Boating is my sport.

Anyway, from what I hear golf is mostly about trying to get up a foursome and waiting to tee off or to hit the next shot. Golfers tolerate it so they can show off their $2,500 set of titanium golf clubs.

One continuing problem with tennis is trying to find somebody who plays at your level. On the court, tennis is better exercise and much less expensive than golf, but only until you suffer a heat stroke and permanent nerve damage in your wrist and elbow.

Oh, I’m sure boating has some negatives, too, but I’m blind to them. I like boating because it satisfies something deep inside, probably the same desire that some early human satisfied when she saw a log by a lake and had a big idea. I rank boating right up there with the creation of the wheel and fire.

I understand America’s favorite leisure activity is walking. I’m okay with walking as long as it’s done on sidewalks and trails, not roads with fast traffic. It’s jogging I have a problem with -- all that running pain plus a future of knee surgeries and an electric-powered wheelchair. I’ve never had a runner’s high but all I can say is that it must be one very powerful rush of endorphins.

Cycling combines the worst of walking and jogging. Bicycle riders think they’re peddling at a pretty good clip and they are, compared to walking, but they’re still holding up auto traffic. I know. I know. They have a right to the roads, too. Fine, but something’s got to give and I have a feeling it’s going to be the two-wheelers. Anyway, I won’t have a lot of hope for bicycling as a major sport until they design a seat that doesn’t shut off blood circulating to your buns. Really, for what they charge for bicycles these days you’d think they could at least install a comfortable seat.

It’s interesting to see what sports the kids favor because, you would think, this is what they’ll do when they become adults. I noted a survey the other day that said the six most popular outdoor activities for kids 6 to 17 were, in order, basketball, soccer, in-line skating, baseball, scooter riding and fishing. Let’s take a look at this. After graduation and a ready supply of schoolmates, practitioners abandon basketball, soccer and baseball except as spectator sports. I don’t think in-line skates and scooters will survive the enthusiast’s transition to adulthood. That leaves sportfishing, and most anglers like to do that from a boat. Now we’re getting somewhere

In another survey, parents ranked camping as the best outdoor experience for the family. Are they talking about tent camping? I'll bet they'll change their mind after they go camping more than once or twice. My sense of tent campers is that they graduate very quickly to Ibuprofen, then to RVs, then to renting cabins, and then to buying vacation homes on lakes. Then, voila, boats appear at the water's edge. So much for family camping.

The fastest growing sports, according to the National Sporting Goods Association, are kayaking, rafting, sailing and canoeing. These water-lovers have caught the bug that I caught, the same bug that infected the first boaters who sat on logs and paddled.

I’ve got a good feeling about the future of my favorite sport.

This is another in a series of personal reflections on the water by Barb Hansen, co-founder and manager, with husband Vic Hansen, of Southwest Florida Yachts(www.swfyachts.com) North Fort Myers, Fla. SWFY charters luxury poweryachts and sailing vessels. Barb and Vic also run the famous Florida Sailing & Cruising School (www.flsailandcruiseschool.com) featuring live-aboard sail and power yacht instruction. Contact Barb Hansen at SWFYACHTS@aol.com or phone 1-941-656-1339.

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