Feature: Sea-Doo 2008

Sea doo launches into 2008

To launch their 2008 Sea-Doo range, BRP invited TrailerBoat to Tangalooma Wild Dolphin Resort on Moreton Island. It's hard to imagine that Tangalooma's nearest neighbours are Brisbane Airport and the Port of Brisbane; the island is more like Australia's tropical north or Fiji, with palm trees, wide sandy beaches and clear waters.

After showcasing the attributes of each model, we finally got our hands on the 'pocket rockets'. Tangalooma is the ideal venue, we pretty much had the waters to ourselves, with few swimmers or boats to interrupt any high-speed runs.

The Sea-Doo 2008 range is from mild to wild and just like land vehicles, the less experienced really do find the base models more their style. After all, you wouldn't jump into a F1 car and turn on the power with little or no prior experience. Being the latter, I found their top of the range model excitement-plus, however, their starter model was noticeably much more predictable for the uninitiated.

Jetskis or PWCs (Personal Water Craft) have attracted some attention, due to young blokes speeding near swimmers and disturbing other water users. In recent years, this was addressed through safety regulations and a comprehensive coverage of safety pointers in PWC licence questions.

BRP LEADS IN PWC SAFETY
Like all motorised craft, PWCs are very safe when operated with others in mind. To ensure optimum safety, BRP, the suppliers of Sea-Doo in Australia, is the only business which has a full-time staffer promoting safety and ecology to government and the public.

Three of the most important guidelines to know are: wear a PFD (Personal Floatation Device); keep clear of other users and swimmers; and, when there's a need to change course quickly (such as to avoid an accident), don't shut off the power (which loses steering) rather increase revs to steer into a new course.

So how are the 2008 models? Awesome - with power to thrill the beginner to the most experienced.

Sea-Doo claims 47 per cent of the world's PWC market, so they obviously do something right.

Models range from the 255hp power pack with a world-leading power-to-weight ratio, in model ranges titled GTI for recreation, RXP for high performance, Wake for sport and GTX for luxury performance. In the high-performance models, Sea-Doo claims the most powerful watercraft, plus the quickest and fastest.

It's even possible to ski or wakeboard behind the Wake model, which comes equipped with a pylon and ballast system, plus a seat that enables a passenger to sit rearward, facing as an observer.

The RXP 255 X-package Sea-Doo is a fuel-injected 1494cc supercharged 255hp - more power than many cars - on a stable platform. Plus bold, sharp, sculptured design lines that would look great in a James Bond movie. There are storage spaces, a rear platform and room for two extra girls on board too. In the interests of testing, I tried to check this claim, but just then the models announced they had to leave for Brisbane.

BOAT-LIKE FITOUT
In the Wake (sport) models, there are features you'd expect in a boat, like pull-up ski pylon, board racks, convex mirrors, storage tray, 90kg water ballast, VTS (Variable Trim System) and removable watertight storage bin. The Sea-Doo learning key has two pre-programmed settings to keep top speed down to about 56kmh for less experienced or alternatively 72kmh when riders have put in the hours.

Electronics are forefront in many products today and Sea-Doo is no exception, with a multi-function information centre to display speed, tacho, lake temperature, fuel level, compass, depthsounder, maintenance info, and more.

With such a range of highly-featured Sea-Doos, it's easy to see why they are leaders in their field.

For more information, phone BRP Australia on (02) 9794 6600 or visit www.brp.com