May 29, 2007

A Great Experience Behind, and in, a Malibu Wakesetter VTX

It's always exciting to see what new boats have been added to the collection of tournament inboards on my little home lake. In fact before the water is warm enough to warrant riding every moment possible, the first few hours logged to the engine on my boat are done so at 5mph, checking out what new dock decoration has been added over the spring. This year there is a 2000-or-so Ski Nautique, and a 27 foot Donzi that is probably worth more than I earn in a year, plus a few new pontoon boats and of course - many new pwc's and kayaks. Pretty standard really.

But there was one addition that was far from standard. As my wife and I were taking our 2 month old daughter for her maiden voyage on the lake and doing one last survey of what new boats had been added to the lake, I saw an aggressive looking wakeboard boat head out of the boat ramp nook on my lake, and proceeded out toward the flats. I knew instantly that it was a newer, if not brand spanking new Malibu Wakesetter. Gorgeous - blue & white with a black signature forward swept Illusion tower. Pretty much exactly how I were to order one if I were to do so.

So, perhaps a little bit creepily, I turned The Wakeboard Report's flagship toward this boat with the intent of getting a better view and perhaps saying hello. In kind, the Wakesetter turned toward me too. Was he going to make me play chicken? Was this a put in Wakesetter he doing to challenge me to a race, or a contest to see who can fill their ballast tanks fastest? There's no way I would have won any of these contests - with the boat already loaded with 1800 lbs and thus handling like a barge and topping out at about 38mph at wide open throttle.

As we got within shouting range, to my suprise, my friend Brian and resident of the lake stood up out of this rogue Wakesetter and yelled, "What do you think?!"

At that point I shut my boat off. When someone has a boat with about 3 minutes on the engine - you let them dock up to you, not the reverse. As it turned out, this friend of mine had sold his bass boat (which, by the way, probably saw more wakeboarding time than my Super Air did last year) for a 2007 Malibu Wakesetter VTX. It was the right choice for him.

First Impressions
Perhaps accommodating for the mostly in-floor stock ballast system, the boat sits high and proud in the water, with steeper freeboard and a taller transom than my Super Air Nautique. This boat is wide too; with a beam of 98 inches yet seemed far wider than my Super Air's 91 inch beam. My first impression was clouded by a bit of shock because this was now the nicest, and newest wakeboard boat on the lake, and it is here to stay. And I ride with this person - so we're looking at a win-win-win situation going on here.

Every bit of Malibu's reputation for building amazing, quality boats is evident in this new boat, a platform loosely based on the hull of the legendary Malibu VLX. This VTX has the smell of a new car, with gorgeous plush upholstery, perfectly clean and the perfectly presented dash console - outfitted with easy to read analog gauges. I had never actually been in a boat that new. And as I will explain later - I got to experience more than just smelling it.

Riding Experience
Our own boat had just been put in the water late the night before. As such, I hadn't been out yet to work out my winter kinks, and fall flat on my back or face 12 different ways on my easy stuff - not even attempting my harder tricks. But this proud & excited new owner wanted to test the VTX out the very next morning! Despite being sick the past several days, how could I pass this up? The answer to "want to go out tomorrow at 9?", in my mind was something along the lines of **explicative** yes" - although I think what I actually said was "Wow, I'd love to!".

But I was allowed to get the first ride behind this thing! What a complete honor and one that I won't ever forget. How many times do you get the chance to have the first run behind a boat like this with mere moments on it - let alone hours. I didn't even get that opportunity on my own boat but perhaps thats just how the circle goes around. Either way I was pumped. My wife knew I was nervous so the night before, she told me to just go out there and cut around and report that it was my first time out so I wasn't up for trying any crazy stunt maneuvers. I told her that was a good plan and sticking with that plan lasted about 37 seconds once I got out there. Adrenaline, a solid wake, and a seemingly perfect fit to my Liquid Force Exos all combined to make everything seem just perfect.

I had asked the owner to load down the boat with 100% of the possible ballast, and that I wanted to give it a shot with the boat slammed first and work up from there. Initially we were riding at about 65 feet with the Wedge retracted, but I think the actual lip may have been a few feet out from where I was, so if I am invited out again, we'll go out to 70 feet. The wake had a very nice shape and size with each of the tanks full, 3 people in the boat and the wedge retracted and locked up. In my first set I tried my wife's proposed game plan but then managed to land most of my easier stuff, estimating the distance and characteristics of the wake, but later into my run I did get in a few backside backrolls, backside 360's, and a wake to wake blind 180. The wake had plenty of pop and a smooth transition with no noticeable trough past each wake.

During my second set, we lowered the Wedge which was accessible through the convenient cutout hatch in the oversized composite swim platform, and lowered it into position. During my second run I managed to ride away from the same tricks mentioned before, plus 3 back to back toeside backrolls which is one of my more inconsistent tricks. One of them almost looked like I had done the trick before! I was pretty excited to ride away from these - particularly on my first run of the season and behind an unfamiliar boat.

Driving & Handling
But then I got to drive this Wakesetter VTX - which again is in and of itself an honor, because basically what you're doing as the owner in this scenario is giving the keys to your expensive, pristine new toy to someone else. Very daring. But driving this boat is a dream. It handles nimbly, even with the tanks filled, and felt as smooth, steady, and solid as anything I've ever driven. Shifting between forward, reverse, and neutral all were perfectly smooth and calibrated. I already mentioned the gauges but they really deserve another mention here. Even in direct sun, there was just no issue reading a single character on the well apportioned dash layout. The cruise control sets easily and after a short calibration procedure and help from the owner's son, had no issues maintaining the speed against the riders' pull and I noted only a .3-.5 mph variance in speed while I was driving. Also, having never driven a boat with a tower whose legs I could not see in front of me, I was amazed at the visibility afforded by the Illusion X tower. That is a really amazing design element & usability benefit of the tower on this boat that I never considered. Forward visibility is important in this sport, where the boat's bow is often pitched up more than in other towed sports. Adding to the enhanced visibility is assisted by the frameless Malibu windshield.

Conclusion
This boat is phenomenal and I am super excited to see this on the lake and hope to be asked out again on it. The stock ballast is plentiful, and this boat even has the bow ballast option - which was a great move on Brian's part despite being advised that this wasn't a necessary option. It is. Somehow the remainder of the ballast is so well laid out and tucked away so well that it does not interfere at all with the rear storage lockers on this 20ft boat. You know what would go great back there one fine day day? My spare set of 340lb twin tanks. As amazing as the wake was, riding it with a couple of my spare ballast bags would definitely be worth trying out. I've said it many times before, but we believe in weighting boats as much as possible, utilizing compartments to their fullest extent. Some people go as far as to put ballast tanks on seats, on top of bow cushions and so forth; we don't go that far - but as much ballast as can be stashed away and not be seen, is how we roll. These ultra well-designed boats like the VTX have tremendous potential in this fashion.

So, it was nice for a few years to have the newest wakeboard boat on our lake; but that torch has been passed and we were pumped to not only have a nice first set of the summer - but behind an absolutely amazing new boat and a source for new material on this site and a even a new way to experience the sport of wakeboarding. Thanks to Brian and his family for inviting me out, and enjoy your new ride!

Posted by erik at 06:26 PM | Comments (2) | TrackBack