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1 week ago | 
soundingsonline.com | Charles Plueddeman
The new Dometic DG3 gyrostabilizer leverages new technologies and smart engineering to improve many aspects of marine stabilizer performance and it could have the potential to reset our expectations for a stabilizer system. According to Dometic, the DG3 offers faster spin-up and spin-down times, reduced power consumption and less maintenance than its leading competitors. Its predictive technology is reported to deliver refined performance that is almost undetectable to the captain and crew.
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3 weeks ago | 
boatingmag.com | Charles Plueddeman
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1 month ago | 
boatingmag.com | Charles Plueddeman
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1 month ago | 
boatingmag.com | Charles Plueddeman
The young man attending the gas dock in Frankfort, Michigan, seemed befuddled. "So you just crossed Lake Michigan on a pontoon boat," he said. "Why would you do that?"I thought about this for a moment and just shrugged. "I don't know. I guess because it's a nice day."The kid slipped the nozzle into our fuel fill and switched on the pump. He stood back and looked us over some more: three guys on the far side of middle age and a 22-foot pontoon. "So now what are you going to do?" he asked.
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1 month ago | 
boatingmag.com | Charles Plueddeman
Our neighborhood made the boating news twice in 2024, stories that have fueled the offseason hot-stove league here at the Lake View Inn, where everyone is welcome to their opinion. I'm almost certain you heard about Ryan Borgwardt, the fellow who tried to stage his drowning in Big Green Lake this past August. I got calls and texts from all over the country on this one.
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2 months ago | 
boatingmag.com | Charles Plueddeman
OverviewBoating with small children can be a fraught experience. I have a pair of toddler grandchildren, and they sure move fast. There's a low-level hum of anxiety when they are aboard, even though they are buttoned up in their life jackets. For family boating, security is paramount, which is why we think this new Hurricane SunDeck 3200 OB deserves consideration if some of your crew are about knee-high. Which is not to imply that swingin' singles or empty nesters won't also enjoy the SunDeck 3200.
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2 months ago | 
boatingmag.com | Charles Plueddeman
Room is always at a premium on angling boats. For 2025, the Alumacraft Competitor line of aluminum multispecies boats offers a clever idea that expands the aft casting deck without compromising cockpit space or making the boat longer. The X-Pods on either side of the outboard extend the aft deck by 16 inches. This gives the angler more foot room and makes it easier to fish around the motor. Each X-Pod also incorporates stowage space.
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2 months ago | 
boatingmag.com | Charles Plueddeman
It's a red-letter day at the Lake View Inn when somebody shows up with a new boat. Beers go flat and pizza goes cold at the bar while everyone adjourns to the parking lot to see the new, shiny thing, to either congratulate the owner or to scratch one's head-what were they thinking investing in any boat not equipped with rod holders?
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Jan 23, 2025 | 
boatingmag.com | Charles Plueddeman
Only in Wisconsin might freestyle water-skiing and free sweet corn be highlights of the same event. This past August, I found myself sitting on a bench overlooking Lake Mary, watching a national champion on a single ski launch a massive back mobius flip off a jump while I munched on my third ear of sweet corn. Or maybe my fourth. On a hot summer afternoon, nothing tastes better than free Wisconsin corn. And the kid stuck the landing.
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Jan 14, 2025 | 
soundingsonline.com | Charles Plueddeman
No owner loves a boat with a bad attitude. Today, with the advent of adaptive vessel attitude control systems, there’s really no excuse for a boat that exhibits poor behavior, including excessive bow rise on acceleration, listing and heeling and pounding through wakes. A new generation of “smart trim tabs” employs sensors and digital technology to offer an unprecedented level of pitch, roll and yaw control with no input from the captain.
