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Kim Bushong, Southern California.
Primary Race Craft: 2007 Kawasaki ULTRA250X
Kim is probably the most accomplished athlete PWCOFFSHORE selected for the 2008 sponsorship. He is definitely the most obsessed with riding PWC offshore! Passion anyone! In addition to being a competitive offshore rider, Kim is one of the originators of the Iron Man Triathlon scene. He is a former world police and fire games triathlon champion as well as Ironman triathlon top ten finisher in Kona Hawaii. By the way, Kim led one of his Iron Man race through the swim and bike ride portions of the race only to be overtaken during the final Marathon run race. Kim has mountain and road bike raced, swam competitively and competed in running races. Kim's says he's burned out on every one of these other sports, some more rapidly then others but all within a few years. Kim states that unlike his other sporting ventures, he has not burned out on PWC riding and doesn't see it happening for the indefinite future. Kim has been riding PWC offshore for 12 years and can’t get enough. Kim has done the Long Beach to Catalina and back race five times and remains his favorite race.
In 1997 he bought his first watercraft, a new 1996 Tigershark three-seater, 1997 Sea Doo SPX (Kim states that this was one of the best hull every made), Yamaha 1100 WaveVenure, 2002 SeaDoo GTX Foretec, Kawasaki STXDI, Kawasaki 1500F, Kawasaki 250X. Kim jokes that he tends to go through Jet Skis like a pair of my running shoes.
Regarding his tigershark, Kim says "I rode the snot out of that willfully disobedient beast, that flat bottomed piece of work beat the heck out of me and itself. While skipping sideways across wave-tops in the open ocean, I used to marvel at the abilities of other riders to master the waves. Years later, I found out those same riders wondered how that guy on the Tigershark could even stay on that thing while skipping sideways across the swells." Kim says that Since he's mounted the offshore configured hull of the ULTRA 250X, the pounding that he takes in the channel has subsided somewhat, although still intense at close to 70 mph. "We're going a lot faster now with larger hulls which has shifted that paradigm for the aggressive offshore riding scene, requiring some changes in riding methodology" says Kim.
Quote of the decade from Kim: "The faster I go, the harder and more violent I bounce, the more sore I get, the more satisfaction I feel. If walking up the dock after a hard ride does not cause my legs to crumble from under me then I’ve not had a good ride" Those who have ridden with Kim know he has a great deal of skill offshore, especially in rough water.
Race History and Highlights:
2002 Beginner stock IJSBA stock class Long Beach To Catalina Offshore national champion2003 :Long Beach to Catalina Class Champion
2004 Normally aspirated Long Beach to Catalina Class Champion
2006 ProAm Long Beach to Catalina Four Stroke Normally Aspirated APBA National Champion2006 ProAm 2nd Place in the Mark Hahn Memorial (Paul Pham was his partner)
2006 Vet Master Long Beach Sprint National Champion
2007 Vet Master Long Beach To Catalina National Champion (Time - broke an hour!)
2008 Mark Hahn 300 Mile: 7th Overall, riding with Paul Pham.
2008 Long Beach to Catalina Race: In third place approx. sixmiles from finish and had a mechanical that resulted in a DNF.
Fun Fact about Kim: Back in his Iron Man Triathlon days, Kim was attending so many Iron Races and operating on such a shoe-string budget, that he jokes about having to spray bug spray around some of the mattresses that he had to sleep on. There was a great deal of inexpensive peanut butter consumed in those days to maintain the energy required to train for all of his Iron Man races. Needless to say, The discipline Kim fostered from his Ironman training and races has served him exceptionally well in the PWC endurance racing arena. 2008 Sponsors: PWCOFFSHORE.com, R&D, Hydro-Turf
Go to http://www.pwcoffshore.com/ for the complete story about the PWCOFFSHORE.com Sponsored Offshore Racers
Primary Race Craft: 2007 Kawasaki ULTRA250X
Kim is probably the most accomplished athlete PWCOFFSHORE selected for the 2008 sponsorship. He is definitely the most obsessed with riding PWC offshore! Passion anyone! In addition to being a competitive offshore rider, Kim is one of the originators of the Iron Man Triathlon scene. He is a former world police and fire games triathlon champion as well as Ironman triathlon top ten finisher in Kona Hawaii. By the way, Kim led one of his Iron Man race through the swim and bike ride portions of the race only to be overtaken during the final Marathon run race. Kim has mountain and road bike raced, swam competitively and competed in running races. Kim's says he's burned out on every one of these other sports, some more rapidly then others but all within a few years. Kim states that unlike his other sporting ventures, he has not burned out on PWC riding and doesn't see it happening for the indefinite future. Kim has been riding PWC offshore for 12 years and can’t get enough. Kim has done the Long Beach to Catalina and back race five times and remains his favorite race.
In 1997 he bought his first watercraft, a new 1996 Tigershark three-seater, 1997 Sea Doo SPX (Kim states that this was one of the best hull every made), Yamaha 1100 WaveVenure, 2002 SeaDoo GTX Foretec, Kawasaki STXDI, Kawasaki 1500F, Kawasaki 250X. Kim jokes that he tends to go through Jet Skis like a pair of my running shoes.
Regarding his tigershark, Kim says "I rode the snot out of that willfully disobedient beast, that flat bottomed piece of work beat the heck out of me and itself. While skipping sideways across wave-tops in the open ocean, I used to marvel at the abilities of other riders to master the waves. Years later, I found out those same riders wondered how that guy on the Tigershark could even stay on that thing while skipping sideways across the swells." Kim says that Since he's mounted the offshore configured hull of the ULTRA 250X, the pounding that he takes in the channel has subsided somewhat, although still intense at close to 70 mph. "We're going a lot faster now with larger hulls which has shifted that paradigm for the aggressive offshore riding scene, requiring some changes in riding methodology" says Kim.
Quote of the decade from Kim: "The faster I go, the harder and more violent I bounce, the more sore I get, the more satisfaction I feel. If walking up the dock after a hard ride does not cause my legs to crumble from under me then I’ve not had a good ride" Those who have ridden with Kim know he has a great deal of skill offshore, especially in rough water.
Race History and Highlights:
2002 Beginner stock IJSBA stock class Long Beach To Catalina Offshore national champion2003 :Long Beach to Catalina Class Champion
2004 Normally aspirated Long Beach to Catalina Class Champion
2006 ProAm Long Beach to Catalina Four Stroke Normally Aspirated APBA National Champion2006 ProAm 2nd Place in the Mark Hahn Memorial (Paul Pham was his partner)
2006 Vet Master Long Beach Sprint National Champion
2007 Vet Master Long Beach To Catalina National Champion (Time - broke an hour!)
2008 Mark Hahn 300 Mile: 7th Overall, riding with Paul Pham.
2008 Long Beach to Catalina Race: In third place approx. sixmiles from finish and had a mechanical that resulted in a DNF.
Fun Fact about Kim: Back in his Iron Man Triathlon days, Kim was attending so many Iron Races and operating on such a shoe-string budget, that he jokes about having to spray bug spray around some of the mattresses that he had to sleep on. There was a great deal of inexpensive peanut butter consumed in those days to maintain the energy required to train for all of his Iron Man races. Needless to say, The discipline Kim fostered from his Ironman training and races has served him exceptionally well in the PWC endurance racing arena. 2008 Sponsors: PWCOFFSHORE.com, R&D, Hydro-Turf
Go to http://www.pwcoffshore.com/ for the complete story about the PWCOFFSHORE.com Sponsored Offshore Racers
