Jet Skier (United Kingdom)

Radio Active?

THE PW HIRE MARKET THROUGHOUT EUROPE HAS TAKEN A SEVERE HIDING OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS AND THE INDUSTRY IS LOOKING FOR A WAY OUT. IN SEVERAL OF THE MEDITERRANEAN COUNTRIES A SYSTEM IS BEING USED ON CRAFT THAT PROVIDES THE HIRE OPERATOR WITH A LEVEL OF CONTROL OVER THE SKIS ON THE WATER. WOULD RADIO CONTROL WORK IN THE UK?

The brainchild of a young Croatian company based in Zagreb, JetControl is a radio-operated electronic device that remotely overrides the engine control of a personal watercraft. In layman’s terms you are able to stand on the shore and cut the power to craft fitted with the system at the simple flick of a switch. Only when the switch is returned the rider is the rider able to restart the craft.

After meeting with Antonio Separovic at the London Boat Show and a flurry of emails Antonio agreed to fly in from Croatia to allow us to test the product in the UK. Beach Rock Leisure in Norfolk kindly agreed to loan a ski for the purpose of the test and during the hour or so drive up Antonio filled us in on the history of JetControl.

The company was conceived by Lovro Ivas in 1997. At the time Lovro, a graduate in electronics, was running a watercraft hire operation in Croatia. Strict safety regulations imposed by the legislature in Croatia, made it mandatory for every Jet Ski rental business to be equipped with a remotely operated system of control. The few solutions available on the international market soon became notorious among the Croatian rental operators for their unreliability and high maintenance which resulted in unacceptable downtime. So Lovro decided it was time to come up with a solution of his own. The first prototypes went into testing in 1997, with a domestic launch of the product in 1998, this product was known as the JCR1. By 1999 the company achieved a 100% market share and has maintained it’s total market domination until the present day. There are currently more than 100 JetControl sets, controlling approximately 250 PW, in operation on the Adriatic Sea. With market saturation in Croatia and having created the necessary service and support structure they are now looking to go global.

JCR5

The product we tested at Sea Palling was the fifth generation of JetControl, aptly named the JCR5! The system comprises of a control box or base unit(the transmitter) and a craft unit (the receiver). The base unit transmits on a digital frequencies that are pre-set into each craft unit. This enables one base unit to control several craft using a corresponding number of switches. The craft unit is shockproof, waterproof, oilproof, petrolproof - in fact if there was a nuclear war only this piece of equipment and cockroaches would survive! It is also unbelievably easy to install and can be done within two minutes flat by a technical no-brainer like myself. The unit straps to the base of the fuel tank with the velcro straps provided and the electronic gadgetry is spliced into the craft’s loom with a set of the appropriate manufacturer’s waterproof connectors. The craft unit is powered by the craft and has an automatic cut off so that it will not drain the battery when the ski is not in use.

We extended the aerial on the base unit and located the corresponding switch. After running the craft the switch was dropped and hey presto - JetControl does exactly what it says on the tin! The system is simply ‘Plug and Play’. By switching the craft off using JetControl you are effectively pulling out the lanyard, nothing more nothing less. The base unit is powered by regular ‘walkman’ sized batteries which are easily accessible and replaceable. After a dry run it was time to try the system in the conditions it was designed for, the sea. Our thanks go out to the test pilot for the sake of this test, Paul Clark of Sea Palling, who in the interest of science (it was far too cold for us to go out on the water!) donned his wetsuit and set forth.

Following his instructions to the letter Clarkee rode the Yamaha XLT800 like a true rental cowboy. During sharp turns in the surf, flat out runs, do-nuts and much larking about we would cut power to the craft in an attempt to evaluate his reaction. Not once did the test pilot part company with his ski or feel any discomfort because of the system. Even on a run of a mile and a half the flicking of the switch brought the craft down off the plane and it glided into a standstill. Although JetControl works on line-off sight it is actually purported to have a range of 4 miles. Fears that it may interfere with other electronic equipment were also proved unfounded when we surreptitiously flicked the switch whilst a helicopter passed overhead - to the relief of all present the chopper continued on it’s way blissfully unaware of it’s participation in our little ‘experiment’.

The stripping of the craft unit was as quick and easy as the installation and proved the ease with which it is possible to transfer the craft unit from ski to ski as required.

INSURING A SOLUTION?

No one disputes the fact that a large proportion of today’s PW owners first experienced the thrill of the sport on a hire machine, a case of trying before buying. However, over the last two years the opportunity to hire a craft both in the UK and on the continent has become increasingly difficult due to insurance and legislative issues. On the Continent the problems have been legislative, whilst in the UK insurance for hire operators has become either unavailable or prohibitively expensive.

When legislation regarding the use and hire of watercraft was implemented in Spain one of the distributors alone reported a 55% downturn in sales. The problem with insurance in the UK is an issue providing much concern for the manufacturers and anyone involved in the sport. The problem lies not with the insurance brokers like Mardon and RJP, who are working tirelessly to improve the situation, but with the underwriters. The underwriters’ suffered enormously after the horrendous events of 11th September 2001 and have since looked to reduce their exposure to ‘riskier’ sectors of the insurance market.

The current situation regarding hire insurance in the UK is: there is no policy available to allow an operator to rent out stand-up skis - so you cannot hire a stand-up ski in the UK at present. The cost of a policy for an business operating three runabout hire skis is extremely high. Add this to the set-up and running costs and it is easy to see why the figures no longer stack up. So, the way forward is for the insurance brokers to attract the interest of more underwriters into the market sector, only then will the situation improve; and believe me, they are trying!

There are many factors that could persuade more insurance companies to underwrite this sector again. The safety improvements made by the manufacturers, improvements in the education of riders prior to riding a hire ski or possibly JetControl?

IN CONCLUSION

From our limited experience with the JetControl system we are able to surmise the following. The system itself is well designed, has a high build quality, is durable, easy to fit and use and works precisely in the manner it is meant to. There are several other situations where supplementary control systems assist learners during the early stages of introduction to a new method of transport; co-piloting aeroplanes and more commonly during car driving lessons. What one must assertain is where the responsibility lies should an incident occur and what effect this has had on the insuring of that sector of the market.

What the JetControl system does do though is convey a huge amount of responsibility onto the system operator. Should the operator cut power and steering ability to the craft at a critical moment, causing and accident, then it has failed. Should the operator fail to cut the power to a craft and the rider causes an accident, the operator is again damned. In such a highly litigious society as we live in today this presents a potential timebomb.

However, the system does provide the operator with some level of control over the hirer once they leave the shore and various methods can be used to ensure rules are adhered to. If explained properly and used conscientiously the system can be used as a deterrent against rogue riders, prevent skiers riding in restricted areas, allow operators to call riders in when their time has expired and cut the power to other skis when a fellow hirer falls off.

The training of PW users is surely the way forward but should JetControl undergo further development and include of such features as warning lights, buzzers, integration with manufacturers low power assisted steering systems, significant education and if it encouraged underwriters to look at the UK hire market then the system may well have a future in the UK. We shall wait and see!

VIEWS: THE HIRE OPERATOR

Graham Deary, proprietor at Beach Rock Leisure, ran a hire operation at Sea Palling for several years and felt that the system would have proved a godsend for them during the busy summer period. Graham felt that there were several possible situations where the system would have an useful application. When a group of hirers are on the water together then the likely hood of a ‘show-off’ is most likely. Graham felt that by pre-warning the hirers of the system prior to riding and by switching off all the skis together, should one person ride in a dangerous manner, would introduce peer pressure and result in better behaved riders.
It was also noted that the system would be useful to notify a hirer when their allotted session was over and could also be used should the hirer head for a restricted area.

VIEWS: THE INSURANCE COMPANY

Prior to testing we canvassed the views of two of the UK’s leading PW insurance companies - they both had quite different views upon the system. One company felt that there could indeed be a role for JetControl in the UK provided a pilot scheme was run and the system underwent a prolonged period of evaluation. They also felt that further developing the system to include audio and visual warnings would enhance the system.
Another company felt JetControl was not a system that had any useful purpose in the UK market and could potentially result in further damaging claims. The main issue related to the fact that the system cuts the power to a craft when travelling at speed, therefore robbing the craft of its’ ability to turn which could have catastrophic results. It was also felt that fitting the system to a craft could result in lawsuits should a hirer be involved in an incident and system was not used.

VIEWS: THE MANUFACTURER

Yamaha Motor Europe have had one of the JetControl systems under the microscope for evaluation purposes and we asked them their views.
“Like in many other outdoor sports where the combination of speed and agility are part of the enjoyment (skiing, snowboarding, mountainbiking, skateboarding, etc.), PW require basic skills from their operators. As a manufacturer we are great believers in education of our customers and therefore sponsor various education programs such as RYA-training, training videos, safety-instructions, etc.

We believe rental operations can also play an active role in this education process by offering newcomers opportunities to learn in controlled conditions and by teaching them basic riding skills. In this context, JetControl can greatly assist rental operators in this education process by allowing immediate feedback to riders.

We like to see JetControl more as a communication device between rental-operators and their customers rather then solely as a collision avoidance device. The development of warning lights and other buzzing-alarms add new interesting functions that need to be explored. The remote shut down of the unit in case of immediate danger being the ultimate safety-measure in stopping an incident before it becomes an accident. Behaviour-control is the key benefit of the system and training rental operators to get the maximum benefit from these systems will be needed.

Technically the JCR-prototype we tested was very robust and the few adjustments we requested were immediately implemented by JetControl, showing their engineering ability to quickly react to market requirements. We are currently expecting the latest version JCR in order to run additional tests.

Should a system be judged on its ability to provide a solution in a great majority of cases or on its inability to do so in very rare exceptions will always remain at the centre of the debate.”

Jean-Christophe
Yamaha Motor Europe