Ahoy, Boaters! What's Hot This Summer?

With so many lakes in the Fenton area one is sure to find many boating and watersport enthusiasts in the community.  Resident riparians and visitors alike keep local boat and boating accessories dealers afloat. Some of the toys they stock are hotter than a marina pier under bare feet in mid summer.

“The growth in our industry right now  is in wake surfing,” according to Mary Rising, office manager at

Action Watersports, “That is done behind the MasterCraft boats.”

Action Watersports also sells Cobalt ski boats and Marker One Platform series pontoon boats as well as, “Every kind of equipment; wake boards, water skis, wake surfers, and stand-up paddleboards (SUP’s),” she said.

For the uninitiate, wake boarding is being pulled on the board behind a boat while holding onto a line for dear life while wake surfing is done behind the boat on a longer board untethered.

All popular watersports are sure to provide thrills and boat manufacturers are not underestimating the demand. “MasterCraft has a system called Gen 2 Surf System,” Rising said, “It alters the surf wake with the push of a button. That’s the big deal.”

Not to steal the thunder from the boarders but boat drivers and passengers want to look cool, too, “We have lifestyle clothing,” Rising said, noting that, “People are adding LED underwater lights to their boats.”

Jonathan Hamel, owner of  White’s Landing is seeing the same trend in watersports, “Wake surfing is really popular right now, “ he said. Hamel is a dealer of Supreme and Centurion boats and Bennington pontoon boats. Boat owners must be spending more time driving leaving less time for cleaning the vessel, “Really popular now on the pontoons is vinyl products on the floor instead of carpeting,” Hamel said.

White’s Landing also carries parts and accessories such as wake surfboards, tubes and life jackets. Hamel stressed the importance of safety, “Make sure you have all your equipment to be legal; a floatation device for every passenger and a fire extinguisher.”

Rising agreed, “We sell life jackets of every size, infant on up.” Other necessary safety equipment is, “A fire extinguisher, an operating horn and a flare kit if they’re going to be obn bigger water, and make sure their lights are working. People should travel at no-wake speeds after dark.”

It’s equally critical to be equipped with knowledge, she said, “It’s important for a new boater to complete a boating safety certification to understand boating laws like traffic patterns, no-wake zones, how far to stay away from other boaters.”

Action Watersports is located at 8051 Old US 23 in Fenton and can be reached at 810 629-1342.

White’s landing is located at 3460 W. Silver lake Rd. in Fenton and can be reached at 810 629-2905.

Those interested in boating by natural power can visit the Lake Fenton Sailing Club website at Lake Fenton SC.org.