1. Field of the Inventions
The present inventions relate to planing boats having propulsion devices through which water is sucked in through a suction opening at a bottom of its hull and is pressurized and jetted rearward of the stern to make the boat plane on water, and more particularly to an improved operation control apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
Generally, small planing boats, such as personal watercraft, are configured such that engine output is adjusted by the operator using an accelerator (acceleration or throttle lever) provided in the vicinity of a grip of steering handlebars. During longer distance cruising at a constant speed, the operator has to continue to grip the acceleration lever and maintain the position of the lever at a particular position, resulting in tiredness of the arm and fingers. To solve this problem, a cruise control device has been suggested such that longer distance driving at a constant speed is possible without causing tiredness of the arm and so forth.
One such cruise control device is disclosed in Japanese Patent Document JP-A-2002-180861. This device can maintain a boat speed or engine speed when the operator operates cruise control device.