The Boat Show

[AnthonyL]

We went in for a couple of hours yesterday and it looked the most quiet I have ever seen it.

[lethal098]

I spent all day there yesterday and 3 hours on Saturday afternoon. No i wasnt looking at boats I was fundraising for the Coastguard and blowing up all those life rings.

Most of the Guys i spoke to over the weekend said it was very quiet all round, late Saturday afternoon it was a ghost town, i walked around haveing a squiz and very quiet indeed, there were more exhibitors than public there.

Glad it didnt cost me anything thats for sure.

Cheers Lee

[Coontakinta]

Unfortunately, I find that there is now not enough in the seminar programs to attract me and to justify the $31 cost of the entry and parking. This is especially true of this show since it has less of a fishing focus. Also, there is usually a bit of the "same old, same old" feeling in relation to the exhibitors. Then, when Whitworths run a 15% off sale to coincide with the show, it hardly seems worth the effort to go, so I am not going yet again.

Interesting read & comments in previous pages.
Interesting because the talk is much the same when discussing our boat show in Adelaide, with many suggesting that the interstate product is far superior to that which we are dished up.
I was interested to read that the cost of entry is very similar, with $15 being the asking price for our show & the offer of two for one's on week days.
Ours too was moved from the show grounds to a CBD location for many years making access & parking expensive & difficult. Only this year the show was again returned to the showgrounds helping to keep the cost of visiting down.
Like Charlie suggests, ours too seems to be much of the same year in year out with little or no emphasis on fishing, although I guess it is a "Boat Show" & not a fishing & boating show.
If some promoter could make the shows cheaper to enter as a family, have boats more in more realistic price range for said families, mixed in with some dedicated fishing talk & deals, in a venue more conducive to better access & facilities I think they would increase the numbers walking through the door quite significantly.

[copie]

Well i went on saturday and spent almost 4 hours there, we go almost every year and yes i enjoyed it and would have stayed longer but work got in the way of that.
Having said that i think a lot more could be there and people would be more interested. I am a general boating family and fisher inshore and offshore. I would like to see more tackle (quality) and more boat bits, stailess work like targa and bait board makers, canopy and trimmers, fibre glass restores and repairers and more electronics bits. Just my opinion.
Mark.

[littlemac]

the only thing that got my attention was the 5600 sailfish reef runner-sweet looking thing

cheers

brett

[smclaren]

I got there on Friday arvo and took a customer along (who is a boat nut). He is actually at the start of a wooden boat build project, so the display and demo from the Wooden Boat Club in the foyer area was a real highlight for him.

The highlight for me was the new Cruise Craft 595 Outsider on display. The new hull design and new length should be a winner when the economy comes good and blokes start buying boats again. Perfect size for most punters wanting to fish safely & comfortably outside. I actually liked the brown colour too ... but my customer reckoned it looked like crap ('scuz the pun). Hopefully someone will buy one and write a report on it on Ausfish.

Good to see Lifestyle Boats from Caloundra there ... a small builder still swinging in tough times !

The general Vibe of the show was flat ... but Friday arvo's are never a good indication.