Residents in B.C.’s Interior can be forgiven for thinking they’ve sighted two killer whales patrolling the shores of Okanagan Lake near Peachland lately.
Despite the telltale black-and-white markings and working blowholes, these orca look-alikes aren’t whales at all.
“It’s a personal watercraft, that’s how it’s classified,” said Bruce Clark of Seabreacher Canada.
As the company name suggests, the ‘orca’ is a Seabreacher. And while it’s not a whale, it does promise a whale of a time
“It’s unbelievable,” said Clark. “The top speed on these is 70 miles an hour. They go underwater at up to 35 miles an hour; they can jump up to 20 feet out of the water.”
That makes for some serious aerial acrobatics that the sea world would be envious of.
Oh, and this from Clark: “You don’t drive them, you actually fly them.”
Say what?
Yes, operating a Seabreacher takes more than just piloting your average boat or personal watercraft.
Clark said Seabreacher operators have to contend with roll, pitch and yaw, adding, “You have to have some sort of experience flying or in a helicopter, or take the training that we provide.”
Clark and his wife are the Canadian distributors for the semi-submersible watercraft, and they’re hoping to turn the Okanagan into the “Orca-nagan.”
“What we would like to do is approach the rental places now for tourism and then they can be trained and take people out for rides,” said Sandra Olsen of Seabreacher Canada.
So, how much will a Seabreacher set you back? Most will have to dig pretty deep into the couch cushions.
“You’re looking at about $110,000, entry-level,” said Clark. A commercial-grade model, with a 300-horsepower motor, is about $185,000, less the trailer.
While that’s not small amount, Clark says it’s the best time you can have either on the water or below it.
“They are incredibly fun, but you have to try it to understand,” he said.
Our intrepid reporter, Travis Lowe, declined, saying he would have to fold in half to fit in the back seat.
So it fell to cameraman Steve Beskidny to play crash-test dummy.
And, after stuffing Steve into the backseat like a sardine, off they went, like an orca Uber.
While the Seabreacher looks like something straight out of a James Bond movie, Steve, upon his return, was shaken, not stirred.
“It was a little tough on the body, sitting in the back,” said Beskidny. “A little rigid in there, but, yeah, it was fun, a lot of fun.”
What was not surprising is that Beskidny, who’s served 35 years at the television station and is about to retire, had this message for the powers that be at Global News.
“If the big wigs are watching, I wouldn’t mind one of those as a retirement gift!”
Fat chance, my friend.
If you want to sail off into the sunset in a Seabreacher, you’ll need to buy your own little piece of the Orca-nagan.