Did you all read the editorial about the boating industry in the current issue of Bass Times?

Seems the higher priced boats are no longer being purchased at the previous rate.

The writer gave inference that an aluminum boat may be the way to go.

Will be interesting to see if we have more Trackers, Champions and jon boats on the water bass fishing in the next few years.

Yep, times are tough.  Nothing is being purchased at the previous rate right now.  Trust me I know, I see RV's.  

I'm keeping what I have for a while.

No credit card debt

No boat payment

Made last payment on wife's Infinity in July

Nine payments on my truck to go

Hopefully by this time next year only a house note.

It 's not a mystery that big boats aren 't selling, big engines ( fuel consumption ), big engines needed to tow them ( more fuel consumption ), loss of income, loss of business and consumers submerged in debt ( car loans, mortages, credit card bills, high interest rates, you name it ).

Yes, there are people who are going to say that you can tow a boat with a bicycle, but the truth is that small engines consume just a little bit less than a big engine when towing a boat of that weight and dimension. I drive a ' 93 Ram Charger SUV for fishing trips ( which means many times towing a 18 ft boat and cartopping another ) lots of horses and all of them thirsty, we actually spent 20 dollars more in gas in an 800 km ( 400 km to the lake back and forth ) ride to fish than we spent when doing the same with my friend 's Ranger 4 cyl pick up truck.

I'm with fishfordollars, no debt except the mortgage = a happy fisherman.  Owning and operating a boat wasn't really cheap, even when gas was.

I'm helping a friend find a boat and I'm finding screaming deals on glass boats all over the place and finding VERY few Trackers and other aluminum boats on the market.  Kind of a market 180 from a couple years ago.  I'm sure the fuel costs figure highly into this.

Did you all read the editorial about the boating industry in the current issue of Bass Times?

Seems the higher priced boats are no longer being purchased at the previous rate.

The writer gave inference that an aluminum boat may be the way to go.

Will be interesting to see if we have more Trackers, Champions and jon boats on the water bass fishing in the next few years.

Hea Sam:  I don't understand your reference to Champions. I have a 20 ft Champion with a 225 Yamaha and I assure you nothing inexpensive about operating this monster. I nearly purchased a 14 ft jon boat yesterday and probably will get one in the near future. It is hard to justify $20-$100 in fuel to fish for a few hours..............Al

It 's not a mystery that big boats aren 't selling, big engines ( fuel consumption ), big engines needed to tow them ( more fuel consumption ), loss of income, loss of business and consumers submerged in debt ( car loans, mortages, credit card bills, high interest rates, you name it ).

Yes, there are people who are going to say that you can tow a boat with a bicycle, but the truth is that small engines consume just a little bit less than a big engine when towing a boat of that weight and dimension. I drive a ' 93 Ram Charger SUV for fishing trips ( which means many times towing a 18 ft boat and cartopping another ) lots of horses and all of them thirsty, we actually spent 20 dollars more in gas in an 800 km ( 400 km to the lake back and forth ) ride to fish than we spent when doing the same with my friend 's Ranger 4 cyl pick up truck.

Raul, you need a closer fishing hole - 500 miles is a bit of a round trip.

This is why I am happy that I stuck with my 17 ft Nitro with only a 90 HP motor on it instead of upgrading. This year I also tried to stay running no more then 30 MPH. Slowing down saved me gas and increased my catch versus running and gunning. I use to burn up sometimes up to 24 gallons on a weekend trip. Now I get up to 6 trips on one tank. Also fished smaller lakes when possible. The biggest advantage is I was able to buy more gear!

I'm keeping what I have for a while.

No credit card debt

No boat payment

Made last payment on wife's Infinity in July

Nine payments on my truck to go

Hopefully by this time next year only a house note.

Mock my pain!

yeah, I just got a Tracker 1436 jon (w/o the livewell).vPut an 8 HP 4 stroke on it and got a free trolling motor from my bud. I have gone out 3 times in the last 2 weeks, for 3-7 hours at a time and still have not burned through a single 3 gallon tank of gas.

I am just going to gradually upgrade this puppy, put in a low deck, some swivel seats, a small bilge pump, etc over the next year. Hopefully, a fish finder as well. For now, the fun part is, I know the holes, everytime I go out i can see where the dudes with the killer boats slow down or stop and scope out the holes, so i am constantly adding to where I go.

Maybe in a few years I will upgrade to a true bass boat, but for now, I am catching fish, having fun, and spending less than I do to trout fish in the mountains.