On this episode of Bad to Rad we install the Watercross of Texas 2.0 ride plate on a 2022 Yamaha Superjet stand up jet ski, then test in choppy & smooth water with a little powerslide at the end!

Cameras used: GoPro Hero 12: https://amzn.to/4b9oEpy
Nikon Z30: https://amzn.to/3KRHLts
Viltrox 13mm Z Mount lens: https://amzn.to/4be2wKv
Rode VideoMic: https://amzn.to/3VVp0Md

Just1 Helmet: https://amzn.to/3xh37NW
Asics Wrestling Shoes: https://amzn.to/3KR2yxo

The post WCOT 2.0 Ride Plate Four Stroke Superjet Test – Bad to Rad Ep. 07 appeared first on Stand Up Jet Ski.

Looking to get that extra edge on the water, or just feel better overall, without putting unnecessary sugars, dyes, and chemicals in your body with ‘standard’ sports drinks?

Crazy Water is your answer! Alkaline water has many potential health benefits as you can read up about on Crazy Water’s Benefits page. It can support full body detox, replenish electrolytes, neutralize acidity in the body, among many other health-enhancing properties.

What makes Crazy Water stand apart from other alkaline waters is the fact that the minerals are not added in a factory, rather found in nature right out the the well in Mineral Wells, Texas with minimal processing to retain alkalinity and mineral content.

My personal favorite is Crazy Water No. 4 which boasts the largest amount of minerals including electrolytes calcium, magnesium, and potassium, zinc, lithium, sodium bicarbonate, and more – plus a pH of 8.2. Drink half your body weight in ounces of Crazy Water every day and you’ll be on your way to natural full body detox.

How does this translate to your riding? A well-hydrated body performs better – adequate fluid levels help transport nutrients the body needs as well as get rid of the waste a body in motion produces. Imagine your dehydrated body as a clogged big city roadway at rush hour. The more you push and add to the waste highway, the harder it will be to clear the toxins out and get the right nutrients where they need to go.

More popular sports drinks will get the job of replenishing your electrolytes done but at the expense of added sugars and chemicals that are just plain unnecessary. Today’s standard American diet is riddled with processed foods and drinks that are causing insulin resistance, adrenal issues, weight gain, and many other metabolic problems. Toss those processed products out for a more natural option like Crazy Water. Stick with it daily and you could see a marked improvement in overall health and wellbeing.

In the race to spend money on our beloved skis to go faster or jump higher – many forget to take care of the most important part of the package – you! Toss those sugary electrolyte drinks and try a Crazy Water to see the benefits for yourself.

The post Review: Crazy Water Alkaline Water appeared first on Stand Up Jet Ski.

Just the Facts – Specifications

2019 Kawasaki SX-R 1500
MSRP: $9999
Engine: 1498cc four stroke fuel injected
Curb Weight: 551.3 lbs
Length: 104.5 inches
Width: 30.1 inches
Approximate Top Speed: 60 mph

2019 Yamaha Superjet
MSRP: $8499
Engine: 701cc two stroke carbureted
Dry Weight: 306 lbs
Length: 88.2 inches
Width: 26.8 inches
Approximate Top Speed: 45 mph

Breaking it Down – Pros and Cons

Black and white answer:
If you want to go fast: Kawasaki SXR
If you want to play: Yamaha Superjet

Now let me muddy the water a bit before someone quotes me saying Superjets can’t go fast and SXRs are not fun.

4 Reasons to Buy the SXR
1. Four stroke, fuel injected engine reliability.
Fill up at the gas station and go, no need to mix oil in the gas. The ECU takes care of temperature and air density changes, no carbs or needle adjustments necessary. Many people will not ever need to worry about engine rebuild intervals with a four stroke engine. Like the four storke engine in your car, have you ever thought about rebuilding it? Probably not.

2. Large and stable.
Big tray for big feet, longer length suits tall people, larger size means more buoyancy and stability.

3. Fast.
Hard to beat four stroke torque and 1500cc propelling you and the ski around 60 mph on the water. Can buy, learn to ride, and get a serious thrill (butt pucker) if you want to try racing. Heck, even going full throttle over the lake by yourself is intense at 60 mph!

4. Handles rough water well.
Live on a usually choppy lake? The size and weight help propel the ski through waves rather than be jostled around.

6 Reasons Not to Buy the SXR
1. Complicated.
Difficult to work on with minimal mechanical skills. Many electrical connectors and usually needs to visit a dealer to interface with the ECU, troubleshoot issues, etc. Engine maintenance is more involved with a four stroke and home rebuilds require special tools and knowledge of timing among other mechanical skills. Dealer visits and four stroke rebuilds can be very costly. Four stokes also require oil changes either at the dealer or with a home oil extractor.

2. Heavy.
One of the joys of owning a stand up is the ease of moving it around the garage, trailer, or truck bed. At nearly 250 lbs heavier than the Superjet the SXR is not light. That weight transmits to the water to make the ski feel more sluggish compared to the smaller Superjet. The SRX’s size and weight limits the playfulness and flickability, but it is by no means unresponsive. You just can’t expect to do submarines, tail stands, etc with a heavier, longer, more race-bred machine.

3. More speed = more danger.
Ok here comes the fun police right? I know I know, we just want to have fun. Keep in mind that the faster you go the more it will hurt when you fall off. And you will fall off.

4. *Tendency to “Fall Over”.
I put an asterisk by this one because it is a more personal riding style issue, however, I want to mention it because most everyone else I’ve talked to notices the SXR’s tendency to fall over in a straight line or slight corner. This causes the rider to try to correct, but the ski becomes unresponsive as it tilts over more and more, and continues to go straight. Compared to most stand ups, the rider is standing quite a bit higher than the water level on the SXR due to a deep hull. This tendency is easily worked around, but personally, I prefer not to have to work around a problem like this in the first place.

5. More expensive.
Yes, the SXR is marginally more expensive than a Superjet and you get a lot more power for those $1500, but remember if you are buying new you will have to deal with freight, setup, TT&L, etc so it adds up. Plus, it will require a trailer because of weight and size. No truck beds for this baby! Also replacement parts for electronics and four stroke engines can cost more.

6. Race class very competitive.
I understand not everyone who buys this very fast stand up is interested in racing. However, if you are, realize the SXR races against other SXRs at very high speed. If you are looking to make your debut in racing and clean up a race course full of slower, older two stroke skis – you’ll likely be very disappointed to be lining up against other SXRs.

4 Reasons to Buy a Superjet
1. Simple.
Very few electronics to worry about corroding or having the dealer check. It is a simple two stroke carbed engine so most maintenance and diagnostics can be done in your garage with limited tools. Rebuild parts are fairly inexpensive and readily available. Ever messed with a two stroke weedeater? Imagine that, but 701cc. No digital scan tools necessary.

2. Light.
In the stand up world less weight means it is easier for the rider to throw around the weight. Learning small stunts like submarines, tail stands, tail slides, bunny hops, etc right off the bat is totally do-able on the Superjet. At 306 dry weight you and a buddy or two could probably load the Superjet into a truck bed, no trailer needed.

3. Race, freeride, freestyle.
Where the SXR is undeniably faster, it is more a one trick pony of going fast and blazing the lake chop. The Superjet is a beautiful platform to race because there are a number of classes it falls in from more beginner classes to modified advanced races.

Don’t want to race? Spend a chill day on the lake hopping waves and exploring. Fancy learning tricks? Even in stock form the Superjet is capable of doing a number of old school slides, stands, and jumps.

4. Cheaper.
Yes, the Superjet’s MSRP is $1500 cheaper than the SXR. That means less TT&L. If you have friends or a hitch hauler you potentially do not need the additional cost of a trailer. While you’ll probably need to rebuild more often with a two stroke, the parts are fairly inexpensive.

3 Reasons Not to Buy a Superjet
1. Two stroke carburated engine.
The two stroke engine is both a good and a bad thing. I talked about the simplistic and cheap positives above, but on the flip side having a two stroke requires mixing oil in the gas and they need rebuilds more often than four stroke engines. Over the life of the stand up you will likely need to adjust the carb needles to be more rich or lean when the weather changes or you ride at a different elevation. Adding insult to injury, the USA Superjets come with caps over the needles to keep people from changing the fuel mixture from the factory. They need to be removed before any needle adjustment can take place.

2. Small.
At 5’8″ and 140 lbs I have no complaints with the Superjet’s stability. However, if you are a larger person or have never ridden a stand up the Superjet can feel more unstable. The Superjet is shorter, thinner, and less buoyant so at slow speeds, it requires more balance and more patience to learn. Large chop can be more of a workout on the Superjet as it gets bounced in and out of the water more due to the lighter weight.

But if your complaint is you are too heavy or too tall for a Superjet, check out this video of a 300 lb friend of mine backflipping a MUCH smaller and unstable aftermarket stand up. And a photo of him on his Superjet. You can learn, it just might take longer.

3. Slower.
The top speed of 45 mph is slow in comparison to the SXR’s 60 mph, but speed on water is different than sitting in a car. Still, on the Superjet you won’t get that butt pucker rush of acceleration the SXR offers. Requires heavy modifications to go even 10 mph faster. Big speed on a Superjet is a big bummer unless you have big pockets.

Conclusion

There you have it – the tools and knowledge needed to make your decision to buy a Superjet or SXR. They are both great skis from quality manufactures. It is up to you to decide what suits your needs the best!

Have comments or suggestions? I’m not perfect and could have left something out, please let me know your thoughts!

The post Yamaha Superjet or Kawasaki SXR 1500 – What to Buy appeared first on Stand Up Jet Ski.

Absolutely! Riding stand up jet skis is mentally and physically demanding, and fueling your body with the right diet is just as important as keeping your ski in good working order. The ketogenic diet can give you that extra edge on and off the water.

If you hadn’t guessed yet – I’m keto – and have been for about a year and a half. What is keto? The first thing you should do is Google “ketogenic diet” and this will open up a world of information. Some good, some bad. Just be careful on fitness fad and news websites as they tend to ‘sensationalize’ rather than ‘science’ the information they blast. If you have Audible I highly recommend many of the available popular ketogenic diet books. I love it because you can listen while sitting in traffic!

Basically, the keto diet is using fat for fuel rather than carbohydrates. One of the main problems with being carb dependent is the ups and downs of a small fuel source. Become keto, start burning ketones, and your fat stores become your fuel. Benefits are more stamina, energy, mental clarity, and less hunger pangs among many others.

Anyway. On to the Chocolate Maple Bacon Keto Brick!

In three words: it is amazing! This is my third flavor of Keto Brick to try and this is definitely the winner. The other two were the Cinnamon Crunch Keto Brick and the Mocha Keto Brick. Both great flavors by themselves, but the Chocolate Maple Bacon Keto Brick has a milder mocha flavor than the Mocha Brick, while retaining a more robust sweetness than the Cinnamon Crunch Brick. Plus, as you work through all of the flavors hitting your tastebuds the lovely notes of bacon and maple make their presence known, but not intrusively.

You can only get so much out of a written review, so why not try one for yourself!

In the unboxing (unbagging really) video below you can check out what to expect when you open your new, delicious Keto Brick. This was also in 95 degree Texas heat I might add!

The post Review: Chocolate Maple Bacon Keto Brick appeared first on Stand Up Jet Ski.

How much faster? Well, as with everything, it depends on what mods you have, altitude, temperature, pull of the moon, tide level…you get what I mean.

But.

With the Watercross of Texas double concave ride plate you will probably see a few miles an hour on the top speed. Really, just from a ride plate?!
Yes, the plate allows the nose of the ski to come more out of the water, therefore less drag, equals more top speed.

On the flip side the ride plate does change how the ski rides overall, which can be a good thing or a bad thing depending on your riding style. With the nose higher under acceleration, the SXR 1500 steers more from the rear with this Watercross of Texas ride plate than it would with more of the hull in the water. In my, and a few other riders who have tested the ride plate, opinion this is not detrimental to the SXR’s standard steering style.

The positive side of this ride plate is chop handling. In races, you’ll encounter far more choppy conditions than glass so that fact in itself should steer you towards trying out this ride plate for yourself. It allows the ski to ‘grease’ over chop rather than plow and dart through it.

More top speed and better chop handling on an already blazingly fast stand up jet ski is a match made in speed history!

In the video below is the first open water test on the new Watercross of Texas SXR 1500 double concave ride plate. Conditions included large, rolling chop. I found the SXR was more planted both in a straight line and in the corners, less side-to-side roll, and less pitching the nose down. On this ski in the video the ride plate change picked up 2.5 mph on GPS.

As the owner of this ski also said the Watercross of Texas plate “makes the ski handle more relaxed while attacking corners entry and exit. Stock plate while good is can be sketchy when wide open. The dual Concave WOT plate lets the nose lift without bounce to help the top end speed.”

Get yourself one from Watercross of Texas and see how you like it. Even better, drop a comment and let us know your experience with the Watercross of Texas double concave ride plate on your SXR 1500!

The post Review: Watercross of Texas SXR 1500 Ride Plate appeared first on Stand Up Jet Ski.

Now that I have built and ridden my 2016 Krash Industries Flatwater 50 Cal Footrocket Stage 1 kit I wanted to do an in depth review of the ordering process, the build and the ride.

This was my first stand up to build/assemble so you can take my review/advice with as many grains of salt as you wish.

I want to break the review down into parts:
1. Ordering from Chris/Krash
2. Having it built in Thailand/Chris’s assembly in the States
3. Freight & Packaging
4. Build, component quality, etc
5. Ride

Krash Industries 50 Cal Review – Ordering

Dealing with Chris on x-h2o was easy. Chris was responsive and helpful to messages through the forum and via text. As the relationship derailed when the ski had issues he became less responsive and harder to get a hold of. 

Krash Industries 50 Cal Review – Build/Assembly in Thailand and the States

Chris told me my 50 Cal hull would be delivered in 3 months, probably sooner. That statement was the main reason I chose a Krash stage 2 starter kit at the time over a few other hulls available. I put my down payment on my Stage 2 flatwater kit May 27th, 2016. My ski arrived to my work November 24, 2016 – 3 months later than his quote.

Despite being disappointed the hull was taking longer, it was nice to get updates from Chris about my Footrocket being built over in Thailand. Not all manufacturers can show you your hull ‘in the rough’ and I really appreciated that touch. It took probably 5 of the 6 months to be built in Thailand and the last month was spent at Chris’s place here in the States. Once Chris got a hold of the bare hull he assembled it with the stage 2 components – the Kavinci pole and pump assemblies. He sent me regular updates as the ski progressed.

Krash Industries 50 Cal Review – Freight & Packaging

Chris/Krash Industries used FreightQuote.com to get companies to bid on shipping my ski. The freight company who took the job mishandled the crate, let it flip upside down probably more than once. The ski was not strapped down within the crate so it bounced around and got some rash on the hood, punctures in the pole pad and other rash here and there. There could have been more padding as well as the ski tied down properly. The ski’s condition wasn’t a horror story, but it wasn’t how I wanted to receive my $8500 toy either.

I wanted my hood replaced at first, but the fiberglass damage was minmal and fixable. He did offer to pay for repainting it when I asked since there wasn’t major fiberglass damage to it. My punctured chinpad was replaced as well, but it took a while since it had it be made in Thailand and drop shipped to me. I can foresee replacement parts possibly being difficult to get in the future if Krash doesn’t stock extras in the States.

Krash Industries 50 Cal Review – Build

Stage 2 Kit – Once I received my stage 2 kit I immediately had issues with the Kavinci 148mm pump. On paper the stage 2 kit looks like a great deal – hull, pump and pole for $8500. My pump came either mis-installed or mis-manufactured and the impeller was rubbing badly on the wear ring. At first Chris told me to run it that way and it was for maximum tightness.

Stage 2 Kit – Once I received my stage 2 kit I immediately had issues with the Kavinci 148mm pump. On paper the stage 2 kit looks like a great deal – hull, pump and pole for $8500. My pump came either mis-installed or mis-manufactured and the impeller was rubbing badly on the wear ring. At first Chris told me to run it that way and it was for maximum tightness.

Maybe I’m too picky, but I refused to run it like that and accepted Krash’s offer to walk me through trying to re-shim the pump to see if it would stop rubbing. When I took the pump apart I noticed part of the impeller was bent a bit. Reassembled the pump, installed it with Nick’s suggestions (he offered to give me a call, but once again I kept the messages through FB). Our time difference from the States to Australia is obviously different, but Nick was still quite accessible to answer my questions.

Downgrading to Stage 1 Kit – I lost confidence in the pump after reassembly and shimming, and was offered a refund for the stage 2 components. I removed the pump, shoe, trim and all necessary hardware that comprised the stage 2 kit for a refund of $1250. Krash Industries could have told me to kick dirt, but they allowed me to send the pump back and for that I am thankful.

I ended up spending $3000 with JetManiac and bought a Torrent 148mm setback stainless steel pump, metal pump shoe, RRP trim and OEM midshaft to replace the parts I returned to Krash Industries. Much more expensive, but the quality of the parts was excellent as well as JetManiac’s service.

Hull engine alignment issues – I ran into more alignment issues when it came to the engine coupler not lining up with engine mounts and bedplate maxed. The engine mount hull plates were off. I managed to get my coupler to align by wallowing out holes on the mounts. Others retapped their plates if they had enough space.

Bilge area – On a positive note though, the bilge area was large enough to get my hands where I needed them. Much better than working on a Superjet. Interior fiberglass work was nice, no complaints there. I added my own inserts for the tank and such. There is a bit of clearance issue with the back of the hood and top bpipe jet adjuster. I simply took a Dremel wheel to the hood there and made an arch to clear the pipe.

Inserts – The metal Krash Industries uses for inserts is easy to cross thread and over tighten.

Paint – The blue is gorgeous. The scheme isn’t all paint, but printed graphics that can ripple when you drill through (tape helps) or tighten bolts on. The clear coat and paint scratches easily. Add some extra clear coat if you expect lots of rash.

Waterbox/exhaust – Other than it being very ambiguous as to which way it goes in correctly, the waterbox looks and sounds great. Fits nicely in the front of the ski. The long exhaust hose I received with my kit was cut too short. Chris offered to send me a new one after I shipped my defective one back to him. No hassles.

Pole & controls – The Kavinci pole fits the 50 Cal nicely. The throttle lever isn’t very comfortable with the non-beveled edges. I will probably be replacing it down the line for something more comfortable with a better angle. The OVP seems good, does not feel as smooth as my RRP OVP. As with any steering need to keep an eye on the bottom lock nut from backing off.

Throttle cable – The cable sheath is thin. Mine wore through the sheath under the chinpad before I rode the ski. Also too short for my 760 based engine throttle setup with the throttle drum in the rear and uncut pole.

Scupper – Seal it, turn it around backwards or replace it with a Versiplug ball style. Mine came straight from Krash sitting a bit open and let in water when not moving.

Hood Fitment – Horrendous. Talked to Krash Industries on the phone and after sorting some issues out, Nick offered to send a new hood. Never saw it, so I made my own (ugly) silicone seal that formed directly to the wavy, mis-formed hood. It worked, and my water ingestion issues stopped.

Krash Industries 50 Cal Review – Ride

Flatwater hull
Here is where the Krash Industries hulls shine. Since I live a few hours from the coast and have only ridden lakes I decided to go with the flatwater 50 Cal Footrocket hull instead of the surf version. The flatwater hull has a squared back for larger setup wakes, missing the additional 4th chine that comes on surf versions and does not have a front pocket for surf stance riding (allows for larger PV flatwater engines to fit better).

Flatwater hull
Here is where the Krash Industries hulls shine. Since I live a few hours from the coast and have only ridden lakes I decided to go with the flatwater 50 Cal Footrocket hull instead of the surf version. The flatwater hull has a squared back for larger setup wakes, missing the additional 4th chine that comes on surf versions and does not have a front pocket for surf stance riding (allows for larger PV flatwater engines to fit better).

Freeride or freestyle?
It was not an all out freestyle machine compared to a Revolver, DVX, XFS etc etc. Which is exactly what I was going for. Even though it is shorter than the Krash Industries Predator, the 50 Cal Footrocket still can get up to speed without porpoising and chase boats while retaining great flickability. It doesn’t ride nose high all the time, will when you want it to. Footholds are very adjustable so you can move them to your proper balance point. The ride plate/hull extension is pretty long in stock form which allows the ski to be more stable. You can cut it down to your liking if you want it to handle more freestyle than freeride.

The tray is extremely roomy and the hull itself is very wide and stable. I could ride around with one hand on the controls no problem within minutes of riding my ski for the first time. In comparison, I’ve ridden a Rickter XFS and that ski was like riding on ball bearings – nose would never come down and porpoised at higher speed, difficult to hook up when cornering, overall a handful for pleasure riding. But that ski is an extreme example since the XFS is focused on freestyle competition, not freeride.

The bottom line on the rideability of the Flatwater hull 50 Cal Footrocket is if you are looking for a ski for pure flatwater freestyle competition you do not want to consider one. The flatwater one is still better in surf. If you want an extremely versatile hull that can carve, get up to speed, be flickable for flips and combos and make you smile every time you step in the tray then the 50 Cal Footrocket is worth your research.

Overall I think Krash Industries is doing great things for this sport, but the quality control – at least on the older hulls – could use some improvement.

See the whole build playlist in video below:

Have more questions? Contact me on Facebook to ask!

The post Review: Krash Industries 50 Cal Footrocket appeared first on Stand Up Jet Ski.