Boating is a special recreation activity, full of fun, excitement, unsurpassed scenery, beautiful machines and a never-ending sense of adventure. Misty sunrises and sunsets without horizons are among the many secrets we boaters share with our kindred. In addition to the fact that boating is special, boaters as individuals are also special in two ways. First, boaters are friendly, outgoing and unusually social. Each of us has hundreds of memories of an evening in a marina shared with long time friends and people we met that day who feel as if they were longtime friends. Or the times we rafted up with other boats for a day of fun. Second, boaters have a strong sense of family. We see it in the wife and husband with all the kids on their boat, each smiling almost constantly. (I have a theory as to why boating families are close: when you are on a boat with your children, you have to interact because you are in close proximity with no place to hide.) We also see it in the “empty nester” couples spending leisure periods on their boat enjoying each other’s companionship.
So . . . why doesn’t everyone boat? There are many reasons, most of which are excuses at best to those of us who boat, and I won’t dive into them here. But there is one reason which I find to be unique to boating (and flying). Many people are frightened and intimidated of the physical act of piloting a boat. This is especially true of larger boats, with the fear level reaching highest with twin engine boats. If we reflect, this intimidated feeling one gets when considering how to dock a twin-engine boat is understandable. Each of us has our own embarrassing memory, which we don’t share openly, of an attempted docking at a crowded and tight marina, or at a waterside restaurant, with wind and tide seemingly coming at us from all directions as every human being within 10 miles watched us.
But now this issue has been completely neutralized. Axius and Zeus, with their joystick handling controls, give the pilot of any boat equipped with them complete and intuitive control of his or her boat in any docking or slow-speed manuever. The fabulous videos with boys and girls handling large boats with skill and confidence (note also the smiles on these kids) show a once-in-a-generation leap forward with a practical technical advancement which changes everything about handling a large boat. The Axius or Zeus boat is actually easier to handle than a car.
Have you seen a boat with Axius or Zeus? Or, more importantly, have you tried one? If you have, let me know what you think. If you haven’t, go try one! I have been lucky enough to follow the evolution of these technologies from their inception and got to experience their eye-popping capabilities in their development stages, and I am sure you will not be anything but wowed. Let me hear what you think, and give me your thoughts as to how we use these incredible technologies to get more people to discover the boating experience and lifestyle.
Dusty
I’ve seen it in action, used it briefly, and I am amazed by it. One day I hope to have an Axius set up of my own. Great job! Keep up the good work.
Yes I’ve used a yacht with triple Zeus drives, the first of its kind, a Lazzara LMC76. The Zeus development will completely revolutionize our entire industry. We are very excited about to introduce this technology into the yachting market this fall. Make no mistake about it, pod drive systems, like the Zeus, are the future of boating, period. Quieter, More fuel efficient, less emissions, more maneuverability, smaller engine rooms, etc. Keep up the good work and thank you for the blog, all good stuff.