For those of you that have done / are doing the Great Loop: generally what age-group of people are you encountering during the trip? I'd assume the majority are retired folks, putting them mostly in the 60's - 70's. What do you think?
Loopers' Age
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O C Diver
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I was in my late 50s when I Looped. There are some percentage of younger people who take off a year to do it. I would guess 90% are retired. Most are probably in their 60s, with maybe 25% in their 50s or 70s.
Ted
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Jeff F
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I'd put the hump at 55-65. Lots of early retirees, and some taking mid-life sabbaticals. I've met a few with kids aboard, but not many. Mostly couples. Some into their 80s.
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kthoennes
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I would expect for the great majority, you have to be old enough to have a good chunk of money and the freedom of time that comes with retirement, and still yet be young enough to handle the physical demands. Just a guess but I'll bet the highest point in the bell curve would be 58-64. We'll have kids with us but only because we adopted later in life -- because heck, somebody has to inherit the boat and all our incredibly valuable stuff when we keel over. And because only a skinny kid can reach the port fuel filter.
Wifey B: Let's see....2016. We were 45 and 37. We had others with us and the normal group was 21, 27, 28, 21, and 20. As usual, we fit no norms. 
I'd say the vast majority of loopers we saw were retirees, although many had grandchildren along part of the time. But then there were the young families. Some kids take a year between high school and college to explore and it's often called a "gap year." We met young families taking what might best be called a gap year. Some were as young as their 30's, other 40's. Kids from 3 to 17. They just basically took a year away from their normal life. Brave families. Some had been high flyers, building enough wealth to afford the trip and sure enough of their skills to know a year later they'd be fine. Others scraped by on tight budgets, but were determined. We didn't have kids, but we never would have had the nerve to just ditch our normal world for a year.
Ok, here comes a hot sports opinion. You know like you might hear on a sports show, serious or controversial. The families that took the year where the parents had an educational and enlightenment plan benefited greatly. The kids gained an incredible appreciation for different areas. The kids enjoyed the land exploration, seeing the different areas, landmarks, and even museums. They enjoyed it and the learning happened as an incredible side effect. They enjoyed the boating and the lifestyle for a year and returned home with experiences they treasure. On the other hand, those who simply were making the loop as easily as possible and spending little time on land didn't really gain much and the kids got bored before they finished. To those kids the loop was a year of the same thing over and over.
We loved the loop. Quite a learning experience. My hubby, myself, and all those with us came away knowing so much more about the country than we ever imagined and we look forward to doing it again. You learn so much by meeting people from other areas. To us, it's more than boating. It's exploring the country by boat. That's how we boat. We leave each town thinking things like "that seems like a nice place" and "oh my what an interesting history the area has" and "what incredible crafts persons" and "what a fun place." We also have reasons we want to return to those places. These experiences enrich us all.
Another group we ran into a couple of times. 20 something couples with Captain John special boats (least expensive, uses little fuel, often sailboats without sails, anything to make the trip) just doing it on a whim. Some seemed to work and the couples really seemed to cement their relationships. However, one couple in particular had a relationship explosion before they made it up the East Coast. She left, he took a job in NC.
Most of the retirees were recent retirees who had planned the trip while still working, owned their boat a couple of years or more. So most were from 55 to 68 years old or so. A lot of early retirees because being able to afford to retire early and being able to afford doing the loop fit together.
I'd say the vast majority of loopers we saw were retirees, although many had grandchildren along part of the time. But then there were the young families. Some kids take a year between high school and college to explore and it's often called a "gap year." We met young families taking what might best be called a gap year. Some were as young as their 30's, other 40's. Kids from 3 to 17. They just basically took a year away from their normal life. Brave families. Some had been high flyers, building enough wealth to afford the trip and sure enough of their skills to know a year later they'd be fine. Others scraped by on tight budgets, but were determined. We didn't have kids, but we never would have had the nerve to just ditch our normal world for a year.
Ok, here comes a hot sports opinion. You know like you might hear on a sports show, serious or controversial. The families that took the year where the parents had an educational and enlightenment plan benefited greatly. The kids gained an incredible appreciation for different areas. The kids enjoyed the land exploration, seeing the different areas, landmarks, and even museums. They enjoyed it and the learning happened as an incredible side effect. They enjoyed the boating and the lifestyle for a year and returned home with experiences they treasure. On the other hand, those who simply were making the loop as easily as possible and spending little time on land didn't really gain much and the kids got bored before they finished. To those kids the loop was a year of the same thing over and over.
We loved the loop. Quite a learning experience. My hubby, myself, and all those with us came away knowing so much more about the country than we ever imagined and we look forward to doing it again. You learn so much by meeting people from other areas. To us, it's more than boating. It's exploring the country by boat. That's how we boat. We leave each town thinking things like "that seems like a nice place" and "oh my what an interesting history the area has" and "what incredible crafts persons" and "what a fun place." We also have reasons we want to return to those places. These experiences enrich us all.
Another group we ran into a couple of times. 20 something couples with Captain John special boats (least expensive, uses little fuel, often sailboats without sails, anything to make the trip) just doing it on a whim. Some seemed to work and the couples really seemed to cement their relationships. However, one couple in particular had a relationship explosion before they made it up the East Coast. She left, he took a job in NC.
Most of the retirees were recent retirees who had planned the trip while still working, owned their boat a couple of years or more. So most were from 55 to 68 years old or so. A lot of early retirees because being able to afford to retire early and being able to afford doing the loop fit together.
