I came across an article about making your kids fall in love with boating.  Since family is the most important thing to me and boating is my favorite hobby, I thought this was a perfect article to share.  You can click the link above to read the full article if you’d like, but I will summarize it below.

When I first saw the article, I thought to myself, “What about boating could a kid not love?”  The author pointed out that many children can be overwhelmed by rules and boredom, and I suppose I can see what the author is talking about.  There are quite a few safety concerns that children must learn when they step onto a boat, but I think it is important to make sure they also learn the about the fun parts of the boating experience.  And there are, of course, many fun and stimulating activities to introduce them to.

First, and probably most obvious is fishing.  The surprise and excitement when your son or daughter catches their first fish is truly magical.  You can also introduce your children to paddle sports such as kayaking, which, since they involve more exertion than motor boating for example, kids can find more stimulating than just relaxing in a boat on the water (even thought that might sound just great to Mom and Dad!).

Sailing and power boating are also very fun.  With sailing there is a lot for your children to participate in, and power boating is just plain exciting because you move so fast, so these are excellent ways to help you children build a report with the water and water sports.  And if you do go power boating, a natural next step are board sports.  Water skiing and wake boarding do involve quite a bit of learning and skill, so they can be frustrating at first, but kneeboarding should not be overlooked as a good introduction to such sports, and is even quite fun in itself.

Of course it is most important to make sure these activities are done with all safety precautions taken.  Be safe and have a good time!