Fill’er Up
Boating is a fun sport, offering independence and adventure, however, to maximize the enjoyment of the experience, good judgement is oftentimes called for. Sound decisions must be made in a variety of areas from guest selection to beverages to navigational courses. And, for power boaters, how much fuel to carry at any one time.
One historical rule of thumb has been to carry 1/3 of a tank to get there, 1/3 to get back and 1/3 in reserve. This time-tested rule is a good one, but I’d like to suggest that with current conditions, perhaps it might be a good idea to modify it, and for next month or two, ask the fuel dock attendant to Fill’ re up. The extra fuel will enable you to head out without reservation the next time the fuel dock is closed due to CV-19 complications and it will help you avoid the possibility of running short while at sea with fewer recreational boaters around to lend a hand.
Yes, carrying more fuel will affect your performance and fuel economy, slightly. However, the peace of mind could be well worth it. Hopefully, we should be out of the CV-19 woods soon, and we can got back to the proven historical approaches, but in the meantime, consider carrying a bit more fuel, you’ll be glad you did.
