Up a Lazy River
Leaving your troubles in your wake starts with finding the right boat.
It is a rain-soaked, 48 degree morning, good for nothing but pulling the covers over your head and going back to sleep.
At The Beach Club Marina in New Eagle, only a few boats sit ready to launch from their slips at the banks of the Monongahela River, while dozens sit like beached whales of varying sizes in dry-dock on the paved lots around the marina property.
But sitting in a partially drenched pavilion, watching a barge cruise lazily down the river, it isn’t hard to imagine relaxing on the deck of a 40-foot cruiser and enjoying a snack and a beverage of choice on a sunny day in the very near future.
“We (bought a boat) mainly for a wonderful family activity,” said Helen Yourd, who with husband Dave owns a 26-foot cruiser that sleeps four. The Yourds and sons Nicholas, 17, and Zachary, 12, spend summer weekends boating down the river and camping in their slip at the marina.
According to Beach Club owner Harry Fisfis, boats docked at his facility run the gamut from 15-foot speedboats to houseboats that measure 50 feet or longer. He says the cost of getting into the water can be reasonable.
He recommends starting with a used boat, which can run as little as $5,000 for a small powerboat, or $15,000 for what Fisfis calls “a nice size cruiser” (a boat with covered sleeping quarters and usually a bathroom).
From there, the sky is the limit, depending on whether you want to pilot The Minnow, The Love Boat or something in between. Riverboats can run into the hundreds of thousands, depending on size and luxury accessories. In other words, if you want a boat like Donald Trump, you have to pay like Donald Trump.
All of the vessels docked at The Beach Club are powerboats. Sailboats are more common on lakes and oceans than in the river, says Janet Fisfis, Harry’s wife and partner in the marina.
Maintenance costs, much like an automobile, depend on the quality of the engine, the care taken to prevent major problems and just plain luck.
Another cost associated with owning and operating a boat is docking and storage charges. Harry Fisfis says that his facility charges $599 per season to rent a slip that will hold a craft up to 23 feet and $1,295 for one that can accommodate a boat up to 50 feet in length. The season runs from April 15 to November 1 and off-season storage is available for $10 per foot outside and $12 per foot for inside storage. The marina owner also suggests winterizing your boat. That costs about $150. Insurance, he says, is usually cheaper than protection for the family car.
But for many boat lovers, the peace and serenity of cruising along the river, leaving the daily grind in the wake of their engines, is more than worth the cost.
“You don’t have to go far to feel like you’re away from all of your troubles,” says Peoples Dominion Gas corrosion specialist Chip Huttinger of Brentwood who, along with his wife, goes down to the marina practically every weekend in the summer to enjoy their 25-foot Rinker cruiser, the couple’s third boat in the 18 years since they took up the relaxing pastime.
Like the Yourds, the Huttingers are strictly river boaters, a preference that, according to Harry Fisfis, often has to do with issues of safety.
“People generally follow the rules of the river,” he said, pointing out that the river has “lanes” as opposed to lake traffic where boats are “scattered everywhere” with no definite pattern of movement. Also, lake waves can pose a threat to water-skiers, especially during busy times when boats are churning up the water even more.
Janet Fisfis says those safety benefits increase when boaters dock and cruise in less populated areas of the rivers. She said that many people choose to stay away from the busier areas like Pittsburgh in favor of the more serene atmosphere typical of out-of-the-way locations such as hers, trading the crowded, party atmosphere for the quiet of a more isolated spot.
As with any activity, say the Fisfis, knowledge is power in river boating. The couple recommends that first-timers take a water safety course offered by the Coast Guard and become familiar with local rules and regulations.
Having done that, it is just a matter of settling back on the deck, throwing a line in the water and hoping that nothing tugs on the line to disturb you. •
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