Bear Boat
New member
Hello World!!!
About a month ago I decided it was time to get a boat so I could explore Lake Champlain (Vermont, New York and Québec, Canada).
I talked to a couple of used and new boat dealers and looked at a few boats. There seemed to be lots of boats on the market (especially with the cold weather setting in).
Here is how I proceeded to buy a Checkmate as my first motorboat.
I live on the lake so I won't need to sleep on a boat. Plus I could not imagine getting a cuddy unless the boat was at least 28+ feet long. A bowrider would do fine.
I have 40 miles of open water in front of my boat ramp. Burlington, VT is 40 miles, Plattsburgh, NY is 25 miles away and Quebec is 25 miles by boat. I did not want a boat that would take 1 hour to get anywhere.
My last constraint was that the water is only 2 1/2' to 3 1/2' deep for the first 120 feet from shore. I could not get something that has 3'+ of draft.
I looked at a handful of boats (new and used) like Glastron, Sea Ray's, Formulas and Checkmate. I discovered the Checkmate because I saw a good looking 2004 Checkmate 234 in Canada this summer.
I test drove the Canadian boat 3 weeks ago and loved how it handled and felt. The owner got me as fast as 62 MPH on my GPS with a 6.2L 320HP. He drove back into his boat house and I measured 26 inches of water and the boat had lots or clearance on the draft.
Unfortunately, the Canadian boat sat in the sun all summer and the top of the yellow hull faded badly. The owner had not given the boat much TLC. On top of that, they were asking in the 40Ks for a 3+ year old boat. In all fairness, Canadian buyers who bought Checkmate boats between 2001 and 2006 were paying anywere from 30% - 65% more in Canadian dollars. A new 2004 boat might have cost them $75,000 CDN. With the Canadian and US dollar just about at par, they don't like to hear what their boat would sell for in the US.
Pretty soon I started eliminating a lot of boats. The biggest issue was speed. It came down to Checkmate, Formula and Baja.
In my research, I also decided I would either buy new or I would buy something with a 2002 or more recent engine. Mercury upgraded most of its engines in 2002. You got a lot more horsepower with these new engines for the same block size.
Baja's did not do much for me... I could not find many recent Formula.
I called the local Checkmate dealer and priced out a new boat configured how I wanted it.
I also searched high and low on the internet and in any/every local newspaper ad I could find. I found a ton of Checkmates... but there were only a handful with the configuration close to what I was looking for.
I called a couple of listings... and one of them sounded great. After a couple of weeks of dialog and offers, I bought/got the boat!!! It arrived today!
I have a "like new" great looking 2002 ZT220 (now called the ZT230). It has a 320HP 6.2 with 200 hours on it. It also has the XZ outdrive which is slightly overkill for this engine, but hopefully it will mean less repairs for me!
What impressed me about this forum and most Checkmate owners, is that they really take care of their boats! This boat was given a lot of TLC.
Is my quest to push this boat to do 80+ MPH. No.
I wanted an amazing quality boat that is well built and has a solid following. I want enough speed to get to where I want to go quickly. I think I found the right package!
Now I just have to wait for the rain to let up so I can see what she is like on the water!
Row Bear
About a month ago I decided it was time to get a boat so I could explore Lake Champlain (Vermont, New York and Québec, Canada).
I talked to a couple of used and new boat dealers and looked at a few boats. There seemed to be lots of boats on the market (especially with the cold weather setting in).
Here is how I proceeded to buy a Checkmate as my first motorboat.
I live on the lake so I won't need to sleep on a boat. Plus I could not imagine getting a cuddy unless the boat was at least 28+ feet long. A bowrider would do fine.
I have 40 miles of open water in front of my boat ramp. Burlington, VT is 40 miles, Plattsburgh, NY is 25 miles away and Quebec is 25 miles by boat. I did not want a boat that would take 1 hour to get anywhere.
My last constraint was that the water is only 2 1/2' to 3 1/2' deep for the first 120 feet from shore. I could not get something that has 3'+ of draft.
I looked at a handful of boats (new and used) like Glastron, Sea Ray's, Formulas and Checkmate. I discovered the Checkmate because I saw a good looking 2004 Checkmate 234 in Canada this summer.
I test drove the Canadian boat 3 weeks ago and loved how it handled and felt. The owner got me as fast as 62 MPH on my GPS with a 6.2L 320HP. He drove back into his boat house and I measured 26 inches of water and the boat had lots or clearance on the draft.
Unfortunately, the Canadian boat sat in the sun all summer and the top of the yellow hull faded badly. The owner had not given the boat much TLC. On top of that, they were asking in the 40Ks for a 3+ year old boat. In all fairness, Canadian buyers who bought Checkmate boats between 2001 and 2006 were paying anywere from 30% - 65% more in Canadian dollars. A new 2004 boat might have cost them $75,000 CDN. With the Canadian and US dollar just about at par, they don't like to hear what their boat would sell for in the US.
Pretty soon I started eliminating a lot of boats. The biggest issue was speed. It came down to Checkmate, Formula and Baja.
In my research, I also decided I would either buy new or I would buy something with a 2002 or more recent engine. Mercury upgraded most of its engines in 2002. You got a lot more horsepower with these new engines for the same block size.
Baja's did not do much for me... I could not find many recent Formula.
I called the local Checkmate dealer and priced out a new boat configured how I wanted it.
I also searched high and low on the internet and in any/every local newspaper ad I could find. I found a ton of Checkmates... but there were only a handful with the configuration close to what I was looking for.
I called a couple of listings... and one of them sounded great. After a couple of weeks of dialog and offers, I bought/got the boat!!! It arrived today!
I have a "like new" great looking 2002 ZT220 (now called the ZT230). It has a 320HP 6.2 with 200 hours on it. It also has the XZ outdrive which is slightly overkill for this engine, but hopefully it will mean less repairs for me!
What impressed me about this forum and most Checkmate owners, is that they really take care of their boats! This boat was given a lot of TLC.
Is my quest to push this boat to do 80+ MPH. No.
I wanted an amazing quality boat that is well built and has a solid following. I want enough speed to get to where I want to go quickly. I think I found the right package!
Now I just have to wait for the rain to let up so I can see what she is like on the water!
Row Bear
and congrats! Great shot!!!
