Boat shows are usually a mixed bag for us. Yes, we really enjoy being among boats of all kinds, but we are not big fans of aimless wandering. Our most anticipated boat shows are those at which we need to do either major research for a project or serious buying for a boat project. However, as much as we gear up for getting something done, our boat shoe experiences fail to live up to the excitement we often feel to get into the detail.
Most of this disappointment involves vendors who tend to just show up at the show. With rare exception, they have a pretty face in their booth, but have either no desire or ability to really field serious questions or transact serious business. This is a shame, because some of us come to boat shows to do more than drool over the nautical eye candy.
For us the 2012 Newport Boat Show was targeted as a serious purchase venture. We were in position to buy major systems and wanted to take full advantage of boat show discounts. Our helpful counsel, Greg Flederman, The Boat Doctor, offered to help up select and negotiate system prices.
Obviously, Greg was going to really help out with our selection of navigational systems including radar, chart plotter, auto pilot, etc. We were going to avail ourselves of his expertise regarding lighting, refrigeration, and anything else he offered. He had other clients at the show, and we agreed to meet up at the Raymarine booth.
With Greg's counsel, we had chosen Raymarine as our suite of electronics. While Garmin was a serious contender, the interfacing capabilities of Raymarine, as well as their quality in the autopilot category swung the deal. However, the Raymarine booth was NOT selling at the show. WHAT!? Well, we were at least able to select each component with the help of their show folks. We would purchase it all later.
We then went to Frigoboat to discuss refrigeration. We have both a reefer and a freezer to install. Frigoboat sent us to Kathy Groh at Great Water Marine Systems to chat about systems. We found Kathy to be incredibly sincere and helpful. With her help, we were able to select the components for Harmony. She also helped us out with selecting water heaters. She wasn't able to make any sales at the show, but she noted our needs and we scheduled a follow-up chat/meeting to finalize what we would actually purchase. A huge advantage for us is that Kathy's facility is just 30 minutes from Harmony.
We evaluated a new rigid inflatable dinghy for Harmony, as our current inflatable is beginning to suffer from inflatile dysfunction, and may not be up to the task of shepherding us back and forth to the boat. If we get the air leaks fixed, our current dinghy may prove to be a better dinghy dock resident: we use our dinghy dock dinghy as an emergency access boat in case the Barden's Boat Yard launch is not available.
We were able to evaluate various LED lights for Harmony's interior. The tough task with these lights is that is hard to really understand how much light they emit and how their light looks when on. While we didn't buy any lights, we were able to make a clear selection of what to put where.
We were able to meet up with Mack Boring and purchase the new engine: a Yanmar 4JH4-HTE. This decision was covered in a prior posting, but at the show we inked the deal to buy it. Well, one purchase made!
Our last experience at the 2012 Newport Boat Show came after Greg scurried to find us. He had seen a very interesting water making system (i.e. reverse osmosis) that was not only very affordable, but really easy to install and operate. We spend over a half an hour at the DIY Watermakers booth listening to Raymond and Amanda Fosdick explain their concept.
Beth and I had not considered adding a water maker to Harmony. This was primarily due to the cost of the systems offered by the major players on the market. However, the simplicity of the DIY Watermakers' system, the relatively low cost to install, and ease of operation made us put this consideration in the high interest column.
So, after a long day of buying, selecting, and considering, we felt we had a decent boat show experience. While we didn't want away carrying big boxes, we did achieve a lot of what we wanted to do. Heck, I couldn't see how we were going to carry the new engine back to the car anyway! Yes, we had a good day at a boat show, finally!
Fair Winds and Following Seas!
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