Stand Up Rider Interview: Seth Isele
Happy to have you on here Seth! Could you tell us a little about yourself and your motorsport/sports history?
Hey, thanks! I’m from WNC and have been here for the past 20 years but spent my first 10 years growing up in Daytona Beach, FL where I spent most of my time racing BMX, Skateboarding, and also Surfing. I raced BMX seriously for most of my youth and always wanted to ride motocross but my father was against it.
When I turned 18 I bought a dirt bike and that began my motorsports fascination. I went to school for automotive technology and graduated in 2007, then quickly delved into the motorsports lifestyle. Strangely enough, nobody else in my family has any mechanical experience so it was kind of my own thing! I’ve been riding motorcycles/dirtbikes and building 4×4 trucks ever since then.
It is amazing how the small choices we make when we’re younger shape the trajectory of our life. Without taking the step to buy that forbidden dirt bike, who knows where you’d be today! Alright, itching to know – how did you get into stand ups?
So, I have always had a connection with the water and loved surfing as a child. When family moved to WNC back in 2000, surfing slowly was forgotten because I no longer lived near the beach. Fast forward 15 years and I found myself rebuilding/restoring and also riding lots of vintage motocross bikes and dual sport motorcycles. One day I came across a MINT Yamaha couch while looking for new bikes and decided I missed splashing in the water so I bought the ski and figured I could have some fun on it.
Being into older stuff from around the years of my childhood I like to look up old ads and information from back then. Upon research of this old Yamaha Waveraider, I began to notice other pictures of these strange looking small “jet skis” and started to realize I’d never actually seen one of those smaller machines. The thought of a smaller boat for 1 rider excited me. My brother became interested in the idea also, then eventually months later we found for sale a crappy 1994 Kawasaki 750SX. We brought it home in the back of the truck and that started it all.
Was it difficult to learn to ride a stand up ski, tell us about the learning process!
I want to be totally honest and say that yes, it was difficult for me. I weigh around 220 pounds and starting out on an older ski was challenging to stay the least. We didn’t realize until a few trips to the lake that the steering cable mount had come loose inside the handle pole, making it nearly impossible to maneuver the ski haha! But otherwise yes it was difficult because it was like nothing I had ever done before. I knew what I wanted to do but I couldn’t make it happen yet, it was very frustrating to learn the physics after being so used to riding a motorcycle.
Patience and commitment paid off and turning started to “click” I was getting the hang of it and then I started to feel the movement and carving through water and how much I missed that from surfing. It all started to fall together after that. It took practice and major patience but the reward was like nothing else I have ever felt. Not being able to do it at first, made me want to do it even more. I truly wanted to give up at one point but my brother started really getting good at corners, it looked so cool I just had to figure it out. I’m glad I did, it’s so worth it. I think the hardest part about learning is the energy it takes to keep pulling yourself up onto the ski after falling down.
Your learning experience hits home for sure, but as you said, the struggle is totally worth it! OK let’s move on to some favorites; what is your favorite part about riding stand ups and what is your favorite ski?
My favorite part? Exploring. Being out on a ski is being in your own little world. I love to explore coves and intercostal waterways. You can find tiny beaches and interesting stuff along the shoreline where some people don’t really go. I guess my favorite thing about riding the ski isn’t so much riding it, but where it has taken me.
I love cutting it up and riding surf though, that’s hands down my favorite place to ride. Chasing swells from every angle and sliding across the face of a wave is like playing tag with mother nature herself. That being said, My Superjet is my best friend haha. I like to keep it relatively limited and old school so the Superjet, to me, is the ideal platform.
What do you currently ride, and what are your future riding goals?
I currently ride a 1995 Yamaha Superjet. I got lucky because it was exactly what I wanted and it seemed like it was meant to be haha. I always liked the more square look, like the square nose Superjet, Yamaha FX1, Kawasaki 440 and 550. The older skis are not nearly as powerful and don’t usually handle as well as modern equipment but there is something special to me about riding the original designs.
Sometimes I think people can get carried away with what they “need” just because something better is available. But honestly, I find the having some limitations forces you to refine your technique and get creative, while also keeping grounded. My goals for the future of riding are to travel more and search for the best surf! I don’t want to be the fastest or do the craziest tricks, but I am trying to have the most fun.
Well said indeed if you aren’t having fun the task turns into work. And we already do enough of that in our lifetime. So how do you train/practice to reach your goals?
Well, I am the mechanic at the local bicycle shop, so I ride bicycles pretty often haha. My brother is avid about going to the gym. I think that anything you can do to get out and exercise is going to help you ride. But I find that leg and core exercise helps the most, also anything that gets you really winded. Even skateboarding is really a good exercise to strengthen your legs and learning to carve a skateboard will help your flow. I’m not saying go out and try to do tricks, but pumping around a bowl and learning to skate and balance is tremendously helpful.
My goals are short and attainable, I try to live here and now and not think TOO much about the future. While the future is really important, there is no guarantee of tomorrow, so I’m trying to live today.
That quote is worthy of being wall vinyl in peoples’ homes, love it! Outside of skis, what other things do you like to do?
I really enjoy listening to music so I pretty much always have something playing. I also like to ride my dirt bike, it’s really helpful for cross training and also just fun in itself. That was my passion before I found stand up skis, I still love roosting dirt though!
I also still ride BMX but mainly at the skateparks just floating jumps and cruising around. I work at the bike shop so I ride MTB pretty often because we have such amazing terrain here in WNC. Other than that I’m ALWAYS fixing something… I can’t say I always like that though haha.
Well Seth, thank you so much for taking the time to share your story! In closing, what advice do you have for fellow people interested in learning how to ride stand ups?
My biggest piece of advice is to not give up! Try to make sure your ski is in good operating condition and that all the controls are working properly. It is really important to have the proper equipment and to keep it well maintained. Other than that, just try to ride as much as you can and ride until you physically can’t anymore. You’ll build stamina and skill quickly with dedication and the reward will be tremendous!
One last thing that I urge everyone to do is research the history of the sport and try to understand where it came from. Before racing and before all the freestyle, the original Jet Ski was meant for one thing…FUN. I want to encourage everyone to enjoy themselves and have fun out there! If you haven’t seen the 1989 Gary Shlifer film “Jet Dreams” you need to see it. This film changed the way I looked at the sport and really helped me appreciate it in a whole new way. Thanks for having me!!!
