Can we talk about wakeboard / wakesurf boats?

Seriously never thought about it. It's around 400 a month. Anyone that has ever owned a boat it's actually a good deal.

When I visit, family hops in the car, grab a couple personal boards, food and a cooler,boat club gives us kids wake board's life jackets, what ever trendy tube is out, everything coast guard approved. Take a hundred plus grand mastercraft which usually always has minor issues but have never had a day ruined. You fill it up with the gas you use and walk away, the boats are used enough to never have major issues and you don't deal with winterize/ storage.

Like I said, not generally a fan of a lease, rent, borrow life. But how much money they can charge for boats now. It actually makes since to at least lose money and have a company deal with the hassles of a boat.

I work on them/ for them, don't own them. 1.3 mil, 43 midnight, probably lost 400 grand depreciation the first year, spent months in the shop. But wasn't my money. Quad 7 marine outboard, 627 hp each

 

Lol, a lot different,last time had 6 beers ate a full lunch, and could wake surf fine. Just went out surfing hurricane dorian on chest high sloppy waves and thought I was going to keel over of a heart attack at 39

 

Storm surfing brought my surfing days to an end...nearly broke my back.

 

I have a few friends who do the boat club thing. It hits some people just right. It works really well if you are not local but spend summers/winters somewhere and want a boat but can't take care of it much of the year. It also works well if you want access to different boats for different activities.

I live in the middle of nowhere in Indiana so it isn't really an option for me. Plus I like owning stuff like that and taking care of it. I don't race anymore so I have to do something.

Is this the club? https://nashvilleboatclub.net

If so, it's not the greatest deal. It's about $3k to join and $400 per month to have unlimited access. The Mastercrafts they have are the absolute cheapest ones. You can buy one for $59k brand new without negotiating. I'm guessing you could get one for about $50k. I get why people do it though. I'd consider it if I lived somewhere that had a club.

 

It is not for everyone. If you are a boater and you want a certain thing and actually are going to use it, know a little about boats, maybe basic repairs, a shop that won't rip you off. I have seen a lot of people buy boats over the years and are hard core for about 6 months, sink a lot of money into it and then rarely ever use the thing and lose a lot of money? My buddy bought a new 23 foot center console for 65 grand 3 years ago. He pays 250 a month just for storage, plus insurance???, boat payment???, mantaniance/repairs???, - deprecation???ect. His wife doesn't like the boat, he uses it about 8 days a year when the stars and moon align. And each time something is wrong with the boat because it sits for months at a time. There are a lot of boat people like that.

To me a boat/ boating is an all day process that I'm used to, but spend 1/2 the hours getting ready, trailering, cleaning a boat for the hours I use it. What I liked that was cool and strange last time I was there with a boat club, his wife and kids went shopping. He looked at me and smiled, made a call, and in 45 minutes we were on the lake wake surfing just for 1 1/2 hours(plenty long with 2 guys), hoped off the boat, drove home before they came back from shopping. That will never happen with your own boat.

 

Boat clubs certainly have their place and are a great idea for some. There are a lot of people on our lake that should be in a boat club, makes me ill seeing a decked out ranger and a master craft sitting on a lift for months on end. No it’s not that I’m jealous I just feel bad for the boats. They are like horses, they want to be ridden.

 

I have my bass boat setup that takes me about an extra 10-15 min tops to be on our out of the water. Key to that is keeping up with the trash, etc. Pull into its parking spot, plug it into the charger, throw the fan in the boat and plug it it, put cover on boat and tires, done. If you don’t do it in some sort of routine you will just hate boating for reasons stated above. You will spend more time before and after than being on the water. My dad has racked his boat last 2 years, although he misses hanging out at the marina he doesn’t miss having to take it out of the water every couple weeks to clean the bottom, cost of marina, etc. He drops it off when done, they clean it for him and done. He calls on his way to marina, coolers filled with ice, gassed if requested, ready to go. He has a 44’ outer limits so the bottom needs to stay pretty clean or it absolutely kills the speed.

 

I'm still researching. The Supra's are moving up the list. There is a lot to like about them.

The current plan is to go to some of the boat shows this winter and check everything out. I'm going to enjoy my first boat-less winter in a long time... as long as you don't count the Sea-Doo's (they are easy to take care of). I''m hoping the late winter or early spring is a good time to pick up a trade-in. I'm still thinking a 1-2 year old boat but would buy a new one in the right situation.

The latest thing I've been considering is a tri-axle trailer. They seem to be more common on the bigger boats. I've had my fair share of trailer problems in my life. Does anybody have any experience? I'm hoping a 3 axle trailer would let you run with one flat tire or removed wheel to get to the next exit, etc.

 

No need for a boat that small. If you get torsion axles you can pull a wheel and still get home. I'd get a tandem with 2 5K torsions before a triple any day. Triples eat tires.

 

No need for triples.

 

My toy haulers and big trailers have all had tandem axles where the leafs go to a block and the axles are connected to each other. I don't know what that's called but it sucks. It makes it hard to change a tire and hard to deal with a flat if you are just trying to get out of the way.

You're correct that the boat won't be very heavy. It will be maybe 5000 lbs-ish. Then add a thousand or so for the trailer and maybe another thousand for fuel and boat stuff.

 

I can give you my buddies # if you want and have any more detailed questions. I know a fair bit about bass boats and go fast offshore boats but all I know about wakeboats really is a) they aren’t cheap b) they f up my fishing c) they are expensive d) they have ballast tanks and surf gadgets that come down and or stick out e) they are pricey

 

Another buddy of mine did just get a “deal” on an $82k bass boat. He’s doesn’t even fish a whole lot but one of those guys that has to have the best of everything. If he rode a bike he’d be at Starbucks with carbon everything

 

Well... you nailed it. We bought a new 2020 Yamaha 240x E Series yesterday. It seems like you get a lot for the money. The low maintenance was appealing. My family loved the interior layout compared to the hardcore sports boats. It’s similar to our Chaparral but with the cool transom seats. There is also some appeal to the twin engines. We do some river boating that is more comfortable with twin engines.

Anything else I should know?

 

Did the dealer do a demo with you on the water? There are definitely some tricks to maneuvering it well, especially at slow speeds. Once you figure it out though it is just as easy as an outboard.

 

They will do an on water delivery. The dealer is located on a small private lake. Things are a little icy at the moment. Haha

 

Have them demo how to utilize the no wake setting to assist with slow speed maneuvering. Or, at minimum, do some google searches.

 

We've had a fun summer with the new wake boat. Now I have one of these on the way