Sports boats set out on a voyage to electrify the waters in the same way Tesla electrified the roads
Grant Jeide looked like another dude riding the rollicking waves left in the wake of a 23-foot (7-meters) boat hurtling through the water at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour on a Northern California river earlier this summer
AFLOAT THE SAN JOAQUIN RIVER — Grant Jeide looked like another dude riding the rollicking waves left in the wake of a 23-foot (7-meter) boat ripping through the water at speeds of up to 40 miles per hour on a river in Northern California's Delta earlier this summer.
But Jeide was performing his aquatic acrobatics behind a different breed of boat — one powered by electricity instead of gasoline. Unencumbered by the din and acrid smell of a combustion engine, the boat's passengers could chat with Jeide as he surfed behind them while they savored the afternoon breeze wafting along the river.
“It's like a playground back there, you feel like you could just ride all day,” exclaimed Jeide, part of the sales team at Arc Boats, a 3-year-old startup embarking on a voyage to electrify the waters in the same way that Tesla has already led the charge to electrify the roads.
As Tesla did with its first car 16 years ago, Arc Boats is starting with luxurious vessels likely to appeal to a small and affluent audience that isn't reluctant to spend large sums of money to own the latest advances in technology.
They're people like Jonathan Coon, a self-proclaimed geek who got rich after starting 1-800 Contacts in his college dorm room back in the 1990s and can afford to splurge on the sleek, high-powered vessels that Arc Boats is designing and building.
After spending more than $300,000 on a luxury cruiser called Arc One a couple of years ago, Coon is forking over another $258,000 price to become the first customer in
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