By Brady L. Kay
Captain’s Chair
“I wasn’t able to even drive a car, much less ride on a boat. In a lot of ways it felt like I was on home arrest, minus the felony.”
Portrait orientation close-up outdoor photograph of Brady L. Kay, a smiling man wearing a dark gray colored hat with black colored sunglasses on top and a neck brace wrapped around his neck as he is seated in the captain's chair of a pontoon motorboat looking toward at the camera; He is wearing a faded dark blue colored graphic t-shirt with the logo that reads PONTOON and DECK BOAT printed on it; The background is a lake with calm, murky water and a rocky shoreline
My Bummer Of A Summer Ends Well
“It is not how you start the race or where you are during the race – it is how you cross the finish line that will matter.” This quote from Robert D. Hales took on a different meaning for me after my summer was unexpectedly hijacked. I had such high hopes back in the spring as we headed towards boating season and warmer temperatures.

In April I took delivery on a brand-new M24 demo boat from Bennington Marine and was about to purchase a season pass to our nearby launch ramp when my plans drastically changed. This beautiful boat was on loan for the summer and I was looking forward to putting the throttle down on the Yamaha 250hp outboard, but life had a different plan.

Landscape orientation cropped close-up outdoor photograph view of Brady L. Kay, a grinning man and his five children are posing for a photo on a pontoon motorboat on a sunny lake; Brady L. Kay is standing in the center, wearing black colored sunglasses, a dark grey colored Pontoon and Deck Boat graphic t-shirt, black swimming shorts, and a dark grey colored Pontoon and Deck Boat graphic logo hat; His children are seated around him on the brown leather seats of the pontoon motorboat, most wearing swimming life jackets and a rocky shoreline is visible in the background behind all of them
Despite my best attempts to downplay the numbness in my hands, my grip strength was getting weaker with each passing day to the point where I could no longer ignore my symptoms. After multiple doctor visits for second and third opinions, it became painfully clear cervical spine surgery was in my future. I finally conceded to orthopedic surgeon Rob Johnson that I needed to have two deteriorating discs replaced in my neck. Admitting I needed surgery was a big step for me, but it was the timing that was the real sacrifice. I suggested to my doctor that October would be a good month to do it. You know, after boating season seemed like a good time frame to plan for.

I’ll never forget the look he gave me, which quickly followed with a stern warning that delaying the surgery even a month could lead to permanent nerve damage. He didn’t care that I had a pontoon that hadn’t been in the water yet; he was determined to fit me into his busy schedule the second he had an opening.

On May 8, I went under the knife after decades of avoiding overnight hospital stays. Not too shabby of a way to kick off my first surgery, right? What followed was 13 weeks of sleeping in a recliner while wearing a full neck brace 24/7. I wasn’t able to even drive a car, much less ride on a boat. In a lot of ways it felt like I was on home arrest, minus the felony. It quickly became known internally as my “bummer of a summer” and mentally it was much more difficult than I could ever have imagined to put my life (and boating) on hold to give my body a chance to recover.

I was finally cleared to get back to living a more normal life the first week in August, with of course plenty of restrictions. They say not to ask a question you don’t really want to know the answer to, so I just assumed Dr. Johnson was good with me going boating after giving me the thumbs up to start driving my truck again. I did wear my neck brace on the boat the first time out as a precaution since lakes can get choppy, but I had no issues or setbacks; it just felt therapeutic to be back on the water again. Lesson learned: I will never take for granted how important boating is to me.

I spent the rest of August trying to make up for lost time by hitting the lake as many times as I could, but it wasn’t until Labor Day weekend that I truly felt normal again. As I was out on the boat and surrounded by my family, the same quote–that it’s not the way we start that matters, but how we end–took on a new meaning. Yes, my summer didn’t start as I had anticipated, but as we anchored in a cove during the three-day weekend my boating season was ending perfectly.

I had quickly made up for lost time as I went out boating as often as I could in August. Over Labor Day weekend as I floated in the water, watching my kids and nieces jump off the LilliPad Diving Board over and over, I realized I no longer felt sorry for myself for having a shortened boating season. I’ve since made a full recovery, the strength in my hands has returned and other than a minimal scar on my neck, most people would never know about my bummer of a summer. I couldn’t have reached this point without the support of my dear wife, my children and my close friends and extended family who sacrificed as well this summer to help me recover.

Labor Day wasn’t the finish line to my boating season, but it did feel like I had crossed some type of line that weekend. Nothing brings friends and family together like boating, and I understand that better now than ever. After 25 plus years in this industry, boating is more that just a career path. Being out on the water is my passion, my therapy, as well as my greatest resource for my wife and me to keep close and connected to our children. The season has now wrapped up for me, but is it bad that I’m already looking forward to the next summer?

Brady L. Kay Signature
Brady L. Kay,
Pontoon & Deck Boat Editor
Back to Issue