Why & where did the idea of Classic Jetskis come from?

What truly causes a passion

In life, no one can quite put their finger on what truly causes a passion and love for something. Sure, scientists can give the scientific breakdown, but passion to me is the intangible quality that separates a like from a love for something. We can try to put logic to it, like I'm about to, but what defines our likes, dislikes and, if you're lucky enough, loves for things, people and experiences in life, no one truly knows.

Ok philosophy lesson over...but I lead with that because Classic Jetskis essentially morphed from my deep rooted love for jetskis. This love, I think, stems from my childhood and teenage years, where I was lucky enough to grow up with my Parents giving me and my Sisters family weekends and holidays away across the UK jetskiing. So when I say I love jetskis, I largely mean I love what they represent in the overarching context of my life story. When I say love them, not in a weird romantic way (maybe a little...don't tell Megan), but I treat jetskis with a god-like status as they attain a happiness level beyond normal life... this all stems from my childhood.

Throughout our lives we tend to go in and out of hobbies, but for me, Jetskis have created instant excitement since I was a kid, even when I didn't physically own them. To give you an example of just how much I love jetskis... I'm now lucky enough to own 8, but even now when I go on Holiday and see a body of water I think jetski - 'can a jetski go in there', 'is there a slipway', and 9 times out of 10 I will find a jetski... To me it just makes sense that jetskis are in my DNA, and without them, a huge part of my character would be stripped away.

So why CJ? Classic Jetski honestly happened by accident, as all the best things in life do, in my opinion. In my early teens, back in the early 2000s, 2 stroke jetskis were the industry standard for PWC... Of course, I didn't realize at the time that 2 strokes were coming toward the end of their lifespan and 4 strokes were on the cusp of coming in... so to me, 2 strokes were king. Fast forward a decade later when I hit my mid-20s and was in a financial position to buy a jetski, the whole PWC industry had evolved and changed. Two strokes had become a thing of the past. PWCs were now exclusively 4 stroke, much bigger machines, and a lot of what I associated with them visually and experientially - the sound, the smell - all seemed to have gone. I was honestly gutted.

So at the age of 25, I began looking for a clean XPDI (I cover why the XPDI is my favorite ski in my top 3 skis blog, so give that a read). In essence, at 25 I said to myself 'right, I want a pristine XPDI.' Naively, I thought it would be easy since the 2 strokes from years gone by were still fresh in my mind. What I quickly realized after talking to dealers, reading forums and Facebook groups, and studying the PWC landscape, was that boy had things changed. If I was going to get the skis I craved, I would have to become quite literally a retro ski collector.

From age 25, it took me 2 years to find a clean enough XPDI. Every ski I'd seen up until that point looked like a very old beat-up machine. To me, buying a ski meant finding a clean example like what I was riding in my teens. What I discovered was that even just 10 years later, these old 2 strokes were more like collector's items than commonplace machines. Over those 2 years of searching, between 25 and 27, I became something of a historian expert on Seadoo models and Yamahas. That was the period where Classic Jetskis started to become the seed of an idea. Initially, I knew the 90s was a strong period for PWC but didn't realize how rich the history was. My only other memories of skis, besides the GTX 951 millennium and 951 RX, were snippet memories from childhood of the Seadoo SP. I quickly realized I was just at the tip of the iceberg, and what I loved in my XPDI was really a toned-down experience of the XP, GSX, and SPXs that had come before. I became obsessed with researching and learning about these machines.

Finally, at age 27, I found the XPDI, and what happened after that was honestly a rollercoaster of just going with it. I bought one ski, then another, and before I knew it, I had more skis than space. Luckily, I have very - and I mean very - understanding parents who let me store skis at their house. At that particular time, I had the skis but didn't have a plan. Everyone thinks I bought the skis because of the classic jetski channel, but that's not true - I bought them because, as I mentioned, over the years I had become a PWC historian and began making a dream ski bucket list. I'm a huge believer in the power of visualization, and boy did I visualize the skis I wanted, and sure enough, they came to me.

One of my biggest regrets about my childhood is that photos weren't as big a thing back then as they are now. I have literally just 1 or 2 good pictures of skis from those years. So I was determined to capture tons of photos and videos to keep for years to look back on. I also took pride, as I still do, in proving to dealers that there are still clean, great-running examples out there - the very ones they told me I wouldn't find.

Then came that light bulb moment: 'what if I make a YouTube channel?' At first, I remember thinking, I'm not a YouTuber, I'm just a guy who likes skis - I can't act. Anyone who follows CJ will know my better half Megan is the most supportive partner you could find. She said, 'try doing a screen test and film a video.' After a lot of persuading, I tried... I still have the takes - I did 47 takes of a 5-word line. I was so nervous filming with Megs watching... I was paralyzed by fear of making a video and putting it on YouTube. But I also understood these skis had tons of life left in them, and I had a burning passion to share that with others and showcase how great this period of PWC really was.

I subsequently spent months practicing and making videos I didn't like. Even today, I cringe watching my original YouTube videos, but that's where I started, and I think it's important to show and inspire others that we all start somewhere. One Sunday afternoon - hence the Sunday 4pm upload time - I registered the Classic Jetski YouTube and Instagram accounts, and the rest, as they say, is history...

What has followed are the most incredible experiences finding, riding, and owning these machines. I've found so many skis from my bucket list and have shared it all with you guys, making some great friendships along the way. Much to my surprise, there are a lot of like-minded people out there.

What started as a personal quest to relive childhood memories has blossomed into something far beyond my wildest dreams. Through Classic Jetskis, I've discovered that passion truly is contagious - it's not just about the machines anymore, it's about the incredible community we've built together. Every comment, every shared restoration story, every meetup has shown me that these aren't just old watercraft we're preserving; we're keeping alive a golden era of PWC history. To everyone who's joined this journey - whether you're a dedicated collector, weekend rider, or just someone who appreciates these incredible machines - you've helped turn my solitary obsession into a thriving family of enthusiasts. From late-night garage repairs to sunny days on the water, every moment shared with this community reminds me why I fell in love with these machines in the first place. This isn't just my story anymore - it's our story, and we're writing new chapters every day.

‘Keeping these classics alive’!

Thanks for reading