Sunday, September 28, 2008

PWC Reliability Critical to Offshore Riding and Racing

(Picture of Aaron Cress who advises the racers of PWCOFFSHORE.com regarding reliability and speed modifications for the Kawasaki ULTRA250X)
The reliability of offshore PWC is critical to success in offshore PWC training and racing. Endurance riding and racing denotes long periods of full throttle operation. You will be challenged to find a more demanding environment for PWC than the ocean and the importance of a quality, honest mechanic is crucial to your success. if you're racing then you are pushing the mechanical envelope of your craft and the importance of who is keeping your craft up to speed is paramount. Be selective regarding who you engage to maintain and repair your craft. You will find many mechanics are good with a specific brand but great with another and understands the idiosyncrasies on your brand and year model. Find that mechanic that is best for your brand of PWC and drive long distances to his/her shop if necessary. Do the research, it is well worth it and will serve you well.

The PWCOFFSHORE.com Sponsored Racers is a group of elite offshore racers that truly push the envelope in the open ocean waters and in the rough on a very regular basis. This type of PWC operation silhouettes the mechanical prowess of their craft every time they ride. This group of riders has a number of different watercraft that they engage based on the day's sea state (size of wave and chop they will encounter). Yes, they have the completely tweaked out modified 80 mph craft that rocket across the water, but you might be surprised to know that a number of their rough water watercraft maintain the majority of their engine parts in stock form. Why? There is a point of diminishing return when it comes to modifications and reliability (yes I know, we could debate this issue for hours). Specifically, if you're pushing the envelope offshore in the 5 foot rough stuff, your average speed is likely to be between 55 and 60 mph. Why potentially compromise the reliability of the craft by significantly modifying the engine away from stock if you're not able to use all of that modified 300 hp when stock will suffice? (Food for thought, the 2008 LB2CAT rough conditions/sea state winning race time had an average speed of just less than 60 mph, even thought we estimate that the winning craft have the capability of a top speed of 75 mph). You will find the racers of PWCOFFSHORE.com regularly maintaining their craft and obsessively going above and beyond to ensure that their craft is reliable and fast every time they hit the water to complete their regular 60 mile round trip Long Beach to Catalina and back offshore training rides. As of September of 2008, all of them ride either Kawasaki or SeaDoo watercraft. For the SeaDoo in the Western United States, the group seeks guidance from Steve Friebe of Clawson Motorsports in Fresno California to keep their craft in good running order. For the Kawasaki ULTRA250X, they seek technical assistance from Aaron Cress of Dana Point Jetski.

Do your homework and seek out the best mechanic out there for your watercraft!


http://www.pwcoffshore.com/ for more detailed information regarding offshore PWC maintenance