Anybody see the USA Today fuel price predictions?
That's discouraging news. Even though the price of fuel is a relatively
minor consideration for many boaters- (as in if you're making $24,000 a
year in boat payments does it really matter if your summer fuel bill
goes from $2500 up to $3500?)- these unusually high fuel prices tend to
make people think twice or thrice about using their boats.
I hope that it makes more of the less curteous go-fast &
show-off boaters use their boats less.
NOYB wrote:
I put on 200 hours/year. If half of that is cruising, then my burn rate is
23 gph. The other half is trolling/slow speed, burning 6 gph.
That's 2900 gallons/year.
2900 gallons*$3/gallon=$8700/year
2900 gallons*$5/gallon=$14,500/year
That's a wee-bit more than your example, eh Chuck?
Anybody want to buy a Grady White 30' Marlin? :-(
You might consider repowering for better efficiency, but
then you'd have to use the boat more to justify the expense
of repower. Speed costs. A lot!
For slow boats, fuel cost is negligible, but you don't cover
as much ground. Our cost to cruise might go up from
$0.50/mile to $.065/mile (in the absence of affecting wind &
current of course). Since we're planning a Great Loop which
is approx 6,000 miles, that will still be a big expense
item. Still way less than fishing offshore from a fast 30
foot sportfisher though.
Fair Skies
Doug King
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