When the designers at Tahoe sat down to create a new 21’ boat they must have made
a list of all the things people want in a boat of that size – then rolled them into
the 215 Xi IO. You want to fish? No problem, how about seats on the bow and stern
and an aerated baitwell? You want to wakeboard? No problem, we’ll make an affordable
tower optional. You want to cruise-- well, you get the idea. The Tahoe 215 Xi IO
is a deckboat, fishboat, bowrider, and wakeboat all rolled into one well-done package.
Its swim ladder has four steps, it has a flip-up bolster helm seat, and a fiberglass
(not plywood) cockpit sole, just to name a few of the features that we find surprising
in a price boat. We asked Capt. Steve to make a video and tell us more --
Here’s a twenty-six foot center console model that caught
my interest right away. Since she’s a MasterCraft I knew, going in, that I’d see
a well-built boat. She’s got a huge list of options; something for everyone. And,
get this, she’s powered by twin Volkswagen turbo diesels. Check this out!
Harris Kayot has been making boats for 52 years and has
been making deckboats for 33 years, so the corporate culture there knows a thing
or two about the type. In fact, the deckboat was born in Northern Indiana by another builder down the road in the early 1970s and by 1977 Kayot was the #2 seller of
deckboats. By the late 1980s virtually every builder of sportboats had at least
one deckboat model in their line. In 1998 introduced a deckboat with a deep-V bottom
which mean that it could be run faster in bigger water. Now Kayot has hung
an outboard on the swim platform. The big question is, how well has Kayot
executed the concept and how does in compare to the standard I/O configuration?
We asked
Capt. Steve to give it his critical eye and let us know what he thought.
This way
to the dock --
Bayliner has long been the company that gets people on
the water for less money. The latest generation of builds from this company has
left most skeptics behind. Bayliner knows its stuff and it knows its buyer. This
brand is definitely one that Brunswick has greatly improved from the one it bought
years ago. Bayliner’s largest entry in the bowrider category, the 245, offers a
lot of room so you can entertain a crowd or an extended family. Add in a price that
is in step with the times, and we think this is a bowrider worth your attention
if you are looking for an affordable ($38k) boat this size. Now, let’s look at some of the pros and cons --
Having to make a watersports boat is much more challenging
than, say, a fishing center console. That’s because for the most part, fishing is
fishing. Watersports however, changes dramatically between disciplines. What works
for a slalom skier is vastly different from a wakeboarder. When a manufacturer scores
in making a boat that performs across the entire watersports spectrum and keeps
everyone happy, it says something not only about the boat, but the builder. Tigé’s
Z1 is just such a boat, and that means we just had to see what the fuss was about.
Strap on your board of choice and jump in --
Engine News
Tohatsu 70-hp Outboard:
Right Engine for the Times
If you are like most people around our marina then you
probably never gave much thought to Tohatsu outboard engines. Occasionally you’d
see the brand in the small booth at the boat show, and you’d rarely see an ad for
them. We always considered it an “off brand,” one not ready for prime time, particularly
against the big boys like Yamaha, Mercury and the rest. Then we discovered that
all of the Mercury engines from 2-hp to 30-hp are actually re-labeled Tohatsu engines.
Well, if Tohatsu engineering and manufacturing are good enough for the mavens in
Fond du Lac, how bad could they be? And maybe it’s a good thing that Tohatsu doesn’t
spend millions of dollars at boat shows and promoting bass tournaments, after all
who ends up paying for all of that eyewash in the end? Then we began to drill down to find out
more about Tohatsu. Join us for an eye-opening experience --
You want an 18’ fishboat with two pro seats, one butt seat
and five drink holders? Oh, you only need three drink holders, but need two butt
seats? No problem, Crestliner’s Raptor series has the model for you. If you can’t
find exactly what you want among the four Raptor models pictured above, the company
has no fewer than 20 other 18-foot boats for you to choose from. Did you say you
wanted a smaller or bigger aluminum fishboat? Crestliner has 100 different models
to choose from, all with different features and options and at all moderate to low
price points. And the company has a nice surprise in store--motivate your mouse
The Senza 206 offers an edgier look with interior treatments that have a hint of
the color schemes that are seen on high end boats, certainly not the bland
white interiors you might expect. As more of a cross-over boat, the Senza offers
a sensible and affordable option for the extreme sports fanatic in the house. It’s
not a single
purpose skiboat, but it still has enough pizzazz and
power to satisfy most boarders and grab the attention of the rest of the people
on the lake.
Captain Rob takes a look --
Even the highest quality gelcoat on the market oxidizes with time and makes your
once beautiful boat dull. That is why three of the largest production powerboat
manufacturers use Buff Magic on every one of their boats before they even leave
the factory. Sea Ray, Bayliner, and Regal all start their boats off right with a
treatment of Buff Magic before they leave the factory. That says a lot about the
product and also about the importance of polishing your gelcoat at least once a
year. For more information about Buff Magic --
This year has caused us all to do some serious financial and family planning. If
boating is a way of life for you, then you need to figure out how to afford the
cake and eat it too. Good boats are expensive and frankly, buying one first for
fishing, then trading it in on a sportboat for a young, growing family, then trading
again into a screaming fishing rig when the kids are gone means you’re going to
be losing a lot of bucks along the way. The folks at Ranger have given serious thought
and have a very good solution – buy one very well-built boat that is versatile and
keep it a lifetime. It’s a novel concept --
Behind the FZ Hull from Yamaha:
More than a Pretty Bottom
Here’s a question- What do you get when you combine years
of PWC freestyle and racing experience, cutting edge engineering and design, and
quality construction with a bunch of enthusiastic PWC riders? Answer- The cutting
edge FZ Waverunner Hull from Yamaha. Take a look --
Many of our members and visitors have told us they would like to purchase a new
boat this year, but are apprehensive about moving forward in this economy. That
is why the team at BoatTEST.com has created a strategic partnership with the folks
at Maxum called the "Factory-Backed" Program. Through this program, BoatTEST
will ensure that our members receive world class customer service and consideration
as well as the piece of mind that the factory is behind the deal all the way. The
fact is, due to the economy there has never been a better time to buy a new boat.
If you live near the areas listed above and are interested in this or any
Maxum model, get connected here.
Being a good boater starts long before you get out on the water. And if you have
not properly prepared your trailer rig you may never even make it. Just as airplane
pilots walk around their planes checking out control surfaces before they get into
the cockpit, so too, should you, make a careful check of all the straps, chains,
connections, bolts and landing gear on your trailer before you head to the launch
ramp. Capt. Steve gives us his take on the best way to prep so that you
will not have a costly accident on the road --
A major cause of boating insurance claims is the result of guests falling or inadvertently
being flung overboard in high speed turns. Veteran boaters have learned over the
years to stay aboard, but forget that guests do not have the same learned instincts
– and the results can be tragic. Self-inflating life vests are important in case
someone is knocked out in the process of going overboard. See test of
Mustang auto-inflating life vest --
An 18-year-old man was killed Sunday while tubing on the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway
near Pecan Street in Houma, Louisiana. The driver of the boat was immediately tested
for alcohol and was found to be “clean.” Houma is located in the Mississippi delta
and is home to more commercial boats than most any place in the country. The whole
area as a seafaring tradition and was saddened by this recreational accident.
To find out what happened and how you can easily tow your kids and friends in safety
--
Summer squalls can come up quickly without warning and it is not unusual for boaters
to be caught offshore in a lightning storm. If you don’t have time to get back to
land, what do you do? Generally lighting will strike the highest part of your boat,
so the first thing you want to make sure of is that the highest part is not you
or a passenger. Lightning strikes of occupied boats is not common, but there have
been at least two in the last few weeks and now is the season for them. Find out what happened to an unfortunate man in Massachusetts when
he stood up in his open boat during a rain storm --ground your mouse
Every few months it happens: a small dilapidated sailboat crammed with refuges and
a few inches of freeboard capsizes and sinks with a great loss of life somewhere
north of Haiti. Late Sunday or early Monday morning, no one is quite sure when,
it happened again and this time 67 people are missing and 15 bodies have been recovered.
When we read about these tragedies (they can hardly be called accidents), we are
reminded of something Albert Camus wrote: “Of all of the evils in Pandora’s Box,
by far the most terrible is hope.” Desperate Haitians cling to the hope of a better
life and hope the boat they step in will make it. Many don’t. To read more about this tragedy and find out what you can do --
The Northwest Passage has been the Holy Grail of mariners for over 500 years. Many
men died trying to find the passage, the most famous being Franklin, whose 1845
expedition came to grief. Roald Amundsen was the first to make it in 2005, but it
took him three seasons. Now with global warming several dozen yachts have actually
made the passage in a single season. This summer seven yachts are attempting to
make the passage, and two of them are powerboats. One of them is a 57’ Nordhavn
owned by a documentary film-maker. As you read this he and his crew are traveling
up the west coast of Greenland heading for Lancaster Sound, the gateway to the Northwest
Passage. We will report on this vessel’s progress each week. The saga starts here --
This week Capt. Steve goes over five new lessons and guidelines on emergency situations
and what to do to help preserve life while you wait to be rescued. Everyone aboard
will have to act quickly, and that’s why drills and practicing emergency situations
with your family is important. So this means everyone must have their life jackets on,
someone calls for help on the radio, and then use whatever you can to try and stop
or slow the flow of water into the boat. Do not abandon ship!
Rather, keep working to save it. Stay with the
boat or get as far on top of it as you can until help arrives. These are basic procedures
which all recreational boaters should be aware of. The videos presented this week
are part of Capt. Steve’s USCG-approved boating course called “Smart Boating.” Watch
Capt. Steve's video boating lessons every week on BoatTEST.com.
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