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PWC Pro Watercross Tour announces sponsors 32 • May 25, 2015 • Powersports Business www.PowersportsBusiness.com Dealership becomes title sponsor of race series Pro Watercross is pleased to announce that Hidden Trails Motorsports/Yamaha will be the title sponsor of the 2015 Pro Watercross National Tour. "The Pro Watercross Tour is the premier closed course racing series in the United States, and we are excited to partner with a series that offers a spectator friendly atmosphere and incorporates the finest professional and ama- teur racers from around the world. As this sport continues to improve, we look forward to being a positive force behind its growth," the dealer- ship said in a release. As the title sponsor of the Pro Watercross Tour, Hidden Trails Motorsports wants to offer all Pro Watercross Tour members a unique benefit: For the entire 2015 race season, the dealership is offering all racers the opportunity to purchase units at its invoice cost, plus setup and doc fees. But the offer doesn't just apply to PWC; it also includes model, any brand of ATVs, UTVs and motorcycles in stock. Racers will also receive a 15 percent discount on all OEM parts. HTM currently carries the follow- ing OEMs: Yamaha, Can-Am, Sea-Doo, Spyder, Suzuki and Christini. This kind of support has never been offered before on such a large scale and will be the closest many racers ever get to receiving fac- tory support. HTM is proud to be able to give back to its PWC family and looks forward to supporting the industry that has brought the dealership so much over the years, Hidden Trails Motorsports said in a press release. OTHER NEW SPONSORS Pro Watercross is excited to announce for the first time Slippery Wetsuits, Jet Renu and Jettrim are on board with the 2015 tour. "These are all great companies that have established themselves into the watercross communities and have proven that their prod- ucts are a valuable investment," stated Nick Handler of Pro Watercross. "Each of these new sponsors is making a significant statement on the direction of Pro Watercross' Tour and its impact on the racing community." Along with its wetsuits, life vests, gloves and footwear, Slippery Wetsuits offers a wide range of accessories for PWC enthusiasts. Slip- pery Wetsuits has been a key player within the watercross racing and personal watercraft com- munity. Pro Watercross' course marshals will be outfitted in Slippery's best this season. The late Gary Hart had a vision to develop a non-slip PWC floor mat that would stand up to harshest conditions and satisfy the most demanding rider. Since then, Jettrim has been producing custom one-off products that have withstood the test of time. Jettrim's hand- crafted products are used by the fastest racers and the hap- piest PWC enthusi- asts around the world and are made in Lake Havasu City, Ariz. Jet Renu manufac- tures a full line of recon- ditioning products for marine, automotive and more. Jet Renu was developed with riders' and boaters' best inter- ests in mind, and the folks at Jet Renu under- stand their customers' needs and concerns in finding the right cleaning product to care for their watercraft. Jet Renu's products are con- ceived of and manufactured in Corona, Calif., and Jet Renu is an eco-friendly company. THREE SPONSORS RETURN The Pro Watercross Tour is pleased to wel- come back its sponsors for the 2015 Pro Water- cross Tour: OptimaRacing.com, Jetlift and Goggle Grip. Pro Watercross is appreciative for their continued support over the years. OptimaRacing.com has supported the Pro Watercross National Tour since 2009 and is a great resource for performance and replacement parts as well as offering riding gear to casual wear. Goggle Grips were born out of necessity. Brad Maloney, inventor of the Goggle Grip, knew first hand that keeping your goggles from slipping off your helmet during a PWC race was a major issue. With that, the company was formed, and Goggle Grip has been proudly supporting the PWC racing community since 2002, and its products have become a must- have for any racers. Jetlift's 5-in-1 multipurpose tote can easily be transformed from garage cart on casters to an all-terrain beach tote and once you are on the beach, converted into a beach stand. Jetlifts are made in the USA and built to last. The 2015 Pro Watercross schedule is as follows: May 9-10 in Panama City Beach, Fla.; May 16-17 in Pensacola Beach, Fla.; June 20-21 in Sparks/Reno, Nev.; June 27-28 in St. George, Utah; July 18-19 in Lewisville, Texas (Dallas); and Aug. 8-9 in Hartwell, Ga., concluding with the National Championship Aug. 15-16 in Charleston, W.Va. and the World Champion- ship Sept. 19-27 in Naples, Fla. On Saturday and Sunday each race weekend brings the pro riders out on the racecourse from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. The "Pro Show" is streamed live on the web for viewers from all over the world able to watch. Each event weekend's "Pro Show" is filmed for TV and released four weeks post event and airs on 23 regional sport networks with distribution to 93 million USA households plus international distribution. Airdates and times can be found at www.ProWatercross. com/TV. PSB Above: The 2015 Pro Watercross Tour includes eight events, beginning May 9 and concluding with the September World Championships. Left: Tony Treltas, in product development at Parts Unlimited, showed off the distributor's Slippery Wetsuits line during the Parts NVP last summer. Slippery Wetsuits has joined the Pro Watercross Tour as one of its newest sponsors. PWC continues to be the strongest segment of the boat market, although the rate of growth is slowing from last year. Sales were up more than 20 percent over the last 12 months, but that's below the 30 percent peak reached last summer as the market surged. Boat sales are closing in on nearly four years of growth with another strong month of year-over-year sales increases, according to the latest Info-Link Bellwether report. March sales were up almost 10 percent on a rolling 12-month basis, slightly ahead of February's rate. The Info-Link report has shown year-over-year gains since mid-2011. The Bellwether report tracks boat sales across the country based on new U.S. boat registrations. Bellwether states are geographi- cally dispersed states representing roughly half of the U.S. boat market (varies by market segment and time of year). Following a familiar pattern, every cate- gory on the report was up, with the exception of sterndrive/jet boats, which declined nearly 5 percent from March 2014's rate. Besides PWC, ski boats and sport fishing boats showed the strongest growth, both up about 15 percent on a rolling 12-month basis. Both categories have held fairly steady at that level for the last several months. Outboard sales also continued their growth, back above 10 percent year-over-year after dipping below that level at the end of 2014. POWER 50 DEALER OFFERS PWC CERTIFICATION CLASS Coleman PowerSports, a 2013 and 2014 Powersports Business Power 50 dealership, hosted a Personal Watercraft Certification Class on Saturday, May 9. Chuck Hurley, captain of the U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary hosted the six-hour course at Coleman's Woodbridge, Va., location. It ran $35 per participant and included lunch. Everyone in Coleman's home state of Virginia is required to have a boater's license to oper- ate a PWC. Coleman is also hosting a two-hour Personal Watercraft Seminar June 13 at the Woodbridge dealership. Seminar topics include: watercraft models, features and terms; a minor maintenance review; U.S. Coast Guard Auxiliary safety information; informa- tion on licensing and mandatory education; waterway regulations in Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia; and towing and launch tips. Each seminar attendee also receives spe- cial seminar coupons valued at $500. BLACK BOOK: WHOLESALE VALUATIONS OF PWC UP Wholesale valuations of personal watercraft were up 2.5 percent from April to May, Black Book reported. Jet boat wholesale valuations were up 2.2 percent in the same period. Black Book reported the results as "a near normal figure for the season." DEALERSHIP TO OPEN SECOND STORE Marine World & Powersports, a Sea-Doo, Can-Am and boat dealer in Wichita, Kan., plans to open a second facility in Andover, Kan., The Wichita Eagle reported. The Wichita store will serve the east side of the metro area, while the Andover store will serve the west side. Owners Nathan and Nick Blasi pur- chased the Wichita dealership from their uncle Les Eck in 2012. The new facility, which was previously home to a landscape management company, has two 4,200-square- foot buildings. Marine World & Powersports will use one building for service and the other as a showroom and warehouse space. The Blasi brothers are also looking to add more brands at the new dealership, including Hus- tler mowers. A grand opening is expected to be held by June 1. SEA-DOO OFFERS MOTHER'S DAY SPECIAL In the weeks leading up to Mother's Day, Sea- Doo offered a special promotion for those purchasing gifts for their mom from store.sea-doo.com. Free shipping was offered on online orders of $50 or more from April 29-May 5. PSB DIGEST PWC sales continue to be strong in March