As the founding member of the Rocky Mountain Region Group, I add this:
I grew up going to the lake with the family, water skiing on Carter Lake, which my father helped to build, being the "watcher," overlooking our 50-horsepower Mercury outboard on our 14' Bell Buoy Ballerina. Later, but still a long time ago, I was controller for Saint Mary Lodge & Resort, on Saint Mary Lake, Montana. I worked eleven-hour days, but I would take a two-hour boating break each day for sanity. Needless to say, I love boats, and I love the water.
We now have a Sea Ray 175 BR, a 2010 that is just like brand new. It has a MerCruiser 135-horsepower MPI 3.0 inboard/outboard. It is named the D'Louise, and it runs great. And, what is called a boat's "fit and finish" is extraordinary, as it should be. A fiberglass inner liner, no plywood anywhere, quality trim and tack. It makes Saturday and Sundays fun. We live 1/4-mile from Lake Granby, and have numerous other large mountain lakes nearby. We also very much enjoy Yellowstone and Jackson Lakes, Wyoming, Flathead Lake and Lake McDonald, Montana, among many others.
We also have a small Smokercraft Alaskan fishing boat, named the Black Pearl, with a 15-horsepower four-stroke Mercury. As Jack Sparrow so aptly said, a boat opens up, "The entire world; wherever we want to go, we'll go. That is what a ship is, you know. It's not just a keel and a hull and a deck and sails -- that's what a ship needs -- but what a ship is -- what the Black Pearl really is -- is freedom."
Some people say that "boat" stands for "break out another thousand," but they do not have Brunswick products or they do not take care of their vessel. I find them economical fun, and a great way to explore far-from-marina wilderness shores.
