Is powerboating worth it?
 

It's been a fairly poor year so far for chances to go boating. I've been considering getting out of the hobby for something else.

It seems as though it's very expensive (like, duh) for the "Value" we get. While we don't own a new $300k boat, it still is a point to ponder.

I put 40 hours or so on our boat each year. My wife likes to boat, but we don't get out a lot. And, in Lake MI, I don't want a smaller boat, we had a 27' boat and now a 32' (arguably to Fountain bashers). I notice a huge difference and would not want to go smaller. Dont' want to move to FL before someone suggests that.

Just wondering what keeps everyone in this. Between weather being crappy and some family gathering crap on summer weekends (NOT my family, they have their own hobbies and don't bother us, but my wife's family has nothing better to do with their time than f it up for everyone else), and house "chores" and maintenance, we don't get much time out on the boat.

I often find myself looking at boats for sale, seeing what's out there and would like a bigger/faster boat in my mind, but I KNOW that would not be worth the money. More or less, just trying to keep up with what's new/neat in the marketplace.

With the wife also wanting to start our own family, how much use will we get then? I know, you CAN take out a young'n, but not much the first few months. So, quite possibly a wasted summer, (which is only about 40 hours of boating.)

I know I'd miss having the boat, I think, but is it all worth it? If so, what makes it all worth it? As we all know, it's a lot of work. Takes a lot just to get out to enjoy the boat. It's June 16, we've been out 3 times, one of those for a couple hours only, then got rained on.

Mark

I'm kind of wondering also. Between the weather and work I haven't been able to go boating at all this year:( :( :(

Mark, Boating is not about the weather, its about being out there. Some of the best days I have are the ones when most people are home complaining about the weather. Get out there and enjoy the water. Its like when it snows and you are the first one to make footprints. Today there were 8 footers rolling in, and we had a blast! So dont give up on it just have fun!! Good Luck, MFB:cool:

"Is it worth it?" is a question only you can answer. Boating takes a lot of money, and we don't have the $300K boat either. It's very rare that anyone sells a boat for more than it's worth, so you can't really look at it as an investment. I look at it like my answer to the people who take a really nice vacation every year, or who have a cottage. We could spend our boating budget every year taking the kids to Disney World for a week (air, hotel at the park, $50 lunches, etc..) or we can head out on the water every weekend and sometimes during the week. The boat is our cabin and it's the one place that i can really relax and not worry about work, house chores and maintenance (that's what mid-week and winter is for), or anything. We take the kids to the splash park at Metro Beach, swimming in Muscamoot Bay, or to a beach on the freighter channel accessible only by boat. Fireworks on the water, restaurants, raft-ups, Cedar Point by boat, you name it. At times it doesn't seem to make sense, like during the week or when you cut a check to a mechanic, but coming home late on Sunday, it seems like a bargain. Barring circumstances I can't even think of, we will always have a boat.

I don't know what it is but it's kind of like an obsession. Something about the water and big HP engines I always loved. I seem to be drawn to the water. If I am not on, I want to be near it. I don't know if growing up with a pond in the back yard has something to do with it or if it's that I deal with water for a living.

Also I love the sound of that boat. Just being able to use all that power and not having to worry about the cops. It would be different if that power was in a street car. And there is nothing better than hitting a big wave and catching air. is just a rush to me.

Then there is the serenity of owning a boat. just being out on the water relaxing in a place where nothing in the world can bother you . Sitting back enjoying the beautiful scenery alone or with close friends.

I just couldn't imagine not owning a boat. All the amount of work and $$ is worth it to me as long as I enjoy it. If you are getting board with the boat and it's just not worth it to you maybe it is time to move on. I figure that if someday I get board with boating I will start taking flight lessons again.


DAM I WANT MY BOAT BACK. :mad:

Thank God I have friends to take me out. :)

Oh I hear ya! I've only made the effort to head out 3 times also, one of those being a weekend in southern Indiana. The memories of previous summers are helping me through, the 80 or so hours I logged last summer have lasted me thus far. Once it warms up I'm sure you'll enjoy having her around.

I totaly agree.

I too, will have to agree with ya there!!!;)

this is how I look at it.......If i bought a cottage on the water it would cost me around $5000 per foot of lake frountage. I would have to work on it year round, pay the taxes, and still have a small boat just to get my fix......I cant afford not to keep boating!

Doing your thing!
 

Mark,
A lot of us are in the same boat as you.All kind of reasons that different people don't get to use their boats as much as they like. I too live on Lake Michigan and have had a bad time of not being able to use my boat for one reason or another. If you got rid of it,just think, you would have a lot of time to entertain your inlaws!
Dont know about your area but in mine there is a lot of great people that have the same interests as I (boats) and even if we are not out we at least we get together and if nothing else talk about boating. I myself, have not been out as many times as you but I wouldn't even think about giving up. Just my .02 worth!!:D :D
eliminator219

I'm with Too Old! I am a auto technician by trade and I still enjoy working on my boat. It is a labor of love for me. The time we spend on the water, how ever short it can be is well worth it. Once I pass the no wake zone all my stress goes out the hatch, even if this is just a day trip to our favorite spot. Swimmin', kickin' back with Mrs. R', having a couple "Special Cokes", hangin' with my friends and of course checking out the scenery........hint, hint. Boats that is! It is all worth it to me......and did I mention the Mrs. pays the boat payment!! It's all Good!:D

There may be something said for sittin on the porch all afternoon back in the old days (before mytime) . It is a function of our society today that we do not have/create enough free time for ourselves. Running your company to meet your dream is probably as much of the issues as this CRAPPY DANG weather we have had this summer so far. I always say to my buddies. PICK YOUR HOBBY. there is only so may daylight hours . We just try to make time for the boat. every Sunday afternoon, usually with the inlaws. and then my monthly fun runs with the guys at work. how about join us on the next one in July. week night week breaker- upper. that's what you need to get away from all those responsibilities.

One other thing I learned about............. ok two things......


One - west mich weather changes way too fast to say..... aaah lets just go tomorrow... if it is nice today and you think about boating.... GO BOATING!!! you will smile when it rains tomorrow


two

we boated through my wifes pregnancy, ( i did have to slow down a little, ) and when our first was born. He was on the boat at 6 weeks. and loves it now. he's four and knows its a formula with twin big blocks!!!!!! so by no means don't let the family plans make you think you won't go boating.

Rob

We haven't been able to get out at all this year either but I don't think I'm ready to throw in the towel. I've wondered about getting out as well but quite frankly I love just having a boat to use when I want. We had a lousy year for snowmobiling this year as well but there is no way I'm giving up those machines. Bottom line is that at times it's frustrating with the limited amount of time we have to enjoy the hobby but when we are out there I can't imagine much better.

Yes.

I've had my share of bad boat years (it's been dead two of the last four summers) but just a short hop with my daughter yesterday confirms that it IS worth it. Actually, keeping the boat running is cheap compared to the docking expense ... a waterfront house, put in new dock and lift(s), 100 tons of rip rap, new stone 110 foot retaing wall ... could have paid for about a century of slip fees by now.

Still, sitting on the deck watching over the water, take a look at the boat setting there (even when it's "not" running) ... life just doesn't get any better.

-Greg

Formula 402 "No Regrets"

It's worth it. I didn't like my last job very much - came home stressed every night. But, come Saturday and I turned that key, everything stayed on the dock. It's a great way to relax and forget about what's bad in life on land.

Hey man I have asked myself the same q everyday since I bought the boat last august. Only got to use it twice last fall and none yet this year. But all I have to do is think about the rush I get when I get to the end of the channel and slam the throttles down listening to the engines scream as I come up on plane. Also every time someon compliments me on how cool the boat looks just sittin on the trailer. I know its hard to justify all the time and money invested just for an adrenaline rush or a compliment, but for me its worth it.

You will just have to decide for youtself:)

Absolutely!!

My parents were boaters before I was born.
I grew up around boats and had several up until I got married. We always had friends that took us out with them so I didn't reall miss it.
Then we moved to Florida.
The first eight years we didn't know anybody with one then my wife's boss invited us out on theirs. Man I was hooked all over again. Then one of her co-workers bought one and a jet-ski and asked us to go out.
I was dying to get back out on the water. It was like an addiction, I had to be on the water!

Three years ago we bought two Jet-ski's and had lots of fun. Our doctor noted that my blood pressure dropped during that summer. Then we decided to get a boat. We did so the following summer. It's the best thing we've done.
Sure it's work, a labor of love as some have said, but it's worth every minute. I knew it was expensive before I took the plunge.
When we take friends out for a day they always tell us it's the best time they've had in a long while and it's so relaxing.
I love hearing them say that.
Our grandson loves going out. He's always asking "when are we going out on the boat?".
I have had experiences when I was growing up that can't be had on shore. I wouldn't trade it for anything.

Is all the work worth it? You bet!

I can't seem to relax if I am at home. There are a million things I can or need to be doing. When I am boating I am not worried about anything else. If we plan on just hanging around the house, it turns into my wife and I doing chores, the kids just watching TV or being bored. If we go out somewhere, I think I spend more money than if I went boating.

Boating is great family bonding time. My kids will remember the fun times forever.

I miss it I know it was a lot of work, expensive, and time consuming and you have no control over the weather or seas.

Yet when I had my boat it was one thing that always brought a smile even it I had just cooked the drive or had an electrical gremlin. It was my toy and my hobby I don't golf, play softball or anything else. I sold the boat 3 yeears ago, now have two daughters 5 and 3 and my wife know I will be getting another one in a few years. (I still have the money form the boat I sold).

Yeah I would love a big twin engine 38' but, to make it work and keep everyone happy I will settle for a 25-28' .

So in the end is it worth? Just close your eyes and listen for the big Block. Then ask yourself that question again.

Can you hear it the water calling?
The fog horn's beckining moan, ship bells ringing in the mist lay at anchor. Some doves begin there cooing. Its early my parents and grandparents are not awake yet. I roll over in the narrow bunk next to the small auxulary engine of my grandfathers sail boat. Cralling out I slip on my cloths and head up the ladder to the cockpit the smell of hemp and damp misty bilge air. I am on the High Tide a 26' gaff rig sail boat my grand father had built. It is in its slip in the Vermilion Beach Yacht Club. I slip over the side into the Low Tide it's dingy tied to side, with my fishing gear, I am 6 years old. Sliding the oars into the water i am heading out to fish around the boats and docks in the marina before breakfast.

Turbo2256,
Those are the experiences that can't be had anywhere else,
and memories that last a lifetime.

Cruising up Long Island Sound in the fog.
Pulling into Mystic Seaport with the fog so thick you could barely see the tops of the masts on the Charles W. Morgan.
Seeing New York City from the East River or passing under the Brooklyn Brideg, George Washington Bridge, passing West Point, the Palasaides.
Watching the Statue of Liberty rising out of the mist as you enter New York Harbor.
Learning how to handle a boat when going through the locks of the Lake Champlain Canal System.
The 13 ft seas we encounterd on our first family trip.:eek:

A lifetime of memories.

32Fever

We thought about your question for four straight weeks. Sold our boat middle of May and have been in a rush to get another boat. Choice between a Formula sport cruiser and another go-fast (just had baby in Feb 02). Had two deals lined up and each of them I passed on because of the $$$ between now and September. We could not justify spending between $17-$20K for 3 months of use (boat pymt, insurance, storage, gas, food etc). And the weather has been crappy on this side of the state also. We also have about 3 more family gatherings (must attends) this year which cuts into more boating time.

It is killing my wife and I not to have a boat because we save all our vacation time for the summer and being on a boat. I wanted to start our daughter on the water right away.

So our painful and I mean painful decision was to not buy a boat this summer (unless a great deal passes in front of me).

WE WILL HAVE A BOAT FOR NEXT SEASON!!!!!!!! Like everyone else has said, boating does something to heel the mind and body of the weekly pressures. I want 5.5 to 6 months of use to justify the expense, so that has us looking at Formula sport cruiser. We would be able to leave the house on Friday and not come home until Sunday night and have plenty of space for over-nighting. Although that could change next year when our daughter is older and we want to hear loud engines and go fast!

This year will be hard not having a boat, but we have something to look forward to next year.....

Maybe taking a summer off will help clear your head so you can decide what makes you happy in your spare time. I know when September comes around, I can attend more U of M Football games which I usually miss when I'm on the water.

Drugs are not worth it, some are very expensive, but some people do them anyhow. No one can explaine power boating. Of course it is about the dumbest thing we can all get involved in but none the less we do it. My boat has put me in the poor house more then once. I finally had to smarten the F up and start to work on it only when there was no other work at the shop. This summer so far has sucked and I know that lots of people are asking this question. Once you hit the water the answer will be so clear. YES!!!!!! :D:D

Jon

I aswell have asked that same Q, my F233 has been down for a year but the houseboat still rocks so.......Get a HouseBoat, Trawler or a Crusier then weather dosn't mater its only Ice you need to look out for. & for kicks get a sweet16 or something & tow it behind you....

If you even have to ask, it's not for you! I wait all winter just sitting around the house and when summer comes, I turn into a different person. I've been boating all my life and I hope and pray that I will always be able to.

I bet you dont even think about asking that question when it's 90 degrees, and the lake is warm, and the lake is behaving !!!

True, boating on Lake Michigan can be frustrating,,,BUT WHEN IT ALL COMES TOGETHER !!!!

Just knowing those days will exsist makes it all worth while for me !!!

Go to http://corvetteforum.net/classics/gregp/dock.htm and scroll down to the link for the WAV file of the motors running. Then see if you can still ask the same question :)

-Greg

Jon,
well, I was thinking of selling the boat and getting a $75,000 home theater system from (uh hem) someone. But, after reading what you typed........LOL! j/k

Everyone,
WEll, when it's nice out, you're on the boat, it's great. It's just there are too many other times when you have the chance to think about how you'd like to be out on the boat and are not.

I guess dyno helped out the thought process. If I wasnt' spending it in boating, where would I spend it exactly? That, I don't really know for sure. I could save it all and retire early. PFFFT! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA..... I'd have some sort of hobby, just evaluating the value.

I've even gotten to where making a payment all winter doesn't bother me (it used to on our previous boat). I think what bothers me the most is when we CAN use it, we're NOT for one reason or another, and it's out of my hands many times.

I'm not the blo-boat type, and I don't see myself in a cruiser. In Lake MI, to get anywhere, takes time. WE can do MORE the faster we can get there. I thought maybe the type of boat would matter, but I think we have the right type for us. Just not sure it's worth the cost/work for the benefit.

Mark

Boating like any other hobby, is an expensive proposition. Like any other hobby, i.e. rock climbing, snow skiing, flying, water skiing, etc. etc., there's usually a lot of money put out just for the visceral enjoyment vice a tangible return like maybe woodworking.

Boating is as much about the social benefits and the people you meet and spend time with. The litmus test I guess is just how much you get jazzed up about the whole experience. Either you in it heart and soul or, quite possibly it is time to move on to something else in life to spend your efforts and money on. 40 hours per year is not a whole lot of boating for the money in a 32. This is no answer obviously, just more points to ponder. Only you and your other can come to a "...is it worth it decision"...

Good luck with whatever you finally see inside and run with...

Rick

Like you I have a short summer here in Western NY and I know where you are coming from. It sounds as if some of your problem is family. As you mentioned, that your wife also likes boating simply tell them that summer is short and you have plans to go boating every possible weekend and sometimes during the week. You may also want to consider taking the wife's family with on occassion. For example my In- Laws go to dinner (by boat) with us every Thursday in the summer.
My wife's family and friends all know that every possible weekend is a boating weekend and it has become a joke that I only go to weddings and such in the winter. I tell every one that a Wednesday night in February is the best time for a wedding. :p

I agree with the suggestion of the houseboat. I found that people who are not happy with performance criuses...are happy to sit in the houseboat for the day, while relaxing. (Parking on a sandbar helps things out. Nothing beats a boat only beach. NOTHING!)

Rafting with friends listening to the band play at Americas Cup without the piss poor service and drunk people is quite a bonus too!

If you add all the money and time spent on the hobby, vs. the "perfect time" you get....toss it in. I think you have to enjoy the whole thing. I find myself drawn to finding that 1 in 100 cheap gem in someones backyard for a friend. Living in CT, there are not too many weekends you have to work with and many of those this year have been F*&^ing flooded on the river. (Another reason I suggest a small houseboat.) It helps that I enjoy the whole thing. Building or modd'ing your boat is a worthy way to spend the time!

Both my kids say the best memories are from the boat. It is a family time that no-one can interfere with. My friends and family that don't own boats have become used to the fact that we just don't make plans in the summer. "If it is raining, we might be there...otherwise, I will be floating."

I have all winter to play with my Nitty Gritty and the LP12. Hell, a new set of interconnects for my system can cost the same amount as an outboard for the houseboat. The older I get, the less I find myself wanting to spend cash onthe stereo. I would rather buy new boat stuff to listen to live Dead shows through the Klipsch KG2's on the houseboat! (Did I just admit that??) OY VEY!

I guess this winter I will continue transcribing my vinyl onto CD for houseboat use.

When you are on a boat only sandbar, the fire is crackling and the kids are all there with friends around..a few beers...a few doobies??!!?? (I mean Doobie Brother tunes...)...it just does not get any better.

Besides, my yearly boat budget is not nearly what I see friends of miine spending on a damn Disney cruise! I don't wait in lines. No crowds. No park rangers. No cops. 95% of people I encounter on the river are 100% cool and friendly!

Take some videos and watch them on the rainy Saturday nights!

IS IT WORTH IT?
 

Just what is the price of sanity anyways?
How much does a good shrink cost per season?
Would I be better off venting anger and stress to a stranger with a degree?

I DON'T THINK SO!!!!

I go boating,it soothes my nerves,it gets me away from John Q.Public(who just so happens to pay for my excesses:D )it releives the stress of business ownership,it allows me some serious quality time with the wife and kiddlet.If I turn off my phone,NO ONE can find me unless I want them too.

Is it worth whatever it costs for the short season I get?

ABSOLUTELY,YES,DEFINATLEY,OF COURSE IT IS.

I think most here have said what I feel. I think it's in you or it isn't. I have friends that just don't understand why I spend what I do on my boat, and I don't spend **** on mine compared to some of you guys. That is all relative however. If I had it, I would spend it without a 2nd thought. I will someday have a boat that costs more than some of my friends homes. They will think I am nutz. I don't give a ****. When I get on the water my smile is so big it hurts sometimes. It consumes me in the winter wishing I was on the water. In the summer, I'm on the boat as much as I can be. Sometimes I just go sit on it if I really don't have time to go out. Turn on the tunes, kick back, have a beer and forget about lifes trials and tribulations. I am definitely a changed man in the summer. I would not give up boating for anything or anyone! Period! :D

Can you hear it the water calling you? Part 2:

Do you find your self waiting all winter waiting to go boating?

Do you find your self driving through an area with a lot of boats parked and eyeing the hull designs instead of the girls in halter tops?

Do you kick back in the middle of your favorite body of water and relax stereo blaring no boats for miles?

Do you have your preferance in boats but would settle for a row boat in a pinch?

Can you stare at the water for hours and be content?

Is it time to take 4V ? ..... I am out of here..... later

I must say .... in my current relationship, we have had many hobbies all motorsport related ie: streetbikes , dirt bikes , boats hotrods even bicycling , rollerblading ect.. ect.. without a doubt the time we spend boating , which has been none this year ... are the best times we have ever had.,..We so look forward to being on the water and spending time prepping the boat togehter and so on.,... last night when I told our daughter that our new engine will be here today .. she smilled from ear to ear and said "we'll be back in the boat soon" that alone makes it all worth while But as stated earlier .. pick your hobbies...boating sure works for us and I do hope it always does..

Good Luck in your Quest !!!:)

ps. while reading all this I couldn't help but remember growing up around boats and on the water .. there really couldn't be a better way to grow up....not to mention most people involved in the boating world that I have come to know are just an outstanding group of people....