I'll give you two versions as I see it:

Regionally(Florida)
I used to be able to HEAR the fast boats rolling down the ICW at all hours. All I had to do was walk a bit to see them. Now there are wake zones and manatee zones and..... Utter BS. Nothing to get the blood and desire flowing.

Nationally
I think it's something as simple as no beacon of COOL like we had with MIAMI VICE for so many here on this site and in the sport in general. That was the catalyst for a generation of powerboat owners and fans.

Read the current facts in post 39 about new boat sales. Wakeboard boats new, currently sell for 80k to 150 k for basically a 20 to a big 24 footer. Yes there is a few models bigger but the sales are not there for the bigger wakeboard boats over 24 / 25 ft. the market for these are 25 thru 50 years of age is the main buyer of these boats and I am talking brand new. Used WB boats is off the charts in sales..

At the ripe old age of 23 I find it impossible to get any of my friends interested in the sport. I'm told that it would be stupid for them to get boats because I already have one...I give up on them

Right there with you at the old age of 23 and can't get any boy my age into it either! Mine wellcraft is no were near as cool as yalls boats but with twin small blocks and thru hulls still a awesome feeling this is my 6-7th boat since 16 or so. But my first kinda of a power boat lol

I dont have a better answer then what's posted....

First go fast 29' Mirage age 24
4 boats later
"Unleashed" age 30



I've never really tried to talk my friends into buying a powerboat........much easier to find friends that already have sweet boats!

Money and avail. of money...

There is no bubble right now. interest rates are low but financing is tight......

There is a waterfront house down the street from me that just listed for 45k.

So for a 25 year old guy, whats out there for a financable 25-35 foot boat ? Thats not old, beat and heavily in need of an update, in other words, whats avail that fairly quick, blingy, modern and in a kids price range or financing availability?

And dependable? todays cars are rolling computers.... Those muscle cars that we tinkered with as kids to learn how to wrench are long gone, So todays kids arent as mechanically inclined as we were, so they need to have other people fix their busted stuff which is expensive enough before a shop decides to take them for a ride.

Ego, kids today are all ego..you get a trophy just for showing up to soccer practice, your get a gold star on your forhead for not falling asleep in class. everybody is telling you how great you are, how good you are at everything, how you deserve recognition.... Than when one of those wonder kids show up in our world and tries to make an old resin bucket cool again we beat the hell out of him and chop him off at the knees. because his generation is about shine over substance.

when i was growing up, all i could afford was old stuff, so i learned how to fix old stuff. Mechanical knowledge is mechanical knowledge in my books, if you know how a nut/thread works, bearings, ball joints, diffs, engines, you can figure pretty much anything else out from that knowledge base. i learned from my old man. we could never afford to drop our vehicles at the shop when they needed fixing so i learned. i've changed transmissions in the dirt where the car wasn't even high enough off the ground to get the tranny out from under the car. i've patched together separated tie rod ends on the side of the hwy in 2ft of snow. I couldn't imagine getting thru life without those skills to be honest... i'd always be broke just having someone else fix what i have. i'm so grateful to my father for teaching me this stuff. its definitely rare for my generation to have any of these old-school skills tho. at the age of 27, i've already restored a classic BMW 3.0cs, built a 800rwhp 9.99 nhra certified drag truck, built a custom Harley street bob from the tires up, and now rebuilding my velocity i just picked up and doing a complete frame off rest on a 1972 corvette. Keep in mind i have NO mechanical schooling whatsoever, i'm a machinist by trade. There is something thats so satisfying about completing a project, self taught, that nothing else can compare to. i love it

Money. For decades we herd they were a hole in the water to throw money into and brake out another thousand bla bla bla. A few of us said you can do it for a lot less money if you can get your hands dirty but the scary stories were only herd. It’s also funny how a guy has a 20 year old boat and has to replace the motor and call it a money pit. And then there is the guy that has to have the cabin cruiser that sits at the marina with it’s expense instead of the runabout on a trailer at the house that they would use more ….
Accesses to the water – fewer and fewer boat ramps and it seems someone always owns the shoreline and don’t want you on it. The county I live in has more water front then 98% of the states in the country, home of Annapolis and the naval academy. One public boat ramp many miles away that you have to pay to get in the park it’s in to use. If I had to use that ramp where I live it would cost me 30 bucks in gas and enter fees before the boat would ever touch the water and you know you are going to get a look over from the rangers or DNR for your enjoyment.
Whole generation of boaters were lost from 9-11 and then hit again with the 08’ recession. That’s almost 14 years lost…. I remember how weird it was on my first boat ride after 9/11 and the lack of boats for a warm fall weekend day. Thought it would get better. Never really has.
Waterfront looks and feels like a war zone with all the alphabet agencies all over the place. If you boat anywhere there always seems to be a cop rolling up on you. Jumping on your boat. Telling you what to do for no reason besides doing a “safety check”. As a teenager if it would have happened to me as much as it did last year alone (went out 10 or 12 times and was boarded 3 times) I would have been done with it. I’m in my mid 40’s and it sucks. As a teenager out with a girl or some friends it would have been a party story and never done again. I can hear it now, “remember dude when we went out on your boat that one time and those cops rolled up and jumped onboard your boat ….” It would be folklore by the time they were in their 40’s.
It’s a “now generation”. Kids don’t want to spend months building something that they can only use a 1/3 of the year. I mean they will spend 100’s of hours building a virtual world in a video game that does nothing besides having some cows walk around and mooo but spending a couple months on a boat and having a real something is too much of a commitment.

yep, watercops are a big part of it too....

The thing about the water used to be freedom, no speed limits, no hassles, just fun.

People used to take boats up the river to party in the park every weekend. Then the govt decided we were a cash cow for the coffers, and started boarding and writing bui's hand over fist. Now the city wonders why nobody takes their boats downtown anymore, All the local police and sherriffs got so bad that the state of ohio actually passed a law making it HARDER to pull boaters over.

Yep now a days the threat of the numerous agencies competing to board you and make some money has put a damper on going out anymore like I used to. Around Bonita where I hang out away from the traffic has suddenly become the Coasties favorite place to bust people . They sit in the channel and the second you pull off the beach after a day they board ya.

Took all the fun out of beaching. boating and a few cold ones.

Mine all love it but don't want all the cost of owning one and I can't say I blame them.

As was said, butying seems to be the small part. Add in a tow vehicle, storage, and upkeep and it is a never ending slow bleed of money that has no end.

Ehhh....to a point but there is a lot out there that a bank will loan on, is clean, and is pretty turn key every time.

My boat is just that and there is many more like it. MAG 496's that are turn key, mine has all GPS plotters and all that, the big system, all the amenities, popping paint, SUPER clean, and a bank had zero issues loaning on it.

I would say awareness of what they actually need to to what they want is a bigger issue.

Lots of good points here. I would especially agree with the last post about the availability of money though. It's still out there for guys that make good money.

I agree about the generational changes, video games, wakeboard boats (even new Scarabs - WTF?!) etc, and the general 'pussification' of America. Not sure that's a word, but it works!

The boys in blue pulled me over SEVEN times last year. That gets old fast. Never wrote me up for anything, but it's a pain having to worry about being bothered every time you're out.

I don't like being boxed into a corner - there's a solution for everything, but what's the solution for this? It's obviously a cultural problem, although I refuse to believe it's a dying sport. I don't really know how to fix it, but the key is out there somewhere....

IMHO it's 2 things:
1. $$$
2. The majority of younger kids are just not interested. They would rather play video games or be on social meida. This past Thanksgiving, the only way I could get my 14 year old daughter off the phone was to break out 1 of grandpa's 4-wheelers and then she put down the phone, and had some fun with Dad! :) I actually have some hope for her, she said she wants a jet-ski for her 16th B-day, I thinking a Seadoo jet-boat instead....

A few years ago, I was filling up my old Top Gun at our local filling station. Some kids in a crappy little car pulled up and one asked how big was the gas tank, when I told him 240 gallons, he looked at me and said "that thing's stupid" kids today just don't care about this stuff.

Yes, very much a dying breed and why I get pissed off when I read about the OSO bullies ganging up on a 19 yr old kid who actually likes this stuff.

Kids today are barely into cars! I have had 20-somethings work for me that think a Kia is perfectly fine transportation (bought it new) and a Camaro/Mustang is an expensive luxury not worth having. Another kid is still driving mom's old Acura RL (like 17 yrs old/ 200K+ miles).....he is 25 and has zero intention of buying a new car, he wants one but doesn't want to pay for it so just keeps pushing the mom-mobile around. These kids have ZERO interest in boats/bikes or anything but reliable A to B transportation. Another guy last year finished college and bought his dream car.........Scion XB 6 speed.....yeah the refrigerator box looking one! I was stunned he was making payments on that thing, I wouldn't drive that for free!

You forgot to mention the ridiculous costs associated with FL (rack storage at $15-17 a foot plus 6% tax per month, insurance 3-5X what the same boat at LOTO would cost)!

My buddy has had 3 Fountains.....his current 42 is 10 years old and only has 210 hours on it (he bought it new) and can't get his son to even go out on it for a ride.......kid has "been there, done that" and doesn't want to run the boat then come back and clean it for hours.

Just to keep this in perspective.......45K won't get you a "rack-o-minium" in S. Florida nevermind a house on the water!

This is what 45K gets you in S Florida: (crack house)
http://www.realtor.com/realestateand...-92493?row=420

I just turned 28, had my 30 Scarab for 3 years now, looking at buying a 38 Powerquest now. Used to be in Fast cars and street racing, got tired of all the drama with whose car is faster, and late nights arguing about racing on the street. Have since been selling most my car stuff and moving up in boat sizes, but yes it is expensive but it sure is fun! I was never much of a gamer, more of a motorhead my whole life, and I am currently an engineer for one of the big 3.

For around here add in a waiting time too for a nice marina. For the top one around here it is in that price range and has a 6 month waiting list. Also they don't store your trailer, most around here don't. So add that cost in as well.

I am $300 a month for indoor on trailer storage that is an hour to the water. I pay it cause I know I am in good hands and around here that is hard to find.

My son is 9 and is all about speed and boating. Like me he has been on the water sence he was In diapers but only his friends on the dock know what its all about not one of his friends from the neighborhood or his school but when I was his age there where alot of kids that where boaters. People manly say $$$ is at falt that the youth is not geting in to it and that is true but I also think the younger generation just dont want to work for what thay want. They would rather have less and have to do less to get by. I bust my a ss at work every day being a concrete finisher go have what we have. And every young kid we try or give a job dont last they say f this. So I think that the kids r lacking what we all here have and that is the drive and will to work hard and bust r a ss to get nice things in life that we want.

My son, who is now 21, starting boating at age 5. At first, he loved it. Nothing like watching video of a 6 year old skiing and tubing. At 9 he was jumping off the "cliffs" at LOTO in the State Park area by Party Cove. At 10 he was running around the desert beaches on Lake Mead and had his own jet ski (started riding/driving at age 7 with me behind him. Solo at 10 on our local lake during the week when no one was around). Then the teenage years arrived. He became less and less interested in going out with Mom and Dad on the lake. He was still OK if he took some friends for watersports but if it was just him you could tell he was disengaging. At 16, I gave him the choice. You no longer have to come out with Mom and Dad when we go boating. Come out if you want, don't come out if you don't. Since then I think he has been on our boat twice locally, a bit more than that when we are at LOTO. His interests and his friend's interest lay elsewhere. I don't know what more I could have done to make it a lifelong enjoyment for him as it has been for me. It's not that I would expect him to buy a boat anytime soon. Cars, schooling, and housing at some point are difficult enough these days for young people to afford. I would have expected though for him to have wanted to learn to operate the boat and take it out with buds on the weekends. Heck, he doesn't even have to tow it. Drop the lift and go! He does still like LOTO but only once a year during the summer. That is the only time he shows any interest in boating.

Agree....

I dodnt have much growing up, since I was a kid on Kelleys Island vacations I would see the offshores up front and told dad I will be there one day....I grew up a die hard gearhead building engines starting at 8 with dad... I would go rake leaves and shovel snow to get cool bikes my parents could not afford, to this day I bust my azz to pay cash for everything I do... I use no credit whatsoever besides my house....I have made mistakes, bad deals, good deals, but I have drive to keep going, never give up.. no turning back.... if the kids of today had that we would be much better off as a society!

I have to blame it on the parents ..its " easier" and " cheaper " to give " Johnny " a Play station or an XBox than to spend the time with their kids , taking them some where ..I see it all to often , be it boating , or flying planes .. I am currently finishing up my sons first boat of his own , and he will get it for XMas ..but he has also completed and received his boaters ID Card , and has a years worth of taking out my RIB under his belt .

I went through this, grew up on the water, practically lived on my parents boat. The restaraunt across from our cove was full of Miami vice every weekend, fast loud boats drugs booze all the good stuff lol. Around 14 or so I started getting into drag racing and spent less and less time on the water. Then while doing that I bought a new Harley, trucks, etc still had a beater 19' boat I used like twice a season. Chicks loved the bike, racing not as much. All of a sudden I woke up one day and said "wtf are you doing?" I went to tracks all over the east coast spent all day or weekend in the sun in a dirty parking lot working on cars and track managers eagle eyeing around for alcohol. Took my boat out with a couple friends instead of racing that weekend, partying going to bars, water skiing, etc. been racing twice since. That was 7 years and 5 boats ago. Now you can't get me off the water again. Weekends are for boating, not backyard parties or weddings. Do that stuff when it's cold ;)

TOTALLY agree!!!!

...because we're all a bunch of punks :D
I'll be 22 in April, been racing since I was 16. Grew up watching my father race, build engines and run the marina, now I'm lucky enough to race with him.

I think I was 5 in this picture.[ATTACH=CONFIG]533573[/ATTACH]

This was just on CNN in relation to the home market and lending for homes. Millennials have money. But they prefer quality over quantity and would rather spend $30,000 on a vaction than a car. They are more into "life experience" than keeping up with the Jonses.

Also, as several others have said, millennials arent typically mechanically inclined.

Pretty much same here. I grew up running small jon boats and the old man's sea ray as a kid but always wished the throttle twisted around a few more times. I wanted a go-fast ever since I was my first Cig haul azz past us on the river. I bought my 253 Checkmate at 24, at 25 started building the motor. Still same hull, but 3rd motor doing it mostly myself with good advice but a few mistakes along the way. I started working as a contractor to a major oil company when I was 21. I work full time, still attend college to finish my Mechanical Engineering degree at 29 years old now. I never was much into video games. Used to really like to build off road trucks, but that was just as expensive and then when you broke it, it was a scrape and scramble to fix it being it was also a daily driver. I got tired of that. Progressed into snowmobiling and ice drag racing. Yep! Ridiculously expensive there too. I don't care what motor sport it is, to go fast and have something out of the ordinary, it required a constant hemorrhage of money. Once I realized that if I sold the sleds I could afford boating (which was always my ultimate toy goal) I sold them and bought my Checkmate, and have little desire to go back. I always build my toys, but yes it is cheaper to buy it built....but where's the fun in that?

At 29 I'm the 2 year owner of a 1999 33' Outlaw that I paid cash for, and have since repowered ($$). Although I agree 100% with everyone that has stated that money is the major limiting factor on boating, I believe there are also several other "limiters". I have been involved in harleys, and rock crawling, both of which I still do when not boating, but I have to say that for me boating is the bigger pain in the ass. I can jump on my harley straight out of my garage, and I can get my rock crawler anywhere on my own, but when it comes to the boat, its hard to find a lot of people you either trust with your boat, or trust with your truck when you get around the ramps. Most girls my age have never driven a truck, much less handled one with 40 feet of trailer behind them. I must say there are always people saying " I want to go with you"! but, you have to keep in mind that 9-10 of these people will at some point consume too much alcohol, and I will be the one dealing with the leftover mess/drama in the end.

At my age, I'm not sure I could afford the sport if my boat weren't paid for. I use it nearly every weekend in the summer and sometimes 2 days a weekend. Its nearly equal to owning two houses and at 29 years old, I probably wouldn't have a house payment if I got rid of the boat, harley, and rockcrawler.... That being said, I have never been involved in a past time that consumes my mind as much as performance boating. Every minute of everyday im thinking about something that revolves around boating. Many days, I try to think of how I could tie boats into my everyday life/career, but so far haven't been able to do it, and often times worry that, living it everyday may take the fun out of it.

Here is my take. I'm 26 and just bought my first powerboat (271 fastech). I grew up on the water, dad skied for the University of Alabama, as did I. While I was in college, he and I jointly purchased a wakeboard boat. I spent most of time skiing, very little time boating.

Later in college I met some new friends and one of them had a fountain 24cs. Was the fastest boat I'd ever been in and I was hooked. I had fast cars and motorcycles through school, but had never considered going fast on the water. I also met a few more friends, one of which had a 251 baja. They introduced me to this.

So fast forward to a few months before graduation, I had a good job, cash stacked up in the bank, and I was getting ready to go buy mid 20's foot eliminator. I was going to go REAAAAAAL ****ing fast on the water. Well, come to find out, I knocked up my girlfriend now wife. Needless to say, I didn't buy a boat, instead I bought a house. After the kid, the house, a diesel truck, and a lot of debt, I got my boat. Granted it wasn't the hotrod that I wanted, but its a great boat for our little family. My little girl loves it and my wife tolerates it. Lets also mention that my boat is my most expensive asset outside of house (INSANE).

I think the cost keeps 99.9% of my generation out of this hobby. Only reason I get to play is because I have good job that allows me to do all of that. I also agree with most of generation not being able to do the maintance, much less real repair work. Thankfully I don't fall into that category, and that helps offset some of the cost. And lastly I think priorities play a big factor. Most kids my age don't have friends doing this, so they have no desire to do it. My group of friends for the main part is like me and grew up on the water so we were all bred to do this.

I agree with this as it is how I am as well.

I don't have a big home and never want one either. I don't now and won't be having a family and I damn sure don't care what others think. I am very happy living my life in well furnished 1200sqft.


I much rather travel some place and see the world. Really out side of my boat I don't care to dump money into anything big really.

There is a whole lotta truth right there. I was talking to 22ish yr. old engineer for Honeywell earlier this summer. The boating topic came up and the first thing out of his mouth was "do you wakeboard"? After telling him I had a 28' offshore his first question was "how do you pull it"? Followed by "how does it fit in your garage"? This guy couldn't think of life outside of the condo unless it involved a boat that you intentionally fill with water after a night of Nintendo and drinking craft beer.

I grew up around fishing boats, bought my first offshore (28 Cig) when I was 19. All through my early 20's I begged and pleaded my non boating friends to go with me and none of them had any interest. By my mid 20's I had far more boating friends than non boaters. Nearly all of them no matter their age had some sort of boating background growing up. Cost is most definitely an issue. The latest generation tends to have the "want it now" attitude. They want the biggest, baddest, latest, and greatest, or nothing at all. If you want to be in a 38 or larger and run 90+ all year long, then the cheapest part of the whole experience for most folks is writing the check to buy the boat. I'm 33 now, still have the same 28 Cig. It puts just as big of smile on my face running 70 like a pissed off sprint car than running over 100 in something that you could take a nap in. There are plenty of days that I want to walk into the bank and sign on the dotted line to buy a 41 Apache. I just don't like the idea of having to work until I'm 70 in order to be able to afford the total cost of ownership.

Amen brother. I've always told my mom I'll make a great uncle!

Yes sir. I know exactly where you are coming from.

x3!

This describes me perfectly too. Besides boating.

Interesting thread. Been doing this for 10 years at LOTO and the cost of the house, utilities, maintenance and even just the gas to get there add up in a hurry. Now toss on a pair of boats, especially one that is a thirsty speed boat and it is pretty easy to see why many don't get involved. 2 or 3 of my buddies have a "lake reunion" every winter where we all get together in KC and have a few too many. That's about the only time we allow ourselves to add up what we spent in the last year on our hobby and the cost of the weekend lifestyle down there. Its pretty shocking but we wouldn't have it any other way. We all bought our first places down there when we were 24-25 and let's just say that it hasn't been getting any cheaper year to year (and it isn't the houses)!

Rule # 1 in boating - never put pencil to paper!! It will scare you straight into gardening!

Lol...great quote right there.