Freedom Boat Club????

[marshman]

You all make some very good points regarding Freedom Boat Club. I operate 3 of the Massachusetts locations and can provide some additional detail.

Costs- Their is a one time entry fee of $5900 and dues of $279 per month. If you compare it to owning a $35k-$55k boat, storing it, insuring it, and depreciation, FBC is less than a third of owning a boat. (trailering a 17' boat costs a lot less but is not apples to apples comparison)

Training- We would love to require weeks of training but we are in the business of getting people on the water so we try to balance safety w/ expedience. Truly novice boaters are required to get more training if the training captain does not "pass" them.

Flexibility- FBC is not the answer for every boater. For busy people with jobs, families, and other committments that want to show up at the dock to a clean, maintained boat we are perfect. Some members use the fleet 50 times per season (more than most boat owners) while other are more typical at 15-20 trips per year. Reservations are online so you can plan ahead, or call up last minute.

In 3 years FBC has grown from 3 boats and 1 New England location to 50+ boats, 8 locations, and 100's of happy members. I think that many avid striper fisherman would really enjoy fishing Boston Harbor, Plymouth/Dux Bay, Bass River (W Dennis), Falmouth, and Narragansett Bay, as part of their membership with NO additional fees, no usage charges, and no trailering!! (member pays fuel but 95% of our fishing boats are 4-stroke motors)

I hope this info helps and email/pm if you have questions.