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PWC Yamaha Watercraft Group president saw WaveRunner record sales BY DAVE McMAHON EDITOR IN CHIEF Dean Burnett once wrenched on boats in the service department of his dad's boat dealership. After being named president of the Yamaha Watercraft Group in 2015, Burnett now has a year under his belt at the helm of the brand's WaveRunners and jet boats, and needless to say, it's been quite a one-year whirlwind. "The year as absolutely flown by," Burnett told Powersports Business during the Yamaha Watercraft Group dealer meeting in Chicago earlier this year. "We've had a really good year, up 10 percent from a retail standpoint, so it's been a good year for the dealer and a good year for the factory, both jet boat and WaveRunner." Burnett has had his share of successful years with the Watercraft Group, a division of Yamaha Motor Corp., U.S.A. Burnett came to his latest position after being a vice president of the Yamaha Marine Group division, replacing Mark Speaks. "Yeah, you could say I was born into the business," Burnett said. "My dad had a boat dealership in Louisville, Kentucky, for 20 years, so I grew up in the boat dealership. Grew up in back shop actually. I was a Yamaha tech. And then my first job out of college was working for Yamaha in California." His five-year stint in sales to start with the company allowed him to hawk a pair of inven- tive product to dealers — the WaveRunner WR500 and WJ500, the first sit-down models in the market. Now, with the launch of the WaveRunner EX, the company is bringing to market an entry-level product that is expected to continue to drive expansive sales gains. Burnett has guided the sale of successful products from a variety of employment levels, but it somewhat comes with the territory. "Our summer vacation was around houseboats, with watercraft, boats, outboards, fishing, skiing all part of it. I grew up with the water gene," he said. "So that first job for me, going out to work in California, was a dream job. I hadn't been further west than St. Louis at the time. It was a phenomenal job. Someone told me 'You can float around the industry or you can work for one company the rest of your life, and this is a great place to land.' And it is a great company." With dealers excited to get sales started on the 2017 lineup, Burnett sees the PWC indus- try ready to continue its growth trends. "When the industry fell off a cliff in 2008, it started all of us in the industry on a path of 'We can't just give this market up to the used market.' So the things that BRP did, the things Kawasaki's done, other things going on in the industry… those things have all spurred the competitive nature in every company. With- out all us looking for new ways to entice new buyers, getting people to buy new, none of us would have developed product that has led to the industry growth." Expansion of the company's boat manufac- turing facility in Tennessee will be the largest of its kind in company history, and the debut of a host of 2017 new models on the Wave- Runner side, including the all-new EX Series and the highly anticipated GP1800, Burnett's operation will be providing dealers with plenty of sales potential. "When I found out that the EX was at least on the drawing board when I got here, we tried to push it as fast as we possibly could," Burnett said. "It's giving our dealers an opportunity to get those entry-level buyers to buy new. I absolutely love the market right now and the products that all of us are bringing to market." Retail sales for WaveRunner dealers peaked during the mid-summer months, with July and August setting retail sales records. "We are very committed to jet boat and WaveRunner," he said. "Our dealers are excited. Our message has always been good, healthy sustainable growth. We are adding new WaveRunner and jet boat dealers, but we are not adding helter skelter. We're making sure we add the right dealers, and that they're not right down the road from each other. Having been in the business 30 years or so, we're look- ing to provide that good, healthy, sustainable growth for our dealers." Dealers already are keen on being able to sell a pair of EX Deluxe PWC — which come with the braking and reverse RiDE system — at $8,599 apiece. "Our customers will pay that for two of those on the trailer, because it makes sense," Burnett said. "It can be traded in, repaired, repainted, it's made of fiberglass, it's solid. It's stable and fun, and really reminded me of the WR500. It's just truly fun to be out riding on." PSB Burnett ready to build on successful Year 1 26 • November 28, 2016 • Powersports Business www.PowersportsBusiness.com FlyDive, a leading watersports product com- pany specializing in Hydroflight, in early November announced its Intellectual Property (IP) portfolio acquisition that now makes the company owner of the patents that encompass most of the major components of all modern Hydroflight products. Hydroflight products are ridden by way of water jet propulsion via connection to a personal watercraft (PWC), enabling riders to fly above water. The Hydroflight sport was introduced to the U.S. in 2012 and features several devices for riders to experience water-jet-powered flight, including: jetboards, jetpacks and jetbikes. The first Hydroflight systems were expensive and designed with competitive athletes in mind, proving somewhat difficult to fly for the gen- eral public. In recent years, new companies such as FlyDive have come to market with more user-friendly, affordable designs, making Hydroflight accessible to the mass market of recreational watersport enthusiasts. In 2015, FlyDive entered the market with its goal of providing safe, family-friendly Hydrofli- ght products. The company's acquisition of the most comprehensive patent portfolio in the Hydroflight space, along with its own patent- pending technology, allows the company to continue to innovate and expand its roster of retailers and watersport rental operators nationwide. FlyDive is privately held, funded by venture capitalists including Thynk Capital, a prominent venture fund focused on innova- tive technologies. FlyDive is raising additional growth capital to fuel its fast-growing product roadmap and market expansion. The company, in early 2016, began rollout of its flagship prod- uct, the family-friendly X-Board, and the recep- tion was exceptionally positive as newcomers to Hydroflight took to it with ease. FlyDive aims to use its powerful patent portfolio to propel innovation forward, and build a healthy Hydroflight industry and ecosystem. "We're thrilled to announce that FlyDive is the owner of the leading Hydroflight tech- nology," stated FlyDive CEO Christos Nico- laidis. "Unbeknownst to many, we innovated early, as this industry was just beginning, and some of the most valuable and impactful performance designs were developed in our facility. Now that we have acquired the pat- ent protection covering our original designs and more, we've secured proper growth and a healthy runway for our product development. We understand the potential impact of what one company can do with this ownership, and we'll continue to grow the sport to be one that is inclusive of professional athletes, novices and families, benefitting retailers, rental opera- tions and other product companies within our industry as well." The original design and utility patents were filed in 2012, with additional filings through 2016. The comprehensive portfolio of Hydroflight patents includes: the individual jet nozzles enabling independent foot steering; the 360-degree swivel joint that attaches the hose to a Hydroflight device; the handheld wireless controller which operates the PWC throttle and includes engine cut-off switch; the quick-connect coupling that attaches the hose to a Hydroflight device; the quick-connect coupling that attaches the U-pipe to the back of a PWC; the quick-disconnect for interface of Hydroflight devices with bindings or boots; the locking mechanism to enable or disable the individual foot steering capability; springs to return the individual feet to their neutral position; the Hydroflight board which floats in water; the wireless controller that adjusts jet nozzle direction; the thrust nozzle reducer; adjustable thrust nozzles; the Hydroflight board with a narrow mid-section; hand grips on Hydroflight devices; the hoverboard; and many other claims. FlyDive invented and developed strong original IP as well. Its experimentation with advanced waterflow analysis unlocked pro- prietary methods for designing jetboards with optimized performance and led to pat- ents encompassing jetboard shape, water- flow management and more. This led to engineering of a board on which beginners could quickly and easily conquer the art of flight. With lighter, softer control inputs and a compact, balanced platform employed in the X-Board, FlyDive proved the the- ory that Hydroflight could be learned and adopted easily by the average person. They have additional proprietary designs in prog- ress focused on maximizing performance of Hydroflight athletes. PSB FlyDive awarded Hydroflight patents President of Yamaha Watercraft Group, Dean Burnett, at the Yamaha Watercraft Group dealer meeting in Chicago. FlyDive has added more than a dozen patents to its portfolio for its Hydroflight products.