I have been around boats and PWC's my whole life and am currently working on my captains license right now so I consider myself very well learned on the water. For boat engines, I will own nothing other then a Yahama. Their outboards pretty much own the market and they are nothing but the best. They are bullet proof and have never let me down. HOWEVER, when it comes to Personal Water Crafts (PWC's), I would only buy a Seadoo made by Bombardier. Right now, Seadoo has the best technology out their and I own a 2011 Seadoo RXT 260 IS right now. Seadoo's are faster than Yamahas and Yamaha's hull's don't even come close in performance or quality in comparison to Seadoo. Most of Yamaha's hulls are what they call Xcel hulls. They are not made out of fiberglass, rather a very thin composite material. They try to say that its lighter and is so great, but its not. They are a nightmare. Because its not made of fiberglass, you can't repair it and if it becomes damaged, you most likely will have to replace the entire hull. Also, because of its thin and lightweight construction, it rides incredibly hard in the chop and really beats you up. Because of Yamaha's design, they also ride front heavy and do not handle as well. Seadoo's S3 hull is fiberglass and has a step at the stern which creates and air pocket of water for better fuel economy, handling, and speed. Seadoo has their Suspension models out right now (IS & AS models) which I own and it is a great system. It absorbs most of the shock in the chop. You live in Long Island which can get pretty choppy so a suspension model would be a great option for you. You can power through the chop and take much less of a beating. If you are going to be doing your own maintenance let me warn you and say the suspension models are hard to work on because you have restricted access from the suspension deck that can be removed for more access. Other than that, the suspension models are awesome. Seadoo also has Intelligent brake and reverse (IBR) right now which no one else has. If this is your first PWC, it will make it very easy to operate. The throttle is computer controlled and starts off in neutral using the reverse bucket. You tap the throttle and it lifts the bucket so it slowly moves forward. You tap the IBR lever and it puts you back into neutral. Hold the IBR lever down and you do into reverse. While at speed if you hold the IBR lever down, you activate the brake. If you ride in salt water, don't EVER get a Yamaha. The Yamaha ski's use the salt water to cool their engine which is the last thing you want on a jet ski (its fine on a boat, but not on a jet ski). Seadoo cools their engines with Anti-freeze so it is never exposed to salt water. Seadoo only uses the water your in to cool the exhaust which is why you still need to flush it after every use. When you are flushing a jet ski, its always the opposite of a boat. Start the engine first then turn on the water and then turn the water off then turn the ski off. Also, never tow a jet ski, you will ruin it. If you are looking for speed and acceleration, you will want a supercharged model. Be aware that the supercharged models do require more maintenance no matter what brand. You have to rebuild the supercharger every 100 hours which consists of replacing the washers. The washer kit cost about $300-350. A dealer will charge you anywhere from $800-1200 to do this service. There is a moderator on greenhulk.com (PWC forum) who does this service for $75 plus the $300-350 for the washer kit. All you have to do is remove the supercharger (seems daunting, but its not) which is super easy as long as its not a suspension ski. With that being said, I would never buy a ski that wasn't supercharged. Of course the power is addicting, but its also nice to have a quiet ride at 45 mph where a naturally aspirated ski would be screaming at that speed. When I was looking for a jet ski, I was thinking Yamaha because I love their outboard boat motors, but after a few months of research and testing, I found Seadoo to be the right choice. If you are taller, the Seadoo is for you automatically. The Seadoo's have much deeper footwells than Yamaha's. Sorry if I sound like a fanboy for Seadoo, but I don't want you to make the wrong choice. Like I said, when it comes to boats Yamaha engines are the best, but PWC's are a whole different game. For salt water use Seadoo is the only ski I would buy. Just ask any of the mechanics at a dealer. I spend my summers up in the Barnegat Bay area and my Seadoo handles the chop great with the suspension. The S3 hull can keep up 60 mph in the chop with minimal cavitation unlike most skis. NEVER EVER buy a used Jet Ski. Think about it, most of the people who own jet skis are A-holes and treat them like crap and never keep up with the service. Almost anyone will tell you to never buy a used one. You need a boater's license to operate one in New York I think, or at least that's the way it is in New Jersey. Go to your local marina and Im sure they will have flyers for a boating safety class. In New Jersey you have to be at least 16 to take the 8 hour boater's safety class then you can operate a boat or PWC. In South Carolina, You can use your driver's license or if you don't have on, you can get a boater's license online if you past the test. It all varies by state. When I was ski shopping, I also realized that the components on the yamaha skis felt cheaper, such as the plastic. It felt like it was going to break. On my Seadoo, all of the storage compartments are gas-strut assisted so they open and stay open by themselves. Another nice touch that Yamaha doesn't have. Just don't even bother looking at a Kawasaki ski. They feel extremely cheap and consistently score low. I would also recommend getting a ski that has cruise control. I use it a lot. If it gets a little bouncy, its nice to set the ski as a certain speed and hold the throttle WOT and stay at a constant speed. If it gets bumpy, its pretty hard to hold the throttle in a precise spot. Anyways, sorry for this long post but I hope it really helps! Im interested to see what you get. These videos are very good.