Seadoos / Jetskis

I like boats and wondered if a jet ski could be like a motorcycle on water. Unfortunately I like long rides and I'm under the impression that the range isn't that good on the things. Therefore they get used to go back and for and back and forth and back and forth in front of the cottage.

That said I've seen some interesting stunts on the stand up ones.
 
Owned a 2000 Sea-Doo XP, that thing was like a dirt bike on water :D and since I have a house on Simcoe which tends to be rough it was a lot of fun.
Unfortunately I ended up blowing the engine in it and haven't replaced it.
Wife still owns a 2004 Sea-Doo GTX 4-TEC Limited Supercharged, completely different beast but still a lot of fun. You can do long rides on them, but they're really more for playing around.
You can also use the GTX for tubing and/or other towing.
 
Yep, love seadoo'in. Better than any motorcycle ive owned.

Started last year on a Seadoo Spark, and upgraded to the new 2018 RXT 230 this year.
Totally worth owning one now, and not having to rebuild the older ones or worry about blowing them up.
Mines supercharged that takes regular gas with not having to rebuild the supercharger every 100 hours.
 
Great fun, great way to explore a different view of the country and countless inland lakes, but you need at least 2 of them.
... you need to be careful not to get way too much sun riding them, the things are freakin fast on smooth water, rough waves on Lake Ontario will beat you down after a while and the saddles are ridiculously uncomfortable.
 
For fun, I prefer the old school seadoos before they became huge and stable (ie. HX or XP). At this point, they are old marine two strokes though, so they have probably been abused at some point.

There is something to be said for the ability to hop on and go with a newer one. I have friends that love them, but the damn things are just so big (~800 lbs dry, pushing 1000 fueled and ready to ride) and stable they do nothing for me. The trim adjustment on Yamahas is pretty cool though.
 
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Trials said:
Great fun, great way to explore a different view of the country and countless inland lakes, but you need at least 2 of them.
... you need to be careful not to get way too much sun riding them, the things are freakin fast on smooth water, rough waves on Lake Ontario will beat you down after a while and the saddles are ridiculously uncomfortable.
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The seats over last few years have improved drastically.

As for being out on rough water, it is tiring yes. Was out on Lake Simcoe a few weeks ago hitting 4 ft waves for 2 hours. Could barely walk for a day or so afterwards.

Trim adjustment is on most new machines now.
 
I had one given to me a few years back with a blown engine. I pulled everything out and sealed up the ports. Added a 2 X 6 as a transom and mounted a trolling motor. Perfect for fishing on my small lake north of Kingston.
 
It sounds like an overwhelming yes. Thanks! Do you all have insurance on them? Is it worth it for the older ones? Is the PWC license an easy thing compared to motorcycles?

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They were fun, but after two summers the novelty wore off. Plus Georgian Bay is bloody cold all of the time!

My little Lake was fun, but again after an hour it was meh. I tried fishing out on the reef, but have an aluminum boat and tiny motor which was better suited.

Don't be the one who rips up and down the lake at 7 am. Cottages can turn pretty nasty quick when you mess with their vacation!

BIL bought a spark (well two of em) last year. I kind of think the fun is wearing off, as he uses them about a quarter of the time he spent on them last year.
 
Lots of fun for an hour or two a couple times a summer but gets pretty boring quick.

If I had one I would have at least liability insurance especially if other people are going to ride it. People crash them into stuff/other boats fairly regularly. Tend to get scared and let go of the throttle then there's no more steering.

Boat license is pretty easy to get just time consuming. It's online but timed so you have to wait for the timer to wind down before you can move on.

To me a fast boat is far more entertaining.
 
I would say go rent one for a weekend and see for yourself. What Meme said is probably accurate for most...
It'll get used quite a bit at first... then less and less as the summer passes. I know all kinds of them that just sit on the docks.. haven't seen them move in years.
I would probably choose a spark trixx over anything else for a sit-down.
They do seem to hold their value pretty good... so if you bought something a couple years old... you shouldn't lose too much.
 
blackcamaro said:
Lots of fun for an hour or two a couple times a summer but gets pretty boring quick.

If I had one I would have at least liability insurance especially if other people are going to ride it. People crash them into stuff/other boats fairly regularly. Tend to get scared and let go of the throttle then there's no more steering.

Boat license is pretty easy to get just time consuming. It's online but timed so you have to wait for the timer to wind down before you can move on.

To me a fast boat is far more entertaining.
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I wouldn't consider a jetski without insurance. Way too much to lose.

Don't do the online boaters test. My wife did that and as you said, they make you wait for timers before you can take the test. The whole course is painful and I think takes eight hours or something dumb. Take a live test (at the sportsmen show or in a tent outside a grocery store normally) and be done in 20 minutes with your license.
 
MLadin said:
It sounds like an overwhelming yes. Thanks! Do you all have insurance on them? Is it worth it for the older ones? Is the PWC license an easy thing compared to motorcycles?
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PWC license is a bargain and everyone should seriously get one, is a one time test and expense, is valid anywhere in the world and required to operate almost anything powered by a motor now.

Insurance yes, incase you cream a swimmer mostly, not as expensive as motorcycle and sucks that we need yet another vehicle liability policy considering if you are on the ski you can't be on your motorcycle or all your other vehicles.

btw ... they are poorly suited to salt water, keep it on the fresh water lakes or your maintenance will increase dramatically.
 
I dont know I'm into my second season and the novely hasnt worn off.

I did 56 hours on my spark and im already at 25 hours with my new one now.

Just join a few seadoo clubs and go out with a few others and your set.
 
Here were our Jetskis.

jetskis.jpg


Sold them about 3 years ago when we decided to get back into motorcycles.

We had a TON of fun with them. I think I had more fun with mine vs my wife as I was way more adventurous (wave jumping, etc) but we both enjoyed a lot of long cruises as well down the Otonabee river, etc. First season we put over 100 hours on them, second season probably 60-80 hours, and yes, it did taper off in later years but we still got out for 40-50 hours a season.

Since we don't live on the water it was always a big time issue to actually get them TO the water and then use them. Back when we had our RV I used to tow them behind the trailer (a different thread here, pics included) and since we almost always camped on the water it worked out great, but when we sold the RV it meant that a day on the water was a special trip. Leave at 9AM, get to the water between 10 and 12 (depending on where we went), 3-4 hours on the water (plus buying lunch somewhere at that point), then load up, secure everything..and drive home...a 10-12 hour day was easy to blow.

Eventually, when we decided to get back into motorcycles again the simple convenience of being able to just roll up the garage door, put on our helmets, and be out and enjoying ourselves inside 10 minutes won out from a convenience standpoint. And the reality is that with all our other hobbies there was just not going to be time to enjoy both the skis and the bikes, so the skis went.

Both were older machines but well cared for by their previous owners, and by myself as well. I'm also quite mechanically inclined so when things did become problematic I was able to fix them myself. Had an oil line go bad on the GP1200 for example and scored a cylinder...rebuild the top end myself in the garage - $500 instead of $1500-$2500. The Polaris on the other hand was a freakin' Timex - nothing hurt that thing, it was a big comfy couch, and it was a fuel miser - about 5L/hour vs the 15L/hour my GP1200 used. But the GP1200 was a whole different beast....WOW did I have a lot of fun on that thing.
 
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PrivatePilot said:
Here were our Jetskis.

jetskis.jpg


Sold them about 3 years ago when we decided to get back into motorcycles.

We had a TON of fun with them. I think I had more fun with mine vs my wife as I was way more adventurous (wave jumping, etc) but we both enjoyed a lot of long cruises as well down the Otonabee river, etc. First season we put over 100 hours on them, second season probably 60-80 hours, and yes, it did taper off in later years but we still got out for 40-50 hours a season.

Since we don't live on the water it was always a big time issue to actually get them TO the water and then use them. Back when we had our RV I used to tow them behind the trailer (a different thread here, pics included) and since we almost always camped on the water it worked out great, but when we sold the RV it meant that a day on the water was a special trip. Leave at 9AM, get to the water between 10 and 12 (depending on where we went), 3-4 hours on the water (plus buying lunch somewhere at that point), then load up, secure everything..and drive home...a 10-12 hour day was easy to blow.

Eventually, when we decided to get back into motorcycles again the simple convenience of being able to just roll up the garage door, put on our helmets, and be out and enjoying ourselves inside 10 minutes won out from a convenience standpoint. And the reality is that with all our other hobbies there was just not going to be time to enjoy both the skis and the bikes, so the skis went.

Both were older machines but well cared for by their previous owners, and by myself as well. I'm also quite mechanically inclined so when things did become problematic I was able to fix them myself. Had an oil line go bad on the GP1200 for example and scored a cylinder...rebuild the top end myself in the garage - $500 instead of $1500-$2500. The Polaris on the other hand was a freakin' Timex - nothing hurt that thing, it was a big comfy couch, and it was a fuel miser - about 5L/hour vs the 15L/hour my GP1200 used. But the GP1200 was a whole different beast....WOW did I have a lot of fun on that thing.
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Nice.

Love the Otonabee ..
 
@PrivatePilot Sounds like you miss them!

One aspect I like about this sport is no popo around, or limited popo. With sportbikes comes that whole losing your license paranoia.

Great advice here. Thanks!

I found this on YouTube... this crazy mofo is lucky to be alive!

https://youtu.be/4GflxyE29vA

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