Boating with Young Kids
 

I have a three year old daughter, have been boat-less for a while (before my daughter was born) and am looking into buying again. I would be insanely bored on a center console or pontoon boat, and I want to be able to hit 2-3 poker runs a year out of town with some buddy's as I really enjoyed them with my last boat (36' Cat). I would like a boat that my wife, kid, and dog can go out on and enjoy…I am looking at Donzi ZR's, Fountain Lightnings, and Top Guns with mild power (525/xr combo's) as I feel like I could bring the family on them, yet still get my speed fix when I'm by myself or hit a poker run or two. My question is (and this may have an obvious answer that I don't know), is three too young to bring out on a boat like this? I have quite a bit of boating experience and would obviously operate the boat as conservative as possible with my family on the boat, meaning slow and cautious. I live on the st Johns River in Jacksonville FL which is generally not rough at all, especially for a 38' boat. Does anyone else have kids this young and take them on their "offshore" boats? My wife is concerned that a boat like this is too fast, but my argument is that it is only as fast as you drive it, most center consoles now go 70 mph and the boats I'm looking at go 85, is there really any difference? I would just be cruising with my family on board, would never go that fast anyways. Thanks for your input.

A 3 year old should be fine as long as you have someone else in the boat (wife) with you to sit with the kiddo.

The year i ran the most was a year one of my daughter was borned march 4th!!! So may 20-21 st, we were out boating , not poker runnin of course... she would sleep most of the ride, and when i would stop the engines, she was waking up and crying. So i kept going!!!

So, my advice, go easy on throttle and have fun!

I have a 24' with a decent cabin (for a 24'). My niece and nephew think it's their own fort/rec room. My niece asks when we can go on the boat almost every time I talk to her. She fell asleep on the back seat of my center console last summer. Her dad was holding her and the head piece on the life jackets make a decent rugrat pillow, and we were rolling through decent waves that day. Didn't phase her because we weren't running fast.

Training day with a 15 month old:
http://i1342.photobucket.com/albums/...ps2awudugv.jpg

Where they prefer to spend their time:
http://i1342.photobucket.com/albums/...psab0j6yhi.jpg

Dig my niece's face shortly after 3/4 throttle... she definitely prefers 1/2 throttle:

http://i1342.photobucket.com/albums/...psvz5he9cw.jpg

^^^^^^^^^^^ showing this pic to your wife probably won't instill confidence or further your cause.

We will be doing this with my 4 year old granddaughter in Nov. the only thing other then slow is that I like the life vest that have a strap that goes between their legs. Just in case something would happen.

Get them on a boat as soon as possible and get them in swimming lessons as soon as possible.

Go have some fun creating some great memories for them.

Exactly. I have pictures from age three on boats. By about 8 I was trolling while my Dad, Uncles, and Gramps were fishing and setting down riggers and planer boards. I cannot tell you how utterly elated they were when I got my Boater Safety certificate and they had a perma-designated-driver.

P.S. If you let the kids drive when they're young, they might just let you drive when you're old!

http://i1342.photobucket.com/albums/...pst3f2wpd4.jpg

My earliest memories of childhood was my dad's boat. A 17' Aussie made Caribbean with a 100hp Merc on the back. He bought it new about a year before I was born. (I have older brothers) I remember it from about 3-4 years of age.

Get your kids on the water, if you like it, they will too! They're young and fearless so you have to think for them and excercise all the safety precautions available. Im so happy my dad took care of me and opened the door to boating.

RR

Kids are never too young. You just have to use common sense and be flexible based on their mood that day.
Mine were boating at 5 months and 11 months old and I've always had performance boats.

I agree with the others. We have had our daughter on our boats since she was 4 months old. Til this day she wants to go on the boat every weekend. She's almost 4 now and she will be a boater for life. How many kids want to sit and watch boat videos on youtube instead of cartoons?

My kids were boating from 6 mos. on. They spent 100's of hours in a 24 & 30 Superboat. I ran the boats like they were meant to be run. Kids never complained.......wife different story.

You might be pleasantly surprised with a CC. Kids need to be occupied to be happy. They get restless sitting in the confined cockpit of a sport boat. A CC has room to move around, has shade, you can get in and out of the water much easier, water sports, fish, BBQ, etc. and still go pretty fast.

Get a Mid-Cabin boat and everyone will be happy!

http://flpowerboat.com/gallery/displ...bum=152&pos=81
http://flpowerboat.com/gallery/displ...bum=152&pos=82

You will never use the cabin (in FL) for overnighting so why not use the bow for more seating especially with lots of flat water boating like St Johns River. I wouldn't put kids up there alone but an adult would be fine at reasonable speeds. Open bow has great airflow through the cabin also if the kids want out of the sun (obviously at slower speeds). My kids were 4 and 1 when I bought this boat and the above pics were from the Jax Poker run a few years ago.

BTW my 32 Sunsation was named GO TIME!

Here is a new Donzi MCOB
http://www.offshoreonly.com/classifi...-2-o67445.html

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They are never too young to go boating and I have never found that a sport boat made it difficult with them. They go in the cuddy sometimes to get out of the sun or just to be different they will go in there to eat lunch with "just the kids" and have a great time.

..............................And we'll never be too old!

I don't have a "go-fast" boat, but I do have a 68mph pontoon that my 2yr loves being on, First thing she does when we get to the cabin(boat ride daddy, boat ride daddy) I have to be careful as she will run down the dock and try and start lowering the boat into the water. She has been on it since she was 6 month old use to put her to sleep, now she runs around like a crazy child, Looking forward to the days I can take her pan fish fishing, Use to love that as a kid with my day.
http://i250.photobucket.com/albums/g...pspsvwbc9s.jpg

My 4 year old, been in a boat since before she came out of the chute.

She was so happy when she got her matching lifeline.

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Wow awesome responses, love all the pics with all of your kids they are great. This makes me feel much better about the whole thing. I didn't know lifeline made kids jackets that would make me feel much better too, those look really good Rollin1405.

Jupiter Sunsation, not a bad idea with the open bow. I was actually looking at an eliminator cat with an open bow but I am sort of done with the cat thing I've been there and done that. I love that Donzi but it is about $150K over my price range. I wish there was a used one on the market. I don't plan on ever doing any overnights, the cabin was more of somewhere for us to get out of the sun or rain for a bit.

Thanks for sharing and all the info everyone!

My son has been driving boats sense he was 3 now at 11 he looks at boats when we are out saying "how about that boat dad. That would be a good starter boat for me." He will be the kid with a 100 dollar beater car with a 5,000 dollar boat. Lol I sead to him one day you will need a good truck or how you going to hual your boat he sead you will do it for me. Little **** and I would do it to haha

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My youngest was born May 13, on Scarab July 4th! Even laughed when I busted off the engines. He's a "boat-head" just like me!

Put the kids in a boat as soon as you can -- Safety First.

Obviously don't bring a new born on board and try to set everyone's hair on fire-- that would be crazy.

However, we took our son and then daughter out as soon as we could get a life preserver on them. I don't have a performance boat so hitting 80mph wasn't in the cards- we would go slow and just cruise around the lake - most of the time they fell asleep in mom's arms.

Now as our son got a little older I would let him drive - always standing right beside him and guiding as best as I could -- Kids always want to go fast - and have no fear - but the dad in me would ALWAYS throttle it back - finally it got to the point in which he asked to take the boat out by himself -- He was around 15-16 years old and did a great job- today when he says he's taking the boat (seems always with a full take of fuel purchased by mom and dad) I have no worries. He is a very responsible driver and safety conscious.

All the best

3pointstar

We had our son out on the boat at 8 months. We have a performance boat for poker runs etc., and a pontoon for the kid stuff and relaxing. It's nice to have both.
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Yeah that would be nice to have both, except I'd have to give up some other things and probably wouldn't have time to use both. Great pics, I guess the one with the kid in diapers pretty much answered my question Dave M, LOL I think mine is going to want to drive right away too!.

I don't have anything close to the caliber of most people here, but it's already my son's favorite activity. He's 19 months, and every night, once we get home from daycare, he runs to the garage and goes "DADDY BOAT" So I toss him in, shake it on the trailer, and we make "BIG POWA NOISE" acting like we have sterlings on the back of the 14' v bottom. Here's a pic from Sunday.

http://i226.photobucket.com/albums/d...psbsyadu1w.jpg

just don't try this with your kids!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3nJgN1Iyt0

Just so you know starting kids on the boat at a young age may and probably will lead to them being broke like most of us do to boat related expenses.

I am looking for a new boat with a 4 year old grandson my gladiator is just not right for kids need to sell and look into a top gun.

I have had a boat since both of mine started to walk. They were finding their boat legs before walking on dry land. Open bow is nice, but the small kids usually dont like the wind and you will have to store all their rafts and beach toys, etc.

We needed more room, pontoon size room, but we love our gofast. CC didnt have a sunpad to chill and climb up the back. They also feel a lot safer in deep sides. As for the speed, they run back and forth between the cockpit and cuddy till they got old enough to stay in one place.

Video is a lil short. Didnt know how to make file small enough to up load!
This was sunday coming back across lake Pontchartrain (lil 20 mile run) Kids are 8 and 11 now.

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Great thread! I have been on the same lake for 49 years. I think it made an impression. My mother said she worried I would drown until she watched me walk into the lake with my diaper on until completely submerged and walk back out without it. I have a 5 yr. old nephew and 10 yr. old niece that I will be swimming and boating with this weekend. The little ones you just need to keep and eye on unless their constantly screaming for you to watch me! Their never to young and hopefully we will never get to old as someone before me posted.
What about two moderately priced boats for different occasions? My Talon is perfect for the family and going fast. For a change we run a 20' outlaw with a swim platform that the kids prefer. Both of them are only worth about 35K. But they both start every time and the outlaw is about maintenance free for the season which is year round.
You will make some of the best memories with your family and friends just being on the water. Heck. I'm taking four hours off Friday to go boating with the adults. The kids will be stuck in school. Keep us posted on your purchase and we will need photos!!!

The first time my daughter was on the boat was 6 weeks old. She was in a vest, being held and tethered to my wife, who was wearing a lifeline. I operate super conservative with her on board and she loves it. Knocks right out as soon as the boat comes on plane, only problem is she won't nap because she's too excited! 3 is no problem, just boat safely.

One of mine was on my Cafe at 10 days old and one was on the Cafe at 9 days old. They turned 3 and 5 this summer - both swim without life preservers, jump off, climb back up and do it over and over. They love it, grew up on it, and don't know anything different. My oldest actually climbed up on the tower of my fathers 27 Wellcraft this summer and jumped off. It was nuts, but they just grew up on the water and don't know anything else.

They would love a Gun - Do it.....

First boat ride mine was less than a month old. In this picture he is about a year. 3 now and loves every minute of it. Use common sense as you stated and everything will be fine.

http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e6...pse02a06ac.jpg

I'm just hoping my son stays interested in boats, so he doesn't get into sport bikes like daddy did.

Boating with your kids is what it's all about in my opinion!!!

https://youtu.be/P_Hi8R5f9lw https://youtu.be/qf6YVLenCIM https://youtu.be/8zEfgSmEmNE

What a great pic, the little one with his hand on the throttle! He is ready to go!

Took the grandkids out for a ride summer before last and was worried I might have scared them , but this past summer it was papa can you take us for a boat ride. Get them interested young !

[QUOTE=buck35;4493414]Took the grandkids out for a ride summer before last and was worried I might have scared them , but this past summer it was papa can you take us for a boat ride. Get them interested young ![/QUOTE
Good point. Both of my girls love the loud boat(dry to the tip). Took a friends formula out and my oldest daughter asked why it was so quiet lol.