So these guys are out fishing one day, and one of them says, 'Did you hear about the Rasta from Massachusetts who got a job playing bass for Bob Marley's band? Yeah, he was the Boston Wailer.' Groans all around, a couple of empty soda cans tossed at the would-be comedian. 'You guys got no sense of humor,' the one guy says, shaking his head and rigging another line to be cast out into the lake in search of a giant striped bass, but willing to settle for a decent largemouth. The real Boston Whaler, the 26 Conquest they're aboard, remains oblivious to the banter, focused on nothing but bringing home a full catch.

The 26 Conquest might normally seem more at home in the warm waters of the Gulf, chasing redfish and tarpon, than in the middle of a giant inland lake, but it doesn't seem to be bothering the anglers or the boat. If you want to catch fish, you go where the fish are, and word has it that there are fish in this lake right now. Besides, on a lake of this scale ' think Lake of the Ozarks, Texoma, Okeechobee, Ponchartrain, or any of the Greats ' it's not too hard to convince yourself you're actually going way offshore. You may not lose sight of land, but you can get 50 or 100 miles away from your home marina or launch ramp, and spending a night or three out on the water isn't at all unusual. And if the wind gets up, as it sometimes does, you may not face 20-foot knee-wobblers, but you could very well have to deal with six-foot waves. At a time like that, the 26 Conquest is a serious asset.

This day, though, is the kind of day you dream about. The water's so smooth you could ski the length of the lake. The guys on the Conquest haven't really noticed, but they've only seen three other boats since they set out at the crack of dawn, a good 4 hours and 30 miles of slow cruising ago. What they have noticed is that the Conquest is every bit as serious about fishing as they are. The casting area is huge, with 27 inches of freeboard and thick padding all around the gunwales so the anglers can lean long and hard into the fight without suffering too many thigh bruises. There are four gunwale-mounted rod holders, all filled, a pair of in-deck fishboxes and a livewell with a light and a raw-water washdown that will hopefully be put to good and heavy use later. The optional hardtop, which no one on board can imagine doing without, not only provides a little blessed relief from the summer sun but adds a pair of topgun outriggers, four more rod holders, an electronics box and a cockpit floodlight that will really come in handy for early-morning prep and late night rehashing of the day's action. The only drawback of the hardtop that anyone's found is that the electronics box tends to force the wind straight into the pilot's face when the boat's underway. About the only way to escape the wind is to scrunch down far enough to get beneath the windshield, but for taller drivers that's not a comfortable position. Maybe a less rakish angle on the windshield, so the wind would be deflected more straight up than up and back, would fix the situation.

Aside from the wind problem, the helm station gets high marks from all aboard as they take their turns at the wheel. With twin 200-hp Mercury outboards providing power, the Conquest is able to get up and go in a relative hurry, accelerating from 0 to 30 mph in 8.3 seconds and reaching a top speed (on a calm day) of 47.2 mph, way too fast to troll effectively. The standard trim tabs don't get much of a workout on this trip, but nobody's complaining too much.

What everyone raves about is the Mercury SmartCraft SC1000 system monitor. Three of them, to be specific
' one on each tach and one on the speedometer. The SC1000 is a digital LCD display that monitors everything from the current air and water temperatures to fuel flow and trim angle. The functions can be scrolled through by simply pressing the 'mode' button on the SC1000 gauge. The guys on the Conquest aren't the only ones who've been impressed by the SmartCraft system ' it won an Innovation Award at Boating Week 2000. And admittedly, while a lot of what the SmartCraft system does is second nature for long-time boaters, such as monitoring the trim and rpm synchronization, it's still nice to have technological reassurance of what your ears, feet and hands are telling you.

The SmartCraft doesn't, however, have a whole lot of effect on how the 26 Conquest handles, but that's okay ' the hull doesn't really need much help in the handling department, at least not on a day like this. At 28 feet 8 inches in length, carrying a 9-foot-7-inch beam and weighing in at 6,200 pounds, the 26 Conquest has the heft to handle a weekend or more offshore if that's on the schedule. In spite of the size, the boat's fairly nimble, at least about as nimble as you can reasonably expect from a fishing boat with twin outboards. More importantly to the guys on the boat, the ride is smooth, stable and dry, both while trolling and while running wide open.

When the lunch break finally arrives, there are fresh fish to be had. The Punster cleans the fish at the sink behind the helm seat while one of the others goes below to do the cooking. The galley won't be mistaken for a restaurant kitchen, but it's big enough to cook up a quick meal, especially if the boat's equipped with the cruising package, which adds a 6-gallon water heater, a single-burner electric stove, a 12V refrigerator and a microwave oven.