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Fuel is dammed expensive.
It may get worse. Still, you have more control
than you think….
First of all we have had huge fuel spikes a number of
times in past decades. Whether talking about owners of cars, boats, or
planes their knee jerk reaction in those circumstances has often been to
bail (sell) or avoid (not buy) to sidestep the problem. The result in
the yacht world has been a host of folks who still wish they had tried
boating but never did; and a second group who, like bad stock pickers
that buy high and sell low, are apparently avoiding today’s buying
opportunity and waiting for higher prices.
At the risk of being called out of touch, I would only suggest that you
choose or not choose to buy a boat for reasons other than today’s media
hysteria. Take out a yellow pad and look at dollars. The impact may not
be as bad as you’ve been told… especially if you amortize the buying
opportunities available.
Its no surprise that boating costs are directly related to how fast you
go. Fast boats just cost more to operate; but remember every boat has a
throttle. Example: take a displacement boat that’s around 50-foot. If
you’re cruising at 8-knots for 3500 nautical miles a year, a dollar
increase in diesel increases your annual expenses about $3300. Real
money yes, but a small percentage. Throttle back to 7.5-knots and you’ll
likely save more than the difference. If you’ve got a faster boat that
cruises in the double-digits, the pain will seem worse, but again
remember speed is the great equalizer. Drop back from 26-knots to 23 or
24 and it will likely level the playing field.
Even commercial airliners have learned this lesson. Backing off only a
handful of knots on transcontinental flights can save jumbo jets
significantly while only adding only minutes to the overall flight time.
Traveling at pokey speeds, think of it as more time to enjoy the trip.
But that’s just my opinion.
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