Minutes from Mystic

This time last week I was setting up the BoatNameGear booth for a boat show - The Northeast Maritime Exhibition at Mystic Seaport. I was as impressed with WindCheck Magazine’s ability to get this inaugural show off the ground in the short amount of time that they had, as I was with their venue selection in the Seaport.

The show started out looking like a dud on Friday with stormy weather and a constant flow of nothing but school children on field trips marching by the tent… not very promising if you’re trying to sell stuff to boat owners.

The weather cooperated for the rest of the weekend, and traffic picked up a bit. I anticipate that if the show is held again next year, perhaps a few weeks later (when school is out and families are more apt to attend the Seaport), we’ll see a much better showing. The location is ideal with its long docks and makes for a nice contrast when you see new boats on display among the historic wooden ships that are the norm at the Seaport.

Overall, I was glad to get the BoatNameGear brand out there in my homestate, and send some t-shirts and welcome mats home with a few fine folks. I also made some great connections in the industry, giving me plenty of fodder for a few Daily Boater articles, including Mobile Mariner, Sailors for the Sea, and the crew of the Spirit of Massachusetts which is part of the Ocean Classroom Foundation. Make sure you subscribe to the Daily Boater to catch our posts on the latter two organizations within the next couple of weeks.

Now for some more pictures from the show and the boats at Mystic Seaport.

Boutique Boat Shows in CT

It seems Connecticut is hosting about a half dozen boat shows this year, most of them small and first-time shows organized by boat dealers that are pulling out all the stops to make 2010 more successful than last year.

Today, I attended one of these shows in Essex, CT, and I'll be exhibiting BoatNameGear at another one in New London on June 19th. There is also one happening in Mystic at the Seaport next month. The New London event appears that it might be much larger than what I witnessed today in Essex, as it is being organized by the same folks that put on the huge SailFest every year.

As for Essex, here's what I saw on this beautiful Friday afternoon. One dock with boats, three non-boat vendors under the tent, and a couple dozen boats to look at. And there seemed to be a lot of yacht salespeople and Soundings writers and photographers milling around - at least for the kickoff of the event.

Still, you couldn't have asked for a better day weather-wise for a boat show.

Overall, I think Soundings, Brewer, Hank Aldrich Yacht Sales and the other yacht brokers involved with the event did a pretty nice job with the inaugural "Spring Boat Show" in Essex, CT. The show began today and goes through Sunday, April 25th. Here are a few photos of my favorite boats from the show.

Linked In Group for Boaters

Just a quick post to invite you to join one of the largest boating groups on LinkedIn.

The FirstBoat Business Networking Group is a place for both boating enthusiasts and folks in the marine industry to connect to discuss virtually anything. You will have the opportunity to network with other executives who share the common interest of boats and boating.

Members include executives from all different industries... all aspects of the recreational and commercial boating industry, from all over the world, as well as people who work in energy, government, education, software, manufacturing and insurance, to name a few. The group includes advertisers, logistics officers, pilots, headhunters, and even a Space Shuttle Instructor. All share a love for boating, whether they own one or aspire to some day.

So if you are on LinkedIn, stop by our group and say hello. You'll be glad you did.