My first international travel experience was a great success, and what better place to visit than the 2019 Thai Airways Jet Ski World Cup in Pattaya City, Thailand. This was Jettribe’s second year as the Official Wetsuit Sponsor, and I wanted the chance to capture what was going on at the racesite. After a 14 hour flight from California to Shanghai, China, the second 5 hour flight to Bangkok, Thailand seemed so easy. We arrived at the hotel and saw a lobby full of our extended jet ski racing family! While trying to get some rest before the races the next morning, we were lulled to sleep by the sounds of boats revving their engines in the night pit area in the D’Varee Hotel parking lot.

We took a “baht bus” to the racesite, which is a taxi service along the beach front. You waive down a driver and hop in the back of a pickup truck. You push a buzzer when you reach your destination and pay the driver 10 Baht (0.30 cents USD) through his passenger window. The trucks were always spotless, and we enjoyed being able to get around so easily.

I was familiar with how the race site would look from seeing the photos and video from past years, but I was amazed at the size of the pits along the beach, which seemed to extended a ¼ mile on both the left and right sides of the grandstands. There were vendors selling food, toys, and of course our friends at Freedom Racing / Jettribe Thailand had a massive store full of boat parts and Jettribe’s new 2020 gear. The best part of going to the racesite, besides watching races, is getting to meet the people I talk with almost weekly online. These opportunities do not come up often enough, and I love being able to put a face to the emails.

Down in the Freedom Racing / USA pit area were 3 riders that were invited to use a Freedom Racing Stock 1500. Jettribe tries to create opportunities for our riders to travel and compete in new venues.  We were very honored that Freedom Racing gave our riders the opportunity to use this ski.  It had a super sleek silver wrap that shined bright on the water, so we could always tell where they were on the track. All three riders had never competed in Thailand before. Jettribe Red Jersey Rider Wyland Reden from Lake Elsinore, California was there to get in his last Junior 13-15 race before his 16 ^th birthday next month. Team Rider Ben Morris from New Zealand was set up to compete in Expert Ski Limited & Pro Am Ski Stock. Factory Rider Stian Schjetlein traveled from Norway to use the same ski in Pro Ski GrandPrix. After Thailand his team would leave to prepare for the Aquabike GP of Sharjah.

Getting the stock ski ready for all 3 riders was a great example of how our Jettribe Team “family” supports one another. This is what Wyland had to say about the first day working out the bugs with the ski:

“We made some adjustments to the ski, swapped around and borrowed a few parts. Moto 2 I did much better and came from the back of the pack and worked my way up to 5th. Definitely a flashed ECU [from Kylie Ellmers] helped, along with a restrictor plate. Huge thanks to #bjsperformance Jason Schriner for sacrificing his day trip to go ride elephants to help us out. It was a full time job changing out the restrictor plate in between motos for me and my teammate Ben Morris. Another huge thanks to teammate Ben’s dad David. Between motos David was running gas trips on his scooter with only 1 fuel jug between us. Round trip to gas station was minimum 35mins. Also providing some basic tools and helping with ski.”

The Freedom Racing pit crew also helped pick up and move the ski in and out of the water at every opportunity. There was a slight language barrier, but when it was time for that ski to move, they were there without having to ask. Our 3 riders had a great attitude, and although the little silver ski wasn’t the fastest out there, the riders were very appreciative that they finally got the opportunity to compete in Thailand. All 3 riders with the Freedom Ski finished in the top 10-11 in their classes.

There were many other Jettribe riders in Thailand. Factory Rider Phil Pope had an amazing run and got to step up to the podium with 3 ^rd Place in Pro Runabout GP. Zsolt Cseke , from the Kasza Racing Team, took home the Triple Crown trophy for Expert Veterans R/A Limited. Factory Rider Aqsa Aswar finished 4 ^th in the crowded Endurance class. Many more to mention Jettribe riders also competed in Thailand, including Kylie Ellmers, Casey Leech, Graham Leech, Luke Lucas, Hiroki Funato, Bailey Cunningham, Wu Rong Hua, Denis Belkov , and more! Even more Jettribe riders were there just as team support.

We had some time to enjoy Thailand outside of the racesite as well. Meals were delicious (if you ate at the right places) and we enjoyed walking around the night markets getting snacks, drinks, and Christmas gifts for the family. A full plate of Pad Thai with Shrimp was around 80-120 Baht ($2.65 - $3.98 USD). An hour-long foot massage, which was one of the highlights of the trip for me, was $6 USD! While the frugal side of me was thrilled, we also got to experience beautiful sunsets, and days at the racesite along the beach. The “Big Budda Hill” site we visited was beautiful, with detailed statues and an amazing view from the top of one of the largest hills in the area. There was so much to see and do in Thailand, and unfortunately our trip was not long enough to see it all. I look forward to returning soon, so I can visit with our jet ski family once again. 

- Link to Instagram Stories From Thailand @jettribe