new 20-24 footers...
...can run up to $50K in price depending on make and equipment, so that makes the extra $100 in weekend gas use even more silly as an agrument for fewer boats..
BUT..
some of the boats out there are day boaters. That means 50, 100, 250 mile or more round trip towing events with a truck or SUV getting 15 mpg if you're lucky. Then comes gas for the boat, throw in a room rental and a meal or two and it gets into a $500 weekend, easily. Budgets are squeezed by the current energy prices (electric, oil, and natural gas are up too). I can see a family budget being challenged to the point where the aforementioned $500 boating junket does not get funded...
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