Now I was wandering around over at Marine Dynamics in Englewood, Fl as usual and stumbled across the latest in functional, small workboats….. the Clearwater 16 Super Sport.

    Probably this is intended as a tender vessel or perhaps a Hardcore, unsinkable, self bailing launch but it is a perfect little platform for the person wanting to have a boat that is easy to take care of and has very little to go wrong….. Now to me that last part is the most important; if I am 80 miles or more from home, I like to know that I am on something like this – because the less that can go wrong … the less that will go wrong. Clearwater Skiffs has a full line of boats that meet that criteria.  Here is what you get for your money with Clearwater: 1 solid hull that you will probably give to your grandkids still in pretty good shape a bunch of years down the road, a simple center console, engine controls (shifter/throttle/key switch), a seat that does double duty as a cooler and the knowledge that you have not spent a whole lot and dont have to worry about breaking a bunch of frou frou crap your Southern self does not want on a boat anyway………There is a livewell option for the 16 Super Sport and it don’t cost a whole lot either.

     Now while this is a very functional workboat and has a ton of deck space for all of your gear it is a durn good boat for the single person or a couple who cant afford or just plain dont want some decked out high maintenance frou frou toy. It is perfect for 1 or 2 guys fishing and even with a little Yamaha 25 on it – this sucker cooks and books and on very little gas – which means you can spend more money on beer and beef jerky than at the gas pump……. Sure most commercial guys would convert that seat to a livewell but its already a cooler and it will hold a couple of days worth of ice and beer no problem – or lunch for a couple out to play for a day.  Personally I would just add a portable livewell and call it good. Then again for the couple that just wants to get out beaching and wandering around on very little gas at speeds that are more than enough to make it fun…… With 9 gallons in the tank (all she holds) you are not likely to run out of gas in a day because these are light little boats and the Yamaha 25hp 4 strokes that Marine Dynamics is fitting on them just barely sip the fuel anyway.

   So looking at her from a redneck standpoint this is a boat that will not set you back enough to worry about, heck buy an extra for your dad and one for your kid and you will still be less than buying the average used bayboat and even though this is based around a near flat bottom platform these little pups handle like a Southern boys dream. A little sharper than a Boston Whaler, a little more swishy in the rear than a Carolina Skiff JV15 but a lot more “solid” feeling overall than either. Where the Carolina Skiff JV cuts through like a razor trying to chop steel and a Boston Whaler in this class will jar your spine if you so much as take a ripple; These little Clear Water Skiffs are still the solid feel you want for those “stand up and run it” days  and you wont go home feeling like you were water skiing on the side of a mountain all day. Now that is important in a small boat. You see where the Carolina Skiff JV kind of “pucks and pops” the water at the front, making for a miserable ride at the end of the day and the Boston Whaler (older 17 Montauk series – I have not had the chance to run a new BW yet) squats back and gets rough at anything over a ripple; The nose on these is more like an older Crazed Cajun style. It slops the water underneath the boat with just enough taper you can take the average wake at a reasonable speed without going airborne or slamming your spine. In light chop you still have to back off her a bit same as her competitors but she takes it smooth and graceful – which is important to those of us who are getting old enough that our spinal comfort is an important factor.

   I am going to do my best to get the full line of Clearwaters in the water and let ya’all know what I think. So far after looking over the 210dl which I am in lust with and this 16 Super Sport which I am thinking would make a great back and forth to the keys boat – bout a 6 hour trip, top off in Marathon and do the top off thing again on the way home the next day Probably cut the 200 gallons or so that my 24 takes down to about maybe 35 gallons – and strangely these little 16 footers are smoother than my 24ft Carolina Skiff even though the 24 has all that extra weight (and a monster Yamaha out back).

   Ok, so you are looking for a good workboat with plenty of deckspace or you are looking for an unsinkable that can work the shallows…. You want a new boat but cant afford some frou frou flats boat rigged out for the casual fisher and then have to rip all that crap off to rig it for your line of work. Take a look at these Clearwater Skiffs…..

   From the bottom up they are an excellent workboat with full flotation integrated into the hull. Now these boys are taking what Carolina Skiff does just a few steps further. The floatation in these hulls is based around a COOSA transom and the rest is composite foam and fiberglass – Much in the spirit of a Carolina Skiff or a Boston Whaler they are unsinkable yet Clearwater takes those extra steps.

    Look at the rub rails and you can see they are reinforced so unlike a Carolina Skiff these puppies will still have nice edges in a few years (this is being written by someone who runs a Carolina Skiff Daily)   They took an extra step again in turning down and in with the side rub rails so they are stronger and less likely to break and crinkle when left rubbing against the docks or dragging nets up – heck they look and feel solid enough to handle crab traps and lobster pots for a good many years.

    This one I played with is a 21 because Marine Dynamics in Englewood, Florida does not yet have a 24 for me to do a fair comparison with. This boat has a wonderful center console with the controls located to where you can run it all day without getting fatigued. That seat behind the center console is actually a livewell for those tropicals and seahorses you get with the rest of your catch – or use it as a baitwell for rigging your long lines.  The fore and aft compartments/decks are not some flimsy crap like a lot of other skiffs on the market – Nope these are good, solid fiberglass composite that can take a beating. At the same time those compartments serve to reinforce the boat, making for one very solid skiff. In the deckspace arena this is one of the roomier skiffs out there and Clearwater Skiffs did not skimp on the deck surface, it is good, thick and can take it well when you goof and set the corner of your crab trap into it – This is one sweet thick deck surface that must have been thought out by someone who has spent a lot of time on workboats and did not like patching fiberglass. They did a good job and picked some excellent resin when they laid the glass on this deck.

   Economy wise a flat bottom boat is hard to beat. Decades of service have proven this. Here in Florida we have a lot of grass flats, shoals and shallows that make a flatbottom skiff desireable not just for the working person but at the same time for the person who just needs something that floats, has an engine, wont sink and will get them out to their favorite spots and back – the beauty is that the Clearwater Skiff 210DL costs less new for next years model (2010) than most used bay boats and if treated properly will last just as long. Since there is a lot less stuff to go wrong – a lot less will go wrong and that makes good economical sense for say the yankee who comes down here for the winter and just wants to get out on the water and doesn't need all the frills or simply wants to add a couple of rod holders and go fishing their favorite flats.

  All in all these are solid, practical workboats that can carry a load well and they are based around the standard of generations of fishers, workers and folks who just need a good, economical tender vessel that wont rob them when they buy it or at the pumps either one.

   Give Mark a holler at 941-716-4200 to arrange a seatrial or just check out one of these boats up close and personal today.