Part of writing for Pontoon and Deck Boat magazine is that each year I get drafted into service as a boat tester for our annual Shootout Boat Test. Flying out to a Midwestern lake with the rest of the crew, I enjoy the autumn colors and run tests on dozens of the latest pontoon and deck boat models. Basically, we spend a whole week boating on the lake. (Keep in mind that this is a job and I’m supposed to be working.)

I’m part of the Consumer Test Crew, which means I board each shiny new pontoon or deck boat model with clipboard and detailed checklist, plus a camera (okay…and a backpack of snacks). My team is meant to check each boat for how a consumer might see it: Are the seats comfortable and the layout ideal? Are there enough cupholders and storage cubbies? What are the dimensions of the swim deck, the height of the rails, the status of the door stops? Examining these nitty-gritty concerns helps us let consumers know what upgrades are worth the money and what pitfalls to watch out for.

But the best part of all is the actual speed and handling test. We put the clipboard away and hold onto our hats while the driver puts the throttle down so we can record the hole shot. At full speed, we carve through the water as fast as we dare. This is how we measure if the boat tilts dangerously out of the curves, slips across the surface, or banks beautifully in the turns.

No, I lied. Here’s the real best part: when the driver steps aside and says it’s my turn to take the wheel. If I’m going to write about the boats we test, I need to personally know how they handle out on the lake. (Twist my arm some more—I love driving the boats!) So I sit at the helm with more than a smirk and tell everyone to hang on.

I’ll admit that my style of driving is much closer to go-cart racing than it is to the snooze-fest of defensive driving. (My husband always offers to drive when we’re on a road trip. It gives him fewer panic attacks.) And on an off-season lake with a backdrop of autumn leaves, there’s hardly any traffic and definitely no rules. (There are no rules when driving a boat, right? Just kidding….I think there are at least a couple.)

Speeding across the water is such a fun thrill. Taking corners to test the power steering (or lack thereof) sends a spray of water across the surface, while tight corners bring us quickly around to cross the crests and valleys of our wake. I’m um, trying to see if it’s a rough ride or a smooth one. You know, altruistically, for you. Oh, all right it’s just fun!

One of my other self-appointed jobs is to test out the stereo. (Read: Crank that party and blast those speakers! I don’t want to let the subwoofer go to waste and I love hearing that bass!) We cue up a playlist and see how loudly we can roar into the dock. After a week in the blistering sun, zigzagging back and forth across the water, some of us can get a little slap happy. (Spoiler alert: it’s me.)

The whole experience reminds me of a passage from the little children’s book, The Wind in the Willows. A group of furry little animals have adventures along a riverbank and in the wild woods nearby. There’s Mr. Toad obsessed with engine power and tales of his reckless driving. (Sounds familiar.) There’s Mole who is supposed to be cleaning, but decides it would be so much more fun to have adventures. (Sounds familiar.) Then Water Rat shows Mole the glorious world of boating and they have fun traversing the river. (Sounds awesome.)

And then we come to one of the most iconic quotes about boating in all of literature. Water Rat says to Mole: “Believe me, my young friend, there is nothing–absolutely nothing–half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.”

I wholeheartedly agree. Testing out shiny new boats during the Shootout is exactly that: messing about in boats. What a fun way to spend a day. Or a whole career.