I’ve been thinking about boating a lot lately. I know that seems like a random thing to have on my mind but I’ve always been fond of the water. If you need outboard motor repairs, Melbourne area locals, then you’re in the right place for that sort of thing. I only just moved here from up north and I have to say the boating industry is… weirdly strong? Is that a bad thing to say?
It’s not that I think it’s weird that people like boats and stuff down here, but I just assumed that there would be much less of a boating scene. The weather doesn’t help, because no one’s going to say “let’s go out on a cruise around the bay – it’s pouring with rain and it’ll be great!” Even windy weather can be a pain, depending on the boat. But no. Melbourne people are just used to it, I suppose.
I did ask some of the boat servicing people around the docks why it’s such a big deal, and they had a plethora of answers. There was a huge boating craze a few months back, with young people in particular becoming uncharacteristically interested in taking up ownership of marine vessels. So there was a boom, and while that’s died down a bit, people still are still pretty hyped on the idea – it’s actually considered hip to have a go-to boat repair guy down on the coast.
Okay… that’s fine. Most people in Brisbane just take the public catamaran to get their fix of being on a boat, but I guess that sort of system isn’t really set up down here, so people have done their own thing. After that boost to the industry, there’s been a bunch of television coverage of various parts of the docks in Melbourne. Anchor winch servicing, marine welding, the lives of people on house-boats, you name it. Now everyone wants a piece of the action. And in the end, it looks like I’ll be in good company when I finally get my boat down here.
-CT