I didn't get a post out in 2010 because I was extremely preoccupied with realizing a dream. I'm glad to say the ordeal is finally complete. In true Mastercard fashion, this is how it breaks down:
Casa Bahia Slip Assignment---------- $30,000
2005 Mastercraft Xstar (182hrs)----- $35,900
Boat Delivery from Virginia to Florida- $333
Modifying Boat for Saltwater Use---- $7,484.59
Miscellaneous Maintenance/Repair--- $2,496.99
10k lb Boat Lift----------------------- $3,499.00
USACE/FDEP/DERM/CMB Permits- $2,099.16
Boat Lift Installation----------------- $4,617.18
PTO to Manage Project-------------- $2,880
Miami Beach H2O Skiing Anytime--- Priceless
The dream came to be after moving to Florida in 1999. Friends I made from work invited me to a water ski park in Deerfield, FL. I started out knee boarding which was ok, but once I put on a wakeboard I was hooked. It was a 30min drive from my house and $25/visit, but I would go 3X/wk. About a year later I met another coworker, Mark Boerger, who had his own boat and lived nearby. Skiiing behind a boat was more fun - although equally time consuming and costly - so I started riding regularly with him. Then I moved to South Beach and Boerger had a couple kids, so getting out on the water became all-the-more challenging. My addiction to wakeboarding persisted. I mean it's Xtreme fun, physically challenging, and get's me outside. Can't beat that.
BTW, I was wondering...
| Have you owned a Smartphone previous to what you're using now? | If so, what did you do with it? |
Anyway, in the summer of 2008 while searching for an apartment for my mom, I came across Casa Bahia. A small condo in a kick back area of Miami Beach with great potential. Best asset: an unclaimed 30ft dock slip. I jumped on it and got us a good deal (back then) at $195k, 165k for the apartment and $30k for the slip. Since I didn't have a boat, I figured I would just rent it out. Soon found out this was not an option per the condo rules, so that wasn't cool. I got around it somewhat by getting on my buddy Nereydo's boat registration and having him use the slip. No real kickbacks though so I had to my own vessel soon.
At the end of 2009 the recession was in full swing and even rich people were struggling for cash. I found someone on Craigslist selling a 2005 Xstar for $45k. With all the research I had done, I knew it was the best deal I was gonna find. It was still way above my cash pot so after over a month of negotiating, I got it down to $35,900. It helped to have discovered that the seller's town of Franklin, VA was loosing it's major employer (thanks Alex E./Google!!). Franklin wasn't close to any major airport, so to save money I scored a road trip with my BFF, Rod Gomez, and his family from their home in Charlotte, NC (good times!!). With some total clutch planning I also found a guy on uShip.com that would agreed to meet in Franklin and take the boat down to Miami for $300! He'd never been to Miami Beach so it was a way for him to pay for his gas. :)
Everything was gravy up until this point. While the boat was still in route I heard from my dentist that owning a boat was no joke. I had some to-dos in mind already - retrofitting the boat for salt water use, getting a boat lift, and some maintenance items - but she highlighted the permitting process required for any installations on water. I fifured it couldn't be so difficult and that last-resort I could just get a drop-in SunLift. Oh was I wrong.
Permit Saga
...to be continued...
Installation
...to be continued...
Deployment Day
...to be continued...
Key Take-Aways
...to be continued...
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