Cycling Makes A Splash

mate bikelike maneuverability with a surfboard and what have you got? the unsinkable water ski-mobile!

You can spend $1395 in a lot of heavy ways. A down payment on a used Ferrari. Two weeks in Marrakesh. Flying lessons. Scuba gear. Or you can invest it in one of the niftiest recreational vehicles to come along in a decade--the Water Ski-Mobile. Manufactured by the Power-Ski Corporation in Chicago, this seven-foot mechanized dolphin that's made of fiberglass, polyurethane and aluminum can do almost anything but submerge. To launch, just push it into the water and climb aboard solo--or with a friend riding tandem. The 20-hp motor housed behind the driver's seat operates on all-electric ignition; speed, stop and steering are controlled from the handle bars. There's really nothing else to do but jet about like an aquatic Buck Rogers. Even in choppy water, the Water Ski-Mobile can hit speeds upwards of 30 mph--and should you take a plunge while playing wave jockey, the machine's motor automatically stops. (The propeller is housed in a metal shroud.) Furthermore, the gas tank holds three and one half gallons--and on that you should cover about 50 miles. Still want to buy that scuba gear?