Boating

situation, but the experience
rattled them both. Steele
decided she needed to learn
how to handle a boat —
both because of that day,
and because her husband
has a heart condition.
“I don’t want to drive a
boat. I don’t want to learn to
drive a boat. But I thought
I had better figure it out,”
Steele says.
It’s a bit of a mystery
when the Women on Water
series started, but it’s
been going on for at least
20 years, Pearsall says.
A 10-year MarineMax
employee, Pearsall began
teaching the class as part
of his duties as a corporate
captain for the company.
He delivers boats for

MarineMax and teaches new

boat owners how to operate

their boats, providing

support as needed.

He sees the need to help

women learn to drive boats

as both a tool for women

and a business decision for

the company.

“I think women make

most of the decisions in

buying a boat,” Pearsall says.

“And if you can convince

them that they can fit into

the lifestyle, to be an active

part of it, I think it’s a good

sales tool for the company.”

Pearsall also knows that

giving women basic boating

skills may help them enjoy

the pastime even more.

“I think it empowers

women to take control of

boats rather than be passive

observers or unwilling

mates,” he says.

And really, that is the

most valuable reason for

the class. Women may often

hold the purse strings in a

marriage, but women also

want to learn. Women, like

the one with the Maine

sweetheart, want to feel the

difference between paddling

in a float tube while fly-

fishing in Anchorage and

operating a $245,000 boat.

They might be first mates

to their husbands on a

1,000-mile trek through

the eastern United States,

or, like Lou Steele, they

may need to be ready in

case their husbands have

medical emergencies.

Me? I desire, one day,

to buy a flats boat. I think

going that route just might

get me from redfish point A

to redfish point B a lot faster

than in my kayak.

“I THINK IT EMPOWERS

WOMEN TO TAKE CONTROL

OF BOATS RATHER THAN

BE PASSIVE OBSERVERS

OR UNWILLING MATES.”

BOATINGMAG.COM APRIL 2016 83