Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Actually we are expediting them into finding a solution...

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Ill take the fusion powered Nor Tech 50 please :D

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

THE SKY IS FALLING!!!!!! :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Since when did it become an OSO rule that each of us must defend, or promote our personal decisions and finances on this website. For those who deem performance boating too much of an expense for them at this time, I understand and respect your decision. For those who remain comfortable with the cost of this experience, I'll repeat what I've been told several times by OSO members on other threads .... just buy bigger!

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

I am actively looking to replace a 31' V with twins with something larger, in a high quality unit, and I still see 2/3 of the sellers who think their stuff is made of gold, as soon as they find out you are a serious buyer they try and jack up the price, all that mess.

It may be rough for SOME, but for most, nohting has really changed...

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

I checked the rules and that one isn't there.

So... perhaps individuals are commenting on their personal decisions related to finances not because it is an OSO rule, but rather because they are a factor in the downturn being epxerienced by the power boat industry.

I certainly don't begrudge people who have money to burn.
Those folks will actually help extend the long decline of the industry longer and defer the end until later.

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

The end of that industry... Pretty bold.

You better start spending time on lawnbowlingonly.com then. :D

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Everytime theres a spike in fuel prices everyone starts talking about the end.. Those who supposedly know tell us there is 50-100 years of sludge left in the ground .. As long as we continue our present policy in the middleeast, we should be all set for a while. And just think, once we nuke Iran well be using oil to flush our toilets ..

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

In a country that has thriving businesses built on services to mow and fertilize your lawn, clean your pool, shovel your driveway (if your one of us northerners), press your shirts, cook your food, wash your car, change your oil, raise your kids and many other things that people continue to pay through the ass for rather than do themselves, I highly doubt boats are in any danger of becoming extinct because of the costs associated with owning them. I would bet most typical boat owners could pay for nearly all of there fuel in a year by eating at home one additional time per week.

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

"Ruprecht, do you want the genital cuff?"

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Yeah, sometimes people's opinions are bold.

My opinion is that I will see the end of the industry in my lifetime. Seemed like the right thread for it.

If that makes you feel bad, I'm sorry.

My intention was not to make you feel bad, it was to have an intelligent conversation about "why the powerboat industry is sinking." I'll admit that it has been a challenge.

If you are suggesting that my opinion is not valid because I no longer have a boat, that's fine.
A guy with a perf boat is probably better than me anyway.
That tends to be the prevailing attitude.
Whatever. That's the kind of PR that will help bring speed limits to lake winni, manatee protection to no wake zones, noise laws everywhere else.

oh look.... boattrader is up to over 118,000 boats.

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

But if they can't, then sell their damm boat!

This incesant complaining about gas prices and the economy is beginning to sound like a press release from the DNC.
There is simply no reason for this "ragging" about people who have created a lifestyle which they enjoy very much ..... and can still afford!

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

your preaching to the choir StillHaulin

and the choir yelled "AMEN"

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Your right .... Sorry about that!

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Im not sure I understand why they claim Brunswick is taken down the rest of the industry?

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Have you learned how to drive your boat yet? :evilb: :D :evilb:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Actually, I'm quite pleased with the way my little rocket handles offshore. But I still would like to explore its limits further on Saturday!
Lookin' Good ....

SAT...WIND VARIABLE 10 KT OR LESS...BECOMING W 10 KT IN THE AFTERNOON. WIND WAVES 2 FT OR LESS. W SWELL 2 TO 3 FT AT 11 SECONDS. AREAS OF FOG IN THE MORNING

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

That sounds like just enough chop to get it running good. have fun with it :drink:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Thanks ....
I plan to try several of the suggestions from the other thread.

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Was going to opening of Miami Vice tonight... but after all this we better just stay home and rent Waterworld. :D

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

They are all hurting, like the oil companies ..theyve had record profits (fountain) and they will again ..were just in a bad time now :drink:
http://www.marketwire.com/mw/release...ease_id=143116

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Trimit out , push on the sticks :D

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

I realize that you have been a member of this forum for a matter of weeks, and you aren't yet clear on what are the rules, etc... but I will help you out.

This thread is about the problems facing the industry, many of which are economic.

If you don't want to read people's opinions about the declining state of the industry, then select another thread.

Nobody on this thread has criticized "people who have created a lifestyle which they enjoy very much."

Nobody has "ragged" on others for choosing to continue to participate in the activity of power boating.

Perhaps, since you have not been attacked or maligned, you bring your own guilt to the table for making the choices you have made. Who knows. It's always puzzling when a person is defending so hard and hasn't been attacked.

Maybe you will not like the free exchange of ideas on a forum as much as you enjoy boating.
As you get more posts under you, you will probably stop taking people's opinions personally simply because you do not share them.

If you feel that there is no place for a thread about the decline of the industry, and you are so threatened by the mere suggestion that the heyday is behind us, report the thread or the posts that you have found to be so offensive to a moderator.

Maybe you can have Steve make a rule that only rich people can post so that you will only encounter people who have created a lifestyle as enjoyable as the one you have created.

Used to be that the wealthy on this site at least showed some tolerance toward us regular losers. Well, except for Big Scotty, who also was fond of telling everybody about the wonderful life he had created for himself.

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Thanks Pantera1
That's part of my plan .....
but the rest of the plan is to get back home alive!


That is exactly my point! I certainly have no intention of offending you or anyone else, and I apologize if I have done so.

But the issue of peoples personal financial decisions have nothing to do with a discussion of the state of the boating industry. Like everything else in life, there are good years and there are bad years, yet many businesses and people never notice the difference. That's a position many of us have spent a lifetime trying to achieve, and will certainly never apologize for it!

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Fred,

Well said !!!!!!! :drink:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Well said Fred :drink:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Our Poker Run tomorrow will have about 200 boats,from PWC's, Pontoon boats,family bowriders,and lots of high performance boats. The entry list grows every year. Personally,we are celebrating our 40th year as a boat dealer.We have been thru all kinds of ups and downs. Many years ago when gas hit $1/gal :eek: some said it was the end. When the prime rate hit 16% :eek: some said it was the end. Just returned from the Formula dealer meeting and I ordered more than last year. Will be at our deckboat vendor Sunday where I will order more than last year.The gloom and doom talk has always been out there,but I'm not listening and I'm not paying attention cause I'm a little too busy selling boats :cool:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

YUP....we are up year after year as well......nicely put MAGICFLOAT

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

It's all relative - is the glass "half empty" or "half full"? Certain people will always find the worst in something/someone and others will find the best.

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

I'm with you on this one!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

:D Hee..Hee...You guys are funny! I got in real deep
that time and he took 2 years to pop out. :D

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

I agree that there's a noticeable decline in boat traffic & boat related spending attributed to many of the reasons already voiced in this thread. Many good points have been discussed and the naysayers will continue to spout their apocalyptic visions whenever times are in a state of flux. Change however is good.

I spend every weekend boating Barnegat Bay & the ocean and have already logged over 50hrs of run time. I’m enjoying more time boating this year than years past. Yeah, gas costs more, but so does virtually everything else. IMO, either adjust your spending habits to enjoy the boating lifestyle we have all grown to love or make more money.

Dan

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Hmmm... Interesting perspectives for sure.

It doesn't really seem like there are less people on the water around here (Southeast Michigan, Northwest Ohio) but it's really hard to tell. I was down at PIB a few weekends ago and the public docks were filled up by 3:00 Saturday afternoon, how many hundreds of boats do they hold? I never saw them full last year (unless there was some big event going on) and I was down there 7 or 8 weekends.

It's no secret that Michigan's economy is one of if not the worst in the nation, so naturally the people effected by that are going to start selling their non-essential toys. Does that mean the boating industry is sinking?? I don't think so.

I know nation wide the economy is softening a little which is greatly attributed to high energy prices so some of the people living above their means are probably going to take a bit of a financial beating. Like selling your boat for less than you still owe on it because you took out a 25 year boat loan and the principle doesn't drop quite as fast as the value of your boat. But again I don't think that means the boating industry is sinking, if anything the industry is coming back down to sustainable levels from a few good years of exceptional sales.

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

I've owned my new boat now for 9month and have 92 hours on it. I expect by the time I get to 1 year of ownership I should have around 130-140hrs. However the marina gas prices have kept me from doing any real long offshore runs which is what my boat is made for. We'll see what happens when the re-up for insurance hits me in September and how much more expensive gas get's. Just for fun I put my boat up for sale. I will not be getting off the water but may get a more economical boat.

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

If it gets so bad I have to drive a pontton with a 40 HP outboard.. Ill still be doing the thing I love most ..Powerboating :drink:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

Okay Guys, here is a cliff notes version of a PhD in economics..... everything has, and floats around, an average, on a predictable cycle.... EVERYTHING in economics works this way.... if gas is higher than average now, you can, with an extreme degree of accuracy say gas prices will fall to below average in a matter of 6 to 9 months....

Economic growth averages 3.5% of GDP, if our economy is growing faster than that, then you can every accurately predict it will slow in 6 to 9 months, if it is growing slower than 3.5% then you can very accurately predict economic growth will accelerate in 6 to 9 months....

If energy prices are above average, they will fall, if they are below average they will rise. If housing prices are increasing at more than 4% they will slow in 6 to 9 months, if they are increasing at a rate less than 4% they will increase more rapidly in 6 to 9 months....

If the economy is "booming" it will slow, if it is slow, it will soon be booming again.

THe powerboat industry, from what I can tell, acts a lot like the housing industry, which makes sense because MOST high end boats are sold with financing, meaning people can not "just sell" they have to sell at a price that allows them to pay off the note, or trade up.

Interest rates have been artificially low because of the 9/11 attack, we are now coming out of the artificial stimulus created by our government and fed reserve that was used to keep our economy afloat after that attack.

This means we have been enjoying a artificial "high" in economic activity for the last 12 to 18 months, now we are going to slow down and get back to normal.

The underlying fundamentals are still very, very strong. Increasing wages, increasing productivity, low inflation, 16 quarters of straight economic growth, strong housing sales, super low unemployment, hell, our economy is so good we send millions of jobs overseas and we sill can not fill the jobs we have open here in America with qualified people.

Everyone like to sell fear, and the out of power political party always does, they think it will help them get elected. Just remember, the hippie, free love, mega dopers, anti-Vietnam, protest everything, make up lies about soldiers and spit on them punks from the late 1960's are now running our media. They HATE Republicans, they HATE the ideas of rugged individualism, capitalism, and free economies, and LOVE socialism, France, and liberal ideas, so when America starts voting Republican they have a horrendous FIT, they point out everything bad they can, they preach hate and misery, and try to create it.

This is the best damn economy we have seen in decades, yes, there are holes, and yes I hate paying 4$/gal for gas at the marina too, but guess what, we can AFFORD IT!!!!! And we are affording it, and I still have clients call me every day needing to find good employees, and houses are still being built, and cars are still being sold, hell even GM just reported a profit......

Dear Lord people, get off the chicken little "sky is falling" **** and enjoy one of the best economies in America.....

As to the state of the power boat industry, if people would price their stuff at REASONABLE prices it would sell. For those who think their boat is made of gold, well they will not sell it..... I have been looking at boats as a SERIOUS buyer, and I get all kinds of crap, people trying to sell boats for 50% over what they are worth, we have some of the highest and over priced boats in the world for sale right here on this site, and they do not sell and that is a sign of a bad economy? Horse schite.....

Go enjoy the strong economy and make a bunch of money, it is easier right now than at almost any time in history, I see 150 businesses doing it every month. If you gotta betch about this economy God help you when it REALLY gets tough.....

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

So what your saying is: if your looking to upgrade your boat wait a little longer because the prices will down more before they go up. Sounds like a good plan to me :D

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

I'm sure glad I got another great weekend in before the apocalypse hits! :evilb: I hope they are still selling gas next weekend. :bunny:

Re: Why the powerboat industry is sinking.
 

I thought about this issue a lot for a couple days before I came back and posted my final post on OSO, which is the following:

I think that it's time for me to go the way of some of the other active members who have hit a point in their life when they can no longer relate to some of the popular positions on the site, or the focus of their life has shifted off of possesions and on to people full time. My current focus in life makes it almost impossible to relate because I am not insulated from the actual non-priveleged population. Yes, virginia... there are poor people out there. You just don't see them at 90 mph on the lake. You see them at 0mph in some of the less economically rersourceful parts of this country, but only when you get out of the bilge for a few minutes.

I sold my boat a couple weeks ago. Shortly thereafter I realized that my view had been skewed by having to rationalize the expense of offshore style boating so that I didn't feel dumb for having one and having to spend so much time and money for a hobby that was getting increasingly expensive to support, and that I had less and less time for. And frankly... as a professional fund raiser, director of 2 regional offices of major national non-profits, assistant director of development for a children's hospital and a major medical center... I have a unique insight into leading economic indicators as my constituents are the financial officers of major companies part of the day and "desperately poor families with less than adequate health care skipping chemotherapy because they don't have a car and the can't afford a cab" the rest of the day.

Personally, I have chosen the path I have because while I am not substantially financially compensated, the compensation takes many forms.
That's my thing, you do yours. Not a guilt trip.
I have never tried to raise money or push my charity on OSO so spare me the bleeding heart crap.
Because of the day to day things that I see in boardrooms and patient rooms, in the community as I try to raise funds, and across the nation as I represent my organization I have realized that things are changing very fast and possibly beyond our control. Like Buyafountain said (Paraphrase: we've been through it before, but this time is different.)

I don't mean to alarm anyone. In fact, it is in my best interest as a professional fund raiser not to alarm you guys. I need you to feel loose with your money as you go about your merry way. In fact, it is in the best interest of the economy for people to be as oblivious as possible that there has been a second recession basically, which in parts of the country with bad real estate markets and declining stands to become a depression.
That's not a political statement. It's an observation.

But ignore that statement. Please. Spend spend spend. Go get those new shirts down at West Marine and hey, howabout colored docklines. And you need matching shirts and jackets with the name of your boat on it. And a better stereo. Don't you want to put new engines in that bad boy? Do it. Go for it. You will love it. It will go one mph faster. You can afford it. Call Fred at Trick Marine. He has everything. He has bills too. Don't stop boating for God's sake. And you know... Bill can get you in a brand new Fountain for less per month than you probably thought possible. You have worked hard. You deserve it. They go really fast. You could be faster the your neighbor in the subdivision who thinks he is so cool because he has a smallish Baja.
You can probably outspend him. Do it.
It's not for me. It's for the kids.

The biggest reason that I stopped perf boating was that I no longer had time because of the broad range of responsibilities at my work.
It was only after I could look at my hobby with some perspective did I realize that it was expendable after all.

You guys have fun. Be safe. Hopefully it takes a few years longer for perf boating to go the way of mega yachts and be something that only the upper .0002% can participate in. Seriously. I would hate to stop seeing them in pretty good numbers. I think that it is good for our economy to have perf boating despite the enormous recreational energy demand.

Somebody have Capo post this as a death notice over in the bilge.
Doesn't seem to make financial sense to renew my membership to post a last thread over there.

4782 has a nice ring to it. I'll just leave it at 4782.

To everyone I have met along the OSO way...
Fair winds and following seas... aloha OSO.

Those who have followed my career would not be surprised that I hijacked the thread of some dude I don't know to post my last post on OSO.

I couldn't have imagined a better thread than "why the powerboat industry is sinking" to split.