If you’ve never before heard of The Tennessee River 600, you my friend are missing out. Beginning in 1997 as a fun ride PWC enthusiasts, the Tennessee River 600 has grown into an annual event with participants representing as many as 19 different states, and is the longest running organized event in the United States for personal watercraft.

Those choosing to tackle the might river stretching through the Middle South state raise funds for two children’s hospitals and the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA). The money raised is divided among The Children’s Hospital, Birmingham, AL; and Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency. Thus far, the event has raised a total of $204,323!

According to the official Tennessee River 600, “The Children’s Hospital, Birmingham, AL is a member of the Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, an alliance of premier hospitals for children and one of the world’s leading children’s charities working to save and improve the lives of millions of children.”

Although the ride is meant to be a great scenic ride through lush Tennessee, the event is also aimed at promoting Tennessee tourism and water safety, in addition to helping elevate the public appeal and reputation of personal watercraft.

Recently, Dennis Beckley and staff had this to say:

It sure has been a long, cold winter and it seems like it just won’t let go! But the good news is that Spring will be here soon, and it can’t get here fast enough! We can only think of one or two people that we know of that enjoys all of the snow that’s fallen this year but they don’t live here in Tennessee! Here, we’re ready for the flowers to begin blooming and the grass to turn green signifying the beginning of another great personal watercraft riding season is on it’s way!

Another indicator that Spring is approaching is that we have updated the hotel information for this year’s event! We’ll be staying at the same locations that we stayed at last year as we heard a lot of positive feedback from last years participants. One bit of information that want to let you know is that the hotel in Guntersville, AL, is now known as the Wyndham Garden Lake Guntersville, so hopefully there won’t be any confusion if you call to make your reservations and don’t recognize the name. It’s still the same great hotel with the same great staff that has made us feel at home for the past several years!

We have also added some pictures from the 2013 event to our Photo Gallery! We didn’t receive as many photos as we have have in years past so if you have some photos you would like to share with us please contact us and we’ll get them posted. We love browsing through the pictures as it always brings back great memories, even if they are memories of the rain we rode in last year! Plus it’s always fun to see the event through different “eyes”. It reminds us of just how much there is to see on this ride!

We still have a lot of work to do before July but we’re hoping to thaw out soon and get back on the water for some riding! Stay tuned as we will have more updates in the next few weeks!

Dennis Beckley & the Staff of the Tennessee River 600

We know, we know. We’ve been really griping a lot about the weather. Thankfully, today’s the first official day of Spring and the warmer temps are actually looking to be sticking around so it’s time to de-winterize your ski, grease up the wheel bearings on the trailer and hit the water.

But for some, this is the time to get in prime shape for the upcoming race season. From grassroots entries to first time participants, professional standup racers and seasoned veterans, you’re season some of the best in our industry sharpen their minds and bodies for the chance at winning championship gold.

One of those is Austria’s favorite son, Kevin Reiterer, who already locked horns with Jeremy Poret and Chris MacClugage at the most recent UIM Aquabike World Championship stop in Qatar, which we covered early last week.

In regards to his plans for 2014 and his time spent in preparation, Reiterer wrote:

The last couple of years many pro athletes came to the desert of Dubai. They trained and raced at the UAE Championship to prepare for the upcoming season. Many changes in the race schedule and further commitment at University in Austria did not make it possible to compete at every race this season. However, the young Austrian enjoyed every single day in the sun of Dubai. “A true paradise for us racers. Waves every single day and wonderful conditions. A nice contrast to my trainings by 1-3 degree in Austria where sometimes your finger start to freeze.” Kevin is now back in Austria preparing for his hometown race in Austria, which is nothing less than the Euro Finals.

Kevin will be competing with what we at The Watercraft Journal consider to be thee best jet ski racing program happening on the planet (we know, that’s big talk), the 2014 Freegun Jetcross Tour happening throughout France.

It’s still pretty dang frozen in Minnesota where Cargo Wave is headquartered but that’s not slowing down their preparations for warmer seasons. With two big announcements for the PWC trailer manufacturer, 2014 is already shaping up to be a great one!

First of the announcements is that Cargo Wave will be “renting” Cargo Wave trailers on the St. Croix River. There’s already been great demand for the enclosed PWC trailer and we suggest that dealers and PWC renters across the country to look into the Cargo Wave for retail and stand alone rentals.

And of course, for current ski customers interested in finding out how well the Cargo Wave works out, make sure to check out their website and stay tuned to The Watercraft Journal for our review of the Cargo Wave coming next month!

And last but not least, Cargo Wave is putting a Grand Prize package together for The Flood Run Benefit Ride the raffle: a 110HP ’14 Yamaha VX Deluxe three-person with 2014 Triton aluminum two-place trailer provided by River Valley Power & Motorsports Red Wing, and a brand new Cargo Wave donated by Cargo Wave LLC, all for benefit of Gillette Children’s Care Centers.

As the readership of The Watercraft Journal continues to grow more diverse with each passing day (y’know, because it really does), we get more and more information pouring in from across the globe. Most recently, we received an update on the ongoing UAE Series (that’s the United Arab Emirates).

In the four month series – beginning in January and running through April, with six rounds divided between three rounds in Dubai and the other three in Abu Dhabi – has seen some fantastic sportsmanship and feats of athleticism. Most notably has been by Kuwait’s Mohammed “Cozmo” Al Baaz.

Cozmo has dominated the Pro Stock Runabout class aboard his 2014 Yamaha FZR SVHO, most recently winning his first place title in Round 4’s close course race held in Dubai, United Arab of Emirates. Up until this time, Cozmo had been leading in points throughout the first three rounds on his Stock class 2013 Sea-Doo RXP-X, but only decided to cross over to Yamaha mid-season.

Cozmo’s change to the FZR also earned Yamaha its first win in Stock class for the series. Built by Abdullah Burbayea and Yousef Al Busairy of ProRider Garage located in Kuwait (and of no relation to the bimonthly print publication). Equipped with parts from R&D, RIVA Racing, WORX and a few other tricks by ProRider Garage, Cozmo’s machine made short work of the field.

Many of us would like to use motocross as the measuring stick to compare professional jet ski racing. Although the “big show” has seemed to have drifted away from our sport, there’s still many of us who still ardently believe that the best days are still ahead of us. That being said, we’ll happily take any opportunity we have to blur the lines between the two sports.

At the beginning of last October, world championship and X Games gold medalist Travis Pastrana took a break from racing his Red Bull Dodge Dart rally car from the Global Rally Cross series (GRC) to indulge in some good ol’ fashioned hooning. In an episode of “On Pace with Pastrana,” Travis and crew departed to Florida for “Two Stroke Week” – a week-long competition between he and pals of golfing, jet skiing and shifter kart racing.

While it’s supremely unlikely for Travis to take another bout at jet skiing but in a professional sphere, at 31-years-old, Travis would actually come in on the young side of our current average age of professional racers. But until “Nitro Circus” takes to covering PWC, don’t expect Travis to trade freestyle, supercross, or NASCAR for a life vest any time soon.

If you want to skip ahead, the water fun begins around 4 minutes into the video.

C’mon, how can you say no to a three-day weekend of fun under the Florida sun, riding personal watercraft and raising funds for a children’s charity? Does this sound like something you got to be a part of? Well, the third annual Spring PWC Bash – organized by the Orlando Watercraft Riders and Tampa Bay Jetski Clubs, helps raise money for Give Kids the World Village.

According to Ken MacDonald, “We hold a jet ski Charity Poker Run Fundraiser each year to benefit Give Kids The World – three days of activities including a scavenger hunt, a Poker Run and a timed slalom course race held at the Magnuson Hotel Marina cove in St. Petersburg.

“Last year we had over 100 guests from all around Florida join in the celebration. This year, we are hoping to have the event grow even larger!”

Scheduled for this upcoming April 11th through the 13th, 100-percent of the proceeds raised will be donated to GKTW. “Our goal for the event is to raise more than $4,000,” MacDonald, “All of this to help Give Kids The World fulfill the promise to never turn away a child.”

For more information and to purchase your tickets, simply visit www.jetskibash.com today!

Ladies and gentlemen, Spring is finally upon us. And even if its still a little chilly where you are or even a few piles of icy snowpack are still seen on the side of your streets, the weeks and months are ticking by the calendar meaning that dealers are ramping up the promotions to help connect you with your new personal watercraft.

That is why The Watercraft Journal’s favorite middle Tennessee powersports dealer, America’s Motor Sports is prepping its warehouse and showroom for a stellar year. They know you’re itching to shake off the winter blues and get out on the water, and they’re the dealer to help make that happen.

And if its the inside scoop on late-breaking deals, we are really excited to help direct your attention to America’s Motor Sports’ Facebook page. The dealership is keen on rewarding those who are fat on their feet (and in the seat) so that is why you need to “Like” and follow their Facebook feed, so that you can mobilize on deals when they happen.