No shoe rule on boat ?

[brian4321]

Most of my friends have super nice boats and strict no shoe rules, but my boat isn't perfect, and I don't have a no shoe rule although most of my regular passengers take their shoes off anyway.. we always have kids along and end up with food crumbs , spilled drinks, sticky candy , etc. and it's always cleaned up good .. my mentality is my boat is to relax on and have no worries

 

[mbgaski]

You're well within your right to make your own rules, though personally "no shoes" isn't something I've heard of before. Probably has to do with the typical use of the boat though. I don't just go out "boating" - I go out fishing, which has always been in an aluminum jon boat or a carpeted bass boat. Shoes won't really hurt either (and will keep you from burning your foot on hot aluminum on the jon boats), and in both they tend to help keep hooks out of your feet.

 

[MH Hawker]

another reason to own a pontoon

 

[bruceb58]

When my Lexus that I bought new was around a year old, I went on a date and we went to the beach. When my date was getting back in the car, she was trying super hard to get every spec of sand off her feet and shoes. I told her..."it's just a car...don't worry about it". She smiled and was likely grateful I wasn't same anal guy with his precious car!

 

[sphelps]

Stuff happens ... And can really fast and unexpected .. http://forums.iboats.com/forum/other/stupid-human-tricks-while-boating-fishing/10218626-detached-toe

 

[R055]

When my Lexus that I bought new was around a year old, I went on a date and we went to the beach. When my date was getting back in the car, she was trying super hard to get every spec of sand off her feet and shoes. I told her..."it's just a car...don't worry about it". She smiled and was likely grateful I wasn't same anal guy with his precious car!

I too have exceptions for girls I like(I'm not married, only 19).
Girls generally have cleaner feet than guys. When we go camping there is alot of dirt and everyone who walks bare foot comes on to the boat and he pretty dirty feet. If it's a girl I don't really say anything, if it's a guy I usally ask he go take a dip in the lake or keep his feet off the vinyl.

 

[bruceb58]

I too have exceptions for girls

Maybe you misunderstood...I don't have any exceptions. You can wear what you want because I am not anal about it.

 

[WIMUSKY]

When my Lexus that I bought new was around a year old, I went on a date and we went to the beach. When my date was getting back in the car, she was trying super hard to get every spec of sand off her feet and shoes. I told her..."it's just a car...don't worry about it". She smiled and was likely grateful I wasn't same anal guy with his precious car!

:thumb:...

 

[jkust]

The reality with boats is that fixing any sort of damage is time off the water, trailering it to the city and taking my time away from me. The smallest fix that requires a professional is a huge hassle. If I had a fishing boat, I wouldn't care about shoes because they are set up completely differently. Our boat is for cruising and wakeboarding and skiing and that's pretty much it. I have a no shoes rule on the boat as well. If we go to a resort for dinner, people will bring their Crocks and sandles and put them back on when we get there. I really like the fact that you don't have to walk over the upholstery and that the manufacturers made the walk through at the transom. As for pontoons...a mediocre new one is 60k around me and when we add one to the fleet, we will continue with the no shoes rule. Even if I had an ultra cheapo 30k model, I would still have a no shoes rule given there are many opportunities to put feet up. Pontoons rule our lake and the prices have become very high. Shoes cause premature wear and tear and we keep our stuff longer than most folks. When given the choice between something with wear and tear or without wear and tear, I choose without.

 

[bruceb58]

A pontoon's carpet is going to wear out way faster from the sun than people walking on it with shoes!

 

[jkust]

A pontoon's carpet is going to wear out way faster from the sun than people walking on it with shoes!

You can't even buy a new pontoon that still has carpet around me. They all come with Sea Grass or similar and my local marina won't even order carpet it seems for the last couple of years. Carpet has gone by the wayside as it did on the bowrider several years back when fiberglass floor became standard. It took a few more years to happen with pontoons. I realize there are lower end pontoons out there and that everyone doesn't consider 60 to be mediocre and that it sounds crazy as do $120k tow sport boats that are everywhere for a 90 day summer season.

 

[bruceb58]

You can't even buy a new pontoon that still has carpet around me. They all come with Sea Grass or similar and my local marina won't even order carpet it seems for the last couple of years. Carpet has gone by the wayside as it did on the bowrider several years back when fiberglass floor became standard. It took a few more years to happen with pontoons. I realize there are lower end pontoons out there and that everyone doesn't consider 60 to be mediocre and that it sounds crazy as do $120k tow sport boats that are everywhere for a 90 day summer season.

LOL...OK...The Sea Grass is going to wear out from the sun faster than any shoe is going to cause!

EDIT: Now I am reading about the Seagrass...people say it gets too hot to be on it with bare feet so they put carpet strips over it! LOL

 

[jkust]

LOL...OK...The Sea Grass is going to wear out from the sun faster than any shoe is going to cause!

Fair enough...plus we just don't get that bad of sun damage from MN sun....I mean it takes a lot of neglect compared to southern states. Sun exposure while you are actually using it, for the most part, isn't a huge deal in MN unless you store it uncovered. Most every boat lift has a canopy as well. Oddly enough, the guy I bought my boat from, had a no shoes, no colored drinks rule and he said he would always catch a lot of ribbing from his friends but it is what made me go to an older boat from my previous newer boat. It was just so nice, I was fine going older as long as the engine was what I wanted. Condition is what sold his boat to me when his life got too busy to use it any longer (daughter was trying to make the olympic gymnist team). I'm happy he had the rule in place because finding a truly good condition boat with the stuff you want is just such a time committment. One of the reasons I can almost see buying boats brand new.

 

[bruceb58]

no colored drinks rule

One of our favorite things to do when I am at my house in Lake Tahoe is to cruise from our house to Emerald bay and have a bottle of wine. That's what is nice about fiberglass floors...cleans easily.

I even drink wine on my mediocre pontoon that has carpet!

 

[Leardriver]

My feet are too tender to go shoeless. I get enough cuts already from sharp edges that I never saw. I would rather have the boat work for me. I scrub, buff, and polish it to a gleam frequently, and can never tell that shoes have been on it.

 

[jkust]

One of our favorite things to do when I am at my house in Lake Tahoe is to cruise from our house to Emerald bay and have a bottle of wine. That's what is nice about fiberglass floors...cleans easily.

I even drink wine on my mediocre pontoon that has carpet!

I don't really have the no colored drinks rule, but I'm happy he did. I would prefer no colored drinks but don't have a hard rule. Someone mentioned catching their feet on edges and things on the boat, one thing that always used to get me was the darn cleats on my former boat but now have pop up's and am happy not to catch a toe on them. Of course, If I really wanted to live on the edge, I could use the snap in carpet to pad the floor given how the hard fiberglass floor gets to be a lot by the end of a day on the water.

 

[JimS123]

I've been to every local boat show since 1955. I don't ever remember a show that didn't have the following sign on every boat in the show: "Boarding without shoes only". As far as allowing dogs on my boat....that will happen the day after they bury me.

 

[bruceb58]

I've been to every local boat show since 1955. I don't ever remember a show that didn't have the following sign on every boat in the show: "Boarding without shoes only". As far as allowing dogs on my boat....that will happen the day after they bury me.

The boat shows in Los Angeles always allow shoes. Same goes for every boat dealer.

Went to an in-water boat show with $1Million yachts and they allowed shoes too as long as they were soft soled.

 

[muskyfins]

I can see it at shows. These are boat that will be sold as brand new. As in never used. A single day at the Chicago boat show is probably the equivalent of a year's traffic or more in a typical boat. By the end of the week, those boats have 3-4 years wear on them.

 

[bruceb58]

All the boats at the shows have carpet runners taped on them. None of the shows have had a "no shoes" policy for years.