Prior to the 2016 reveal of Sea-Doo’s 300 ACE engine, most all supercharged Sea-Doo owners knew that their supercharger needed to be rebuilt every 2 years or every 100 hours (whichever came first). Unfortunately, with Sea-Doo’s insistence that the new supercharger was “maintenance free,” many believed that 1. all of the superchargers had this upgrade and 2. that it wasn’t just plain old marketing malarkey. It turns out, neither were true.
The current 230-horsepower superchargers are the same as the older 1503 model superchargers. That means YES! it’s still on the 2 years or 100 hours maintenance schedule and needs to be serviced like before. A quick scroll through Google Images will show that it isn’t pretty when the clutch washers fail, as they’ll send metal debris scattering into the engine, galling bearings and destroying the entire supercharger.
And what about the 300 ACE engines? While they have a much longer service life than the older superchargers, they can and will fail. Thankfully, Greenhulk Garage offers one-day turnaround maintenance for both types of superchargers, whether its a 185/215/255/260 1503 Rotax or the monster 300 ACE engine.
Per Greenhulk, “We have been rebuilding Sea-Doo superchargers for over a decade and have the most experience to ensure your supercharger is rebuilt correctly. We only use the genuine Sea-Doo supercharger rebuild kits, we won’t settle for less.” Click THIS LINK to arrange to have your Sea-Doo’s supercharger freshened up to get the most enjoyment from your PWC this summer.
As BRP continues to promote inclusion and diversity within the marine and powersports communities, Sea-Doo is encouraging female group rides during upcoming International Female Ride Day (IFRD). The 17th edition of IFRD takes place on May 6th and women powersports riders from around the world will take part in rides around the world.
Colleen Nieto is leading the Second Annual Central Florida International Female Ride Day out of New Smyrna Beach, FL. This year’s event is taking place at Disappearing Island in Port Orange, Florida. The group will launch from the Dunlawton Boat Ramp at 9:30am. Florida Ski Riders are holding a ride on the Gulf Coast of Florida and will leave the Anclote Boat Ramp at 10am.
The Nauti Girl Crew have the west coast of Florida lined up with their Tampa ride leaving from the Lowry Park Boat Ramp. Details to follow. The Northeast PWC club is holding its 19th Annual Coney Island Run to celebrate International Female Ride Day. The group will meet at the Statue of Liberty at noon, and head to Coney Island. Other meetups around the world are still to be announced, including rides in Brazil, Mexico, Australia, and Europe. Click the links for the rides above for all the details.
International Female Ride Day has grown from motorcycle rides to now include many powersports to celebrate all women riders. Sea-Doo supports these rides to show that the watercraft life is for everyone. Find a ride near you and get out there and celebrate women in powersports!
With absurdly little notice, The Watercraft Journal wants to let you know that the 4th Annual Huntington Beach Moto-Surf & Freeride is coming to the Huntington Beach Pier this May 6-7 – yeah, that’s right. Just a couple days from now. Believe it or not, spectator admission is free!
Huntington Beach Pier, South side The City of Huntington Beach has granted access to the lot off Huntington Drive & PCH for this event (same pit parking lot as we used in 2019). This lot will accommodate all race teams, enclosed trailers & motorhomes (dry camping only, no hook ups). All parking is 1st come, 1st serve. Pits open on Friday at 8:00 am.
IJSBA World Finals Qualifier: In order to qualify for the World Finals, you must sign up and race two events. This counts as 1 event.
New to racing, never raced PWC’s, please contact Chief Inspector Rich Boell. He will explain what you need to race and what class you would be eligible to race in. Email: [email protected] or (510) 715-6182
How to Register: Racers: Online entry form:https://form.jotform.com/230894889564174
Please note pre-registration ends on Sunday, April 30th. All entries received thereafter will pay a late fee. No money ($$$) is required to pre-register, only the online entry form is required.
This race is Round #5 of The Hot Products & Anderson Powersports “Best of the West” series Presented by Jettrim, Impros Cometic & Klotz. This round is a cumulative 2 day event. The overall winner is decided from the 4 moto’s over the 2 day event (this format is exactly the same format used in 2018 & 2019 & 22). Your entry fee covers both days of racing.
Please pre-register at your earliest convenience. Pre-registration will close on Sunday, April 30th! Please email Dawn Carey at [email protected] if you have any questions
IJSBA Membership: IJSBA memberships can be purchased on-site (preferred method to maximize license -12 mos. from date of purchase) OR online at www.ijsba.com
Host Hotel: Comfort Inn & Suites Huntington Beach – 16301 Beach Blvd, Huntington Beach, CA 92647 To make a reservation at The Comfort Inn, please call (714) 841-1812 or click https://www.choicehotels.com/reservations/groups/HA42L2 . There is no racer rate, you can book rooms either via phone or online and use AAA or AARP, etc. discount CAMPING (RV, MOTORHOMES, TOY HAULER), VEHICLES
Dry camping in the pits are 1st come, 1st serve. All teams towing a trailer will pay a $125 parking fee which covers 3 days of parking (this covers the vehicle and the trailer). If coming Saturday/Sunday only, parking fee for vehicle’s towing a trailer is $40/day/vehicle & trailer. Motorhomes/RV’s/Toy Haulers, etc. will be charged an additional fee based on how many parking spots are used. Please note that each additional parking spot taken will be charged $40/space/day. This fee will be paid at registration on Friday or Saturday morning.
If “carpooling” with another racer, please indicate the rider you will be carpooling with for verification purposes. Only 1 parking fee will be charged if carpooling (same as was done in 2022). Racers not towing a vehicle (ski in the bed of your truck) or additional passenger vehicles will be charged $40/day/vehicle. Fee’s must be paid at registration.
Here’s a little throwback from 2020 HB Moto-Surf & Freeride:
Sea-Doo paves the way for the first ever PWC division in Florida’s prestigious saltwater fishing tournament, The Central Florida Shootout. This year’s Central Florida Shootout is sure to be extra special with the announcement of the new PWC division. The Shootout crew is excited about welcoming personal watercraft to participate in the fishing tournament for the first time.
PWC fishermen will have their own division and will also be eligible to win the overall categories against conventional boats. The tournament will be held May 12th, beginning with the Captains Party at Space Coast Harley Davidson. The official start time of the tournament is lines in the water 9PM on May 12th, with scales opening at noon on May 13th and closing at 5Pm.
Anglers will depart from Sebastian Inlet or Port Canaveral. All participants are expected to abide by safe boating practices. This is a catch, document, and release fish caught style tournament with over $20,000 in prizes to be paid out to the winners. Categories include 10 different species, general entry, entry categories for Lady Anglers, and Juniors.
The entry fee for personal watercraft anglers is $25 and a cash payout will go to the first-place winner. Second and third places will receive cash and prizes. Register and pay for your PWC entry here and carefully read and sign off on the rules. There will also be a drawing for a chance to win a 2023 Sea-Doo FishPro Trophy 170.
Enter for a chance to take your fishing to the next level! Tickets are $25 and all proceeds benefit several local charity organizations. The 2023 Central Florida Shootout is sure to be a good time, so register now!
Fewer former professional competitors in our sport have done more to revolutionize the industry than Rick Roy. The former pro freestyle and freeride athlete sought to wholly change the equipment used in these high level forms of competition by developing first, the adjustable handlepole (now standard equipment on the 4-stroke TR-1 powered Yamaha SuperJet) and then his own line of stand-up and fixed seat skis.
Under the name Rick Roy Products (RRP), Roy accrued a veritable whos-who of professional and burgeoning athletes, all using his Rickter skis. Unbelievably lightweight, durable and masterfully crafted, the Rickter skis became nearly mandatory equipment for wave jumpers, freeriders and otherwise top tier competitors. Rickters had become the standard.
Unfortunately, certain circumstances have made continuing production in Thailand untenable for RRP and production at their current facility has ceased – per a public press release, which we’ve included in its entirety below. Per RRP, this halt in production is temporary as the company seeks to relocate its manufacturing.
Here’s the complete press release: After a very successful career as a Pro Freestyle competitor and Freeride pioneer, it was time for Rick Roy to take his passion to the next level with innovative equipment. First was the RRP adjustable handle pole, which forever changed the functionality and look of the stand-up PWC. Many parts and innovative concepts followed. Rick decided to push it a step further and designed freeride and freestyle hulls with many innovative features, it again had a huge impact on the sport and PWC Industry.
We developed a partnership and opened a business, Rickter Composites, in Thailand; the factory was located in Thailand and produced the Rickter hulls and accessories.
The RRP Business has helped and enabled many individuals to start/grow their own companies as distributors or dealers, allowing them to make a living from the sport they love.
We want to thank all our distributors and dealers worldwide who have supported Rickter and RRP over the years. A special thank you to Hiro for the Ninja product line and all the riders and team members who have been so dedicated to our Rickter brand, and without them, we would never have had all this success that we have enjoyed.
But mainly, we want to thank you, the customers that have believed in the brand, supported it, shared their passion with us, and created what Rickter-RRP became, the leading brand in our industry.
As you can imagine, managing an overview of a factory remotely halfway around the world is not easy and comes with its own sets of challenges. Despite all the effort that we put in, we couldn’t keep it going. It is, therefore, with regret that we announce the end of the production of Rickter hulls at our Rickter Composites factory in Thailand.
We are evaluating different options for manufacturing Rickter hulls and accessories with new partners. We will keep you informed of the time and place.
The RRP (Rick Roy Products) parts division of our business is not affected by this temporary halt in hull production, and we will continue to produce the complete line of RRP products. We have plenty of RRP products in stock at RRP USA and will continue developing new products. Innovation remains the key to the RRP company and brand.
With all the technological advances and CNC Machining production, many companies worldwide have created companies specializing in copying parts. It is very important that the industry stand together and encourage those who innovate and develop products rather than encouraging those who copy them. Encouraging and supporting innovation is to ensure the sustainability of our sport.
Thank you for your support; Rick Roy Products 26 April 2023
IFWA World Champion Abraham Hochstrasser recently announced his recent partnership with Monster Energy. Hochstrasser (often named “Ho”) has been a tidal force in the world of competitive freeride jet skiing in recent years with incredible performances at Navarre and other massive surf breaks around the world.
The global scale competition has made the race for the championship a costly one and many local athletes struggle to drum up funds to allow them to skip from continent to continent, so signing on with one of the leading energy drink lifestyle brands is a huge boon for Ho, who’ll need to be present at each event to maintain his title.
Ho wrote on Facebook: “It is an honor and privilege to be able to represent Monster Energy! I am thrilled to be able to continue taking this dream even further together this 2023; we have achieved so much and done amazing things together, so thank for making my dreams come true and supporting me during this journey! To the whole team at home in Mexico I have no words to express my gratitude! Gracias familia!”
Prior to the global shutdown in 2020, Canadian jetboat manufacturer Sealver Waveboat made a big splash in the US market by introducing its line of personal watercraft-powered boats. Unfortunately, severe quality control issues, surmounting manufacturing costs and in large part, the pandemic all crippled the company’s ability to satisfy demand. Here’s the rub: public demand didn’t go away.
So the team who brought these boats to the American market doubled down in a big way: they brought the whole operation to the US. Rebranded and reorganized as Galar Marine, the “jet ski boat” is back, bigger and better! By being manufactured in the States, the team is able to control every aspect; from molds to interiors to paint and decal applications – everything!
Right now, Galar Marine is looking to build a strong dealership network. There’s already some major innovations in the works that’ll open up their lineup to a broader audience of jet skier, so these boats are primed to go big very quickly. If you’re looking to get in on this opportunity, contact Galar Boats Sales Manager, David Mitchell at (561) 312-1909.
Warning: These products from Unlimited PWC will give your Kawasaki Ultra JetSki a high-end custom look unlike anything on the water today. We take viewers step-by-step through the entire installation of each component- providing a real-life look at each part before and after they are installed on our JetSki.
The Watercraft Journal partnered with Unlimited PWC and JD’s WaterWorld to equip the latest generation Kawasaki Ultra 310 LX-S with Unlimited’s full catalog of billet aluminum components. This build includes their cam cover, flush ports, ball drain valves, type VI exhaust tip, oil cap, and bypass nozzle. We also feature Unlimited’s premium green/black brick-pattern laser-cut traction mats compatible with the new Kawasaki Ultra Deck.
We first installed the green and black laser-cut brick pattern traction mats. After removing the factory mats, we clean away any remaining adhesive from the deck, and then peel-and-stick our new mats in place. These Unlimited mats feature a pressure-sensitive 3M double-coated laminating adhesive which has excellent wrinkle resistance, durability, and adhesion.
These visually-stunning mats have virtually identical dimensions to the stock mats providing a perfect fit. A 3D laser-cut design coupled with two-layer construction provides exceptional grip when wet and reduces surface tension, allowing water to flow off quickly.
Next, we work on the Type VI exhaust tip. The 3-piece structure of this free-flow style tip features machined aluminum with excellent strength and corrosion resistance. The components fit seamlessly over the factory exhaust flange at the rear of the JetSki and install in about 5 minutes.
After we remove the stock exhaust tip, we clean the base plate with a scotch-brite pad and apply some marine grease to the surface where the Unlimited base plate will attach to the ski. A few Allen bolts later, and our Type VI Exhaust Tip is fully installed.
Now, we shift focus to the billet flush fittings that will be installed right above the exhaust tip. The stock flush ports are made of a resin material, and are completely utilitarian in nature. Unlimited’s green billet flush fittings feature durable threads that won’t strip out or crack, and offer the same durability and corrosion resistance as the Unlimited Type VI Exhaust Tip.
Installing the flush fittings is straightforward, requiring the flush hoses on both the intercooler and exhaust to be disconnected. Once those hoses are free, the flush ports can be unscrewed and pulled out of the ski. A bit of force is needed to unseat the silicone put in place by the factory.
Neoprene/Rubber gaskets used on the stock flush ports must be retained, or genuine replacement gaskets can be purchased from your Kawasaki parts counter. 100% RTV Silicone was used as well, to ensure a water-tight seal. Unlimited also sent us a green billet threaded flush fitting, designed to accommodate commercially available quick-connect garden hose adapters.
The Unlimited PWC billet cam cover has been featured on The Watercraft Journal before, but never like this! This solid-aluminum cover is a work of art! Featuring a simplified breather assembly to reduce weight and facilitate air flow, this cover is precision milled to provide a perfect fit on all Kawasaki 4-stroke marine engines.
When installing this component on the Ultra 310, the upper exhaust pipe assembly must be unbolted and removed from the ski. This process will require a torque wrench, as well as a new OEM pipe-to-manifold gasket that can be purchased from your Kawasaki parts counter.
There are four O-rings/gaskets that must be re-used from the factory cam/valve cover. These gaskets seal the spark-plug tubes in the head from oil that is being slung around under the valve cover. If these are in poor condition, you may obtain new ones from Kawasaki.
To accompany our new green billet cam cover, Unlimited also sent their Billet oil fill cap in black. The cap installs the same way as the stock cap. The Unlimited part requires an o-ring to be installed which can be re-used from the old cap if it is in new condition, sourced from Kawasaki, or a generic o-ring can be utilized. This cap provides an easy way to dress up any Kawasaki 1,498cc JetSki engine, while keeping contaminates and water out of the oil fill port.
We round off our build with the Unlimited green billet water bypass nozzle. This nozzle fits perfectly in the hole for the stock rubber nozzle, and provides a subtle, yet visually appealing upgrade.
The billet bypass nozzle can accommodate the Ultra 310 stock water bypass-plumbing with only a few miscellaneous components we acquired from our local hardware store. The port features a 3/8 male barb fitting and 45 degree water exit angle.
Finally, we install the Unlimited PWC quick-drain ball valve system. These billet ball-valves are color-matched and feature a tapered body with a plastic ball that allows water from your bilge to exit while the ski is underway, while preventing water from entering.
Every model in the Kawasaki Ultra line is equipped with a venturi-style bilge pump stock from the factory. If water enters the bilge, however, this pump is usually not able to remove all of it due to the location of the pickup. These ball drain valves allow all water in the bilge to exit through the lowest point of the hull.
These drains install in the same way your normal drain plug would install, and are recommended for day-use only. These are not designed for skis that are moored, or will be in the water for a long period without moving.
Stay tuned for the next part of the series, “Take your Kawasaki Ultra’s Handling to the Next Level with Unlimited PWC,” which will feature Unlimited’s green Full Billet X-Sponsons, and their silver Low-Down fixed handlebar riser complete with billet green Middle Handlebars.
It will also feature a grey Unlimited handlebar pad, black Logo Lock Grips with custom color-matched green billet lock rings, and black Type II billet Grip Ends. Unlimited has also provided us with a custom immobilizer key relocation bracket designed specifically for the latest generation Ultra 160/310 models. Visit Unlimited PWC to check out these products, as well as Unlimited’s full catalog of parts and components for Kawasaki, Yamaha, and Sea-Doo personal watercraft.
We recently touched on the Pelagion HydroBlade in an article about electric watercraft. A couple of days later, we received an email from Dominique Oliver, the Marketing Manager for Pelagion. He provided us with a closer look at the HydroBlade and said it is designed to create a flight-like sensation with its dual-electric motors. The steering is set up in a way that will give the pilot a feeling like riding a motorcycle. This setup allows for sharper turns and precise control at the helm.
The HydroBlade was created as a user-friendly electric hydrofoil watercraft with high-performance in mind. It is not only powerful, but efficient, accessible, environmentally friendly, and a heck of a lot of fun.
The battery technology is a cut above the rest with its focus on safety, efficiency, and value. It is designed to monitor the health and safety of each individual cell.
No other battery does that. Increased efficiency allows you to maximize fun while eliminating the challenges of an electric watercraft.
Pelagion will soon take preorders on The Founders’ Series, an early production model of the HydroBlade eFoil.
These models are extremely limited and are guaranteed to provide you with epic adventure! Pelagion is also putting together a community and will offer exclusive benefits to members.
The Founders’ Series will feature unique finishes and upgrades that are sure to be eye-catching. An app is in the mix as well so you can stay connected to your friends while keeping up with all your stats and more. Head over to the site and fill out the form to register interest in a Pelagion HydroBlade Efoil.
RIVA Racing has some killer new gear ready for you to purchase. If you’re in the market for a new steering system for your Yamaha WaveRunner, check out the new pro steering systems. RIVA has five new systems in stock to make your jet ski’s steering system lighter and stronger. Lose the bulk of the stock unit and go with a lightweight aluminum unit from RIVA Racing.
For the Sea-Doo RXP owner, the new rear exhaust kits are in stock for the 2021 and newer Sea-Doo RXP models. Upgrade with one of these stylish kits and make your Sea-Doo stand out from the crowd while improving your watercraft’s performance. If you need seat covers, look no further, RIVA has a whole lot of them in stock for Kawasaki, Sea-Doo, and Yamaha. A dropdown menu is available for customers to search for their make and model.
While you’re checking out the new parts, grab a new t-shirt before heading to the checkout. They have a few 100% cotton t- shirts for $20 a pop. Purchase a Breast Cancer Awareness Tee and RIVA will donate a portion to the American Cancer Society. Head over to the RIVA Racing website for all the details on what’s new!
The HydroBlade was created as a user-friendly electric hydrofoil watercraft with high-performance in mind. It is not only powerful, but efficient, accessible, environmentally friendly, and a heck of a lot of fun.
