Skier’s Choice has a short history as a company, but its brands Moomba and Supra, date back to 1981. Skier’s Choice started developing from a group of Ex-MasterCraft executives led by Rick Tinker in the mid 1990s. It was officially created in 1999 when management completed its buyout of the company from United Marine of Tennessee. Since then, Skier’s Choice has firmly embedded itself in the ski boat manufacturing industry. Its brands Moomba and Supra are each distinct, but universally intertwined. Moomba is geared to deliver high-quality products with world-class performance in the water sports market at a reasonable price. Supra is geared to deliver high-quality products with high-end features that deliver top of the line luxury and performance.
Both Brands are manufactured on the same production line. It is very difficult for the untrained eye to distinguish a Moomba from a Supra in the early stages of manufacture. Each boat uses all hand-laid fiberglass. The stringers feature a “uni-body” construction by bonding the stringer to the hull while it is still in the mold, then the structural foam is injected inside. This system dampens vibration and maximizes hull strength, while providing a seamless liner from the floor to the bench seat. In addition, all substrates are made from hybrid composite materials. The hull/deck “shoebox” joint is fastened with stainless steel screws and is reinforced on the inside with HDPE around the entire joint. The hull is foam filled for floatation and sound dampening. All Supras and Moomba V-Drives feature double sidewall construction that helps with strength and sound dampening.
The Outback is a brand new boat for 2003 with a brand new hull and deck. At 20’ 6” long with a 95” beam, the new Outback is slightly larger than the 2002 model. The 2003 Outback deck has finished backing plates foamed into the side and around the cooler. The new running surface not only has a great slalom wake, but can be sacked down pretty easily, giving the boat a much better wakeboarding wake than last years Outback. In addition to the new hull, the deck features a rear seat that can be converted to a sundeck extension, an 80-quart in floor insulted cooler, and massive amounts of storage for a boat this size. The new flange deck fits in a recess, and is completely carpeted with no trim. This gives extra strength, more storage, and allows a channel to run cables from the driver side to the port side. The flange deck creates a natural drain down from the front and maximizes bow storage. An added bonus is that the seats swing away to accommodate wakeboards in the storage compartments. In addition, aluminum floorboards are used for extra support and durability.
Each boat is upholstered with its own set of hand-made custom upholstery, made in-house with 34 oz. G&T premium vinyl. One of the differences in the brands is that Supras come with different laminating backing. Supras utilize a laminated foam back-vinyl, which prevents any “memory”, or wrinkles that sometimes occur after it is depressed. Moomba’s have the laminated foam backed vinyl on the seat bases and horizontal areas. This extra padding gives a soft, plush feel to the vinyl. The ski pylons are bolted to both stringers and the front fin bolt for extra strength. Furthermore, the motor is bolted through HDPE into the top and side of both stringers with a minimum of 16 bolts. Composite boards 1.75” thick are laminated into the stringers to act as backing plates for the bolts holding the ski pylons and the motor mounts. These strips are a combination of proboard and HDPE and actually bond to the fiberglass unlike aluminum or steel backing plates. In addition, the HDPE maximizes bolt screw retention, and the composite materials actually absorb vibration, rather than displacing vibrations common to metal backing plates. Also, the rudder is accessible through one of the back aluminum floor panels for easy maintenance and repair.
Both brands include a variety of features and options. One unique feature is the ballast systems have quick lock connectors to change to larger bags. This gives the ballast systems an option to upgrade up to 2,800 lbs on some models and allows for easy changeover on all boats. Each Supra comes standard with a CD/MP3 stereo with a satellite ready option. There are three basic engine options and one high output engine. These are the 310 Carbureted Indmar Assault, 320 EFI Indmar, 330 Multi-port Indmar, and the 370 High Performance engine. The base motor for the moomba is the 310 hp indmar assault while the Supras come standard with the 320 hp EFI. A Moomba can be upgraded to the 320 hp or 330 hp engine.
Every boat goes through an extensive quality control check before leaving the factory. They use a high-risk 100-point inspection process that involves a double water test in both a pool and lake. This includes a minimum of five quality control check stations with extensive procedures involved in each check to address any problem issues. A management member must perform the last quality control check before the boat can leave the factory. All boats are priced with a long list of standard conveniences as well as top-of-the-line trailers to meet every customer’s needs. Both brands offer great looks, exceptional performance, and top-notch quality to keep Skier’s Choice in the competitive mix of ski boat manufacturers.
