Jet Ski World Championships (Wednesday, October 7th, 2015)

The World Jet Ski Championships are an exciting part of fall in Lake Havasu City. They are held at a resort called Crazy Horse on the island side of the London Bridge, for a full week every year. 

Competitors come in from all over the world to compete in many different classes. All the different classes are either with stand-up or sit-down skis.  In general terms the stand-up machines are smaller and lighter weight.  The sit-down machines are much larger and faster in the water.  

Admission to all of the events is free, but you have to park outside of the resort and walk in. They do run a shuttle for anyone who would prefer to ride from the parking area down to the beach. 

Exhibitors come from all over the world as well to demonstrate all of the latest and greatest technologies and products associated with the industry.  There are also plenty of food and drink vendors to keep your tummies full throughout the day.  They definitely aren't cheap but the food is good!

Steve drooling over all of the merchandise the vendors have to offer

And seeing what great new inventions there are

The starting line

And they're off, just their holders left behind!

The flag stand, and a great view of Lake Havasu City in the background

The view back toward the pit area

Spectators are free to roam through the pits and talk to the riders and crews, which gives a very personal feel to the races.  We met a very nice racer from Canada who talked about the rules and the complexities of the skis, and the physical shape the riders have to be in to be competitive, which makes sense since these are the best riders in the world.  He told us that he was coming off of an injury, but since he qualified for the finals he decided to ride.  He didn't expect to do well, but wanted to try.  He ended up coming in second to last in the race we watched that day.  It was really helpful having so much insight as we were watching the races.

This is not a comprehensive list, but some of the countries that we heard being announced for the races we watched this year were:

• Brazil
• Netherlands
• Qatar
• United Arab Emirates
• Good ole USA
• Argentina
• Canada
• China
• Japan
• Kuwait
• England/UK
• Germany

Many different states within the United States were also represented, they were from all over the country but there was definitely a large contingency of the Americans that were from the southwest part.

After the races were over for the day, we went up to the announcers booth to talk to them for a minute and see the view from their advantage.  They were very nice and enjoyed the fact that we had interacted with them and cheered on all of the riders all day.