Boat Shows
 

It's that time of year...

Anyone going/went to any boat shows? Any news or stories to share?

I went to the Chicago Boat Show last weekend. I must say I was extremely disappointed. I could be completely wrong, but the Indianapolis show seems almost 2 times bigger! I expected Chicago to have a LOT of cruisers and a LOT of lake boats. They had a fair number of cruisers (maybe 15 over 27') which is more than Indy, but they didn't have nearly what I expected in the 18'-25' range. I didn't see Mariah there. Indy usually has a decent turn out from most manufacturers, and a few lightly used boats from the dealers.

It just seemed weird. I expected to see some high performance boats especially, and makers like Sunsation, Nordic, Eliminator, Checkmate, etc. I guess it could be down from normal due to the economy, but I'll have to wait until the end of Feb. for the Indy show to really compare.

One more thing to share - I was on a $100k Doral (a manufacturer I always thought was in the "upper" end of quality) and saw one of those cheap, plastic cup holders that flip out from a flat position at the helm. I immediately got off the boat in disbelief. As I was stepping off, the salesman asked what I thought. Oh boy, BIG mistake. I asked him who in their right mind would pay $100k for a 26' boat with a PLASTIC, flip-out cup holder?!?!?! His comment was, "I can replace that with a stainless steel holder if you like the boat". I told him Doral just went to a tie with Bayliner on my list, and that I'd NEVER even consider the boat if a manufacturer would cut a corner like that. Makes you wonder where else they cut corners?!?! He gave me a nasty look as I walked away.

We are going to the Overland Park boat show in Kansas City tommorow, its usually has alot of performance boat dealers for Lake of the Ozarks. I'll let you know.

I went to Cincinnati's boat show twice last weekend. There were only about a half dozen express cruisers. If I was in the market for a bowrider, wakeboard boat, or a pontoon, this would have been the perfect show. However, I wasn't. So I thought it wasn't great. However I did get a chance to talk with a few sales people who were familiar with the old Mariahs, one even told me I was lucky to have one, since they were so luxurious and well built boats. It made me feel good about my choice.

However, I will say, for the second year in a row, I think the new Four Winns cruisers stole the show. They had a v318, and a v358 at that show, and I boarded the v458 at the Cedar Point boat show earlier this year. They're beautiful, and dollar for dollar, the best value in luxury cruisers. Especially compared with similar boats from Formula, Cruisers, and Sea Ray.

Funny story indykoch, I mentioned to one of the dealers I was considering upgrading to a 30ft cruiser, and he was trying to sell me this 2003 Doral 360, (with the same cupholder!) for a bargain price of $118,900. :eek_animated:

Sorry, I think I'll stick with my Z308 plan. :wink_thumbup: