When Steve Amende bought his first jet ski 30 years ago, it wasn’t because he was an adrenaline junkie.
It was to help him travel up a river to his favourite fly-fishing spot.
He spends as much time as he can airborne and upside down, using waves on Otago’s coastline as launch pads for the aerobatics.
"The hull is called ‘The Falcon’ — as in the bird, not the car.
"Mainstream manufacturers’ jet-ski hulls are rounder and heavier. Mine is lighter, shorter and wider, which makes it more stable and manoeuvrable.
"At the end of the day, it’s a stand-up jet ski.
"It’s been designed to be ridden in the surf like a surfboard — it’s stronger and can handle those conditions.
"It comes out standard with foot-holes, so when you’re upside down, your feet don’t fall out."
It was up to the rider what The Falcon could do, Mr Amende said.
"It’s a machine that can do backflips, barrel rolls — it surfs waves very well.‘‘It’s only limited by the imagination of the rider."
However, he warned it was not a toy.‘‘If your imagination gets a little too wild, you might end up having to eat hospital food.
"We all fall off — that’s part of it. So I recommend anyone who rides one, to always wear a crash helmet. I wouldn’t ride it without one."
And that wasn’t the sedate fisherman in him talking, he said.
The Falcon is made by Mr Amende’s company, Otago Personal Watercraft (OPW), and will be on display with many other jet skis and boats at the 2016 Otago Boat Show at the Edgar Centre this weekend.
The event showcases a diverse range of marine vehicles, outdoor recreational equipment and caravan, motorhome and camping equipment.
