Month: January 2014
Current Issues
I was exposed to long-distance river cruising for the first time a decade ago this summer. The majority of my expedition was made on Heartland rivers, including the Ohio, Mississippi and Missouri, and it was along these waterways that I received a historic perspective as well as a hands-on clinic on boating in current. […] Read More
The Complete Listing of Marinas and Locks on the Inland and Gulf Intracoastal Waterways
Ohio Law May Do Away with Spotters
A new bill being considered in the Ohio House of Representatives would allow boaters to tow skiers and tubers while watching them in the rearview mirror. House Bill 372 seeks to change an existing state law that requires an extra person on board to observe those being pulled from behind. Such spotters must […] Read More
Naming and Christening Your Boat
Even with the advent of GPS, radar, weather tracking and other sophisticated safety and navigation systems, boat naming is considered serious business by otherwise non-superstitious professional and recreational mariners. While the ancient Egyptians are credited with popularizing the practice of naming boats, it was the Babylonians who performed the first recorded boat […] Read More
Yamaha F175 Outboard
Yamaha Marine Group announced the addition of the F175 outboard to its in-line four-cylinder product family. The new F175 joins the V MAX SHO 150 and F200, which are based on Yamaha’s new 2.8-liter in-line four-cylinder platform. The V MAX SHO 150 and F200 are winners of the IBEX Innovation award for 2013. […] Read More
‘Caching’ In
By now most people have probably heard of geocaching, the sport-slash-game in which participants use a GPS and clues to help them find hidden containers filled with goodies. It’s a next-gen treasure hunt that started at the turn of the new millennium and, thanks to the Internet, has grown to include more than 6 […] Read More
New Boats of 2014
AB Inflatables: Based on its roomy and open Navigo 12 VS tender, AB has added molded-in seating for five to create the new 12 VSX. The 12-foot rigid inflatable boat (RIB) features a quality Orca CSM tube, LED navigation lights, bilge pump, stainless-steel steering wheel and grab handle, concealed stowage in the bow locker, […] Read More
Profile: Clinton Marina
The Clinton Marina in Clinton, Iowa, is a study in growth and change. Following years of consternation, discussion and debate at city hall about what to do with the marina, it finally got a complete, $6.8 million rebuild in 2008. The list of improvements was long and extensive. The on-water portion included […] Read More
The Complete Listing of Marinas and Locks on the Inland and Gulf Intracoastal Waterways
Time and Again
Two-and-a-half decades. A quarter of a century. Two-dozen-plus-one boating seasons. No matter how you slice it, 25 years is a pretty long time, and HeartLand Boating has been on the water for every one of them. Rather than unleash a history lesson on how and why “Mid-America’s Premier Boating Publication” came into […] Read More