In the next 20 years a lot of people with a lot of wealth will be leaving it behind. That may open boating opportunities for their kids/grandkids who currently can't currently afford boats.
In the next 20 years a lot of people with a lot of wealth will be leaving it behind. That may open boating opportunities for their kids/grandkids who currently can't currently afford boats.
We spend so much more as a society than our parents did on all the perks......the base standard is so much more elevated from home autos and electronic devices........so there is less money at the end of the month less surplus cash for savings or even more extras.
I guess my point is even though the price today in comparable most had more surplus cash then.
thoughts?
It's everything you learn after you know-it-all that really counts........
Bass boat fishing is about done for average people. It has been in decline for about 5 years. It’s become a pass time for millionaires. Our biggest local bass boat dealer is broke and for sale.
One more thing in last 10-15 years with rising real estate prices, how may sucked up that equity and went out and bought boats and RV's with it? Which I think was a thing during COVID......
It's everything you learn after you know-it-all that really counts........
These are cool comparisons, but the fact is that in 1975 that $5,895.00 rig represented the best top-of-the-line professional (used by the Roland Martins of the world) rig available. If you want to present a true comparison, compare the 1975 classic rig value to the current price of the average rig used in last week's Bassmaster's Classic. That number's probably in the $130k range. The point being, no one is really saying that current rigs are over-priced. It's more the fact that in 1975 the best of the best was an obtainable for the average guy that had a decent job. Higher level tournament fishing as a whole has left the average guy in the dust in 2025 driven primarily by expectations of added accessories. When I ordered my 1991 361-V in late 1990, I had the dealer rig it to the exact same specs as the rig Denny Brauer had ordered that year at SportBoats USA. I wouldn't even think of doing that now and percentage wise my income has increased by a power of ten since then. Its all a matter of context.Originally Posted by pavi69
2006 Ranger Z20 / 225HP Merc Pro XS
Yesterday, I ran into two different groups of youngsters (16-20 maybe, it is hard to tell these days) with their first boats headed to the lake to fish. The boats were both tin rigs with many years of age on them, but they were just as proud of them as some guys are of their shiny glass rockets. My point in all this is, not everyone thinks they have to have the biggest and greatest to fish.
"NEVER APOLOGIZE FOR BEING PATRIOTIC"
Toby Keith
Someone will be along shortly to tell us that that 50 year old Ranger is a better boat then a new JM Nitro
I sure see a lot of average looking people out my window every day in average looking boats. You don’t need a shiny $100k boat to bass fish. Our club tournament on SML last Saturday was won by a very young man fishing out of an aluminum Tracker that has to be at least 20 years old with maybe a 50 ho motor? He just catches fish.
I could see this. My next boat will be a downgrade from what I have now for sure, I couldn’t afford the boat I have now if I had to buy it today, and it’s only 3.5 years old. Wild how much they’ve went up.
That’s not true. The Power Pole Move is, I think, the most expensive one available and can run upwards of 5500. Yeah, crap load for sure but it is the most expensive option. All the other option are much less, if not cheap. There no point in making an exaggeration.that MAY get you the latest in trolling motors today...
Bruce
2019 20 TRX Patriot
Mercury 250 ProXS Fourstroke
HDS 12 Live - Console
HDS 9 Live - Bow
Most of us fell in love with fishing at a young age at a local pond with a friend or Dad taking us to lake some Saturday afternoon. I do see some young people in my area fishing the ponds with nice backpack tackle boxes and such and they will be buyers if they can ever afford. My eldest on the other hand has no interest in fishing. I'm holding out hope that maybe as he ages he will appreciate the peaceful aspects of it. Still, I'm sure he won't afford on his own a boat and likely would not even want to store mine when I'm gone.
so to the point of the article, I think the market for investing a bunch of money in fishing is in decline for many reasons
2024 Phoenix 818
2024 merc 175 pro xs 3B411947
What are the “cheap” options out there? Motorguide shut down so now the only one I know of under $1000 is the MK Edge.. which is very cheaply made. i have a maxxum on my boat and if that goes I’m stuck with an edge because there’s no way I’m spending thousands of dollars on a trolling motor that might see 10 days of use a year and is prone to more issues than the non tech integrated ones.
in reality, the bass fishing world is slowly outpricing your average recreational angler.. BBC member affluence isn’t the standard for the fishing community.
1995 Ranger 481v
1995 Johnson Fast Strike 175hp
Doesn't Minn Kota still offer the Maxxum? See it on their website along with the Fortrex.
The pull of tournament noteriety has caused a many young men to sign bank notes they couldn’t really afford.
Here is another angle. A lot of people refinanced their house to a 15 year mortgage when rates were low 15 years ago. Al those people are going to have a lot of extra money to spend.
Not much has changed for me. 30 years ago, I would look at the new boat catalogs, drool and say, I can't afford one of those. 30 years later, I'm still doing the same thing............
Buddy, you need to fish more!! Only 10 days a year? I couldn't handle that. A wise man once said, "if you're too busy to fish, then you're too busy". Sounds silly but it's true.
The short answer is yes. I've sold very few boats to folks my age or younger (34)
IMHO, folks need to shop smarter and not just walk in and buy whats on the lot whether it's a car, boat, rv, etc. I would love a new Yukon Denalli with the 6.2 or 3.0, but the local dealer orders them fully loaded, so they are 94k sitting on his lot. I asked the salsman who is buying these, he replies young famalies with lots of kids. Are they towing or off roading(since they are also 4WD) he says "no". I search around and find Denalli's with what I want for 79k, still a big chunk of change, but 15k less.
Same with boats, I bought a Puma FTD from a Mercury Pro Team member that was delivered to him in the middle of tournament season, he didnt want to take time to transfer everything over to the new rig so he broke in the motor, put it in the garage with a battery tender and placed an add on the Cat website and never upated it. I found it 3 pages deep, and bought a loaded boat that was 80k on the build sheet for 59k. Right now there is the Cougar Sp Package for 79.9k and I know a dealer that has a new Eyra Sp for sale, loaded for the same price.
Do you need the 4WD, sunroof, or appearance package on vehicles or three graphs, lighted livewells, etc...the list goes on.
This right here is the absolute truth. I think the amount of people in debt over bass boats they can barely afford far outweighs the amount of millionaires.
I have a friend that sells boats, he says he isn't a financial advisor, he is a boat seller. When someone walks in and wants a boat and they qualify for the loan, he sells it to them. He grits his teeth when they agree to that 240 months at 9% and he knows it's a terrible financial decision but his job is not to tell them how to spend or save their money.
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