Gong to buy/rent some time in a jetlev

[Ronnie]

After seeing a video on it over three years ago I have always wanted to try it. At $110k+ I know I will never buy one and even took steps towards buying and modifying a Zapata flyboard to provide the same experience.

When I sold my sx230 and got a 242ls about two years ago i killed the modified Zapata flyboard project. No one within 400 miles of my home rents either the flyboard or jetlev.

Fast forward to the present, I'm on vacation in Hawaii and there is a company that offers jetlev rides on Oahu.

http://www.hawaiiweb.com/jetlev-hawaii-oahu.html

My cousin has riden one in Florida and he supports my decision to to with the 25 minute package. I will try and reserve some time on one tonight for tomorrow morning, if not Tuesday at the latest. I would have done it today but this being Hawaii the place is not open for business on the weekends (or holidays).

I've got my gopro in a case with a floatie mounted to a headstrap and of course my wallet ready, wish me luck.

 

[cybuch]

After seeing a video on it over three years ago I have always wanted to try it. At $110k+ I know I will never buy one and even took steps towards buying and modifying a Zapata flyboard to provide the same experience.

When I sold my sx230 and got a 242ls about two years ago i killed the modified Zapata flyboard project. No one within 400 miles of my home rents either the flyboard or jetlev.

Fast forward to the present, I'm on vacation in Hawaii and there is a company that offers jetlev rides on Oahu.

http://www.hawaiiweb.com/jetlev-hawaii-oahu.html

My cousin has riden one in Florida and he supports my decision to to with the 25 minute package. I will try and reserve some time on one tonight for tomorrow morning, if not Tuesday at the latest. I would have done it today but this being Hawaii the place is not open for business on the weekends (or holidays).

I've got my gopro in a case with a floatie mounted to a headstrap and of course my wallet ready, wish me luck.

Right on!!! I actually did modify my AR230HO to run the flyboard and we have started a rental/lessons business. We are H2O Aviators in Arizona. I have always wanted to try the jetlev, post your results!

 

[Bruce]

Looks like fun!!!!!!!

 

[Ronnie]

My weekend reservation was not processed correctly so I didn't get to try it yesterday but reserved a spot today instead. When I asked about using my go pro they were fine with it but explained they will already have three go pro cameras filming me, one mounted at chest height, the other filming my facial expressions (aka here cam) and a third from the base boat/barge. I ca either buy the raw footage or have it edited for $60 and $90, respectively. I'm not sure which package I'll get but am sure I will buy one of them.

 

[Volffas]

I can't wait to see the footage! Have fun!

 

[Ronnie]

I just tried this while on vacation in Hawaii. Although I can now say that I've walked on water and hovered above it, I will also say that using the jetlev was a disappointing experience. Maybe my expectations were too high but having to tow your power supply around creates a lot of drag that is most noticeable after sharp turns when the hose goes from taught (sp?) to slack and then taught again. It is enough to pull you back so you always have to lean forward which prevents you from hovering.

For context, the unit I used was hooked up to a yamaha fx waverunner, my instructor sat on this and controlled the throttle as well as talked to me through a wireless system built into my helmet. They start everyone by having them move forward, left and right slowly while waist deep, than knee deep and finally above the water. This took me around 5 minutes. I spent the remaining 10 above water doing sharp and wide turns, dropping out and down into the water quickly and doing various other moves, as instructed. Since I wasn't in control of the throttle all I could do is control my direction so too a limited my altitude, by pointing the thrust nozzles up I could use the thrust I had to climb, the hose is 40 feet long but I doubt I ever got higher then 25. The big danger seemed to be flying or crashing into the pwc that provides the power after a sharp turn.

The jet pack itself weighs around 70 pounds by my estimate and can be tough to reposition when in the water with no thrust. Surprisingly, it does float but I found myself floating face down twice, the second time I was about ready to release the multi point harness to keep from drowning when my instructor gave me some badly needed throttle to lift me out of the water. My only recommendation to the activities coordinator that rented time on it was to add more padding to the bicycle like seat of the jet pack. For women with the strength and coordination to operate a jetlev this is not a problem but for men it is or at least it was for me, since you go from floating to sitting (sometimes on your junk) quickly, often and / or for a long period of time (at the mercy of the instructor who can speak to you but who you can't speak back to). I'm sure this could have been minimized (but not eliminated) if I had throttle control but I think I'd have to buy a jet lev to get that.

Overall I'm glad and grateful to have had the experience but I would not do it again if I had to pay to rent more time on one. Incidentally, the cost was $200 for 15 minutes of flight time. They used to offer 25 minutes for $300 but discontinued that since a lot of people were buying 25 minutes but only using 15 due to fatigue, I understand that, again the jet pack is heavy and hard to control when its in the water without thrust). The rental company mounts 2 go pro cameras to the jet pack, one facing the user and the other over his shoulder. They also take stills and video of your session from their boat. Packages range from 1 camera to all 3 or 4, stills and video, raw and/or edited. Since I'm almost positive I won't be doing it again I opted for the super deluxe/full meal deal package at $105. The gave me a cd with all of the raw footage and will send me a link to their edit version soon. I chose the "get lifted" song used in jet levs promotional video (link above).

So that concludes my review of the jet lev, I will post pics and / video soon. I may still pursue the Zapata flyboard of some modified version of it but I need to rent some time on one first. If you have any questions I will do what I can to answer them.

FYI this is the same review that I just posted on yjb.

 

[cybuch]

@Ronnie, fantastic review!! I see you are in CA if you are ever in San Diego, go see Aquatic Aviators for flyboard rentals/purchase. Their instructors are fantastic and I think you will enjoy flyboarding way more. If you need info on how I did my mods to get a flyboard on my boat, let me know.

Oh and if you come to phoenix, I wold be happy to take you for a flight! I run an 80 foot hose and you can really get some distance from the boat.

 

[Ronnie]

Thanks guys, I'm on the tail end of my vacation which includes a wedding on the big island (Kona side). In Oahu I stayed at my aunt's house which has a view of Pearl Harbor, so the price was great (free) and it came with a meal plan of sorts. On Kona my family, the ones local to Hawaii anyway, rented two mansions with views of the Pacific Ocean on the cheap so I feel like I'm living in the Fing lap of luxury for less than I'd pay to stay at a motel 6.

Today, we went to the volcano, tomorrow's excursion is night snorkeling with Manta Rays. It's going to be tough going back to work.

 

[Gym]

That was an interesting review @Ronnie . Looks like a lot of fun. I am curious though how it differs from @cybuch's flyboard. It seems his, pretty much, does the same thing with less equipment, weight and cost. Maybe someone could educate me as to the difference.

 

[cybuch]

@Gym the jetlev is a backpack that takes you up and your feet dangle. You stand on the flyboard and the rest of your body is free to move. They are both expensive, but I'm not sure why jetlev is so much more.

 

[Ronnie]

@SuperJetDan , moving to HI to live on the beach seems to be a lot more common now than when I was younger but ....

@Gym, per the video I was forced to watch before strapping into the jet lev, its designer / developer is an engineer who spent 9 years making the jet lev a reality before selling his first unit. At first I thought he developed the pod (riderless pwc / power supply) to help justify the selling price but the jet lev I used was attached to a pwc, so if they sell the hose and back pack without the pwc part it should be a lot cheaper but I doubt it even comes close to the flyboard a price. The designer / developer of the flyboard is a pwc competitor / champion.

My theory is the jet lev guy isn't as interested in expanding access to it and found that there are enough people out there that can afford to spend $100k + on something like this so marking over volume. The only private owners I know of are an nba player on the San Antonio spurs and the prince of Brunei. Where as the Flyboard guy kept is design relatively simple and there is no proprietary / riderless pwc option to purchase. The owner is responsible for proving the power to the flyboard but has nearly unlimited options.

@cybuch, thanks for the information. I may make it down to try fly boarding in scal or Phoenix next year. I still like the idea of flying via water jets but really need to trey fly boarding before deciding on whether to purchase one.

Again my main issues with the jet lev are the drag experienced after making a sharp turn and the seat (as a renter without throttle control) I had no way of repositioning once airborne to keep from crushing my junk under my own weight. Any move I made while in the air was instantly reflected in the control of the jet pack.

In closing I have to say that seabreeze water sports in Hawaii Kai has renting time on jet levs, pwcs, parasails and canoes down to a science. They are currently the only company in HI with a jet lev ( I have heard there is a company in Newport Beach, ca that rents time on them as well). I had my forms signed and training video watched within 15 minutes of getting there. They had me on the base boat/ barge in less than another 15 minutes. I was back in their offices (done jet leaving and with the ride back) in less than 30 minutes. It took another 5 for them to grab the memory card assigned to me and put footage from all the cameras up on the display screens. I would definitely use them again, as a vacationer I really appreciate that they didn't waste any of my time and a big part of this was because they had the ability to take me back to land/my car right after my jet lev session was over. If I was to open a rental business this seems like a great model to follow or base such a business on.

I'll post pics and clips when I get home, since none of the devices I have with me have a cd/DVD player.

 

[GiddYupJoe]

@Ronnie have you seen this variation yet? Looks pretty slick. I wonder how the experiance compares to the flyboard?

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencet...d-flies-air-using-high-powered-jet-water.html

 

[Julian]

Awesome write up! Hopefully you posted on YJB that you also posted here on JB!

 

[Gym]

Thanks for the perspectives @cybuch & @Ronnie. I think I would like to be least encumbered by equipment and expense if I were to get involved with over water flight. Someday they will come up with magic beans you eat to provide your own thrust with no equipment needed.

 

[Ronnie]

Here are some pics and a link to a short of my "flight".

Next up, hopefully, flyboarding and flysurfboarding as well as a ride on a jetovator.

Walking on water


Hovering


Me and my instructor, Tony


Floating



Best short video clip taken. I will post a link to the company edited video when I get it.