Ride N Drive on Pool 4 Sunday May 15, 2011

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think next couple months will really shake out whether to go with the 200 or the 150, I hear you Jami on the “never complain about extra HP”…that is the question, just how more will be gained? That 150 data is just too good to believe-will the 200 be much more gain? I know dusty’s boat with 175 HPDI did 53 with me in it, and Tom P’s same boat with 135 opti (147 horse), did upper 40,s and if he did not bring all his junk and left his box of bell sinkers at home would probably hit 50…Tom’s boat pops out of the hole fast and zips just fine. Will be really interested in how this all shakes out as the option of the 150 means no oil changes and absolutely BULLETPROOF–not that the HPDI isn’t(probably most time tested direct 2 stroke out there), but what will be the distinct advantage? Time will tell… The SHO 200HP shows promise, but think the price tag will maybe outweigh the bene’s..that is unless Dave can work his magic with pricing, seems he’s done all he can on this one and has excellent cooperation with Skeeter.

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Doc, once I get her and break her in, we’ll go for a spin. She’ll be rigged with a kicker and terrova and all the “necessary” gear for fishing, so you should get real working numbers with it and can decide from there.

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I really hope Dave has an Mx1825 with the 200 Hpdi at the ride and drive later this summer!!

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Ryan,
Great to see you and Holly on Sunday. Thanks for taking a ride!! We will have at least 5-6 scheduled Ride and Drives yet this year with the new MX and other Skeeters:

Once we get our first MX1825 with 200hpdi we’ll be scheduling a Ride and Drive on Lake Wissota in Chippewa Falls, back down on pool 4 or maybe Hastings, and possibly somewhere on one of metro lakes.

Additional Scheduled Ride and Drives will be:
First weekend of August in LaCrosse
Up in Hayward for Musky Hunt Tournament in Sept
Back down on pool 4 the weekend before Saugerama

Been too busy to update my website, but should have details in early June once I know for sure when my MX’s will start arriving. I know I need to get that info posted.

Also, remember that we are happy to arrange a private demo ride by appointment if you want to look at a specific boat or two.

Thanks Jami! I’ll take you up on that. James, your right, I need to drive one, but knowing me, I’ll ask every question that my one celled brain can pop up. What is cool to see is, there has not been this type of excitement generated by a boat in a LONG time–it’s going to fit the niche that fits many, many people. Personally knowing the people whom had a hand in this, and how they fish, really is a boost in the arm-hearing Dusty went 52 mph across chop, well, it was just like I was in the boat with him. Reason I am so jazzed is, endorsements have come from people I personally know that won’t blow smoke.
Way cool………

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Dustin did a test with a “full boat” to simulate a guide trip. He had 4 in the boat and I think he kept the livewell full but he can clarify that for us if he responds. I didn’t catch his speeds or thoughts on the hole shot when running this type of load but if he reads this hopefully he’ll share those stats with us and his thoughts on the boat overall.

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Sure did! All I can say is WOW . Those that had the opportunity to drive this boat know it tracks like a roller coaster, it just won’t do as well upside down , turning the corners on the other hand? Well, you’ll just have to experience it for yourselves.

My 18’2″ Deep V Crestliner has a better ride than any other tin boat I have ever been in and also tracks unbelievably well when 3-waying and trolling because of the deep v hull. The MX Hull will perform much better in both of these categories.

The ride is unbelievable in this glass boat compared to tin. I ventured down in to Lake Pepin in water that would have had me and my clients soaking wet at 20mph. I did this in the MX at 52mph gps and did not get wet. As we all know, no matter what kind of boat we drive, at some point and time you will get wet when the conditions are right. Just so happens on sunday the conditions were very favorable for me and a couple of guys to get soaking wet in my boat venturing down in to lake Pepin. However they were not favorable enough for me and 3 other to get wet in the MX hull at 52mph.

I am trying to ask my self why would I ever want to buy tin again when I can get twice the performance and ride out of a glass boat that will be very comparable to tin boat pricing. Pretty easy decision for me any way

As stated i did load this boat with 3 others just to see how it would perform from a guide perspective. Thumbs up from me with the 150 Yamaha four stroke. Hole shot was still very good, we hit 52.4mph down river and 50.1 mph going back up river. I was not aware of the live well being full of water. Never had time to stop and wet a line, would have been nice though just to see what an 8lb walleye looked like in a shiny new boat’s livewell .

Any body wants to make me an offer on Crestliner 182 tournamnet series boat with a 175 HPDI? I would list the color as well but heck, everyone knows what color it is anyway . My numbers listed below

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Hey Dustin – Thanks for the eval. I’m in the same boat…almost literally. I’ve got an 18 foot Pro-V with a Merc 150EFI, and purchased it, I’m sure, for similar reasons you did at the time. There’s plenty of reasons to like that boat, and it was pretty easy to dismiss fiberglass when it was heavy, poorly organized, and worst of all pricey. Now I find myself trying to come up with an argument for tin when something like this is on the market, and it’s difficult!

It’s funny how the same features you appreciate so much, are ones that I think I’d fall in love with for different reasons. A dry ride is nice no matter when, where, or who you’re fishing with, and I’m sure when you’re guiding you don’t want to drown the customers. Spray in a client’s face is bad I’m sure, but a wet ride is an absolute deal-breaker for a family. Last summer we camped in Cutfoot Sioux but found a decent eye bite on Winnie. I could make the long and nasty ride out there to find the fish, and fishing was good, but a feeble and short-lived attempt to get out there with wife and kids wasn’t even worth the effort. There have been way too many rocks left unturned due to runs I couldn’t make with the family in the boat.

I’m really interested in the storage too, and though I know I’ll get a chance to see for myself sooner than later, I’m wondering if others could chime in. I’m already sold on the separate long-rod and regular rod storage system, so that’s not a concern. That said, the other storage needs to be airplane-hanger big. Kids mean snacks/drinks, extra tackle, clothes, etc., and I struggle right now to stow standard fishing gear like drift socks, anchors, life jackets, tackle, along with the additional stuff that hits my boat as soon as it’s a family trip.

Thanks again for the report, and looking forward to more discussion on this boat!

Joel

I drove the boat during the Hayward ride and drive – on the Chip flowage. The boat is awesome, the 150hp easily got the boat on plain and moving fast. I’d suggest two corrections: the passenger seat bases are two tall even with the seat all the way down. My wife’s feet didn’t touch the floor. If the two rear storage compartment openings were made slightly larger, Plano 3700 boxes would easily fit inside.

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I’d suggest two corrections: the passenger seat bases are two tall even with the seat all the way down. My wife’s feet didn’t touch the floor. If the two rear storage compartment openings were made slightly larger, Plano 3700 boxes would easily fit inside.

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The original test boat turned out great but there will be additional fine tuning before the first production units hit the sales floor. So there’s good news regarding your specific suggestions… both of those changes are in the works as feedback continues to flow back to Skeeter as a result of these Ride N Drives. The goal is to have the passenger seat bases the same height as the drivers pedestal, which will lower them significantly to better accomodate shorter riders without compromising comfort for the tall and lanky, and engineering is looking at enlarging the openings to the rear compartments by the 1/2″ or so needed to accommodate the larger 3700 series boxes.

That is amazing How often is consumer feedback taken into account so quickly and changes actually made to make the boat more user friendly right off the bat. I feel like I am almost in a competition with River Rat Randy to see who can wring the most out of his old boat—-he is winning by a long shot—but I have to admit I am getting the itch to drive one of these new Skeeters. Good thing the boy is half a world away or I am afraid he would be pushing me over the edge to take the plunge. It is threads like this one that show what Skeeter is trying to do and they are taking listening to the end user to a whole new level.

Is the Terrova 101 also available and is there room for the added battery in the floor. I can’t remember from the ride and drive…

Thanks

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Is the Terrova 101 also available and is there room for the added battery in the floor. I can’t remember from the ride and drive…

Thanks

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This boat is designed to accommodate and will come equipped with a 24 V. system.

Could you add a battery in one of the rear deck compartments and get to a 36V system? It would take up one of the storage compartments and you’d have to run a set of wires to the other battery compartment but it could likely be done.

In my opinion you’d be better suited to jump up from 27 series batteries to 30 series batteries and stick with the 24 V. In all my years of guiding on the river in an 18′ boat I never ran short of power with a 24 V troller after upgrading to the higher capacity batteries.

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Is the Terrova 101 also available and is there room for the added battery in the floor. I can’t remember from the ride and drive…

Thanks

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This boat is designed to accommodate and will come equipped with a 24 V. system.

Could you add a battery in one of the rear deck compartments and get to a 36V system? It would take up one of the storage compartments and you’d have to run a set of wires to the other battery compartment but it could likely be done.

In my opinion you’d be better suited to jump up from 27 series batteries to 30 series batteries and stick with the 24 V. In all my years of guiding on the river in an 18′ boat I never ran short of power with a 24 V troller after upgrading to the higher capacity batteries.

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Just an FYI for those guys considering. When I was looking at this very question for my WX I realized that it was only $134 more to put in the 101# over the price of what it would have cost to swap out the Group 27s for Group 31s if I stayed with the 24v system. Of course this was the WX1850 where the 3 bank charger was not a standard option and I had to add it. So the math may not add up for the MX.

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Is the Terrova 101 also available and is there room for the added battery in the floor. I can’t remember from the ride and drive…

Thanks

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This boat is designed to accommodate and will come equipped with a 24 V. system.

Could you add a battery in one of the rear deck compartments and get to a 36V system? It would take up one of the storage compartments and you’d have to run a set of wires to the other battery compartment but it could likely be done.

In my opinion you’d be better suited to jump up from 27 series batteries to 30 series batteries and stick with the 24 V. In all my years of guiding on the river in an 18′ boat I never ran short of power with a 24 V troller after upgrading to the higher capacity batteries.

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Just an FYI for those guys considering. When I was looking at this very question for my WX I realized that it was only $134 more to put in the 101# over the price of what it would have cost to swap out the Group 27s for Group 31s if I stayed with the 24v system. Of course this was the WX1850 where the 3 bank charger was not a standard option and I had to add it. So the math may not add up for the MX.

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With the MX you’d be looking at a new charger as I’m expecting the three bank will be made standard option so there would likely be a serious upcharge to make this switch. (Note – I’m “expecting” the charger to be standard… this is NOT official at this time.) And again, trust a guy that put in hundreds of long days a year fishing from the bow 90% the time in current… you won’t need it with an 18′ boat.

Another observation from our test drive – the seats are super comfortable. I’ve never sat in a boat seat that just seems to wrap itself around your contour. I thought I was sitting in my lazy boy.

Another question – the demo boat seemed to sit a little high on the trailer, actually above the wheel wells. I was told they just threw the trailer together for the show. Are they planning on adjusting the trailer so the boat sits lower and ultimately requires less water to launch?

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the demo boat seemed to sit a little high on the trailer, actually above the wheel wells. I was told they just threw the trailer together for the show. Are they planning on adjusting the trailer so the boat sits lower and ultimately requires less water to launch?

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Absolutely, they’re going to do what they can do get it between the fenders. The boat is obviously VERY wide and I know nobody on the input team or any of the engineers will be willing to narrow the hull to get it lower on the trailer but if there’s trailer mods that can be made to make it sit a little lower they’re going to make it a priority. No guarantees, obviously. But we should know soon enough.

Anything new on when boats will be available for sale? Any pictures of a dual console model?

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Anything new on when boats will be available for sale? Any pictures of a dual console model?

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Skeeter has a film shoot planned up in MN during the second week in July and a dual console with 200 HPDI is slated to be on hand. I would bet pics will be available within days of that shoot.

Post deleted by Muskie Greg

I would be interested in knowing how you priced out a boat?

Im just curious as I would like to know what the prices are myself?

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Skeeter got everyone excited with a quality boat that was going to compete with aluminum boat pricing. I figured under 30k was probably going to be with a 115hp. We just priced out a dual console with 150hp and the price came in at over $36k. We were quite surprised because it is more expensive than a WX1850 with similar options and it is not much less than a Ranger Angler 1860. What happened between earlier pricing excitement and today?

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A dealer can price a boat anywhere they want to price it.

However, I just talked with Dave Markquart not 4 hours ago and pricing was NOT finalized. Not sure who you got pricing from… if they’ve got it I’m sure SBC is going to be plenty surprised to hear it. The prelim pricing discussed today had the 1825 coming in UNDER the 1850. Again, not sure who gave you a quote.

Sounds like final pricing will be available next week. When Dave at SBC posts pricing then I’ll consider it “final” and accurate.

From Dave Markquart re: pricing… June 24 – MX 1825 Pricing

Hi Muskie Greg,
Each dealer will be allowed to set their own pricing. I understand you’ve received a price quote but we (SBC) have yet to recieve official pricing from Skeeter. We have been waiting patiently for pricing and were told it would be released some time ago, but it looks like Skeeter decided to release MX pricing along with the rest of the 2012 models instead of in advance. Once we receive factory pricing and programs we will publish our best price and review pricing options in detail. Until then, we can’t tell you what our best price on an MX will be…

I sure wish I had pricing info I could post on IDO, but as of today, we still don’t.