From pontoons for sale to speed boats for sale, recreational boating has risen to higher numbers than ever before. In fact, the year of 2016 alone saw more than 141 million people in the United States participating in recreational boating activities at least once, with up to 87 million of them enjoying recreational boating on a regular basis, perhaps even owning their own boats. And with very nearly 12 million registered boats here in the United States alone, there are a number of reasons that more people than ever are investing in things like pontoons for sale from pontoon dealers all throughout the country.
For one, recreational boating is highly accessible, due to the fact that up to 95% of the total population actually lives no more than an hour’s drive away from at least one navigable body of water, if not more than one. And as more than 70% of all boaters bring in less than $100,000 in income per year, there’s no doubt about it that recreational boating has become a very middle class activity, with people of all backgrounds able to participate in it and enjoy it.
And there are many ways to buy a boat, even if you’re a little bit strapped for cash and can’t afford brand new pontoons for sale or similar brand new boats. For instance, used pontoons for sale are a great way to get to own a boat while still saving a considerable amount of money. And the used pontoon is a popular choice of boat, with more than 981,000 used boats sold in that same year of 2016 alone, many of them used pontoons for sale.
And the purchase of pontoons for sale, whether you buy a new pontoon or a used one, is likely going to be well worth it. After all, the things you can enjoy while boating are vast. For instance, up to ten percent of the population is interested in taking up fishing, primarily as a form of stress relief. Fishing can be done on your own or with friends and family, but it is ideal to have a boat that you can regularly use before you become too invested in the sport.
In addition to this, you can go swimming quite frequently when you have a boat. If it’s a calm day out on the lake (or whatever body of water it is that your boat might be used on), you can take your boat out to a quiet spot and drop an anchor. Swimming in the lake is a fond summer memory for many people, though it is important to be safe and have everyone (especially children and those who are not particularly strong swimmers) wear a life jacket or life vest of some kind.
Speaking of safety, sunscreen is also important to wear any time you are on a boat, whether you’re just hanging out on the boat itself or actually going into the water. No matter what, you should be wearing sunscreen, ideally a type of sunscreen with an SPF that is at or even exceeds a measurement of 30. You should also be applying this sunscreen every two hours as well as any time you get out of the water and towel off, even if the sunscreen has been marketed as being waterproof.
But before you can enjoy everything that the typical boat has to offer, you must first consider the type of boat you want to buy. From everything from pontoons for sale to yachts for sale, you’ll want a boat that fits your size requirements and needs. For most people this will be a relatively small boat (like the majority of pontoons for sale), as up to 95% of all boats owned for recreational purposes here in the United States are actually no more than 26 feet in length – and some of them are considerably smaller. After all, smaller boats are far less likely to be grossly and exorbitantly expensive, making them the ideal choice for the average person, for the middle class recreational boater here and all throughout the United States.