My Dream Boat, A 25ft Chris Craft Sportsman.
I saw my first 25 ft sportsman in Clayton NY. She was absolutely stunning. At first I past by her, but the more I went by, the more the boat made sense. Then at the Smith Mountain Lake show, one was parked next to me. Same thing. mmmm this is a very nice boat, it also had a new modern motor…mmm I kinda like that as well. Now I found this one at Mahogany Bay. I am hooked. Yeah a U22 is more realistic, but this is my new dream boat. Were I live is bigger water. And the 25 footer has all the goodies, and the size to make it all easy peezy. The lines and extra seats also make it perfect for a fun day on the water. Also there is a subtitle softness to the lines. The real question is, since restored ones are all around 100K, have they come down in value as well? I imagine so. 25 feet is a lot of restoration work! mmmm my Barrel back for a 25 ft sportsman.
You know, I contemplated a U-25 before I bought our U-22. The reason I didn’t jump was because at the time I could not find a twin engine model and I had previously seen a twin, as well as a twin sedan in the 25′ model. I would have done the same thing I did with our current boat—find one in usable condition, use it for a couple of seasons and then bite the bullet and have her restored all at once. As it is, I have had absolutely no regrets on buying our U-22. Like you say, it is big and roomy, and our water is “BIG”, too. I grew up living on Lake Chickamauga, which is on the Tennessee River in Chattanooga, Tennessee. It was not unusual for my family to get up on a crisp Fall Ssturday morning, go down to the boathouse and get in the (plastic) boat and cruise up the river to Knoxville. We’d dock the boat beside Neyland Stadium, get out and go see the Volunteers play (my alma mater) and then head home, stopping somewhere along the way for supper. Not a bad way to grow up. And the U-22 facilitates our afternoons on the water these days. My wife prefers a day on the antique over the plastic boat any day.
Dear god Ken…You wrote this during the super bowl… The most exciting superbowl in recent history. I am honered.. And for that A U22 is it… OK I stand no chance of affording a 25 footer.
I have retired to the wing of the house with my office. No women allowed. Wooden boat models cover every flat furface…..36″ Capitan, two 48″ Corvettes, a 36″ Continental, Rivas, etc, etc. There’s even a 60″ Titanic model. The plasma was in my peripheral vision the whole time. God I hate the Steelers.