Ride your own current

Despite making addicts of its owners and thieves of its borrowers, Sea-Doo’s VS Supercharged is a marvelous addition to the world of water toys. Finally available to the public after being limited to PADI-certified scuba divers for nearly three years, the most powerful of Sea-Doo’s four Seascooters was a ride into submersible serenity when I took it for a dip last month.

I snorkel off Kauai every other year and was eager to see if the VS Supercharged might help me meander among the coral beyond Kee Beach. Since I’m stuck on the mainland this year, I put the $500 device through the paces in the warm water of Lake Mead.

The first thing you notice about the VS Supercharged is its weight: just 18 pounds, less heft than an econo-bag of kitty litter. And at a bit less than 2 feet long, it fits in a car trunk or duffel bag.

Though its snout resembles a warhead, it contains a watertight buoyancy-control compartment that fills with air to keep the vehicle afloat. No need to worry that it might sink if it gets away.

The ride was pure opiate. With a squeeze of the variable-speed trigger, the little craft gently pulled me horizontal, with arms out front and legs extended behind.

With a tilt of the wrists, the craft hummed to deeper water. Bending the wrists upward propelled me to the surface. Right, left and diagonal turns proved equally effortless.

Riders can kick for more speed, or rest their legs and let the machine do nearly all the work. I chose the latter while cruising the shallows at Callville Bay Marina and remembered how James Bond used a similar but clunkier vehicle.

Sea-Doo markets the VS Supercharged to scuba divers and snorkelers. I wore a mask and snorkel but no dive tank. The snorkel was the dry style, meaning it didn’t fill with water as I submerged the Seascooter down to 8 feet -- the same way I would use it in Hawaii.

I saw only water plants, striped bass and catfish, but I enjoyed the experience so much that I could have ridden the torpedo for 90 minutes, exhausting its rechargeable battery. Two teenagers who assisted me also found the craft so cool that I nearly had to hire pro wrestlers to free it from their claws.

So will I slap down 500 clams for a VS Supercharged? No. It was a little underpowered for my 6-foot-2, 250-pound frame, probably going no more than half its advertised 3-mph top speed. But after watching the youths frolic with it, I wouldn’t hesitate to buy one for kids.