Question for those with larger yachts who are not geographically close to their boat.

BOB TYSON

Active Member
Oct 5, 2017
295
Kansas City
Boat Info
2005 460 Sundancer (SOLD)
Engines
Boatless
How are you handling the anxiety of being a half day or more travel to your vessel? We are contemplating the ownership of a larger Sea Ray that will reside on the west coast of Florida.
We live in Kansas City and have always been within 3 hours travel time to our boats in case of an emergency.
The dreaded call from a marina/dock captain or neighbor that your boat is "taking on water" is a concern.
A good insurance policy and quality maintance is a given. That said, what are you doing, if anything, to sleep well at night? The only thing I can think of is having a local Captain on retainer.
If that is the answer then I need to build that into the operational costs.
Thanks in advance for your (always excellent) responses!
 
Living here in Florida I see a lot of absentee owners from out of state in our marina. They either have contracts with local marinas to handle emergencies or make arrangements with dock neighbors to make adjustments to ropes or pull canvas when storms roll through unexpectedly. My slip neighbor is from Michigan. He knows I'm at my boat all the time and has a deal with me to keep an eye out for anything strange.

With regards to "taking on water"...it rarely happens. I've never seen any boats in my marina that start taking on water as they sit unused. Not to say that batteries don't die and bilge pumps do fail, but if you've got someone here to check on it once a month you should be ok.

Another option if you want peace of mind is to install a security camera system. My marina provides wifi, so setting up a system shouldn't be that difficult. You can check on the engine room, cockpit and cabin from time to time.

Good luck.
 
I've done this long distance ownership thing for 25+ years. It doesn't matter how far or how many days a year you are away, when you are a day's drive or an airline flight away, you worry. The best advice I can give you is to pick a full service marina and pick it very carefully.

My marina is one of a few that is a Sea Ray authorized repair facility which means they are able to repair a boat to SR standards. They have 24 hour security and video surveillance. They have travel lift haul out service available on the property, they offer fiberglass repairs, detailing services, they have an electronics installer/repair technician on staff, they have several big boat qualified mechanics on staff and the marina policy is that the marina management makes the decision to haul out boats for storms and they haul every wet slip boat out when they do. There is room on the property to block up and secure all the boats in wet slips. This is a big deal for absentee owners….you don't sit in Kansas City glued to the TV or your computer wondering what to do or if you should do anything. Best of all, this is a family owned business and their customers are treated like part of the family. As a result, the owners group tends to be very compatible and take pride in keeping the marina clean and misbehaving owners out. Everyone knows me, the service managers, dock master, all the mechanics, all see my boat every day and I get an immediate cell phone call if someone sees something amiss.

This level of service isn't free, but the marina stays competitive.

We have marina friends who are from Denver, Central KY, all over Alabama and GA and I am from near Nashville. This situation works extremely well for absentee owners.

I just published an article on Hurricane Preparation in the Club Level section yesterday. It is long but worth reading for someone considering the move you anticipate.
 
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Bob, I don't fall into this category, but I know exactly the anxiety you are referring to. In the winter we do not use the boat, but it is wet slipped in a boathouse year around. Our marina had a huge burglary 18 months ago so I installed the SimpliSafe alarm system for security but quickly learned that it is much than that. I have added a water alarm in the bilge, a freeze alarm in the cockpit, smoke & CO detector and if my marina had wi-fi I could add the camera option too. I almost forgot it notifies me of any power outages immediately. My next door neighbor is snowbird gone 4-6 months every winter and I have a key to his house and check on his boat every 2-4 weeks while he is away. This has gone on for 8+ years now and no issues to report.
 
I fall into this category, and at first I worried. But I quickly made peace with myself as its just a material thing. I do my best and if something bad were to happen, I'm insured and I'll deal with it when and if.

However, trying to plan and execute any type of maintenance is a royal pain in the ass! The boat, having had a couple owners now and 17+ years old, nothing is exactly as I expect it, so when planning to do MX I can only accomplish about 1/4 of what I could at home. I never have the right tool, or the part isn't exactly right or it take longer than I'm there to get one. Obviously I could pay someone, but that would get extremely expensive quick.

While I love the Clearwater area, I'll be glad to get her home where I can get her up to my MX standards at a more leisurely pace, and have more use of the boat.
 
Getting to know your dock mates and the marina staff is a great help. Tipping the marina staff for their help at the fuel dock & pump outs goes a long way.

Having a reliable mobile mechanic is also a plus.

Camera systems, temperature & bilge water sensors are options, probably the best ones work over the mobile phone network and not the marina's wi-fi. In a big weather event, though, mobile phones may be out, too.

When we're away from our boat, the water hose is completely disconnected. I've seen boats flooded when the hose connection somehow fails.

There's a lot more and you probably know all of it.
 
I am 4-1/2 hour drive away. A lot of good points already made. I got lucky and chose a slip that the marina's web cams were pointed right at my boat and a few of my slip neighbors. They all complained as it infringed on their privacy... I just sat quietly and cheered to myself. It was a great comfort to check on it thru the week. So keep that in mind if the marina has cameras or if you can put one up. Having an on board camera pointed outside to get a sense of weather, water level etc helps a lot too.

Slip neighbors are your best allies for day to day issues like lines, water level, wind etc.
Marina support in my mind is mandatory
 
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We are 11 hour drive to the boat
We do not have any look at while we are not there. Been doing this since 2000. No problems. Have check list I do every time we leave and reverse it when we arrive. Go to the boat 2 or 3 times a year. Lots of people pay to have their boats looked at and engines run. Did it one year did not notice any difference.
 
I'm a 1.5 hour flight away, 11 hour drive. Boat in Miami, I live in Atlanta. during hurricane season, i strip the cockpit and double tie every time i leave the boat. we have a great dockmaster, and i don't worry about the boat at all. i have a good insurance policy.
 
Where on the west coast is the boat? I have a yacht manager take care of my boat when I’m away. I could pass along his number and info if your close to Naples. By the way, having a “dealer” do this is very a expensive way to handle your problem and you don’t get someone who cares, just someone collecting a paycheck. Plus, I’m sure the dealer will find loads of work that “needs” to be done.

Bow Tie
 
If you are not in a position to personally prep your boat for a hurricane, find a close by yacht management company, or have your boat in a reliable marina. I've been through a couple of them and, luckily, being prepared have had no issues. I have several neighbors who live up north and with a last minute call they say please prep my boat. While I and my year around neighbors are happy to do what we can, it's difficult and stressful to prep for absentees plus your own. For the day to day weather and general condition reporting, dock mates and friends are fine. For serious weather have someone on retainer.
 
Went through this same thought process a few years ago with our last boat.

We live in Texas, boat in Florida.

Last boat was in the south FL area on the east coast. Current boat is on the west coast in the Clearwater area.

Lot of good observations above. Decisions are typically made differently that if you are close to the boat. In my opinion you do need to include budget for more services. When you lose the ability to run over on a Saturday and take care of a list of items - you either have someone who works the list for you - or you fly in and spend all your time working on items.

Insurance is another consideration, can be different for absentee owners in specific counties in Florida.

Would be happy to talk with you about our experiences with two different boats in two different parts of Florida. Send me a private message and we can connect on the phone some time if you would like.

Mark
 
I've done this long distance ownership thing for 25+ years. It doesn't matter how far or how many days a year you are away, when you are a day's drive or an airline flight away, you worry. The best advice I can give you is to pick a full service marina and pick it very carefully.

My marina is one of a few that is a Sea Ray authorized repair facility which means they are able to repair a boat to SR standards. They have 24 hour security and video surveillance. They have travel lift haul out service available on the property, they offer fiberglass repairs, detailing services, they have an electronics installer/repair technician on staff, they have several big boat qualified mechanics on staff and the marina policy is that the marina management makes the decision to haul out boats for storms and they haul every wet slip boat out when they do. There is room on the property to block up and secure all the boats in wet slips. This is a big deal for absentee owners….you don't sit in Kansas City glued to the TV or your computer wondering what to do or if you should do anything. Best of all, this is a family owned business and their customers are treated like part of the family. As a result, the owners group tends to be very compatible and take pride in keeping the marina clean and misbehaving owners out. Everyone knows me, the service managers, dock master, all the mechanics, all see my boat every day and I get an immediate cell phone call if someone sees something amiss.

This level of service isn't free, but the marina stays competitive.

We have marina friends who are from Denver, Central KY, all over Alabama and GA and I am from near Nashville. This situation works extremely well for absentee owners.

I just published an article on Hurricane Preparation in the Club Level section yesterday. It is long but worth reading for someone considering the move you anticipate.

What is the name of your marina Frank?
 
Frank’s marina is Treasure Island in Panama Coty Fl. I even use them for parts in Texas they have been first class!
 

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