, and has welcomed it into part of the pantheon of watersports held throughout the week-long event (November 14-23).
During the three-days of racing, Dean’s Team racers – consisting of Aqsa Aswar and his brother, IJSBA World and Pro Watercross National Champion Aero Aswar (both representing Indonesia), and Abdullah Al-Fadhel, representing Kuwait – bested the competition and took Gold, Silver and Bronze metals, respectively. Impressively, all three each won a moto in the single-day’s three moto race, Aero suffering a broken hose clamp in the first race, leaving the win to his brother Aqsa; Abdullah running out of gas the following moto, handing the win over to Aero; Aqsa remaining consistent throughout.
Aqsa recounted, “The race was very tight between my brother, Abdullah, and myself. In the first moto I got first; the second moto I was second and in the last moto, I was third. The 2015 Yamaha FZR was awesome today! With Dean Charrier of Dean’s Team tuning on it, it was a rocket. I pulled two boat’s length holeshot in the first moto and the three of us (Aero, Abdullah, and I) were pulling away from the other riders in every lap. It’s a very good handling boat and also a very fast!”
Abdullah echoed Aqsa, “It was a great race and the course was open. I’m happy to be on the podium for [Factory] Yamaha and Dean’s Team.”
Aero added, “I felt really good after the race. I’m happy that only Yamahas got podium [spots] and especially that my brother took gold. The event was excellent; the government involvement made a major change to the sport itself unlike [any other] single events we have like World Finals or King’s Cup.”
As to the performance of the ’15 FZR, he concluded, “The ski was really good! Dean Charrier of Dean’s Team made a really good boat for the heat over here.”
Charrier went on to explain his pleasure with the execution of the event itself, “[It’s] very good! [I’m] actually I’m having flashbacks of [the] good old days. The track was laid out with switch backs, apex buoys and a good old “2-card, 1-go” starting system that ran like clockwork. Only having three or four classes a day with three long motos is the ticket, and keeps spectator and media coverage happy and [all of us very] busy. The day was filled with excitement and very busy, [just] like I like it.”
Races continue today with Open class and Endurance racing the following. We wish everyone the best of luck!
I’m not sure if you have the problem I do, but pretty much every ride that I do: I find my throttle hand cramping a lot, and it’s not like you can constantly keep stopping when you’re touring with a group. I can imagine that racers have this issue even more with the constant changes in throttle position during their events. Many times I’m doing the left hand throttle “reach over,” which can be dangerous in certain conditions. I also have very bad gout (severe arthritis) that has effected my throttle hand tremendously. That is why I was very excited to find the EZ Throttle.
EZ Throttle was invented in Okeechobee, Florida, by Ron Ripple, a PWC enthusiast who encountered this problem and created a solution. The EZ Throttle, according to it’s website, claims to be able to help keep the hand from cramping, allowing us to ride longer and have more fun. The installation is pretty easy and straight forward.
I picked up two, one for the Kawasaki 310LX and one for the Yamaha FX SHO. Although it is the same throttle for all models of PWC’s, the Yamaha has one longer set screw noted on the throttle by a red dot. I installed the EZ Throttle on both skis today in less than 20 minutes with minimal tools. All you need is a small ratcheting (socket) wrench with an adapter and 1/8-inch hex driver (or Allen wrench) and a 5/64” Allen wrench. Just remember that the EZ Throttle logo on the throttle faces in, not out and you will will be golden.
The EZ Throttle basically slips over your existing finger throttle taking it from approximately two inches to about five inches, which just about mirrors the length of your PWC hand grip. After the installation, I already knew it would make a difference even without riding the ski.
There is two distinct differences the EZ Throttle creates, first it now allows the rider to utilize all fingers versus just one or two. Secondly, as we learned about levers and pulleys in science, the longer the lever, the more leverage you have, which translates to less effort to squeeze and hold the original throttle. This just makes me more excited to get on the water!
This past weekend I had the opportunity to ride nearly 180 miles with the Jetski Junkies crew on the Suwannee River in Florida utilizing the new EZ Throttle. The EZ Throttle does take some getting use to, especially if you are a long time rider and extremely use to utilizing your index and middle fingers only. I found myself reverting back to just the two fingers and then when my hand started to hurt, remembering to move all my fingers up on to the EZ Throttle and then the pain subsided.
The only real quirk I encountered was the distance between the new EZ Throttle to the end of hand grip. The distance is quite a lot, so basically you use your original two fingers to squeeze the throttle and then slip your others fingers on the extension making for a much easier throttle squeeze by the outer fingers. I was having a hell of a lot of fun squeezing the EZ Throttle with just my pinky. The quirks are no big deal, and nothing a little self-retraining won’t fix.
The end result is that neither my hand or fingers cramped at all on the 180 miles we rode! I also wish to add that on Saturday the Air Temp averaged about 55 degrees with wind chill. Anyone with arthritic hands knows that cold is the worst, and even in those conditions, I never cramped up. The EZ Throttle has solved a problem for me, one I had been working on personally, and for $20 the value is 100-times over. If you are like me and have cramping and or arthritis in your hands, I highly recommend putting the EZ Throttle on your Christmas list.
It was famed American novelist John Steinbeck who bereaved, “It’s so much darker when a light goes out than it would have been if it had never shone.” And a brightly burning light that beckoned to all in the sport of jet ski racing as sadly dimmed. Last Thursday, November 13th, Jettrim owner and founder, Gary Hart passed away from complications to cancer. Hart, (56 years old) who is most commonly known for his company’s unique artisan, hand-crafted non-slip jet ski mats, seat covers and iconic “bitchin’ stitchin’,” is remembered not merely for creating a superior product that was often duplicated, but for a spirit that burned brighter than the noonday sun that shone over his Lake Havasu City, Arizona, home.
Hart developed a passion for jet ski racing that birthed the creation of his original Jettrim “Nada-Hyde” mat in 1983. Not only did his Jettrim mats improve the riding experience, but added a dash of customization to the early standup skis. Hart’s business swelled as did the sport throughout those early heydays, and Jettrim’s logo became an almost synonymous emblem on every racer and performance enthusiast’s watercraft. Many racers over the company’s 30 years will recall Hart’s wide smile being a central fixture at Jettrim HQ, the race site and in Performance Alley at each of the IJSBA World Finals from 1983 to 2013. In fact, a stop by Jettrim became an annual pilgrimage for many, swinging by to see the mayhem as the crew hurried to finish up racer’s last-minute requests.
Yet, Hart’s passion and kindness overshadowed his product services. Hart regularly opened the doors to not only his shop, but his home to racers. Multi-time IJSBA World Champion Dustin Farthing recalled, “Gary was my first sponsor in 1992. I used to live with him 3-to-4 weeks before the Finals in my early years and he was like my family… I am so thankful for him.” As did Victor Sheldon who added, “Gary was a one of a kind. [He’ll] never be forgotten.”
Hart’s love of the sport spread to the riders and their families. Even when there wasn’t a buoy to be found on the water, the deep-rooted friendships Hart made on the lakeshore carried throughout him. Brian Holland, a former Jettrim employee, remembered, “I will always remember park trips with Gary. It was Gary’s get away from reality. To just sit back and relax. He was like gravity with all his friends. Riding down the river with 20 or so skis in a row. Gary always being the leader. He rode with such style. I never saw him happier.”
Those very fortunate to know Hart personally knew of his love for not only jet skis but for the rolling sand dunes of Glamis and for that of vintage American bicycles. In his garage, hanging above possibly the most desirable collection of meticulously-restored vintage race skis were Schwinn Stingrays. In 2010, Hart made his collection of skis public, freely opening up the Vintage Jet Ski Museum at the IJSBA World Finals. With examples from Christie Carlson, Jeff Jacobs, Chris Fischetti and Larry Rippenkroeger (to name a few), the museum was always a major draw to the Performance Alley. Again, that was Hart’s style.
Mrs. Carlson Swaid stated, “the personal watercraft industry lost an icon. God gave Gary the most appropriate last name. He definitely was all ‘Hart'” Gary was famous for trimming out anything and everything that related to jet skis. I had the privilege of speaking with him [the day before he died]… I thanked him for all the ways he made things better for so many racers. …He made the trays of my jet skis more comfortable and reliable, he made my van and trailers safer for travel and he made cabinets to showcase my Jet Gems jewelry. Gary also allowed several racers to camp out at his house during world finals preparation year after year. He was incredibly generous to so many of us racers and he will forever be remembered for his kindness and his passion for the sport.”
In regards to Hart’s presence at Finals and the Vintage Jet Ski Museum, Bob Phares wrote, “When you’ve been involved in an industry for 42 years, you are bound to hear a little bit of negative information about everybody. Not so with Gary Hart. I never heard one word negative about Gary. I met Gary first when I was running Factory Jet Ski in Sacramento. We talked on the phone and designed custom seats for our Race Sponsored ZXI’s and XI’s. He was always thorough and patient. He made everything custom with great expertise.
“The weeks leading up to World finals has always been an extremely busy time at Jettrim, but Gary always seemed casual and professional. I finally met Gary at World Finals in 1997. He was fairly quiet and paid close attention to all comments and suggestions from his customers. He didn’t offer to sell you what he made. He made what you wanted and sold it to you. Gary and I met again at Worlds in 2013 in his Jettrim Museum, a true tribute to a sport that we all loved. Handled and cared for with the loving touch of a parent. This past year at World’s, I was honored to help with the presentation of the Museum in Gary’s absence.”
Hart, whose role in the sport earned him an induction in the IJSBA Hall of Fame, was remembered fondly by the IJSBA who he had a role in forging, “Gary Hart was a true founding father of the personal watercraft sport. Through his company, Jettrim, Gary sponsored nearly every Pro rider that ever competed on a personal watercraft… The absence of Gary Hart will leave a permanent emptiness in the sport. IJSBA encourages everyone to reflect upon Gary’s legacy of his dedication to PWC and the people who raced them.”
Gratefully, Gary Hart’s legacy is one of optimism, charity, kindness and passion. Hart led by example, burned brighter than most and shone a light on a sport and the people who occupied better than most. And its that light that we will miss the most.
All of us at The Watercraft Journal never hesitate to help promote a worthwhile cause, particularly when it’s to help fight a horrible disease like Cystic fibrosis; the hereditary chronic disease that clogs the lungs and leads to life-threatening lung infections; and obstructs the pancreas and stops natural enzymes from helping the body break down and absorb food. The disease specifically affects about 2,500 Australians and 70,000 people worldwide, and for this reason, Alex Strachan – with the help from a support crew – rode from Australia’s Cronulla to Port Macquarie to help raise awareness of the benefits that Kalydeco can provide to sufferers of CF.
According to the official Kalydeco webpage, the drug is a “prescription medicine used for the treatment of cystic fibrosis (CF) in patients age 6 years and older” previously was exorbitantly expensive – upwards to $300,000 per patient. As part of the effort to help lower costs and make the drug more widely available, Strachan – the son of local radio personality Mark Strachan – embarked on a epic ride to help draw attention to the campaign. Strachan’s partner Bec Roberts, has a cousin who has been diagnosed with the condition, which brought the condition to his attention.
Surprisingly enough, there was a logical connection between Cystic fibrosis and jet skiing. According to the official Ride of Kalydeco page, “In recent years, doctors here in Australia found that cystic fibrosis patients who surfed had healthier lungs than non-surfing CF patients. To find out why, the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation conducted a series of studies.
“They found that the inhalation of a sterile saltwater mist helps clear the thick, sticky mucus from the lungs and therefore a beneficial therapy to CF patient. As a result of this discovery, hypertonic saline was developed to mimic a “surf session” for CF patients. Now CF patients worldwide are benefiting from hypertonic saline, a drug developed in partnership with the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.”
Although the ride effort raised over $8,000, it was well short of the original $25,000 goal. Donations are still happily accepted HERE.
To be frank, this project was a very humbling experience. The goal was simple, at least that’s what we thought: to tune a naturally-aspirated 2014 Yamaha FX High Output WaveRunner to run as fast as a stock supercharged FX SHO, and to do for less money than purchasing the SHO outright. Going in, there were a few unavoidable truths we were going to need to accept: 1) that we were going to have to sacrifice the FX HO’s stellar long-distance fuel mileage, and 2) we were going to have to give up using the “cheap stuff” at the gas pump to increase the HO’s horsepower.
Sure, those were two bitter pills we didn’t want to gulp down, but bigger sacrifices have been made at the altar of the horsepower gods. As it stood, the Deep Red Metallic HO had barely cleared it’s mandatory 10-hour break-in before we started wrenching. In stock form, our Yamaha maxed out at 7,400rpm and 63 mph. That kind of performance ain’t too shabby for a 830-pound three-seater equipped with the brand’s big 1,812cc four-cylinder, 4-stroke spitting out just a tad under 180 ponies. But we needed much more to match those supercharged Super High Output FXs.
Our first step to better speeds was to replace the factory flame arrestor with RIVA’s Intake Manifold Kit, this tapered billet collar that dramatically increases air flow to the engine.
[Editor’s Note: Yes, we know Yamaha’s Super Vortex High Output’s horsepower usurps the SHO’s 215HP (estimated), but getting a naturally-aspirated engine to twist out 260-horsepower requires a lot of work that we felt was both unachievable and frankly, unlike to be duplicated by the layman and we wanted this article to be actually useful. – Ed]
In pursuing our goal, we equated that 68mph was to be our goal as most Yamaha SHO WaveRunners we’ve tested land squarely in this range when driven by a single rider and a 1/4 tank of fuel in its 18.5 gallon cell. This left us with a 5-miile per hour gap we needed to close up. As our machine could only suck in as much air and fuel as its reciprocating cycle could draw, we needed to open up the Yamaha’s airways. We did this by removing the restrictive mesh element in the intake manifold with RIVA’s Intake Manifold Upgrade Kit.
Replacing the RIVA collar proved a little time consuming as the throttle body is buried (inverted) below the intake manifold, but is well worth the time spent.
The $39.95 kit is a tapered billet sleeve that replaces the mesh element (or “flame arrestor”) effectively increasing air flow. The exchange is a little time-consuming as the inverted throttle body is a bit difficult to reach for many. Nevertheless, the time spent was worth while as we immediately picked up over a mile-an-hour, hitting a GPS-confirmed 64.3mph.
Our second step was our most radical: We turned to Greenhulk.net’s Jerry Gaddis for a custom ECU tune. Jerry happily accepted our FX HO’s ECU and reflashed it with PWCPerformance’s VXR/VXS/FX HO 1800 Stage 1 ECU tune. Priced at $674.96 (using the “greenhulk” 10-percent discount coupon code), it was our most expensive modification. Not only did this tune bump up the stock rev limiter to an excessive 8,350rpm, but gained us an advertised 20 horsepower.
Don’t judge an ECU by its cover: this new engine management unit was reflashed by PWCPerformance using a V-Tech Tuned program and is worth 20 extra horsepower and an easy 2mph when paired with other aftermarket parts.
Of course, to fully benefit from the new tune certain modifications are strongly suggested including installing aftermarket air intake and exhaust modifications, as well as depitching the stock impeller 2-degrees to allow the engine to turn more rpms. And alas, we now were regulated to running strictly 91 octane fuel. While Jerry promises a 2-plus-mph gain when these modifications are made, we clocked 65.4mph, a solid mile-per-hour over our previous run.
The ECU swap is literally no different from that of a stock ECU, as it is a stock ECU (on the outside), and takes minutes to change out.
With each subsequent modification we knew we’d unlock more performance from the retuned ECU as it was struggling to process air through the restrictive factory air intake and exhaust. But next on our list was to replace the stock 14/22 prop with a beautiful Skat-Trak Swirl 155mm impeller. Like changing the rear gears in your car, a repitched prop can massively effect the performance of any personal watercraft. We need a prop that would spin our engine rpms up and earn us some much needed speed.
We had our 12/19 Skat-Trak prop repitched to a slightly more aggressive 12/16 which bumped up our rpms to 7,700 and earned us one of our biggest speed gains.
The new 12/16 Skat-Trak impeller, featuring a splined front snout, is noticeably different from the factory Yamaha prop. For those who know, breaking the factory prop loose of the shaft can be a serious chore. Because of this, the Skat prop requires their Skat-Trak splined impeller tool. Once installed and topped with the billet locking collar, the pump came back together in short order.
Although we had lost of the morning’s cool, dense air, we were still able to snap off a decent 66.2mph at 7,700rpm. Thinking our day to be over, we had one last hair-brained idea. Pulling the seat one last time, we popped open the factory air box and removed the large paper air filter element. Of course, we knew most of you would dare ride your ski without proper air filtration, but we wanted to see if we could move the needle.
And, surprisingly, it did! With the noonday sun rising into position, we tripped the GPS at 66.5mph. We knew that opening up the exhaust would gain us a few more miles-per-hour but hated the idea of running a noisy waterbox-less exhaust. A true cold air kit too would offer us some more speed, but we couldn’t see it being much better than running without the air filter.
Although we never suggest running without an air filter, we yanked the factory paper element and ran with the OE air box open.
Ending our experiment there, we unfortunately fell below our 68mph goal. All in all, we spent a total of $1,200 in aftermarket in parts and labor to get us from 63 to 66.5mph. What stings all that more when we realized that the difference in price between a FX HO and a FX SHO is just $1,300, so for $100 more, we could gain 2.5mph and keep both our factory warranty and use of 87 octane. While we might’ve failed, we did realize what kind of smokin’ deal Yamaha’s pricing is on their stock watercraft.
No matter every trick we threw at it, we did our very best to match the stock speed of a supercharged Yamaha SHO-equipped FX, but came up a few mph short.
