hydro main

In the hydroflight sports group there are often good discussions that disappear in the roll or are deleted when the original poster finds things not going as planned.  Here is a great example of the various opinions on the need and reasons for quick release connections between the board and hose on jetboards.  We apparently have been blocked by Frank Zapata of ZR so it is not possible to include his contribution to this discussion.   See the original post at https://www.facebook.com/groups/hydroflightsports/

Continue reading

Mike “Thrasher” Traster, Jetpack Master.

Continue reading

Ben Merrell, the original pro Jetblader.

Continue reading

Jake Orel, wide stance Jetblade, cutting loose at Session One, Pompano Beach, Florida.

Continue reading

Ryouichi Manyama, Session One, Pompano Beach Florida

Continue reading

Hunter Verlander, Team Aquafly, flies the Jetblade in custom green.

Hunter Verlander won the “Hydro Card Draw” round at Session One.  Congratulations Hunter, you flew with precision and nailed the points.

The description of the Hydro Draw Card round from the Session One rider’s group on Facebook:

“Draw competition rules
The amount of time for each round is 90 seconds.
The draw will be 4 or 5 tricks, we keep drawing at 3 points and stop at 4, but if the last draw is a block move then it becomes a 5 point draw.
The draw is per round so we will have 3 draws for our event and every competitor does each of the draws one time. Round 1 is completed before round 2 starts and round 3 will start after round 2 is complete.
The tricks must be performed in the order of the draw. Competitors have to be able to memorize the draw, decide what elevation the trick should be done at to be in position for the next trick, and they have to find the fastest transition from one trick to the next.
…
Equipment requirements.
This is an open board competition. We are excited to see how this advances the equipment and the sport in general. We do not feel the need to burden the riders with unnecessary regulations. To keep the area safe and practical for other locations and prevent any damages to other equipment (skis, inflatable’s, etc.) We will limit hose length to 23 meters and require any sharp edges, grab bars, binding clips to be wrapped. This is an underfoot hydro competition so the rider must stand above the jets.”

Continue reading

All board sports start off on flat ground and inevitably discover obstacles and environments.  We decided to push this with the development of the Jaxx and give a chance for the riders to explore “new horizons”.  The element of a big shape in the middle of a lake can be used as a starting point or reference for other tricks.  During the event briefing and the practice rounds, we spec’d that the interactions with the Jaxx would be the thing that gets rewarded.  “Pull a perfect triple 20 feet away from the Jaxx, get zero points. Involve and interact with the Jaxx”.  At first the Jaxx was difficlt for some riders to warm up to, it is outside of the comfort zone. Cooper Riggs inspired everyone by leading the attack on the Jaxx and breaking the ice.  Once he opened Pandora’s box, everyone started to flow.   We are impressed by the way the Jaxx was explored and exploited.  The winner was Todd Sawisch, a “veteran” rider, he showed that creativity and aggression are the key to impressing the other rider/judges.  For pure style, Scotty Knemeyer pulled a handplant for one of the more iconic board sports photos.  A first for hydrosports, we are sure we will see much more to come.

The Session One Jaxx are built from some of the same construction techniques as RIB boats that are designed to take abuse.  We weren’t sure how much abuse they could take, so we asked the riders to start off slowly.  By the end they were coming up with every way imaginable to do tricks over, wrap the hose around and flip the Jaxx in the course of the judged rounds.   The Jaxx held up to the whipping hoses.

Continue reading

Giant inflated spiky stars! Hydro card draw rounds! Throw your best trick contest! Electronic real-time scoring!  “Session One”, the world’s first open competitive event for hydro flight jetboards, was held at LTS Training school in Pompano Beach Florida on February 13-14th, 2016.   Hydroflight sports now have an open competition where different brands compete against each other.  Session One was the world’s first, and it was an amazing success in all ways!  Dozens of riders from six different brands were invited, and although the social/market/stakeholder pressures not to participate came from the usual suspect and several riders and one full team were pulled out at the last minute, we had great attendance from five different brands. The riders that came represented a broad spectrum and included the top rated riders in the world.

photo: courtesy of David Duprat, Atlantic Flyboard

The cooperation of the riders and the willingness to work together and still compete to win, sets an example going forward. We set a positive example for the hydroflight world that different brands and riders can compete with each other and the technical differences in mechanical connections and jet skis can be overcome.  Everyone was an ambassador not only for their brand, but the sport in general.  Our biggest thanks to everyone that participated!  Here’s the first video out of the event from H2RO magazine.

Continue reading

We have yet to tell the story of how we wound up flying on a beach in Dubai with Ben Merrell and his friends.  At the end of last summer, right at the end of July, we announced that the Jetblade was ready and we started to ship the boards. At the time we had no familiarity with the workings of the tight Flyboard circle and the carefully stage managed turmoil that was contained within. We got into contact with Ben Merrell and he was interested in trying the board,  at the same time, he and Jeff Elkins had announced their new wireless throttle project.  Essentially they had been “excommunicated” (a term that we would hear over and over from all kinds of affiliates) from the “Flyboard Family”, he had the option to try something new, the Jetblade was a perfect fit.

Ben got on the Jetblade and immediately began to explore its potential in a way that no one else had.  He was killing it on the Jetblade with new tricks and the freedom to move faster and easier than he had on his Flyboard.   He posted on YouTube the first video shot by Randy Borrell on September 15, 2014. ka-boom.

Continue reading