ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times

DATE: Sunday, February 23, 1997              TAG: 9702210103
SECTION: BOAT SHOW                PAGE: 8    EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN OUTDOOR EDITOR 

THESE MIGHT BE A FEW OF YOUR FAVORITE THINGS

Runabouts are the favorite boat of residents who live on Smith Mountain Lake, but pontoon/deck boats are a close second.

Those are the findings in a Smith Mountain Lake Association questionnaire that drew 850 responses from its members.

When asked what type watercraft do you own, 38 percent said runabouts - the sleek-looking, versatile crafts that can be used for cruising, skiing and fishing.

Some 32 percent said they owned a pontoon or deck boat, which offer more room, but less performance, than a runabout.

Next in popularity were personal watercraft, coming in at 21 percent. The trend at the lake is for residents to own a personal watercraft - often called ``jet skis'' - in addition to a runabout or pontoon boat. Forty-nine percent of the participants said they purchased their personal watercraft from a Smith Mountain Lake dealer.

Here's a big surprise: 17 percent said they owned a canoe. Many lake users will tell you Smith Mountain is too big and rough for canoeing, except maybe in the quietest coves. Many survey participants apparently owned a canoe for use elsewhere, or had one when they moved to the lake.

There were nearly as many canoe owners as bass boat owners in the survey. Bass boats accounted for 19 percent of the total. That figure included 11 percent high-performance bass boats and 8 percent standard bass boats. The modest figure suggests that many of the bass boats on the lake are trailered from outside areas.

Sailboats accounted for a slim 4 percent in the survey, even less than the rowboats and skiffs category. Paddleboats were 2 percent and a catch- all category titled ``other type'' accounted for 8 percent.

If all this doesn't add up to 100 percent, it's because of multiple craft ownership.

Nine percent of the association members who responded said they didn't own a boat. Twenty-four percent said there had been occasions the past year when they rented a craft.

When asked what type water activities they, or their family or visitors, enjoy at Smith Mountain Lake, cruising/sight-seeing was checked by 85 percent, making it No.1. Swimming was second, (83 percent); fishing third (66 percent); water skiing fourth (60 percent); and kneeboarding/tubing fifth (47 percent).

Fifty-two percent of the participants said they or a member of their family had taken a boating safety course.

LENGTH: Medium:   54 lines
ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO:  ERIC BRADY/Staff. Bass boats were on display in early 
          February at Tanglewood Mall during a special show of fishing craft. 
          Boat dealers were catering to fishermen eager to be first on the 
          water.