“Honey, Let’s Buy A Boat”
A trip to buy a sexy new sports car leads to the purchase of something much larger, and a lot more fun to drive
By Marion Porter
My family’s introduction to boat ownership was purely accidental.
I was in my early 40s at the time and my wife patiently indulged me as I descended into the throes of an apparent mid-life crisis.
It was a beautiful August Saturday and we were out looking for sports cars. I wanted something low-slung, fast and sexy.
As we walked around one particular model, our conversation veered toward boating. We talked about how much we liked the lifestyle and hated the fact that our boat-owning friends had the audacity to not invite us to join them more often.
It was at that moment that I turned to my wife and said, “Honey, let’s buy a boat.”
Those five simple words, accompanied by my wife’s enthusiastic “OK,” changed our lives forever. My mid-life crisis had been transformed into an exciting new joint project – an adventure that would begin with the actual process of purchasing our boat.
We found our dream boat at a dealership on the South River, off the Chesapeake Bay near Annapolis, Md. The salesman quizzed us thoroughly about what we knew of boating as an activity and how we planned to use our boat. We told him that neither of us knew much about boat operations or maintenance. We said we had no place on our property for storing a boat and that we preferred to keep it at a marina. We talked about our interest in exploring the many places on the Bay, as opposed to lake or river boating. We also said that we wanted to be able to entertain on the water.
And then, we saw “her”
What we didn’t realize then, but came to appreciate later, was that the salesman was actually listening to what we were saying. As a result, he was able to guide us through the different classes of boat and make educated recommendations about what boats would make good choices for us. He even suggested that we consider getting a slightly larger boat than we had in mind.
Finally, he indicated that it was time for us to look at the available inventory. There were all kinds of boats on the lot. We stopped at a 28-foot express cruiser. It was gorgeous, but it looked huge and there was no way I was going to try and tackle handling this beast as my first boat. Besides, I thought the salesman was trying to get us to “buy up,” so I only half-listened to his spiel.
And then, we saw “her.” Just a short distance down the dock from the beast, there was a brand new 26-foot express cruiser. Bright sunlight gleamed from her stainless steel rails and stark white hull. Tied in the slip, she floated placidly and beckoned with enticement.
She fit the “profile” of what we were searching for. She had sleek sports car-like lines; comfortable accommodations for two, and perhaps four, for weekend overnighters on the water; a head with holding tank; wash basin and shower; a small galley with microwave and cook top for food preparation; a potable water tank; and air conditioning.
To say that it was love at first sight would be an understatement. Even if my mouth didn’t say it, my mind said, “sold!” Her size was still intimidating, but the thought of taking her out on the water was incredibly exciting. Before long we had agreed to a purchase price, the down payment amount and a settlement date and time.
Decisions, decisions, decisions
On the appointed day, we returned to the dealership to wade into what seemed like a never-ending stack of paperwork. In closing the deal, we were asked about our preferred financing option and told that boat loans typically span 10, 15 and, in some cases, 20 years. We fielded queries about insurance, vessel registration and marina selection. We discussed warranties, upkeep, recommended maintenance, basic boat handling and boating safety.
As we sat there, the fear of boat ownership became more evident on our faces with every new document that was placed in front of us. We both were probably thinking the same thing: “What in the world have we gotten ourselves into?”
Because our decision to buy a boat was spontaneous, we were completely unprepared for all that we didn’t know about owning one. We had done no research, naively believing that it couldn’t be much more complicated than owning a car. Man, were we ever wrong! We’re able to admit our innocent ignorance now. Back then, however, it was a different story as we sorted through all the details and tried to figure out what would work best for us.
That was in 1997. In the years since, we have become quite knowledgeable about boats and boating. We understand the relative merits of new and used boats. We have upgraded to a 41-foot sedan fly bridge and I smile when I think about my initial concern about managing a 28-foot vessel and deciding the purchase the 26-footer. While marginal, the difference was very big for me at the time.
We’ve become accustomed to the “hidden costs” of ownership, like marina slip holder fees, utilities and, of course, fuel when eight-tenths of a mile per gallon is considered “good” mileage. We’ve learned to plan and budget appropriately for our boat, recognizing that sometimes things happen and it’s best to be prepared as much as possible.
Despite our initial lack of information and preparation, recreational boating for us has been an evolutionary and really great adventure. A purely accidental occurrence has become a lifelong passion.
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