Help debunk a myth

[MercMe]

I have heard from a lot of people "The happiest day of a boat owner's life is the day they buy the boat and the day they sell the boat." I don't think it is. Help me prove them wrong! Whats your happiest day with your boat?

 

[Frank Acampora]

Re: Help debunk a myth

Mine was the day I "got lucky" with a woman in the cuddy. LOL Unfortunately, a week later I was not so lucky and needed an MD to give me a shot. She gave me the "applause."

 

[Silly Seville]

Re: Help debunk a myth

TMI, Frank...TMI!

 

[mxcobra]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I have heard from a lot of people "The happiest day of a boat owner's life is the day they buy the boat and the day they sell the boat." I don't think it is. Help me prove them wrong! Whats your happiest day with your boat?

This is what I was told when I purchased my 79 bayliner from a young kid for way to much cash.
Boy he was a happy camper,unloaded a rot fest on to me!!!!!
I was pissed from all hell when i shoved my fist through the transom!!!!!

 

[QC]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I've been sad when I sold any of my boats. I have been happy when I bought them, but the best days were aboard for sure. Never agreed with the myth at all!!!!

 

[MercMe]

Re: Help debunk a myth

Thanks for that Franks some great info there.

 

[a1akeywest]

Re: Help debunk a myth

any day out on the lake fishing is a good day to me

selling my boat would be a bittersweet thing for me,,,, i would be sad because of all the memories and good times i had with that particular boat.... but happy because i know a newer bigger and better one would be very close behind but im very happy with the boat i have now,, and no forseeable plans to replace it

 

[Home Cookin']

Re: Help debunk a myth

it was not so much when I bought it but when I took my wife out and we found it was the perfect size and design for what we wanted to do; it solved a lot of the problems and limitations of the previous smaller older boat. We spend a lot of time on it.

On the older boat, it was running it with no problems after a year and a half of trying to solve an intermittent electrical problem.

I've never sold one. Just keep them around.

 

[smclear]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I've been boating for 53 years now and either myself (now) or the family (earlier) has bought and sold many boats. I never really bought into that old saying. For me, the best day boating, will be my next time out.

As I grow older my perspective has changed and the things I find enjoyable now are different. Just can't/don't want to tube like I used to. But I can truly appreciate it watching the "next generation" go through it all. The one constant is........

It just keeps getting better.

 

[jigngrub]

Re: Help debunk a myth

This is what I was told when I purchased my 79 bayliner from a young kid for way to much cash.
Boy he was a happy camper,unloaded a rot fest on to me!!!!!
I was pissed from all hell when i shoved my fist through the transom!!!!!

Ha Ha!!! Look at it this way, the extra money you paid for that boat was actually payment for a priceless education. You'll either never buy another rotten boat again, or you'll know exactly what you're getting before you buy it.

Had you bought a new boat, you'd have been happy enough to mess up the front of your britches from the inside out!

 

[JB]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I have been happy to acquire and sad to part with each of my 7 Boston Whalers over the past 55 years. Each one left happy memories. . .restoring, fishing and just cruising.

Don't have a Whaler now , just a 12' tinny for my fishpond. She has yet to generate great memories, but will begin in Spring.

 

[bonz_d]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I do not get very affectionate with material things such as boats, autos, sporting equipment such as guns or fishing gear. Mostly they are tools to serve a purpose. Yes I get happy when I aquire a good deal but I've also been happy when I've given something away to some one that I know will get enjoyment from it.

Sentiment is about an experience not an object. I'll just keep cherishing the experiences of life no matter what the tool used to enjoy it.

 

[southkogs]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I've gotten rid of two boats in the last 10 years. One was a plastic 12' and it wasn't a "happy" day, but wasn't too sad either. The second boat was the boat I did most of my skiing behind as a kid. She'd sat under cover at my folks place for about 8 years and I pulled her out to see what she would do. It hung in for a few years, but the deck and transom rot was too far gone, and I didn't have the time to restore it. I gave it away to a fellow who said he had done restores before and was looking forward to it. That one was a sad day.

Then I got another boat ... happy again.

 

[Philster]

Re: Help debunk a myth

The best day is when you get a boat and the day you get rid of it, if you're an owner who doesn't have salt in his veins, or doesn't take care of things, or thinks boats are waterproof and can sit out in the weather to rot and create misery for all.

If it's in you... if you're a true boater, with blood that runs with the tides, the worst day of your life is when you get rid of your boat and don't return to the sea.

I got rid of my 18' Chappy back in the 90's and tried everything that was supposed to be fun, from getting an in-ground pool, landscaping, taking expensive vacations... visiting friends' beach houses, etc. NOTHING was as good as the day that I got back into boating -- Nothing! And, nothing made my life as miserable as getting rid of my boat.

When I returned to the sea, I headed out the Cape May, NJ inlet, and cruised up the Atlantic Coast off Cape May, with the rollers going under me and my crew (family) and eventually turning into breakers as the waves' energy met the shore, tossing swimmers and bathers around. Nothing replaces that sound or that feeling. Turn off the motor a safe distance and let a pack of dolphins 1/2 mile long swim past.

Find a cove and get the kids swimming and tubing, then eat lunch and eventually run back in as the day winds down. Something about how the water settles near sunset that is spectacular., Heck, sending the family home as I stay behind to wash the boat and button 'er up, chatting with passer-bys about what they caught, and tales of this wave or that... well, cleaning my boat beats standing in some line at a hot amusement park; it beats sitting by a boring pool, and nothing gets that taste in my mouth or sensation on my skin that boating all day does.

If 'it' aint in yer veins, then maybe it is the best day when you get rid of your boat... But if it is in your veins, then no... freakin'... way.

Happy boating.

 

[halfmoa]

Re: Help debunk a myth

The best day is when you get a boat and the day you get rid of it, if you're an owner who doesn't have salt in his veins, or doesn't take care of things, or thinks boats are waterproof and can sit out in the weather to rot and create misery for all.

If it's in you... if you're a true boater, with blood that runs with the tides, the worst day of your life is when you get rid of your boat and don't return to the sea.

I got rid of my 18' Chappy back in the 90's and tried everything that was supposed to be fun, from getting an in-ground pool, landscaping, taking expensive vacations... visiting friends' beach houses, etc. NOTHING was as good as the day that I got back into boating -- Nothing!

When I returned to the sea, I headed out the Cape May, NJ inlet, and cruised up the Atlantic Coast off Cape May, with the rollers going under me and my crew (family) and eventually turning into breakers as the waves' energy met the shore, tossing swimmers and bathers around. Nothing replaces that sound or that feeling. Turn off the motor a safe distance and let a pack of dolphins 1/2 mile long swim past.

Find a cove and get the kids swimming and tubing, then eat lunch and eventually run back in as the day winds down. Something about how the water settles near sunset that is spectacular., Heck, sending the family home as I stay behind to wash the boat and button 'er up, chatting with passer-bys about what they caught, and tales of this wave or that... well, cleaning my boat beats standing in some line at a hot amusement park; it beats sitting by a boring pool, and nothing gets that taste in my mouth or sensation on my skin that boating all day does.

If 'it' aint in yer veins, then maybe it is the best day when you get rid of your boat... But if it is in your veins, then no... freakin'... way.

Happy boating.

This gave me goosebumps. Totally agree!

 

[RogersJetboat454]

Re: Help debunk a myth

Mine was the day I "got lucky" with a woman in the cuddy. LOL Unfortunately, a week later I was not so lucky and needed an MD to give me a shot. She gave me the "applause."

This song is dedicated to you Mr. Acampora ; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HGf7r2F5OU&feature=related


Happiest days on a boat are the days when I'm not home and working. Quite honestly my best times were borrowing the neighbors floating living room... er ummm... pontoon. Getting a couple of sandwiches. A cooler full of drinks. Setting out to a destination on the lake. Shut the engine off. Tunes on, consume said sandwiches and beverages. Relax, and enjoy the sun and 80? breezes of July/August with my GF.

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I think that saying is for the people that don't like working on there boats. The guys that go out and spend to much money on a new boat and hardly ever use it, then the boat becomes a money pit.

Not all my enjoyment with my boat has been on the water, I have enjoyed working on them as much as I have enjoyed using them. I really like taking something old and making it beautiful again. Not everyone is wired this way, thus the myth!

I rather listen to the other one, " A bad day on the water is still better than a good day at work".

 

[ufm82]

Re: Help debunk a myth

My best day ever was a day years back during a family vacation. Had rented a house on a canal on the Gulf side and there were a number of places to go that were boat-accessible only. Loaded up the boat and went about 4 miles out to an island that was a local boating hangout. Beautiful water, awesome beach, lots of cool people and perfect weather. Fished, snorkeled, ate lunch, walked the beach, met some new people and generally had the type of day that most people dream of. It was the kind of day that boaters plan out and anticipate for months before they actually go. It wouldn't have been possible without a boat. And it's a memory that my family speaks of to this very day as one of the best vacation days ever.

 

[hog88]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I love boating, really like my boat. As it is winter now my wife says I'll be a grouch until spring and we can get back on the water. I will say since I got my first boat 12 years ago all of our vacations have become nautical, either with our boat on a lake or cruising.

 

[sasto]

Re: Help debunk a myth

I try not to dwell much on the past......The happiest day will be the next time I go out, which is this evening. I guess today is the happiest.