How To Pick The Right Boat

Perhaps owning a boat has always been a dream of yours, and now you are finally ready to buy one.  If you live next to a lake, you may want to take your friends and family out to enjoy a lazy afternoon on your pontoon.  


Maybe you are an avid fisherman, and you want a lean, mean boat that you can transport easily to fishing trips around the country.  Perhaps you live near the ocean, and you want to ride the waves on your motor boat or take your friends water skiing. 

Before making a decision on which boat to buy, here are a few important factors to consider when choosing your vessel.

When deciding which boats you can afford, it is important to consider more than just the sticker price.  Boats consume a lot of fuel, and you might even spend as much as half of the sticker price for the boat on maintenance. There really is no such thing as a low maintenance boat, and all boats that use fuel consume a very large amount; much more fuel than cars use.

The next factor to consider is the purpose for which you plan to use your boat, because there is no such thing as an all-purpose boat.  Do you plan to use the boat for saltwater fishing or freshwater fishing?  
Do you plan to use it for water sports like water skiing, wake boarding, and knee boarding? 

 Do you plan on sailing?  Will you stay on your boat overnight?  Each of these purposes requires a different type of boat, with very little overlap.  You will also need to decide how far away from the shore or dock you plan to take your boat; the greater the distance from the shore, the larger the boat you will need.  

With all kinds of boats, but especially with sailboats, it is important to learn about boating safety before you set sail.

You will also need to think about how many people will ride on your boat.  If your boat is less than 28 feet long, only a certain number of people, including you, can legally ride on the boat at one time.  With larger boats, there are fewer restrictions about the number of passengers, but there are other regulations you must follow. 

When choosing the size of your boat, you will also have to figure out how to transport it.  Some boats are small enough that cars can tow them, but larger boats must be towed by trucks.

 While the many different factors that come into play when choosing a boat may be a little bit stressful, it is important to know what you want before you step foot in the lot. This will cause for a lot less heart ache(wallet ache) and stress in the long run. My hope is that this article will help provide you with the tools you need to get your hobby started!

 Happy Sailing :)


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