Tagged: fuel
OPEC
High gas prices, currently the norm on land, will become a reality on the water in the upcoming season. There are a number of ways to become more fuel efficient. Here’s a sampling, based on personal experience. One, keep your outdrive and propeller free of growth and barnacles to reduce drag. Two, slim down the load by minimizing the amount of gear you carry beyond the essentials. Three, increase your low speed planning ability by balancing the load (guests) appropriately. Four, use direct routes to get from one anchorage to another and don’t idle long once you arrive. This [...]
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 [...]