Boating in a Tough Economy
We are starting to see the effects of the slow down of the economy.
In some areas of the country the doom and gloom forecasts were accurate,
but in others the economy only dropped a little. Where you live makes
a large difference on how the economy affects your personal finances.
Here in Southeast Kansas we are less susceptible to recessions, since
our economy is poor all the time. We do not see the high points the
other areas of the country have, so we do not have as far to drop.
If you have already lost your job, your house, and your truck this
article is not for you. Your boat surely went before your house or
your truck so you are no longer a boater. This is for the person who
still has a job, house and truck. This person is not stupid and knows
even if he still has a job some common sense planning will get him
through any tough times in the future.
Boats are inherently expensive to operate and maintain so this is
one area you can save some money. Aside from selling the boat, which
will not happen if you truly are in some of the worst economically
hit areas of the country, here are some tips that may let you keep
and use your boat. First, properly maintain your boat, even in tough
economic times. Proper maintenance costs less that repairs so you actually
save money by maintaining your boat. You can do this maintenance yourself
rather than take it to a dealer. Remember that if your situation changes
and you have to sell your boat, it will bring a much higher price if
it is well maintained and ready to go than a boat the has set for 2
years and will not start. I know you will tell the prospective buyer “it’s
just something small, the boat ran well last year”, but the buyer
will use this as a reason to offer you much less money for your boat.
Second, start and run your boat at least once a month or more, even
if you just use flush muffs in your driveway. This allows you to run
the motor and let it warm up to operating temperature. This also tells
you if something went wrong in the last month while it sat. Each time
you run it in the driveway do a simple winterization on the motor to
prevent problems the next time you try to start it. Remember that if
money is tight and you only get to use the boat 2-3 times next year,
one ‘no-start’ at the lake eliminates from 33% to 50% of
that year’s boating. Making sure the motor runs well is more
important in these times than when you go to the lake every weekend.
Travel less and use the boat closer to home. This is very hypocritical
for me to say, but it is good advise anyway. My shop is 8 miles from
Big Hill Lake in southeast Kansas but every weekend I used to fish
Missouri lakes. This meant a 300 mile round trip plus 50-75 gallons
of boat gas being burnt up on those big lakes. Now, I tend to stay
closer to home and fish Big Hill Lake. This means a 16 mile round trip
rather than 300 miles, and burning 3-4 gallons of boat gas compared
with 50-75 gallons on large lakes. Since Big Hill is only 4.75 miles
long, and only 0.3 miles wide, using much gas just doesn’t happen.
Travel more conservatively. I have friends on Table Rock Lake in Missouri.
If I want to fish Table Rock and I do not want to pull my boat there,
I call a friend and offer to pay his boat gas if he takes me fishing
for the weekend. I also offer to trade a fishing trip on my home lake
if he comes to Kansas. I do not understand why, but none of my friends
that live on Stockton or Table Rock Lakes in Missouri have ever taken
me up on my offer to take them fishing in Kansas. One actually asked “is
there water in Kansas”?
Last, if you have any boat maintenance or repair questions, visit
my web site - The
Outboard Doctor, or call me, Ben Minor toll free 888-294-8957. For a
small charge I can walk you through the testing and repair of you boat
motor. Knowing that your boat motor will start and run well when you
get to the lake makes the trip much more fun.
Good luck, Ben Minor
Professional Mechanic for Outboard Motor Repair Technician
