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The 1985 Ohio Charter Captains Survey
Author(s) -
Lichtkoppler Frank R.,
Hushak Leroy J.,
Kelch David O.,
Snyder Fred L.
Publication year - 1987
Publication title -
fisheries
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.725
H-Index - 79
eISSN - 1548-8446
pISSN - 0363-2415
DOI - 10.1577/1548-8446(1987)012<0014:toccs>2.0.co;2
Subject(s) - charter , trips architecture , fishing , business , work (physics) , engineering , political science , transport engineering , law , mechanical engineering
The 1985 Ohio Erie charter boat industry consisted of approximately 700 vessel captains operating primarily during June, July, and August. On average, captains made 44 charter trips annually in vessels 8.2 m (27 ft.) in length, 6.5 years of age, inboard‐powered, and licensed to carry six passengers or less. Over 75% of charter captains plan to increase the number of charter trips made annually in the next 5 years. Almost 40% plan to purchase or operate a newer boat within 5 years. The most often cited reasons for being a charter captain are: (1) to help pay boating expenses, (2) like the work, and (3) to help others enjoy fishing, in that order. The average captain grossed a calculated $9,844 and incurred about $6,128 in operating expenses and $5,262 in capital expenses. The mean vessel replacement cost was estimated at $30,086; fishing‐related equipment was valued at $4,007. Only those captains making over 60 trips per year have economically viable enterprises which more than supplement the costs of owning a pleasure boat.