"Jim" wrote
Spend a few hundred to eliminate the liability issues you would have to
deal with if you crash into another boat and cause personal injury,
because of a missed shift.

As an additional precaution, it might be wise to avoid placing one's self in
such situations as "floating toward a parked Glastron at 10 knots" and where
the only way to "avoid collision with docks, shorelines and other boats" is
flawless mechanical operation. (I'm picturing a scene from PT-109.)