My love for boating started around the age of four years old when my grandparents took me out for my first boat ride on their old Glastron tri-hull runabout. That was the beginning of my love of being out on the water! Over the years my grandpa took me fishing every weekend at his cabin on a serene Wisconsin lake, the bass fishing was fantastic on that lake. We would end up fishing together on the Great Lakes, the Mighty Mississippi and the beautiful blue Gulf of Mexico over the years. We were fortunate enough to have lots of water toys to play with, from ski boats, sailboats, pontoons, and Jet Ski's (the old standups) to his prized Boston Whaler fishing boat Grandpa shared them all with us, it was an amazing way to grow up! In my teens, I spent a couple of summers racing C-Scow sailboats on Geneva Lake in Wisconsin. Geneva Lake was the home lake of Buddy Melges, winner of the 1992 America's Cup and considered to be one of the greatest competitive sailors of all times. No one in our club could ever beat that guy. Lots of great memories made and lessons learned that last a lifetime!

My Dad also had a love of boats and spending time on the water. He had several different houseboats on the upper Mississippi River. My family would cruise the river, camp on the sandbars or on the remote islands every weekend. Bonfires, eating smores and telling scary stories made those great times. I eventually ended up with my own Sea Ray Sundancer at the same marina my Dad's was and we boated together for many years out of the Dubuque Iowa area on the Might Mississippi. Again, more memories made that last a lifetime!

They are both gone now cruising the beautiful blue waters of the great beyond, and yet here I find myself living my boating dream once again as a full-time liveaboard for the last 8 years, enjoying the boating lifestyle and putting all those great memories and learned lessons to good use on a daily basis. Spending time on your boat with family, being out on the water with friends, or just hanging out on the dock with your "dock family" is truly one of the best ways to spend your time! I have been lucky enough to find myself doing just that... it is absolutely a dream come true.

What makes all of this even better is that my role as a Broker with Curtis Stokes & Associates, allows me to live my dream everyday while helping others live theirs. When you are ready to take the next step of making your boating dreams come true and want to create long lasting memories with your family and friends, I would be honored to assist you in any way. Start living your boating dreams now, you will not regret it!

Brentt Bodoh lives on his Carver 405 on the beautiful Tennessee River at Goose Pond Marina in Scottsboro, Alabama. Stop on by and say hello, you might just find the boat of your dreams!