PWC

[AndyMX47]

Just thought I would derail the entire forum a bit further. Any of the 6 of us ever into personal watercraft?

We used to have a pair of 89 JS650 stand up skiis - one mostly stock, with just a prop and extra cooling line, and one full mod, high compression, pipe, rear exhaust, ported cylinder and big carb. They were the most fun when we lived in DC. We would ride on the Potomac River and jump the wake of the Potomac Queen cruise ship every Saturday. The passengers would line the rear deck and watch us.

In between the three daily cruise ship runs we would race around buoys in Pohick Bay.

My mod ski broke a crankshaft and barely ran for about a mile from the river back to the boat launch. That would have been a long swim, or tow. It also suffered an exhaust leak once and was very slowly sinking. Stand up ski racing was pretty popular in Maryland in the 90's.

Fun times.

Once the sit-down skis arrived and "anybody could do it" the whole scene seemed to dissolve.

 

[bmart]

I tried this once. Never fully understood how to control the one I was on (which admittedly was one of the more difficult ones at the time). Rode it erratically into a restricted area and got pulled over by the lake police. There really aren't any branches of policing that I haven't been pulled over by. That was enough for me.

 

[AndyMX47]

I tried this once. Never fully understood how to control the one I was on (which admittedly was one of the more difficult ones at the time). Rode it erratically into a restricted area and got pulled over by the lake police. There really aren't any branches of policing that I haven't been pulled over by. That was enough for me.

That's awesome. Stand-up skis are tricky to learn without good instruction! They don't steer unless you are on the throttle, and take way more power than you expect to get going.

Heather and I got pulled over by the lake police here on Lake Norman once. The officer wanted to see my fire extinguisher (on a stand up jet ski). It's in a sealed compartment where you have to turn a plug 90 degrees to open it - almost impossible to open when in the water. I told him if my ski catches fire I'm going to flip it upside down in the lake, but if he can open the compartment, he's welcome to see the extinguisher. He tried and tried, gave up, and let us go. Glad they are keeping us all safe.

 

[JustAnotherSquid]

KK and I got into them while the sit-down boom was in full swing. We got married in 1996 and instead of going on a honeymoon we bought a Triton PWC trailer, a Yamaha WaveRaider 760 (for her), and a SeaDoo XP800 (for me). I don't feel guilty about that; we've taken more than our fair share of vacations since.

First time out on the lake she crashed her Yamaha into my SeaDoo and almost took my head off in the process (no exaggeration). She crashed into me because, in her words, "I forgot they don't have brakes". She's earned her nickname many, many times.

The Yamaha was built like a tank and as reliable as ... well, a Yamaha. (R1s excluded.) The SeaDoo however was slapped together by drunk Canadians that clearly thought the whole "manufacturing" thing was one big joke to laugh about over beers. The XP was flimsy and it broke constantly. Constantly.

But out on the water ... wow. The SeaDoo was an animal. It made way too much power for it's hull, had tiny sponsons bolted onto the sides, and barely any chines. It would leap into the air like an overcaffeinated frog and spin like a top with no effort at all. So that's what I did all day every Saturday for a few years.

In contrast the Yamaha was a little dull to ride. It had aggressive sponsons and deep chines and it would just dig in when you tried to spin it. It had a much longer hull and made less power so it didn't jump very well either. Sure, that all meant it handled better but who cares. Spinning and jumping is what mattered.

 

[boike333]

Nice R1 dig JAS!

I fell like we done this before…..

I bought an old sea doo when I lived in Charleston circa 1996-99 when I sold my F2, cause let’s just say riding down there was a touch flat and straight! Let me tell you the inter coastal is a blast on these things.

I rode a stand up a few times but mainly just my shorts came off from the jet when your hanging off the back to get going!

 

[JustAnotherSquid]

I fell like we done this before…..

Yeah but we're old and may as well be sitting on the front porch rocking back and forth while slapping our gums. We'll probably do a jet-ski thread next week too so be prepared.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm putting the finishing touches on a "What was your first bike?" thread.

 

[JustAnotherSquid]

 

[bmart]

Spinning and jumping is what mattered.

This explains a lot.

sponsons bolted onto the sides, and barely any chines

I think that I ordered sponsons and chines once in a bar.

 

[boike333]

Yeah but we're old and may as well be sitting on the front porch rocking back and forth while slapping our gums. We'll probably do a jet-ski thread next week too so be prepared.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm putting the finishing touches on a "What was your first bike?" thread.

Hahaha, nice. You were rocking full on 90’s! Ever run into Alan Jackson out on the Chattahoochie?

 

[AndyMX47]

This explains a lot.

I think that I ordered sponsons and chines once in a bar.

Don't chines come on your baked potato? Chef Boike would know.

In other PWC trivia, we used to jet ski with a guy named Bill who rode a Kawasaki 750 stand up with his dog aboard. The dog was named Ted. Yes, Bill and Ted. I bought both of my skiis from a man named Fred. I feel a Haiku coming on.

I wish we had photos from jumping the cruise ship wake, or waves at Virginia Beach. Done right, 15 feet of air was attainable. Frequently the landings were not pretty.

 

[JustAnotherSquid]

Hahaha, nice. You were rocking full on 90’s! Ever run into Alan Jackson out on the Chattahoochie?

That entire post is Greek to me! I have no idea who Alan Jackson is and after doing an internet search on him I still don't know. 🤷‍♂️

 

[JustAnotherSquid]

In other PWC trivia, we used to jet ski with a guy named Bill who rode a Kawasaki 750 stand up with his dog aboard. The dog was named Ted. Yes, Bill and Ted. I bought both of my skiis from a man named Fred. I feel a Haiku coming on.

I wish we had photos from jumping the cruise ship wake, or waves at Virginia Beach. Done right, 15 feet of air was attainable. Frequently the landings were not pretty.

Haha nice! Sounds like Bill and Ted had an ... wait, no, I'm not going to say it.

I'd like to point out that both pictures of the XP800 were in completely smooth water. When jumping a wake you could catch air that was absurd and dangerous. Enough to get yourself seriously hurt! Ask me how I know.

 

[KrashnKaren]

In contrast the Yamaha was a little dull to ride. It had aggressive sponsons and deep chines and it would just dig in when you tried to spin it. It had a much longer hull and made less power so it didn't jump very well either. Sure, that all meant it handled better but who cares. Spinning and jumping is what mattered.

It may have been dull but how many times did I tow your broken and/or flooded SeaDoo back to the shore! It had to have been dozens of times!

 

[bmart]

That entire post is Greek to me! I have no idea who Alan Jackson is and after doing an internet search on him I still don't know. 🤷‍♂️

Alan Parsons and Michael Jackson had a baby. I don't know who he is either.

 

[boike333]

You would have been brothers….jeez is everybody from the north around here….

 

[bmart]

I hate modern country music as much as I hate hip hop and rap. Nails. Chalkboard.

 

[JustAnotherSquid]

....jeez is everybody from the north around here….

I was born in the Pacific Northwest, and of all the places I lived growing up, the place I lived the longest was Miami!

edit - also, I don't watch football (or any sports) but if I did I'd know the Cowboys suck and so does anyone wearing their jersey.

 

[bmart]

We're all wierdos.

I've never had a cup of coffee, apple pie, or watched sports beyond the Celtics in the 80s and the occassional SuperBowl because my mom watched. And that's just getting started...

 

[boike333]

I was born in the Pacific Northwest, and of all the places I lived growing up, the place I lived the longest was Miami!

edit - also, I don't watch football (or any sports) but if I did I'd know the Cowboys suck and so does anyone wearing their jersey.

Haha
Somehow Miami isn’t the south but not sure why.

I don’t really follow football either but I think back in the 90s they were too notch. The comparison was really just the 90s colors and water sports and look.

 

[JustAnotherSquid]

The comparison was really just the 90s colors and water sports and look.

Miami was definitely not the north back then, and it's something even more different now. Also:

If you know where that clip came from, I ❤️ you.