remember way back when I bought my very first motorcycle. Not sure it really counts as a motorcycle; it was a Honda CT70 Mini Trail so it was more like a “mini-bike.” But it was licensable, and it had a title and I had to make payments. This was a big step for a young kid, and I of course needed my parents to help me make the purchase.
Basically, they had to co-sign for it, but I was able to go through the process at the local Honda dealer and experience the buying process.
The reason I bring this up is that I bought my first motorcycle before I ever bought my first car or boat. I built my first car from a kit, and my first boat was a backpacking canoe on which I hand laid in the fiberglass. Like I have said before, my family had a dealership and manufacturing facility for small boats, canoes, and motorcycle accessories. That situation gave me the opportunity to build or rebuild a lot of things that many people would have just bought.
This brings me back to the motorcycle. I believe a first purchase can have a lifelong effect on buying style. The dealer experience can be positive or negative and it will dictate how, where and what you buy in the future.
For me, it was a positive experience which ended up with me buying my next motorcycle when I was in high school, a Honda CB 550 from the same dealer. I also had numerous other bikes during that time, but I went back to that dealer for parts, accessories and eventually for my Harley Lowrider.
Jumping forward to today, I haven’t bought a new motorcycle in years. I have bought used bikes without a dealer, but I have not developed any type of a dealer relationship. The same thing could be said about my cars as I haven’t developed much of a relationship there either. Good dealers get return business and let’s just say my last experience wasn’t as satisfactory as I hoped. I like my Jeep, but my next one will be from a different dealer.
But about my boat, I shopped several dealers looking for my pontoon. Being a boater, I had an idea of what I wanted and what was going to happen to the pontoon the minute I got it home (can you say modifications?). So what I wanted was a dealer relationship that could offer experience with the product, follow-up service, a good price and of course a good customer relationship. This pontoon was probably not going to be the last boat I bought.
My preliminary research had already helped me decide on the size I wanted (I actually had a few different lengths in mind). I had also made a decision on how I was going to use the boat most of the time. And of course, I already had a few future ideas for whatever boat I bought.
This is a great time to remind new buyers that you should look at all the options available and try to narrow your selections to a few different manufacturers that will provide a boat that you will use most of the time. I’m talking 80 to 90 percent of the time. The idea being, you don’t need to buy a 27-foot triple pontoon if all you are going to do is motor around a small local lake and watch the sun set.
I still chuckle when the 30-foot Cigarette style boats come into our local lake. They run 60 miles an hour from the dam to the bridge. Which is about 5 miles when the water is at a decent level. That’s it, five miles. I would say that the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri is more appropriate for the big, fast boats. Don’t get me wrong. I like fast, high-powered boats (especially Miami Vice-era boats), but for me a small pontoon does what I need 90 percent of the time. On top of that I can keep it in a reasonably priced slip less than five miles from my house. You know, as I type this, I have to think, it really can’t get much better than that.
Back to first-time buyers. Once you have an idea what you want, make sure the dealer can provide you with a great boat buying experience. Many a buyer has been unhappy with the purchase, not because of the boat, but because of the dealership. Good dealers get good referrals and return business. Make sure you reward that dealer!
Boating Tips & Observations with
Sky Smith
Sky Smith
remember way back when I bought my very first motorcycle. Not sure it really counts as a motorcycle; it was a Honda CT70 Mini Trail so it was more like a “mini-bike.” But it was licensable, and it had a title and I had to make payments. This was a big step for a young kid, and I of course needed my parents to help me make the purchase.
Basically, they had to co-sign for it, but I was able to go through the process at the local Honda dealer and experience the buying process.
The reason I bring this up is that I bought my first motorcycle before I ever bought my first car or boat. I built my first car from a kit, and my first boat was a backpacking canoe on which I hand laid in the fiberglass. Like I have said before, my family had a dealership and manufacturing facility for small boats, canoes, and motorcycle accessories. That situation gave me the opportunity to build or rebuild a lot of things that many people would have just bought.
This brings me back to the motorcycle. I believe a first purchase can have a lifelong effect on buying style. The dealer experience can be positive or negative and it will dictate how, where and what you buy in the future.
For me, it was a positive experience which ended up with me buying my next motorcycle when I was in high school, a Honda CB 550 from the same dealer. I also had numerous other bikes during that time, but I went back to that dealer for parts, accessories and eventually for my Harley Lowrider.
Jumping forward to today, I haven’t bought a new motorcycle in years. I have bought used bikes without a dealer, but I have not developed any type of a dealer relationship. The same thing could be said about my cars as I haven’t developed much of a relationship there either. Good dealers get return business and let’s just say my last experience wasn’t as satisfactory as I hoped. I like my Jeep, but my next one will be from a different dealer.
But about my boat, I shopped several dealers looking for my pontoon. Being a boater, I had an idea of what I wanted and what was going to happen to the pontoon the minute I got it home (can you say modifications?). So what I wanted was a dealer relationship that could offer experience with the product, follow-up service, a good price and of course a good customer relationship. This pontoon was probably not going to be the last boat I bought.
My preliminary research had already helped me decide on the size I wanted (I actually had a few different lengths in mind). I had also made a decision on how I was going to use the boat most of the time. And of course, I already had a few future ideas for whatever boat I bought.
This is a great time to remind new buyers that you should look at all the options available and try to narrow your selections to a few different manufacturers that will provide a boat that you will use most of the time. I’m talking 80 to 90 percent of the time. The idea being, you don’t need to buy a 27-foot triple pontoon if all you are going to do is motor around a small local lake and watch the sun set.
I still chuckle when the 30-foot Cigarette style boats come into our local lake. They run 60 miles an hour from the dam to the bridge. Which is about 5 miles when the water is at a decent level. That’s it, five miles. I would say that the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri is more appropriate for the big, fast boats. Don’t get me wrong. I like fast, high-powered boats (especially Miami Vice-era boats), but for me a small pontoon does what I need 90 percent of the time. On top of that I can keep it in a reasonably priced slip less than five miles from my house. You know, as I type this, I have to think, it really can’t get much better than that.
Back to first-time buyers. Once you have an idea what you want, make sure the dealer can provide you with a great boat buying experience. Many a buyer has been unhappy with the purchase, not because of the boat, but because of the dealership. Good dealers get good referrals and return business. Make sure you reward that dealer!