Pontoon "Boats"...

I see them on the ICW down here and am always amazed at how smooth they can go fast. Many of them come out of the boat club/rental spots so the Captain always seems to be white knuckling it and nervous. Everybody else looks happy as a pig. Much different boats than the ones I knew as a kid in the 60's-70's, they've really changed. Thank goodness I am exactly the same as back then and haven't aged a day. Hey, coulda happened.

I could never understand why anyone would want own a pontoon boat. Then I came across this video that explained the benefits. Clearly I need to own one.


Ted

latravcha said:

IMO putting big motors on a pontoon boat is like putting a supercharged big block in a minivan.

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My point exactly.

except that pontoon boats are no longer the mini vans of the boating world if they handle with some of the best boats outside of racers.

psneeld said:

except that pontoon boats are no longer the mini vans of the boating world if they handle with some of the best boats outside of racers.

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You could put 1200hp on a pontoon and it will ALWAYS be a mini-van. I have the same disdain for pontoon boats as I do jet skis.

Well, the truth is finally out....

It's not that you don't get them, you just dislike them.

See, wasn't hard at all...

and


One slow. One fast. Like everything else, it's how they are used . . .

Don't see any sinking going on.

Yeah people got wet. But in both cases the boats are still afloat. The second video seems to show that the boat can shed a significant amount of onboard water with no ill effects (as far as the video shows).

Like any watercraft - use it within it's useful parameters and it's good. Exceed them and ...... stuff happens.

Pontoon? Boat?

Please don't confuse the word pontoon with boat or watercraft.

markpierce said:

Totally untrawler-like!

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Couldn't agree more!

Like them or not, "get" them or not, make fun of them or not, they are amazing lake/day boats. And they are absolutely dominating market share. You can still get a "mini van" style, but most are leaning more toward somewhere between an SUV and a performance car if you want to make a car analogy.

This is worth 60 seconds: Regarding where the smaller, recreational boating industry is going, there is a great article here: https://boatingindustry.com/top-stories/2018/01/22/steady-as-she-goes-2/


Most (notice I did not say all) people who do not "get" the appeal of these newer tri-toons have simply not had the opportunity to spend time on one. 10 minutes on one will likely change your mind.



Here's a quote from the article: "....the once humble pontoon has completely replaced the formerly ubiquitous fiberglass runabout as the core of North America’s boating culture"


Personally, I had ZERO interest in them. I mean ZERO!!!!! A bored salesperson at an in-water boat show convinced me to get on board. 5 minutes later I wanted one. 2 years later I owned one.

Just don't confuse your purchase with a boat. I suppose a pontoon is a device that serves a purpose for some.

Good news for a lot of people....they don't have to register their non-boats....

Wudenboat said:

Just don't confuse your purchase with a boat. I suppose a pontoon is a device that serves a purpose for some.

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A pontoon is a boat as much as any other. If you don't believe so, then guess you don't believe any Catamaran is either. Why do people have to be so condescending against any boats unlike theirs? I'm sure there are happy pontoon boat and tritoon boat owners who wouldn't think yours is much of a boat but hopefully they wouldn't say that.

Pontoon? Boat?

I really did not intend to start a diatribe against pontoons on a trawler forum. Some of my best friends own pontoons. In my experience, on Rehoboth and Indian River bays, pontoons are by far in the majority. They make great party barges. However, in my opinion, pontoon drivers here appear to be hazards to navigation. Most boat captains I know abhor them. They are typically driven by impaired weekend warriors. DNREC registers them as boats, but, that's what you get from bureaucrats. Pontoons have their place in society, just please, don't describe them as boats.

Greetings,
Mr. W et al...



https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/boat Definition of boat

plural boats 1 a : a small vessel for travel on water
b : ship

...


https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/boat


boat

noun

• 1A small vessel for travelling over water, propelled by oars, sails, or an engine.
  ‘a fishing boat’
  
  as modifier ‘a boat trip’
  
  

1.1 A vessel of any size, especially a large one. ‘those newly arriving here by boat or plane’
...

https://www.dictionary.com/browse/boat



boat

[boht]
See more synonyms for boat on Thesaurus.comnoun

1. a vessel for transport by water, constructed to provide buoyancy by excluding water and shaped to give stability and permit propulsion.
2. a small ship, generally for specialized use: a fishing boat.
3. a small vessel carried for use by a large one, as a lifeboat:

NO other way to describe pontoons/tritoons. Like it or not,they ARE boats. Now, IF you can find any other accepted definition, I will retract this post.

These are the only true boats in my neck of the woods ....

Pontoon? Boat?

There's always some schoolmarm out there spoiling the fun.

Mr. W. Given that I have provided, pretty well, universally accepted definitions of a boat that appear to be unacceptable in your view, what would YOU call these vessels? The "schoolmarm" is curious...

Pontoon? Boat?

Dear Mr RT Firefly, check your Webster's.

Wudenboat said:

Just don't confuse your purchase with a boat. I suppose a pontoon is a device that serves a purpose for some.

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If one subtracts the sales from those "devices" out of the stats for recent boat sales, then you would have a boat industry that is in serious decline, and that would be sad to see. It would seem these "devices" are serving a purpose for many.... as in keeping an industry alive.

It is interesting, too, that so many boat manufacturers are branching out into building these "devices" these days. You'd think they would stick to building boats. I'm guessing they are thankful for the sales of those "devices".

Does anyone have the number to "Device U.S."???? I need to call Boat U.S. and cancel my insurance policy on my device....... silly me.... I thought it was a boat. So did they. They cash our check every year.

Being recreational instead of commercial, I guess that makes it a "pleasure device" and that could lead squarely into a forum of a different nature. I think I'll just call it a boat, and hope you will forgive me.

Operators don't determine whether something is a boat or not... Whether they are good or bad captains.

Sound like a bit of "boat snobbery" to me.

I used to be that way when I was young and though I knew stuff.....

What’s the matter w party barge?
But I agree w RT they are boats.
Limited special purpose boats.
And I agree w psneeld. Snobbery from trawlermen is so likely it could be a given.
Soon I suppose we’ll be calling outboard boats trawlers. But that’s far less likely as any fool can see.

Wudenboat said:

Just don't confuse your purchase with a boat. I suppose a pontoon is a device that serves a purpose for some.

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If a pontoon boat isn’t a boat, then these boats probably aren’t boats either. We are a bit odd in the PNW.

https://youtu.be/VG8ARLq3m18

AZ2Loop said:

I guess that makes it a "pleasure device" and that could lead squarely into a forum of a different nature.

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Wifey B: "Pleasure Device?"

Wudenboat said:

I really did not intend to start a diatribe against pontoons on a trawler forum. Some of my best friends own pontoons. In my experience, on Rehoboth and Indian River bays, pontoons are by far in the majority. They make great party barges. However, in my opinion, pontoon drivers here appear to be hazards to navigation. Most boat captains I know abhor them. They are typically driven by impaired weekend warriors. DNREC registers them as boats, but, that's what you get from bureaucrats. Pontoons have their place in society, just please, don't describe them as boats.

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Some serious flawed logic in your post. You think that pontoon BOATS are not BOATS because of the attributes of those that drive them. Pontoon BOAT drivers/captains are hazards and generally impaired people. Most of your boating friends hate them. You dislike pontoon BOATS so much you are think that their registration and acknowledgement that they are boats is a function of poor government. None of these is remotely related to the physical attributes of a boat. I'm still waiting for some logical reason why they should be excluded from being a boat... as a boat is defined. Something other than you not liking them or the people that drive them.

Nothing against pontoon boats, but I just can't get past the image of 24 Lutheran ministers and a barbeque grill on Lake Wobegon.

Pontoon? Boat?

Enough already! I don't want to offend anyone. I agree with Nomad Willy. I'll accept pontoons as "limited special purpose boats" or party barges. In fact, I've attached a photo which clearly states my case. Just a typical day on Rehoboth Bay.