Hel-a-va Jet Boat: Ali Carle visits Glenelg on the Adelaide Coast region of South Australia

Reputed to be one of the fastest jet-boat rides in the world, Hel-a-va Jet is an eye-catching beast with plenty of grunt.

Before leaving the marina, there’s the obligatory safety briefing and after that we’re in the open water going flat out - just like the adrenaline through our veins.

“The boat's been fully designed and built right here in Adelaide,” explained Hel-a-va Jet Boat operator, Dennis Payne. “It’s powered by twin turbo charged engines so it means the Hel-a-va Jet can reach speeds of over seventy-five kilometres an hour. So we'll get from Glenelg right down to Hallet Cove in about eight minutes.”

This is no commuter service - I can vouch for that. As it twists and maneuvers through the chop we get plenty of bounce for our buck. And at $59 for twenty minutes it doubles as a thrill seeking, heart thumping adrenaline rush and chiropractic session all in one.

“It pumps out twelve hundred litres of water a second. That basically means we could fill an average sized swimming pool in about fifty seconds,” said Dennis.

Dennis reckons the response from passengers is great and he hasn’t had a disappointed customer yet.

“(One of the good parts) about being in Adelaide is that we've got the smooth conditions (but we) can get into the rough conditions and have some really good fun, said Dennis. “In two metre swells we can get airborne. It's built and designed here purely to have rough conditions on an everyday basis.

“We're doing up to seventy kilometres an hour across the water. The back people would be going through four or five 'g's of spin…”

They say the rougher the water the better but I'm glad it was calm the day I went out. Dennis describes the Hel-a-va Jet experience as "extreme, safe, fun". You be the judge.

Hel-a-va Jet Boat
12 Holdfast Prominade
Holdfast Shores Marina
Glenelg
Phone (08) 8376 8288