We Were Stranded! | A True Test of Customer Service | Freedom Boat Club of Winter Haven

In today's video, Katie and I reserved a Bayliner DX2000. We started Navigating the Winter Haven Chain of Lakes when the Bayliner broke down. We tried trouble shooting the issue to get back to the Freedom Boat Club, but we couldn't get the engine to start up. We called Freedom Boat Club where GiGi and another member stopped what they were doing to bring us a new boat as well as retrieve the broken down Bayliner. They responded in a matter of 20 minutes to resolve the whole situation. We continued our day picking up friends and cruising the Winter Haven Chain of Lakes. Ultimately we ate at Old Man Frank's on Lake Howard. Even with our earlier mishap, it was a great day on the water. The quick acting on Freedom Boat Clubs part only reinforced how important it is to be a member and that I made a great decision joining the club.
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[@OverlandFlorida]

info.freedomboatclub.com/dp/winterhaven

[@NorthStarPNW]

Boating goes a lot smoother when you have a positive attitude like Kevin.

[@OverlandFlorida]

The problem with the canvas top is you have to put it down for every bridge you go under. There's about 12 bridges.

[@rexabrams7352]

Not snowed in yet in Kokomo Indiana, but cold as all get out. Was enjoying the Florida 78° video though. That's a blessing where you're at. Beats the 80's plus with high humidity, that's how I remember it when we lived in Bradenton. Thanks for sharing today guys!

[@OverlandFlorida]

If it's going to be cold, I'd rather it be snowing. We had a cold front come in last night and it's now 70°. That's cold for this Florida boy!

[@dankotos61]

Love your videos beautiful places you're lucky it's 5° here with a wind chill -15 in Connecticut enjoy your weather keep up the good videos

[@OverlandFlorida]

That's really cold Dan! It's 70° today with blue skies in central Florida.

[@chucksmith5002]

Well that`s the Top-of-the-Line of Pontoon Boats. That Bridge there has a lot of Hobos. Enjoyed it

[@OverlandFlorida]

Surprisingly, we rarely see hobos under the bridge. However, there is a homeless camp like 60yrds away.

[@floridadawg9857]

Great content...... Gonna trailer my boat down one weekend from N.Fla to explore the chain

[@OverlandFlorida]

It's a lot of fun. 18 lakes and 20 boat ramps at least.

[@barryatkins3009]

I love being a member of Carefree Boat Club. I been on a lot of boats that I could never afford. I joined the club after watching a lot of your boating videos. 😎

[@OverlandFlorida]

It's true. There's no way I'd own a 2022 mako or a 2022 pathfinder. There's 100's of boats at my disposal that I can reserve and enjoy! Safe boating and have fun!

[@chrisshelton3504]

Your videos make me “homesick”! Had a sailboat at the Harborage Marina in St. Petersburg where I spent 6 winters! Those guys at the Freedom Boat Club were the best! I witnessed how hard they worked and their knowledge of taking care of their boats! Really appreciate YOUR knowledge of the area. Very much miss exploring Florida, but I can live vicariously through your excellent videos!

[@OverlandFlorida]

Thank you Chris! I can't wait for warmer waters so I can enjoy the water even more!

[@royvonalmen5044]

BTW its Mundays !! check out the movie Office Space ! great vid

[@OverlandFlorida]

I just watched that again last week. Great movie. 👍

[@outofbounds218]

HaHa, "Good News, Bad News book was awesome. Brought back memories Kevin. Thanks for another great VLOG.

[@OverlandFlorida]

It was a good book! Thanks for watching!

[@terrimcdonald5704]

We have a 2021 Sun Tracker 18' pontoon with a Mercury 75hp and have had no issues with probably over 40hours. This in our third boat and first pontoon and we like it the best. Great boat for whatever! I have heard nothing but good thing about Freedom Boat Club. You get your moneys worth when you can boat year round here in the Freedom state of Florida!

[@OverlandFlorida]

Pontoons seem to be a great all around lake and cruising boat. We really enjoyed it and can't wait to swim from it when the water warms up.

[@blockaid]

That looked really fun. The entrance to the boat club is fabulous! Thanks for sharing.

[@OverlandFlorida]

You're welcome! It is a really cool entrance.

[@samolds4419]

Typical Florida beautiful then rain then beautiful again A wet day on the water is better than a dry day on land

[@OverlandFlorida]

You got that right Sam!

[@oldschoolltv]

As a kid with no drivers license that was how we got to our friends house was by boat. Also Lake Hartridge use to have a drive in movie theater that you could see it by water and all you had to do was tune your AM radio on the boat to listen and watch the movie. We would have multiple boats tied up watching for free.

[@OverlandFlorida]

That's a really cool memory. I wish it were still that way.

[@markflock9083]

No

[@jeffc6268]

It’s cold in the northeast, 24 is the forecast high for today. But at least the sun is shining.

[@OverlandFlorida]

That sun makes all the difference. Thanks for watching!

[@bobw9297]

It was -30c with wind chill last night , I will take a little rain on a boat trip ....eh

[@OverlandFlorida]

Buuuurrrrrrrr! That's cold!

[@shawnaustin8957]

👍👍

[@Bradington]

Kevin, Love your videos. My lady and I will be on Lake Harris Friday as well. I highly recommend checking out Long Island on the east side of the lake. There are a couple of little beaches you can pull your boat up to on the west and north side of the island. This time of year it gets a lot of shade. Hurricanes on dead river has the best wings on the chain. Make sure to go through the Dora Canal (it’s like a theme park ride). Kaluah beach bar is a nice place to park your boat and explore puddle jumpers and the rest of ruby street. If you’re looking for a nicer place to dine. Head over to Pisces rising in downtown Lake Dora. Dock parking is available and it offers some really great views of the lake. Thanks again for the great videos and content. Florida life is hard to beat!

[@OverlandFlorida]

Wow! Thank you so much for the information! We will definitely stop by Hurricanes, I know exactly where that is. Maybe we will run into eachother or we can meet and eat together. Hopefully it's not too windy and choppy Friday. I know the high will be around 72. Looks like I need to invest in a nice wind breaker.

[@dcbz6596]

I am curious to know what the problem was with the Bayliner. The symptoms you describes are common. My wife and I are on Lake Amistad on the Texas /Mexico border and we fish 3 or 4 days a week most weeks. It is not uncommon for the fuel system to develop a small leak (often the bulb) which allows the fuel pump to pull in air and starve the engine of fuel. We keep a spare bulb and a few spare hose clamps on the boat for just such times as that is a common problem. A quick look at the engine fuel filter housing will usually help; if the filter housing is not completely full, air has been pulled into the system and if the filter housing is full, there is often a plugged fuel filter or a fuel pump problem. My wife and I really enjoy your videos.

[@OverlandFlorida]

Thanks for watching Dan. I didn't know this, but this newer Mercury doesn't use a bulb in the fuel line. So I believe it was probably a failed fuel pump. I won't be able to find out what went wrong for another couple weeks.

[@OverlandFlorida]

But the best part about freedom boat club is that I don't have to trouble shoot anything. It's nice being able to boat and not do any maintenance.

[@OverlandFlorida]

So we ended up running out of time to visit all the restaurants, but it turned out 2 of them were closed this day anyway. So we will revisit the plan to highlight all the places to eat on the chain here soon.

[@tomt1339]

lol...what year was the bennington? j/k. I was cracking up everytime you said it. This video could almost be a drinking game Sargeant..lol

[@OverlandFlorida]

Sargeant, as in Jeremy DeWitt? Lol I know, I repeat myself when I film because I don't know which clips I'll end up using. But I forgot to edit them out and only leave one 😂

[@tomt1339]

@@OverlandFlorida Yes dewittes greatest hits. lol

[@davelawrence6777]

So while on the Harris chain at the North end of lake Griffith Moss bluff locks will take you down the alcohol River as long as it's free of fallen trees and snags you might want to check but you can go all the way down then up to silver springs River to the headwaters I've done it in numerable times on all sizes of boats takes a good full day but it's a wonderful trip

[@OverlandFlorida]

Ocklawaha river, I've been on that all the way to Silver River to silver springs. It's a fun trip for sure. I'll bring my little boat one time so I can camp and do that. There are a lot of down trees.

[@markhill2279]

Ik it's a little off topic but I'll be coming to Lakeland in the near future can you recommend a good place to put in a kayak to see some interesting scenery and restaurants?

[@OverlandFlorida]

Unfortunately, there isn't really anywhere to kayak and eat in Lakeland. You can launch your kayak on Lake Shipp in winter haven and eat at Harborside or The Twised Prop.

[@SuperSamiam25]

I’m sure all the 80 yr old viewers will love your channel now!😀

[@OverlandFlorida]

As long as they know where that like button is lol

[@MondaySkipper]

Monday Skippers

[@markhottman2652]

Kevin I hope you make the MOST out of Freedom Boat Club. Katie sure is cute as your boat girl.

[@OverlandFlorida]

So far we've been able to take it out once a week during winter. But as soon as the water warms up, I'll probably be going out 3 times a week. Thank you, she sure is!

[@bertkelly7650]

You're making me sick Kevin. My outside temps didn't hit 30 today. Smh ; - )

[@OverlandFlorida]

Florida stops when we hit anything in the 30's lol

[@natem857]

You're making me seriously consider Freedom for this year, hard to tell if the boats would be difficult to book for weekends out of New Symrna.

[@OverlandFlorida]

I can check the app and see how easy it is and how many are available.

[@TheThegreenpi]

Tbh if you're younger and want access to more. Expensive boats while saving for your own vessel it's super worth it. If you just want a 40k ski boat. Just get the ski boat.

[@magaisacult2023]

7.5 gals per hour! Ouch. Pontoon boats are so comfortable, and sooooooo inefficient! Still have your small boat, bet it sipped fuel with that late model efficient tiller engine.

[@OverlandFlorida]

That pontoon boat was so nice. It handled like a dream. Cruising slow it wasn't bad in the fuel. But under way it would consume quite a bit if fuel.

[@freeravenadventures6925]

Back in the Day, Bayliners were complete garbage. Looks like they are stepping up the Quality. Kinda like Kia and Hyundai did with cars

[@OverlandFlorida]

The interior was great. The boat itself was fine, mercury let us down this time. Lol

[@corydriver7634]

Looks like they upgraded you with the Bennington. Did you ever find out what the issue was with the Bayliner? How long from the time you called them did it take to get your replacement?

[@OverlandFlorida]

I'm not sure what the issue was. Mercury's seem to have a fuel pump issue. It took roughly 20 minutes from the time I called until they met us with the new boat.

[@NarleyAdventures]

👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@dannyo957416]

What is the average water depth in the lakes you go in

[@OverlandFlorida]

The canals are probably 4ft, most lakes are around 15ft at the deepest.

[@corywilson3549]

Bayliners are the cheapest pos boats made. New mercury motors cannot use primer bulbs. Now Benningtons are a great pontoon boat.

[@OverlandFlorida]

Good to know.

[@scottf.5472]

Avoid Bayliner! Looks like a good time though

[@OverlandFlorida]

The boat looked cool, but it didn't ride on the water very well.

[@DD-Aerial-Photography]

Bayliner the Yugo of boats

[@nammie12345]

Sorry, you lost me with this vid.

[@DD-Aerial-Photography]

Yeah, shouldn't of started off saying how nice a Bayliner is. You lose all credibility with boaters

[@OverlandFlorida]

I did say the interior was nice lol.

[@DD-Aerial-Photography]

@@OverlandFlorida wasn't talking about motor, bayliner is the boat.