Talk to me about Jet Skis
Discussion
or maybe talk me out of a JetSki
Firstly, I have less that zero experience of Jet Skis or boats with my total waterborne experience being limited to kayaks.
While climbing over the rocks at Broadsands in Devon with my sons, we sat and watched some guys having fun with some very fast JetSkis between Torquay and Brixham.
I think I may have the bug.
What would you recommend for a complete novice?
What should I look out for when buying one?
obviously it has to run and float, but what else?
How do you get it in the water?
do you have to go to a slipway, pay a fee, drag it across a beach?
What about things like insurance?
Over to you....
Firstly, I have less that zero experience of Jet Skis or boats with my total waterborne experience being limited to kayaks.
While climbing over the rocks at Broadsands in Devon with my sons, we sat and watched some guys having fun with some very fast JetSkis between Torquay and Brixham.
I think I may have the bug.
What would you recommend for a complete novice?
What should I look out for when buying one?
obviously it has to run and float, but what else?
How do you get it in the water?
do you have to go to a slipway, pay a fee, drag it across a beach?
What about things like insurance?
Over to you....
As a yachty (WAFI), all my being is crying out 'don't do it, they're a menace' etc etc.
BUT, I've had a go on a few (always in sunnier climes) and have to admit they're massive fun. I think they are 'time and place' objects - i.e, off the shore of a warm beach in quiet waters - great fun. In this country, on a lake or river, they are the water-borne equivalent of a Max-powered Fiesta.
Sorry I can't offer any practical advice! (other than maybe think about a nice RIB instead).
BUT, I've had a go on a few (always in sunnier climes) and have to admit they're massive fun. I think they are 'time and place' objects - i.e, off the shore of a warm beach in quiet waters - great fun. In this country, on a lake or river, they are the water-borne equivalent of a Max-powered Fiesta.
Sorry I can't offer any practical advice! (other than maybe think about a nice RIB instead).
They can be very good fun, but, a very good friend of mine was out with a bunch of mates on rented jet skis. One of them thought he would do a high speed pass, only for the gap between the 2 jet skis he was aiming for narrowed. My mate ended up spending 4 weeks in hospital (punctured lung, twisted spine, bruised kidneys). His wife was not impressed as he was due back in the UK 2 days after the accident.
They are chavtastic. Everyone else afloat will secretly wish you drowned.
On a practical note, you will need a trailer to tow it and launch it from a slipway, for which you will usually need to pay a fee. You would be well-advised to have a handheld vhf if going any distance, and will need to do a course first to get the appropriate vhf licence. If you just intend to buzz about near the harbour annoying everyone, you could probably dispense with this, with the added bonus that then you can't hear everyone else afloat calling you a c**t
On a practical note, you will need a trailer to tow it and launch it from a slipway, for which you will usually need to pay a fee. You would be well-advised to have a handheld vhf if going any distance, and will need to do a course first to get the appropriate vhf licence. If you just intend to buzz about near the harbour annoying everyone, you could probably dispense with this, with the added bonus that then you can't hear everyone else afloat calling you a c**t
Goddamn awfull things ! Everyone afloat will hate you ! Once you have done a few figure 8'S a couple of doughnuts, you'll be wondering what now ?
They are massive and weigh over 400kg full of fuel, you will need to lauch on a slip, so you may as well buy a small boat with an outboard.
At least with a boat you can have a picknick on the hook, snorkel/dive/fish etc.
Please please please don't do it !
Oh and they are a maintainance nightmare. I look after 3 and a jet RIB as part of my job. I spend more time fixing the bloody things than I do looking after the 87ft yacht they're stacked up on.
They are massive and weigh over 400kg full of fuel, you will need to lauch on a slip, so you may as well buy a small boat with an outboard.
At least with a boat you can have a picknick on the hook, snorkel/dive/fish etc.
Please please please don't do it !
Oh and they are a maintainance nightmare. I look after 3 and a jet RIB as part of my job. I spend more time fixing the bloody things than I do looking after the 87ft yacht they're stacked up on.
For less money, you could get something much more capable, like this
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Avon-Searider-4m-Rigid-I...
or to fit your kids in - this
http://www.buyarib.com/rib-listings/zodiac-futura-...
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Avon-Searider-4m-Rigid-I...
or to fit your kids in - this
http://www.buyarib.com/rib-listings/zodiac-futura-...
There are some responsible 'skiers out there.
Book yourself onto an RYA PWC proficiency test, 1 day, £100-150 with craft, wetsuit, PFD etc. I'd recommend doing this at a lake based venue if you have zero experience.
You'll get a feel of it, whether it's for you or not, and if you proceed you've got a basic bit of training under your belt (which will help your insurance premium), and learnt about different craft and the safety clothing & equipment you'll also need to buy.
If you go for it, join a local club. Fancy racing? Have a look at P1-AquaX, one of the most affordable motor/water sport racing out there.
Book yourself onto an RYA PWC proficiency test, 1 day, £100-150 with craft, wetsuit, PFD etc. I'd recommend doing this at a lake based venue if you have zero experience.
You'll get a feel of it, whether it's for you or not, and if you proceed you've got a basic bit of training under your belt (which will help your insurance premium), and learnt about different craft and the safety clothing & equipment you'll also need to buy.
If you go for it, join a local club. Fancy racing? Have a look at P1-AquaX, one of the most affordable motor/water sport racing out there.
No worries
Some rough figures:
A decent used 4-stroke 3 seater (which can tow inflatables)on a trailer £3500
(Yamaha or Kawasaki)
Wetsuits, PFDs, safety gear £500-700
Insurance annual £200
Servicing £200
RNLI membership £72
Fuel, unleaded 95: £50-100 for a decent day (avoiding forced induction engines)
Storage - in yer garage, free
Launching - free to £25
Club membership - £25 to £300
Some rough figures:
A decent used 4-stroke 3 seater (which can tow inflatables)on a trailer £3500
(Yamaha or Kawasaki)
Wetsuits, PFDs, safety gear £500-700
Insurance annual £200
Servicing £200
RNLI membership £72
Fuel, unleaded 95: £50-100 for a decent day (avoiding forced induction engines)
Storage - in yer garage, free
Launching - free to £25
Club membership - £25 to £300
richardxjr said:
No worries
Some rough figures:
A decent used 4-stroke 3 seater (which can tow inflatables)on a trailer £3500
(Yamaha or Kawasaki)
Wetsuits, PFDs, safety gear £500-700
Insurance annual £200
Servicing £200
RNLI membership £72
Fuel, unleaded 95: £50-100 for a decent day (avoiding forced induction engines)
Storage - in yer garage, free
Launching - free to £25
Club membership - £25 to £300
Actually this is making my SP-1 look positively frugalSome rough figures:
A decent used 4-stroke 3 seater (which can tow inflatables)on a trailer £3500
(Yamaha or Kawasaki)
Wetsuits, PFDs, safety gear £500-700
Insurance annual £200
Servicing £200
RNLI membership £72
Fuel, unleaded 95: £50-100 for a decent day (avoiding forced induction engines)
Storage - in yer garage, free
Launching - free to £25
Club membership - £25 to £300
yes, I am a biker, so I'm used to everyone else hating me
Great fun as a kid. We regularly hooned about in the South China Sea as teenagers renting them from a H&S nightmare place in Malaysia. No training really, just handed a rather faded lifejacket and the safety-cut-out leash and told to come back in an hour.
We could do the sliding spins, jumping the reasonably sized breakers and generally having a ball.
One guy tried to do a barrel roll along a breaker; that one hurt him but thankfully the water was deep enough that he didn't get squashed. I had a guy try and do a fly by who got the trajectory wrong; came prow first up the side of my 'ski and the rubber trim hit me just under my hip. I flew off, my 'ski was trashed on the side and he just launched skywards. We lost the deposit on that run and I ended up sitting on an ice block for a few hours. Lucky really. If it had hit me higher up I'm not sure I'd have been around now.
As mentioned earlier, there are good riders and bad.
Dr Rick
We could do the sliding spins, jumping the reasonably sized breakers and generally having a ball.
One guy tried to do a barrel roll along a breaker; that one hurt him but thankfully the water was deep enough that he didn't get squashed. I had a guy try and do a fly by who got the trajectory wrong; came prow first up the side of my 'ski and the rubber trim hit me just under my hip. I flew off, my 'ski was trashed on the side and he just launched skywards. We lost the deposit on that run and I ended up sitting on an ice block for a few hours. Lucky really. If it had hit me higher up I'm not sure I'd have been around now.
As mentioned earlier, there are good riders and bad.
Dr Rick
richardxjr said:
No worries
Some rough figures:
A decent used 4-stroke 3 seater (which can tow inflatables)on a trailer £3500
(Yamaha or Kawasaki)
Wetsuits, PFDs, safety gear £500-700
Insurance annual £200
Servicing £200
RNLI membership £72
Fuel, unleaded 95: £50-100 for a decent day (avoiding forced induction engines)
Storage - in yer garage, free
Launching - free to £25
Club membership - £25 to £300
Bloody hell!Some rough figures:
A decent used 4-stroke 3 seater (which can tow inflatables)on a trailer £3500
(Yamaha or Kawasaki)
Wetsuits, PFDs, safety gear £500-700
Insurance annual £200
Servicing £200
RNLI membership £72
Fuel, unleaded 95: £50-100 for a decent day (avoiding forced induction engines)
Storage - in yer garage, free
Launching - free to £25
Club membership - £25 to £300
IMHO they are annoying little buzzy things, a bit like flies around a freshly laid turd.
My mate and I hired one each in the USA...we are quite competitive when it comes to anything yet we ended up giving them back early out of a boredom. OK so confession time, I am a "raggie", sailing various things including a Moth, a 30kg carbon fibre weapon on hydrofoils that will do in excess of 30 knots in the right hands.
However sailing any performance boat is like driving down a twisty road, you are balancing a number of things to stay on an invisible track. You can't just point it anywhere and go.
A jet ski is like having a powerful car...and a car park to play in. You can hoon round making lost of noise and a nuisance of yourself, in a "I'll go over there, erm now over there" kinda way, before just giving up. It's pointless...it's not as if you can use them on a twisty river or canal where it actually might be fun.
Nowt wrong with some power boats...but make it a RIB where you can pile a BBQ and a few friends in, you have enough room for some safety and nav gear, the potential to make proper passages, or use at night, and you can carry a small spare outboard so at least you can self rescue if it all goes wrong....
My mate and I hired one each in the USA...we are quite competitive when it comes to anything yet we ended up giving them back early out of a boredom. OK so confession time, I am a "raggie", sailing various things including a Moth, a 30kg carbon fibre weapon on hydrofoils that will do in excess of 30 knots in the right hands.
However sailing any performance boat is like driving down a twisty road, you are balancing a number of things to stay on an invisible track. You can't just point it anywhere and go.
A jet ski is like having a powerful car...and a car park to play in. You can hoon round making lost of noise and a nuisance of yourself, in a "I'll go over there, erm now over there" kinda way, before just giving up. It's pointless...it's not as if you can use them on a twisty river or canal where it actually might be fun.
Nowt wrong with some power boats...but make it a RIB where you can pile a BBQ and a few friends in, you have enough room for some safety and nav gear, the potential to make proper passages, or use at night, and you can carry a small spare outboard so at least you can self rescue if it all goes wrong....
For balance...
Modern 'skis are fabulous for day cruising. 100nm+ range (& space for extra fuel/range), stable, plenty space for gear, yet still huge fun.
This guy Voltrex does some serious channel cruising, mix in a bit of wavejumping when it gets a bit lumpy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1BRvWQQF4I&fea...
Modern 'skis are fabulous for day cruising. 100nm+ range (& space for extra fuel/range), stable, plenty space for gear, yet still huge fun.
This guy Voltrex does some serious channel cruising, mix in a bit of wavejumping when it gets a bit lumpy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1BRvWQQF4I&fea...
That's Dave from Jersey, I've ski'd from Portsmouth to Alderney 4 times, twice last year including going to Guernsey/Herm for 2 days then returning via Dielette to Alderney and back to Portland, yes I went with other boats but it can be done even by a old bugger like me.
richardxjr said:
For balance...
Modern 'skis are fabulous for day cruising. 100nm+ range (& space for extra fuel/range), stable, plenty space for gear, yet still huge fun.
This guy Voltrex does some serious channel cruising, mix in a bit of wavejumping when it gets a bit lumpy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1BRvWQQF4I&fea...
Modern 'skis are fabulous for day cruising. 100nm+ range (& space for extra fuel/range), stable, plenty space for gear, yet still huge fun.
This guy Voltrex does some serious channel cruising, mix in a bit of wavejumping when it gets a bit lumpy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S1BRvWQQF4I&fea...
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