Stealing Food From Hardworking People
 

I have been wanting to get this off my chest for a while but I have been BUSY. Imagine that. A boat dealer being busy. Frankie (sellsman11) had a thread with this tone on OSO about a week ago. Terry from NT had some great comments as well. Kudos to them. I am going to take 20 minutes out of my busy work day (yes I am working on Saturday) and let it all out.

Like any other, the boating industry is cyclical. The industry certainly is not in the boom period of the cycle. I am sure that whatever industry you are in may be a similar part of its cycle.

I keep an eye on these boards because they are industry related. 90 percent of what I have seen on SOS and OSO has been negative for weeks.

Guys... Boats are your release. I am sure you face enough negativity in your job. Have fun on here. Everyone is fighting. I am pretty sure that whoever doesn't like someone else is public knowledge by now. Let's get back to having fun on here. I am sure that's why you joined these forums in the first place.

What really bothers me is the speculative threads about who is going out of business. Thank God we have not been on the recieving end of one of these vicious, malicious, fabricated, stupid attacks.

Before you come on one of these boards and say "I heard ____ is in trouble," think for a moment.

You may not like a certain boat brand. That is fine. But do you have grudges against the good men and women working in the glass shops, interior, parts, rigging, service, dealerships, cafeterias, clothing, marketing, accounting and maintenance departments? These people are working hard to feed their families and you are threatening their livelihood for your entertainment. It is pure schoolyard. If your BS thread stops one person from ordering a boat, you are taking food off the workers tables. Times are tough for some builders and they need help, not hinderance. I know for a fact that a relatively healthy builder lost a build because of a nasty, malicious, totally false rumor about their finances. I am sure that is not the only boat that has been lost to this garbage.

The next time anyone wants to start a thread on "my sister heard XYZ Powerboats has cash problems," I urge you to do one of two things:

A) Think of how much you enjoy boating. Share a great boating story, maybe even some pics with all of us. I guarantee that the rest of us will enjoy the thread much more than ANOTHER BS thread.

or

B) Take the 10 or 15 minutes you were going to use to "stir the pot" and make a few extra bucks at your job to take advantage of the great boat prices or some of that cheap fuel we can buy now for our boats.

Let me repeat one thing: If you start or spread a BS rumor about a builder, you are taking food off hard working people's tables.

Read it again. Let it sink in.

Great. It's off my chest. Time to get back to work.

Like my mother used to say , " if you used your head for something constructive you'd be dangerous"

Nice post !!

So, Skip Braver isn't buying OL at a bankruptcy auction? :D ... Seriously, I am sick and tired of all the negative $hit on here as well. Let's try and keep it positive!

Here's a positive note.All of us here love boats and boating.Those of you that would like to buy a new boat but were unwilling or unable to pay the price,might want to reconsider. Go to a dealer you trust and take advantage of him.You might be surprised at how cheap you can buy the boat of your dreams now. I've been a dealer for 40+ years and I've never seen such a good opportunity for a serious buyer.

nice post double r, i think we all need to relax alittle around here,

Well said, Peter. As I stated on a more Serious offshore boating forum, very true and needed to be said.
Lately I have been tired of all the negativity and it has taken much away from a sport I love greatly.
I have been spending this last while putting together a Fun Run for our Ft. Myers Offshore Group next Saturday. A week from today, 25 offshores in southwest Florida will get out for a great day on the water and hopefully remember what we are supposed to be about. Enjoying our boats.
You, Raymond, Eddie, Darryl et al will continue to do well, because you will not let it drag you down. Congrats to all the good people at DoubleR Performance / NorTech North. It has always been a pleasure to do busuness with you guys. :)
Bob

Why all the negativity about negative posts?

:D

If a dealer or manufacturer were going out of business I would like to know. Should you just let people give deposits, which are quite large for most of the boats around here, and possibly loose their money? Some folks come on here to do research so they don't get screwed. Back to your regularly scheduled butt slapping.

Not to be negative (LOL), but I think you have missed Peter's point. This is what he highlighted in his post -

What really bothers me is the speculative threads about who is going out of business. Thank God we have not been on the recieving end of one of these vicious, malicious, fabricated, stupid attacks.

There was nothing to indicate in the initial post of the threads that he is referring to about anyone wanting to know so they could then decide who they would buy a boat from. Even if that were the case, it can be done in a positive, not a negative way. No one is saying to not do your due diligence before buying nor to put your deposit at risk. There are intelligent ways to accomplish that.

Bob

Yes but he is talking about SPECULATION :rolleyes:
....and some people come on her just to stir up crap for no reason.......and dont even own a boat or have no means or intent of purchasing one. Two sides to this as always ...... :angry-smiley-044:

GREAT POST ........ glad you took the time to speak your mind TY .... BTW I agree 100%:drink:

I had a friend that sent me an email this week that there was a rumor that Merc was closed down for awhile, and not answering the phone. Without even looking on this site, I responded that it sounded like something on OSO. He replied "where else."

I had a merc tech go to my dock at LOTO 2 weeks ago and he upgraded Axius in my boat. Brought his own master keys, and did the 6 hour upgrade without requiring me to be there. Also gave me the standard Merc number that can get to their techs.

When I got the message from my friend, I called the Merc number - they answered on the second ring, no messages, no menu of options, a person answered.

My point, as much as I like this site - I'm not sure it is where to go for people in the know anymore - seems like it is more of an ill advised rumor mill these days.

I'm not trying to stir the pot here - just reflecting on what appears to be happening.

YUP ..... because it's just not SERIOUS :eek::party-smiley-004:

You just have to know "who" is posting the info. Sometimes it's BS and sometimes it's not ;).

As for Mercury, it's a FACT they are closing down until January.

You stir the pot:rolleyes::grinser010: I agree, way to much B.S., speculation, and chest thumping..Winter, along with the doom and gloom threads are here... the last 2 month's I just browse here..OSO, BoatFreaks, Thehulltruth..there is very little knowledge to be gained from these site's anymore without someone bashing or turning a informative legitimate good thread into sh*t...that's what I miss...anyways, I'm spending more time constructively doing other things..Jeff

The key being "constructively". Now gp build a house. :party-smiley-004:

Won't be long before we come visit!:drink:

Agree on the who.

Not sure Merc closing down means they are not answering phones, just may mean they are slowing production of new engines. I don't know but time will tell.

Mercury will answer phones. Thats a dumb rumor to whomever started it. It's mfg that will have the shutdown. Makes perfect sense given this time of the year and other economic conditions

What economic conditions? :D

Great post Peter....

In that spirit we sold all our Delorean stock, flew PanAm down to FL and are spending the week of American TG in the keys!!! :D

Here are some pics of the run down south of Miami yesterday.

good post
 

i agree.people should keep there mouth shut if they dont or do know what they are talking about.it is hard enough making a living these days without having somebody scaring joe -public away.i guess the old tune rings true....people love it when you lose,they love dirty laundry.