There has been a lot of discussion lately on the forums on which boat is the best boat to buy. Sure everyone has their own personal favorites but when you take all the factors and weigh them together, what is the absolute best boat to buy?
Rule #1 A boat is a compromise and dont forget a boat is a compromise.
No matter what a single boat won’t do it all. Cabins on performance boats? Do you need one, and what are the performance sacrifices. Do I really care if a full staggered, inboard rotation boat is not easy and conventional around the docks? Nope, not at all, it was purchased for open water performance not its close quarters maneuvering characteristics.
I get the question all the time. I am fortunate because of the Boat School and my other activities, I do get to drive many different boats and as a result I do know what is better from a measurable criteria rather than opinions and judgements made from the floor of a showroom or boatshow.
So how can I answer the question….. Simple, I answer the question with questions. The absolute best boat for you to buy is to find the boat that is right for you. To find that boat you start by answering some questions.
1. Where do you go boating? What are the prevailing weather conditions, seas, wind, and general environment.
2. What is your boating lifestyle? Will you boat with one friend or friends? Spouse or maybe young children?
3. Performance? Is top speed really the highest determining factor or is solid performance and better reliability?
4. Then the big question….Money… What is the budget and remember Rule #2
When it comes to buying a performance boat and the money it takes, the purchase is the easy part. The follow on care and maintenance, otherwise known as the cost of ownership is the hard part. You have to plan and budget for the care and feeding of the boat because if you don’t you will end up hating the boat for what it costs to keep.
5. Aesthetics? We are human and you have to be drawn to how the boat looks, but remember form does not alway meet function. My first car was a 1970 Camaro SS, it had primer spots and wasn’t the best looking car in its day, but it was fast and ran really good. While some of the other kids could afford nice paint, all I wanted to do was beat them on the street.
The absolute best boat to buy is the boat that will best facilitate your boating lifestyle and allow you to go boating. So unless you can afford a Lürssen with a deck full of various watercraft; the best boat for you to buy is out there, and the best person to figure out what boat that will be is YOU!
