Boat Show 2012 is underway….. and for me, it’s kind of like the beginning of Spring Training for baseball — a sure sign that the long, dark days of winter are going to be over soon, and we’ll be back into better (notice I didn’t say ‘sunny’) weather and more time on the boat! We attended last night’s opening night, expecting to see old friends, learn about new boat models, cool things we need on the boat, and generally wander around amongst the crowd. It lived up to expectations.
Of course, being SeaRay owners, we always stop to say ’hello’ to our friends at Lake Union SeaRay, including Steve Thoreson, take a look at the new boats, and I will say the 390 looks great — with a large cockpit seating area, a center transom entrance, and fewer sharp lines below (I like smooth edges). The new 500 is impressive, but if I’m moving into that league, I’ll likely be looking for something a little more fuel efficient. The best thing, and another friend who owns a boat model just like ours, agreed — we like the boat we have. The model works especially well for a couple — not too big, but large enough to have friends aboard, and also stay on the boat for a week or so if we want.
Then it was into the booths, where we said ‘hi’ to Recia Weigelt of Cleaner Cook! She sells just the thing boat owners who grill on their boats need to protect their gel-coat. Plus, she also has this killler barbeque sauce with a number of different flavors. Commodore Greg Dore’ heads up the Tyee Yacht Club, and they are one of the few clubs adding members. We also learned they’ve added a new outstation at Port Hadlock thanks to a generous club member! Sue Hicks, over at Sea Magazine, is a must-see, and the magazine is a must-read for boat owners in this area with the latest news on new boats, cruising grounds, new products, and industry updates. We did pick up our new Waggoner Cruising guide, and said ‘hello’ to founding editor Robert Hale, as well as new editor Mark Bunzell, who filled us in on some of the latest legislative news from Olympia regarding the boating industry. (The Northwest Marine Trade Association is a great resource for the last news on this front). In fact, I had them both autograph our new guide!
Back onto the floor, we stopped by to say ‘hi’ to Niel Steenkamp, of Ocean Alexander and now Tiara boats. OA just keeps building bigger and bigger yachts, and they’re beautiful. (Thank goodness for their floating boat show at Roche Harbor, where I worked from the flybridge of the 65′ OA to get an internet connection last summer)! And finally, we stopped by Greg Norwine’s booth, Windworks, where I learned what it would take to get my captain’s license. (Start logging sea-time now)! We could wander for days among all the different booths, looking at all the new products, and drooling over the cool electronics that are out there now. And when I really want to dream, I head over to the floating show on Lake Union to check out all the yachts. Maybe one days I’ll have one of these! (see photo 
below).
Margo Myers, Principal, Margo Myers Communications
