Whether you run the same lake all season long or adventure out to explore new bodies of water, you should always be cautious about seen or unseen hazards wherever you go. Even if you know the lake like the back of your hand and have run the same area year after year without incident, conditions can change and new hazards can emerge that you may not typically have to worry about. Those routes that were normally your safe passage to the other side of the lake can become a danger zone due to variables such as unseasonably low water levels or high water and fast currents. These things can bring on potential threats that can cause major damage to your lower unit or even the hull of your boat.
Tagged UnderFall means a lot of different things for the people here in Michigan, but for Michigan anglers it really only means one thing. They finally get to fish the annual Salmon and Steelhead push as they make their way up our many streams and rivers. To be successful landing these powerful fish not only takes skill but a special set of tools. One of the most important pieces of equipment needed by river anglers would be a flat bottom stacked with a two or four stroke jet drive outboard. Vans Sport Center is a certified dealer for all of the top brand names in the marine industry, we know our jets and what river fisherman demand in a shallow water outboard.
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At its annual product announcement for the media Oct. 10 in Chattanooga, TN, Yamaha Marine Group announced the planned 2015 release of four new models of 4-stroke outboards, all engineered to meet boaters’ needs in the freshwater market.
The new outboards will range from 115 to 250 horsepower.
The new models that Yamaha introduced were the Super High Output lineup: the V MAX SHO 115 and V MAX SHO 175 and the 150X and 250X VMAX SHO. The 175X and 250X models are 25-inch shaft versions of the current V MAX SHO engines sporting the same horsepower. Yamaha officials told media the new outboards are planned to be on the market in April.
These outboards are designed to deliver top-end speed, a performance characteristic important to freshwater boaters. It’s a performance trait better suited for the generally lighter boats on freshwater. Yamaha sees the Midwest as a key target for sales and service.
Yamaha Marine also announced improved versions of the F150 and F78 outboards. The company’s best outboard, the F150 will receive improvements to the clutch for smoother shifting and a variable trolling feature, allowing the drive to increase revolutions per minute by increments of 500-rpm.
Look for Yamaha’s new outboards at Van’s Sport Center this spring.
When helping customers pick out their next outboard motor whether it be new or used, one common question we ask is what style control box do they need? This information is important in terms of pricing and installation for rigging the most practical control box for your set up. Since every outboard manufacturer makes a handful of different style control boxes, knowing what style control is on the boat or what options you can go with is going to make purchasing a new motor a whole lot easier and less stressful. In this article I will run down the different styles and what kind of boats they are typically found on.
Tagged UnderTa-Who? Half the time this is the typical response I seem to get when I mention the Tohatsu line of motors to a customer looking to repower. Just because you may not have heard of them before or seen an advertisement for them on your Saturday morning fishing programs doesn't mean that they aren't one of the big dogs in the outboard game. In fact they are one of the larger manufacturers and make quite a few motors for some of the other outboard manufacturers in the industry. With all of the Tohatsu outboards that we sell, and we sell a lot of them, the MFS40AETL and the MFS50AETL would have to be the most popular models. Heres why.
With Michigan almost completely surrounded by water its no secret that we have some great fishing oppertunities to be had. Aside from our larger bodies of water such as the Great Lakes or our many inland lakes, Michigan also has multiple river systems that hold a number of different species of fish. These rivers are popular for their Steelhead, Salmon, Trout, Small Mouth Bass, Walleye, and many others. To effectively target these fish you need to be equipt with the right gear such as a flat bottom boat, a jet drive outboard, and a solid anchor winch system. That being said there are many options you can go with in terms of boats and motors, but there is really only one winch system that I would recommend you go with and that's a River Larry.
Tagged UnderPleasure boating and fishing are starting to wind down for the year in the in the northern U.S., but one thing is always in season – saving money by being smart with your boat maintenance.
So before you put away your watercraft for the winter, consider this: Van's Sport Center offers discounts off labor and marine parts involved in outboard engine rebuild, lower unit rebuild and repairs.
"When we are busy, there are no discounts," said Scott Quoss, owner of the Grand Rapids-based provider of marine engine service and online seller of new and used engine parts for repair shops and do-it-yourselfers nationally. "But we are pretty much like our customers -- things start to slow down in November. So to stay busy, we start offering the discounts for the winter months."
Tagged UnderWhether your heading to the lake to wake board with friends or to pull your kids around on the tubes, we can all agree we do it because its fun. But a fun day on the water can turn into a serious situation faster than you think. Now that summer is in full swing and the launches are packed on every hot day there is, you will need to keep safety on your mind even more now. Here are a few tips to follow that will not only keep you and your passengers safe but the other fellow boaters around you as well.
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