Ask The Navigator Club: January 2009

Floating your way to Freedom

Cruising the coastal waters aboard a boat is a great way to spend time with family and friends, relieve some stress, explore new ports of call and if you are so inclined, do a little fishing. The eastern seaboard from Florida to Maine and points in between offer many exciting and interesting places to go boating. Some are well known and others, are closely guarded secrets that are waiting to be explored.

For many years, if you wanted to go boating you either had to buy a boat, charter a boat or if you were lucky, befriend someone who owned a boat. Chartering or befriending a boat owner are fantastic ways to get out on the water and get introduced to boating. It is great for those of you who only want to go out on occasion and/or prefer to sit back and let someone else handle the responsibility of operating the vessel. Charter captains know their local waters intimately and are not only good at finding fish, but most also make excellent on-the-water tour guides too. There are many talented charter captains out there. To find a well respected, licensed captain in your area, contact the Northeast Charter Captains Association at http://www.northeastcharterboatcaptainsassociation.com/ or your local charter boat captains association.

However, if you’re like me and enjoy being behind the helm and desire the freedom and challenge associated with it, you basically have two options. You can go buy your own boat or you can join a local boating club which allow members to use the club’s boats.

If you have a good understanding of what is required and have ample free time, boat ownership can be a very rewarding experience. As someone who has owned numerous boats and sold countless others to buyers, I know what it feels like to desire to own a boat. Boat ownership offers freedom, adventure and a lot of fun. Whether its heading over to the local sandbar to spend an afternoon soaking up some sun with friends or planning a weekend excursion to a new port of call, having your own boat allows you to go just about wherever you want, whenever you want - weather permitting of course.

However, as with most large purchases, owning a boat also requires time, responsibility and a fair amount of disposable income to not only purchase the boat, but maintain it as well. Many first-time boat buyers often make the mistake of spending their entire budget on purchasing the boat, leaving little left over to maintain it. Unlike automobiles, boats are hand-made machines and are exposed to a wide variety of environments and forces and as such, they need to be cleaned and maintained on a regular basis or they will fall into disrepair, regardless of the brand.
Based on my personal and professional experience, the best way to determine how much a boat is going to cost you to maintain on a yearly basis in your area, is to ask an experienced boater from a local marina who owns a similar boat. Cost of ownership calculations should include dockage fees, insurance, spring commissioning, winterization, incidental repairs, storage, fuel, depreciation and future resale value. Once you have calculated annual cost of ownership and determined your total boat buying budget, you are now ready to start shopping for a boat that will fit your requirements. When determining which style of boat is for you, you need to consider your experience level, boating interests, body of water and time availability. where vessel will be used whether you primarily plan to go out for the day or for long excursions you are looking for a new boat, the National Marine Manufacturers Association maintains a list of certified, well respected boat dealers in your area. To find a dealer near you, go to http://www.discoverboating.com/ .

If you are considering purchasing a pre-owned boat, which can be an attractive option, you should consider having the boat surveyed prior to buying. The cost to survey the boat is nominal and is money well spent. To find a competent surveyor in your area, log on to http://www.marinesurvey.org/ .

Unfortunately, with ever increasing demands on time from careers and family obligations, many folks feel that they just don’t have the time or the desire to own a boat, but yet still want to get out on the water on a regular basis. Or, what about those folks who have always wanted to get into boating, don’t have any experience and are unsure where to start? For those of you who fall into this category, a membership in a boating club is ideal.

What is a boat club? Although there are variations, a typical boat club is a membership based club where members get to use club owned boats on reservation basis. In addition to buying the boats, the club normally pays for a comprehensive training program as well as slip fees, insurance, cleaning, and maintenance. In addition, luxury level clubs, also offer access to premium brand boats, as well as pools, sun decks and locker rooms and discounts on restaurants, yacht charters and boating related items like foul-weather gear, and sunglasses .
As far as usage is concerned, membership allows a member to reserve a boat(s) for a predetermined number of outings per month. In addition, clubs even offer “standby” usage options for those spur of the moment decisions when the local weatherman calls for a torrential downpour when it actually turns out to be 85 degrees and sunny.

Membership based boat clubs are not entirely new. However, they have become very popular recently, mostly due to the fact that over the last ten years consumers have less free time available and as a result, they have become more comfortable with leasing and fractional usage arrangements made popular by the automobile and aviation industries.

Is a boat club membership right for everyone? Probably, not. If you are the type of person who wants to go out all weekend, every weekend, or you’re planning a three week cruise up to Maine or maybe you just like to sit around and oil the teak while tied up at the dock, you’re better off buying your own boat . However, if you lead a busy lifestyle and find that between work and family obligations, not to mention the infamous honey-do list, you have a limited amount of free time, then a boat club membership may be just the right thing for you.

There are numerous boat clubs throughout the country. To find a club near you, do a search on the web, for “boat clubs” or log on to www.discoverboating.com/boating/boatingclubs.aspx

Happy Boating,

Capt. Ed Mancini
President and Founder
The Navigator Club
40 Warren Street, 3rd Floor
Charlestown, MA 02129
617-880-2525
http://www.thenavigatorclub.com/

The Navigator Club is the Boston area's premier, private boat club catering to people who do not own a boat; both novice and experienced mariners are welcome at our boating club. Based at the award winning Constitution Marina on Boston Harbor in Charlestown, MA, The Navigator Club provides boat club members with the finest powerboats, unparalleled customer service and first class facilities.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Floating your way to Freedom

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