When you went bigger

This is a great thread! Thanks @PlumCrazy4spd for starting it, and I do like your choice of avatars (mine was a '69 SuperBee. Man, do I miss that car!)

I grew up with my dad in and out of a couple of boats (16ft Boston Whaler, 12ft Smokercraft), but my fondest memory is from a woody cabin cruiser my grandfather had on the St. Joe in north Idaho. A Chris-Craft, I think.. We'd run it down into the Coeur d'Alene lake on a day cruise. Watching the beautiful scenery roll by through the portal windows while in the comfort of the berth is burned into my memory. That is, until my dad tore out the bottom on some pilings. I don't imagine that endeared him too well to his father-in-law's heart! Years go by, and I get married and start having kids.

My wife and I were given her grandfather's 1976 18ft Carina with a Merc 165 I/O ski boat when other family members decided it was time for Gramps to upgrade. I wanted to buy it from him for a fair price, but, as he pointed out, "You're the only one who gives a damn about that thing! It's yours." That was the boat that, for more years than I can remember, taught my kids and wife how to ski, towed tubes for untold miles, and never failed to bring a smile to my face. We hauled it to Pend Oreille lake for our summer vacations. While on skis, my wife almost ran over a swimming moose up on Priest lake! We got caught in one of the freak mountain wind storms while out on Pend Oreille, pushing 3ft rollers over the bow of the Carina. So, after about the third time splashing over the windshield, I figured it was time to head for port. Lots of great memories!

More years go by, the Carina's long since gone, the kids are out of the house, and the wife and I both have never lost our love for the water. With the desire for a fully self contained ship (plus the memory of those waves), we went looking for something a "bit" larger.

So, here we are, jumping from an 18ft runabout to a 30ft cabin cruiser! It's been in the water just long enough to find out the shift cable bellows were leaking, so she's now on the trailer, waiting for me to finish pulling the outdrives off. New bellows kits are already in hand. Read all about it at http://www.clubsearay.com/index.php?threads/greetings-from-idaho.101615/
 
Somehow I missed the fact that this forum is for Classic boats, so I guess we don't qualify. I'll move to a more appropriate forum as soon as I determine where that should be.
 
Started in runabouts but bought my first Sea Ray cruiser in 1988, a 1985 250 Sundancer with an OMC IO. That IO was a total POS and the moment I got it fixed the 3rd time I sold it. Wasn't a total loss though as it cemented my love for being able to spend weekends at the lake and in a slip.

Next was a 300 Weekend with 350 straight inboards. We knew we wanted more beam, twins and a bigger head. Great Boat! Reliable, stable, handled like a dream. Had it 10 years. Only reason it sold is because someone stopped me in the marina and offered me more money than I could refuse.

Bought the 1993 400EC with 454 straight inboards in 2000. Sexy, sexy boat. Loved the second cabin with hard doors and separate shower, albeit a bit tight. Only reason I sold it was it was getting closer to 20 years old and back then it was difficult to get boat loans for that age boat which limits you to cash buyers.

In 2010 we got the current 420 with gassers while we still had the 400. Owning 2 big boats kept in slips isn't for the faint of heart. Loved the separate shower and 2 heads. Really didn't appreciate the need for 2 heads until I had them. Great for guests, especially at our age where someone always needs to 'visit' in the middle of the night. Only complaint is that the master berth has pretty limited headroom and feels a little claustrophobic. Boat is great of the lake with the limited distances you can travel but too slow and thirsty for the ocean.

Next? Not sure, but definitely not bigger. We've been using the 420 less and less. We're going to start boating in the ocean and there's a good chance we'll sell it soon and downsize to something like the new Sea Ray 320 Sundancer to get more speed and day-boat agility but be able to head down the coast for long weekends. We'll see.

It's been a great journey so far.
 
Only reason I sold it was it was getting closer to 20 years old and back then it was difficult to get boat loans for that age boat which limits you to cash buyers.
Oh man you are so right. Had an '89 that was mint but just over 20 YO at the time. Cash buyers only, no bank would touch it. Hell of a time selling it. Finally, found a cash buyer. Nowadays they will float a loan on anything even if its half sunk. I wonder what changed. My current boat is 28yo (bought this summer) and banks were fighting over giving me a loan. Pic attached.
 

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Pirate Lady said:
Only reason I sold it was it was getting closer to 20 years old and back then it was difficult to get boat loans for that age boat which limits you to cash buyers.
Oh man you are so right.
Click to expand...
'Same here. The only reason I was able to get mine was the fact that the first buyer couldn't get a loan, and we happened to have cash at that point. I suppose it depends on the condition of the boat, and who you're working through for a loan.
 
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