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Reprinted from the September 2004 issue with permission of Boating World Magazine.
Diving Inby Alan Jones Boating World follows the Rutherford family as they take the plunge into boat ownership. Spending time together as a family was getting tricky for the Rutherfords. They weren’t just balancing the wants and needs of two parents and three kids in weekend and holiday activities, they were also working against the clock, because like all families, the Rutherfords were growing up.
Parents Barry and Jean watched their oldest daughter Kelli, 20, graduate high school and move on to college at the University of Georgia. Their son Barry, 17, had already been accepted to the same school and would start attending in the fall, and their youngest daughter Holly, 15, wasn’t far behind her two siblings. After the kids’ college days, there would be degrees, weddings, careers and new lives to worry about. The Rutherfords needed an activity that could involve everybody, and not just a token movie here or baseball game there. Barry senior thought that a membership to a local country club near their home in Marietta, Georgia, might work. After all, he and his son enjoyed getting out for a round on a golf course. But this option didn’t include too many activities for the three ladies in the family, other than attending a dinner party or trips to the pool, which they could do in their own neighborhood. They needed something they’d all enjoy, something new.
But the Rutherfords had never owned a boat. They had no idea what the process of purchasing and owning one involved, or how expensive it was, or exactly what they would be able to do on the water with the budget they had in mind. So Barry senior went solo to the Atlanta boat show in January with the intention of prospecting whether he really wanted to become a boat owner. That question was answered quickly. The trip’s purpose soon became deciding what kind of boat to buy. “It gets you hooked when you get down there,” he says. “You really start getting the itch when you’re talking to the dealers and manufacturers. Honestly, the boat show is a good place to buy a boat.” Barry found buying, or just browsing for a boat, much different than looking for a car. Boat models and products aren’t in every corner of every town like cars. The boat show had hundreds of boats and marine products to choose from, something Barry knew he couldn’t find at any other time. He was a good half-hour from the nearest body of water with marinas in the Atlanta area, and instead of driving around to scattered dealerships and stores across a few weekends, he could price and compare every type of boat he was interested in one place at the same time and talk to a variety of dealers and manufacturers during one visit. There were also a lot of bargain deals at the boat show that made getting out on the water more affordable. After browsing through the various makes and models, Barry narrowed his choices down to the ones packaged with the essential features his family needed. With a family of five, he wanted a good-sized boat with plenty of passenger space and lounging opportunities, which ruled out most of the small runabouts and jet boats he saw. The boat he bought had to be versatile, but not overly large like a sleeper, so that nixed the cuddy cabins and cruisers on display. “Those were the primary reasons for what we were looking, a boat with versatility and size, so we weren’t stepping over each other,” he says. It also needed a strong engine. He didn’t want sluggish performance in cruising, and a larger engine would accommodate skiing, tubing and wakeboarding. He was willing to overspend for a bigger engine if it came down to it. Johnny Crow of Watersports Central in Buford, Georgia, had just the boat Barry was looking for. After talking with Johnny, Barry took an interest in the Crownline 260 EX. The sleek deckboat had a seating capacity of 14, with a large cockpit sunbed and an aft bench that could convert into another sunbed. The loungers in the family would be happy. The Rutherfords could do all of their watersports with the 320-hp, 5.7L Volvo Penta engine and use the extended swim platform to gear up. The performance-lovers in the family were satisfied. There was even a portable head compartment suitable for extended trips, which met universal approval. But Barry wanted to get a feel for the Crownline 260 on the water before he made the decision. Two weeks after the boat show, he took a trip up to the dealership at Lake Lanier, Georgia, to test the boat. He checked the boat’s speed and ability to turn. He walked the deck again to make sure it had all of the accessories his family needed. After 45 minutes on the water, Barry was sold. The Rutherfords were going to own their first boat. “I just got excited about the opportunity to own one, number one,” he says. “And two, the kids were already starting to bug me after they came to the show on Sunday, so I had the family pressure. It was just something that we all wanted to do.” Look for more on the Rutherfords’ first boating season with their Crownline 260 EX in future issues of Boating World and online at www.boatingworldonline.com/firstyear. Reprinted from the September 2004 issue with permission of Boating World Magazine. |
Another option was buying a boat. “The primary reason we wanted a boat is because our kids are getting older, and they’re starting to do their own thing,” Barry senior says. “Kelli is over in (college), Barry has got his car and is doing things with his friends, and Holly is dating somebody, so this was a way to bring the family back together before everybody really starts splitting up and going their own way.”
