Annapolis Boat Show

[jcollins]

I love going to the show. I hate going to the show.
It's a great way to spend the afternoon and spend money. It's very obvious that the economy is hurting sales. The deals are out there.
Midnight Lace was there. Great old style rumrunner boats. Krogen makes a beautiful boat. The Nordic 32 was beautiful. Fit and finish was perfect.
Albin was represented by Sassafras Harbor. The 31 is calling me. Even if I didn't already own an Albin, the 31 would have been a top choice. Next to the 31 was a Shamrock 27. Nice boat.
As usual there were tons of clorox bottles. I guess I'm spoiled. I did not board one of them.
All the dream boats were there. 50+ footers, million dollar price tags. Great to look at with spotless interiors, flowers, wine glasses, etc. I would like to think that even if I could afford a 7 figure boat I wouldn't want it. I like the idea of jumping on the boat, tossing the lines, and just going out for a run with the dog.
We did spend alot of time on the Aqua Lodge 42. Very good idea for a weekend home on the water for less than 100k. http://www.aqualodgefloatingcottages.com/ We're going to meet with the owner of the company next week and talk about spring 2009.

I do miss seeing the 35 CB though. Maybe next year...

[powerboater56]

I enjoyed the show, but agree the economy is having a serious impact on the industry. The clorox bottle segment is reeling -- Brunswick has closed most factories, many boats at the show sported "Blowout" signs.

I thought the Albin 31 was a great boat to have at the show, but I agree that I missed the 35 Command Bridge -- my favorite Albin model. The American Tug 34 is always a nice boat, and the Nordic Tugs are also nice boats. I liked the Mainship 45 but the price point is way outside my reach. The Krogen Express is even nicer but more impossible financially.

I am also partial to power cats, and was happy to see the PDQ 34 and 41 represented again after the company closed last year. There was a new Leopard 37 power cat that I thought had a lot of flaws. The Moorings are adding them to their charter fleets. I gather Manta powercats are out of business, and the French companies like Fontaine Pajot were not represented.

I can't wait to see how the Shamrock/Albin boats look!

[jcollins]

The Krogen Express is even nicer but

I agree. We spent some time on that Krogen. BIG boat for me but beautiful.

[Mariner]

John, we have a name for those things up here in Seattle, we call them floating homes.

They're not boats. Not really. The fear with something like that is that marinas will be filled up with those things, as inexpensive alternatives to waterfront homes, and the real boaters will be pushed out. And I suppose on the inland lakes they're fine, but they're certainly not seaworthy outside of the harbor.

Power cats seem to be gaining in popularity lately. I can understand why. The draw of more space with better fuel economy makes them attractive. I passed one in my Whaler yesterday. The thing must have been 50' long and 40' wide. It was a BIG boat and smoothly cruised through the chop at an impressive 20 knots or so. But I did talk to one guy up in Roche Harbor over the summer who had chartered one for a week to get a feel for it. He said that water slamming on bottom of the center portion of the hull in any sort of chop was enough to turn him off to the idea of owning one.