Check Out This Personal Waterski That You Can Control With the Tow Bar
The first of its kind, this waterski has its own jetski-like power unit that acts as the boat during normal waterskiing. The twist is that the waterskier fully controls the boat.
Of the wacky transportation devices we cover here at The Drive, boats and boat-related things are somewhat underrepresented. After all, we are a mostly four and two-wheeled transportation website. But this personal waterski is so strange and novel that I thought it was worth looking at. Meet the Solo.
I’ll be honest, I’ve never been waterskiing. Not for lack of motivation but because I don’t have access to a boat of any kind. Now that I think about it, the Solo might be the exact right device for someone like me – single, boatless, and with plenty of space to spare in my garage. It’s sort of like a remote control jet ski, except it tows you around like a boat normally would. On the end of the tow rope is a handle, which is standard for waterskiing. The big twist is that the handle has controls for the remote control jet ski portion of this contraption.
There are two models, the SF 70 and the SF 150. Those numbers denote the horsepower of the lead unit, which is actually pretty close to what most jet skis make. The SF 70 uses a 683cc inline-three cylinder two-stroke engine that makes 70 hp, mounted to a jet pump. The SF 150 uses a huge 1.5-liter inline-three four-stroke engine that makes 150 horsepower. Both of these engines make 100hp per liter and are made by Rotax, which is impressive for road cars but common for motorcycle-based stuff.
Either one seems like a preposterous machine and they aren’t cheap. Solo doesn’t list a price anywhere on its website but some forum sleuthing and searching turns up a figure of $17,000. It’s a lot of money to spend on a toy that really seems like it should only be used by professionals. But hey, if you really want to be an antisocial waterskier, look no further.
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