bigwaveohs
Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2004
- RO Number
- 14616
- Messages
- 75
Looks like the folks over at BoatUS need more money...they have dropped almost all towing except $150 or "unlimited".
Yikes!
Yikes!
New BoatUS Fees
- Thread starter bigwaveohs
- Start date
bigwaveohs
Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2004
- RO Number
- 14616
- Messages
- 75
The minimum "unlimited" is $79 plus all the other fees...sounds like your tow was for a long distance/time?
We just renewed our membership for this year. They have slashed unlimited freshwater towing by 70%. We paid 34.00 for unlimited and 19.00 for membership dues. I called them to make sure this was the same coverage as to what we already had. It is the same. Phil, I hope if you read this you can also verify this for me. We previously had "Gold Unlimited". Should I be making a upgrade to Gold which the only difference I see is that gold covers offshore.
We had a tow from Antioch to Bethel Island and I assure you that you would not have wanted to pay out of pocket for that tow. I would not go out on our boat with this coverage. Anybody is crazy for not having it. Phil has saved our rearend a couple of times.
We had a tow from Antioch to Bethel Island and I assure you that you would not have wanted to pay out of pocket for that tow. I would not go out on our boat with this coverage. Anybody is crazy for not having it. Phil has saved our rearend a couple of times.
Couple changes...
BoatUS has eliminated the $350 and $500 cards as they did not sell. The Captains Card went up on the west coast to match the price on the east coast (an $8 increase) but had no change in service area. The Gold went up about the same with no change in area. The Trailer package is now 100 miles vs the $150 (still at $10). That is a big jump.
The hot ticket is the new Freshwater Membership! It is Captains Card service for only $53 ($34 + $19 mem dues). The "freshwater" limit in this area is somewhere between Pittsburg and the Antioch Bridge. Anything east of there is treated like a fully covered tow as before.
Bigwaveohs, The limited dollar cards are NOT worth the money you save in annual fees. Keep in mind that I am billing from the time I leave my dock (Bethel Island, Vallejo, Alameda) until I return to my dock. Our average tow is around 2.5 hours. That makes the unlimited card well worth the money.
Catsmeow, If you are not going west of Pittsburg (New York Point) you will be fine with the Freshwater Card. Anywhere east to Stockton and as far north on the Sac as about Garcia Bend or a mile or two north of Freeport is in the service area that I cover.
As always I am happy to answer additional questions.
BoatUS has eliminated the $350 and $500 cards as they did not sell. The Captains Card went up on the west coast to match the price on the east coast (an $8 increase) but had no change in service area. The Gold went up about the same with no change in area. The Trailer package is now 100 miles vs the $150 (still at $10). That is a big jump.
The hot ticket is the new Freshwater Membership! It is Captains Card service for only $53 ($34 + $19 mem dues). The "freshwater" limit in this area is somewhere between Pittsburg and the Antioch Bridge. Anything east of there is treated like a fully covered tow as before.
Bigwaveohs, The limited dollar cards are NOT worth the money you save in annual fees. Keep in mind that I am billing from the time I leave my dock (Bethel Island, Vallejo, Alameda) until I return to my dock. Our average tow is around 2.5 hours. That makes the unlimited card well worth the money.
Catsmeow, If you are not going west of Pittsburg (New York Point) you will be fine with the Freshwater Card. Anywhere east to Stockton and as far north on the Sac as about Garcia Bend or a mile or two north of Freeport is in the service area that I cover.
As always I am happy to answer additional questions.
Thanks Phil, I just called BoatUS membership services, Freshwater Service has only been out 2 weeks, they are converting me from Captains Unlimited to Freshwater Service and I get a $74 refund.
For saving me money today you can have 1 of my red or green can buoy key chain floats that are hanging in the garage so the 2nd coat of spar urathane can dry. I made them to promote my Boat Builder Rendezvous 4 May at Sugar Barge.
For saving me money today you can have 1 of my red or green can buoy key chain floats that are hanging in the garage so the 2nd coat of spar urathane can dry. I made them to promote my Boat Builder Rendezvous 4 May at Sugar Barge.
bigwaveohs
Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2004
- RO Number
- 14616
- Messages
- 75
It sounds like I need the freshwater unlimited as I only boat in and around Bethel Island. I only have last years 2007 invoice and none of these new services are listed. How much is the unlimited freshwater w/o the base membership fee?
Phil, we normally fish on the west side of Sherman Island around light 12 on the Sacramento. If you are saying beyond the Antioch Bridge we might not be covered, we need to rethink our coverage. Also, sometimes we head up to Carquinez straits. I asked the gal on the phone before renewing, (we always bought gold) if this was the same coverage. She said yes. We need the coverage. Don't want to be limited to where we go. If it is true what you are telling me I need to upgrade to unlimited gold.
bigwaveohs
Member
- Joined
- Jul 28, 2004
- RO Number
- 14616
- Messages
- 75
Well, I called BoatUS and they verified the $34 price (I would pay $31 as a USPS member) for unlimited freshwater coverage. They said I would get a refund since I already I paid a higher amount for the $500 limit.
Thanks for the heads-up!
Thanks for the heads-up!
Let me clarify...the Captains Card and the Freshwater Card are two different cards. The Capt Card is a step down from the Gold Card, but all you need based on where you seem to go. The Freshwater Card is for inland only, but otherwise has the same milage limits as the Captains Card for much less money.
Cats...Unless you go out the GG Bridge or north of Downtown Sac, the full price Captains Card is all you need.
Thanks for all your help Phil. We plan to go to the Bay and also possibly Petaluma and Old Sacramento. Looks like we need to upgrade to the Captains card. You should volunteer for their membership line. You explain it much better.
Thanks for all your help Phil. We plan to go to the Bay and also possibly Petaluma and Old Sacramento. Looks like we need to upgrade to the Captains card. You should volunteer for their membership line. You explain it much better.
As noted above,
In our area, they dropped the Unlimited Towing to $34/year.. that would be fresh water/great lakes. (Sandusky Ohio)
I had to look twice and inquire if this was correct. A friend called and they verified it was indeed correct. They upgraded him to the unlimited package for N/C and renewed him for the next year until 2009.
This is the first time I've opted to purchase an unlimited towing package.. for the price, it's easily a no brainer.
In our area, they dropped the Unlimited Towing to $34/year.. that would be fresh water/great lakes. (Sandusky Ohio)
I had to look twice and inquire if this was correct. A friend called and they verified it was indeed correct. They upgraded him to the unlimited package for N/C and renewed him for the next year until 2009.
This is the first time I've opted to purchase an unlimited towing package.. for the price, it's easily a no brainer.
chiselchst
Member
- Joined
- Oct 28, 2005
- RO Number
- 19418
- Messages
- 199
Capt Phil,
My card says "Unlimited Captain's", but I don't see that option anywhere on the BoatUS towing site?
Do I have the "Unlimited Gold"?
Thanks Phil,
Mitch Harper
PS The new boat drawing was very nice, congrats!
My card says "Unlimited Captain's", but I don't see that option anywhere on the BoatUS towing site?
Do I have the "Unlimited Gold"?
Thanks Phil,
Mitch Harper
PS The new boat drawing was very nice, congrats!
Mitch,
The Captains Card is a step down from the Gold Card, but it is good all over the Bay/Delta region, with the exception of the the Sac River above Freeport.
The web site page http://www.boatus.com/towing/va_towcost.asp
does not mention "Captains Card" but only refers to the "Unlimited" Card and Gold Card. There is some adaptation from the original BoatUS (East Coast) membership and the West Coast Vessel Assist membership that doesn't always get translated well on the nation wide web site.
The Capt is 30 miles and the Gold is 50 eveywhere on the West Coast but So Cal.
The Captains Card is a step down from the Gold Card, but it is good all over the Bay/Delta region, with the exception of the the Sac River above Freeport.
The web site page http://www.boatus.com/towing/va_towcost.asp
does not mention "Captains Card" but only refers to the "Unlimited" Card and Gold Card. There is some adaptation from the original BoatUS (East Coast) membership and the West Coast Vessel Assist membership that doesn't always get translated well on the nation wide web site.
The Capt is 30 miles and the Gold is 50 eveywhere on the West Coast but So Cal.
Phil,
Can you clarify one thing for me. The 50 mile limit...does that refer to the distance directly off shore or distance from the dock. I seldom go over 40 miles directly off shore but it can be over 50 from the dock.(sometimes 70)
Can you clarify one thing for me. The 50 mile limit...does that refer to the distance directly off shore or distance from the dock. I seldom go over 40 miles directly off shore but it can be over 50 from the dock.(sometimes 70)
Charlie,
The 50 mile limit is a radius around the towers home dock. In the local area that is Bethel Island in the Delta and Berkeley Marina on the Bay. If you are located within that arc we will tow you to anywhere also within that arc.
The 50 mile limit is a radius around the towers home dock. In the local area that is Bethel Island in the Delta and Berkeley Marina on the Bay. If you are located within that arc we will tow you to anywhere also within that arc.