Annapolis Boat Show reactions

May 17, 2004
5,009
Beneteau Oceanis 37 Havre de Grace
I was able to spend time at the Annapolis boat show Friday and today. I’m curious as to what impressions other visitors came away with. A couple of my observations:
- Maybe it was just my imagination but it seemed like foot traffic was higher than the last couple of years. Trying to get on some of the boats on Friday morning seemed to have lines more like a Saturday, and walking around Saturday afternoon seemed especially packed. Some of the extra crowding today was probably because of the flooding tide taking away much of the sidewalk space, but it still seemed very busy.
- Doesn’t anyone sit behind the helm and want to see out and be comfortable? It seemed like most of the boats with dual wheels had either little tiny bench seats behind the wheel or none at all. The seats to the sides of the wheel had no back support and no way to really make a spot for yourself to get comfortable even at a flat dock, much less when heeling or in a swell. Chart plotters were placed down low or hidden by wheel spokes. Throttles and bow thruster controls were at ankle and knee level so you need to sit or crouch when docking. Even boats that were beautiful and well designed in front of the helm seemed to have these shortfalls.
 
Jan 22, 2008
8,050
Beneteau 323 Annapolis MD
Speaking of bow thrusters, I was at the Annapolis Beneteau dealer today and saw something I had not seen before. Boat on land and stands... The bow had an upside-down vee notch built into the bottom for the thruster. Then, there was a saddle-like pice fitted over the thruster- attached to the hull. I think that protruded a bit from the hull. I had previiously only seen the thrusters with the hole through the boat. Oh yeah... I hated the sound of the Geico airplane ad. I thought they had banned them a few years ago.
 
Jun 14, 2010
2,078
Robertson & Caine 2017 Leopard 40 CT
I noticed that, too. On several boats - No way to see where the dock is (up front) while keeping a hand on the throttle. Do these designers actually use a boat?
Also, I’m told this is the new normal during peak tides in Annapolis. Some people actually blaming the sewers (while water was coming up from the sea through the storm drains). Yeah ”global warming” is just fake news.
C0E6F00C-FFE5-4F7B-B144-5109C0194B2A.jpeg
 
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Sep 30, 2016
339
Island Packet IP 44 Ventura, CA
I was there Friday and Saturday as well. Friday was ok, as far as crowds. Saturday was horrible, in my view. Added to the crowd size, which was dense, people actually thought it would be ok to bring strollers and even had someone trying to negotiate the dock walks and bridge links on a motor chair thing. Come on people. The flooding definitely didn’t help. But I think I’ll pay the extra for the Thursday preview day next time.

I saw Brian of the Delos video series do his presentation on Friday. That was really good. Of the boats I confirmed a few things. I want a 45-55’ boat with center cockpit, and I think I like the designs of 10-15 years ago better than the new ones of today. My wallet thanks me for that.
 

Dr. D

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Nov 3, 2018
272
Beneteau Oceanis 35.1 Herrington Harbour North
I was at the show on Thursday. Lots of people, but not crowded. I was able to talk to the companies I wanted at length, then walk onto the boats I wanted to take a look at with no wait. That was worth the few extra bucks.

I kind of agree with David about the cockpit designs. I have flat fenders I sit on when steering with one tied to each side of the cockpit so I'm not moving one while changing postions. Being able to see clearly from the better side works great for me. The two wheels also make changing helm from me to my wife simple.

The chartplotter on our boat is low, but I quickly got used to it. The throttle is at waist level, where it should be. On one Dufour, not only was the throttle at ankle level, but while holding the wheel one would have to reach backwards to grab it. That would not work for me.
 
Jan 12, 2016
268
Hunter 410 Ladysmith, BC
Just made it home after two flights and one ferry. Agree with everyone above.

We went Friday and Saturday. WIsh we had gone Thursday/Friday instead as Saturday was brutal with too many people, and too much waiting to get inside many of the boats. We felt terrible for business owners who must have lost out on a lot of foot traffic due to the high water issues they were experiencing.

Multihulls we really liked were Xquisite, the 41' Seawind, the Nautitechs and Catana. The helm position on the Nautitech and Catana being so far aft and exposed were negative for us, and the galley down on the Seawind was a big negative for my wife. We never found the "goldilocks" catamaran that was the perfect size for two handed cruising long distances, with a protected helm position and galley up. The Bali's, Fountain Pajots, Lagoons, and Neel didn't appeal at all to us for a future cruise. If Seawind made a 43-44' yacht with more traditional teak style wood work rather than that super light beachwood coloured finish, or Nautitech made their open models with helm positions closer to what the Seawind has, we'd have found our perfect cat.

The Amel was hands down our favourite monohull, followed closely by the Southerly, Hallberg Rassy and Outbound. Pricing for all these boats means only ever purchasing one used at refit time, or getting lucky and finding one that has been refit and put for sale due to divorce etc.

I really am not a fan of the light coloured alpi wood used in a lot of the new boats. Dufour had the nicest alpi wood interior of the production boats that was stained to look very similar to teak. The Bene's, Hanse's, and Jeanneau's all looked a lot nicer inside 10 years ago compared to today for my tastes. Squeaking floors, no teak and holly soles, sharp edges, and often vinyl instead of veneer over bulkheads, etc. I guess despite me being under 50 years of age, I still prefer more traditional yacht styling inside to the new condo like look many are selling today. We missed looking at the Catalina's only because of time limits due to all the line ups on Saturday.

I disliked that so many of the monohulls had the diesel throttle control below knee level. On our own boat it's easy to stand in front of the wheel while backing up, as well as never needing to bend over while standing to make a power adjustment. I can't imagine close quarter maneuvering one of these new twin helm production monohulls would be particularly enjoyable. I would prefer a throttle I can easily reach standing up either behind or in front of the wheel. With twin rudders being more common they almost all have bow thrusters which is great.

The new style twin helm/mega beamy cockpits look like they would work well sailing but are geared more for a racers than cruisers. The Jeanneau walk around deck concept is very cool. It's a shame Marlow Hunter didn't have one boat there on display. I would have loved to have seen their new 42' against similar sized boats from the other builders.

The other thing we noticed was 90% of the boats we looked at over 40' all had electric heads which is a smart/nice luxury. However some of the production boats had thin cushions in the sleeping quarters. This is a bad place to cheap out, as the price difference for 6" foam in the sleeping cabins is not much and means a much better sleep.

After two days, lots of boats, meeting lots of nice people, and having lots of good food and beer, there wasn't one boat that made us want to trade up for a new similar sized yacht. Guess we'll have to go back in a year or two and see if that changes.:cool:
 
Jan 25, 2011
2,391
S2 11.0A Anacortes, WA
Question..So, is the Annapolis boat show really worth seeing for a guy in the PNW? We have the Seattle and Vancouver show...
 

TomY

Alden Forum Moderator
Jun 22, 2004
2,758
Alden 38' Challenger yawl Rockport Harbor
I noticed that, too. On several boats - No way to see where the dock is (up front) while keeping a hand on the throttle. Do these designers actually use a boat?
Also, I’m told this is the new normal during peak tides in Annapolis. Some people actually blaming the sewers (while water was coming up from the sea through the storm drains). Yeah ”global warming” is just fake news.
View attachment 170762
Good Old Boat has been sending photos to their FB page. At the very least, the flooding looks like a real nuisance for the show, I hope it didn't cut into the attendance.

Places like Annapolis that were used to occasional tidal flooding, especially during weather events like the one that has posted surf advisories on our coast, are having to deal with increased flooding events today, due to sea level rise.



I was in Boston over the weekend and couldn't help but notice how close the River Charles was to road level as we sped by. Hard to imagine what will need to be done to keep above sea level rise for some areas.
 
Jan 22, 2008
8,050
Beneteau 323 Annapolis MD
... Also, I’m told this is the new normal during peak tides in Annapolis. Some people actually blaming the sewers...
Correct to a point. The sewers that drain the rain from the parking lots and streets of Annapolis feed into the waterway. With wind/moon/tides playing havoc all at the same time, the waterway is higher, and that water backs up into the street's sewer lines, thus into the streets. I'm told they put "check valves" into some of the worst. Bear in mind that Annapolis is built on a hill, and all the rain water flows down and into the waterways. The docks and marina promenades in my developement were inderwater a few inches over the weekend. As this all happened, I was watching the beach cameras located on the Atlantic Ocean waterfront-towns' boardwalks. The sandy beaches were flooded over by the heavy surf. On the bright side, if you were buying a boat at the show, it should have been easy to "float a loan".
 

dLj

.
Mar 23, 2017
3,332
Belliure 41 Sailing back to the Chesapeake
Question..So, is the Annapolis boat show really worth seeing for a guy in the PNW? We have the Seattle and Vancouver show...
It depends upon your focus. I also have never been to the shows you are comparing with so keep that in mind with my answer.

I tend to have specific areas I'm researching. So an advantage for me is to have all, or at least many, of the vendors available in my area of interest present to hold and compare and discuss what I'm looking at.

Another thing I find very useful is to simply walk through and look at the variety of vendors and the wide range of products available. I have found some gems and things that never occurred to me before.

I'm never going to buy a new boat (caveat emptor - I did buy one last year - a dingy- specifically because of being at the boat show). So looking at new boats for me is only done with an eye to things I might like to change/add/modify for my current boat. Years back I was on a beautiful boat that had an unusual, to me, method of keeping doors/drawers closed that is really easy manufacture into existing drawers.

I also find it very useful to make a schedule, contact vendors that are going to be there and have them aware I'm coming with specific questions. This takes a lot of up-front work and organization, but one can cover a lot of ground in a very short time doing this.

So my main focus is typically vendor contact and research of what I'm going to bring into my boat. Because of the huge number of vendors present, I've not seen a boat show as good as this one for that.

I'm guessing, as stated above I'm not buying a boat, that for anyone in the market for a boat, you have most of them there. I'd think it would be similar in that arena as what I do with vendors. I will say, I find having appointments made in advance if the show, well perhaps better said, have folk from the specific vendors I'm interested in knowing I'm coming and what my interests are to be helpful in making an efficient show.

An added advantage, quite a nice one in fact, is getting to meet folk from SBO that otherwise you only get an internet handle...

dj
 
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Oct 22, 2014
23
Hunter 36 MD
Water in Annapolis..we were there Sat.. and the show closed about 4pm due to flooding.. we walked in okay.. but leaving we had to take off our shoes and roll up our pants..

TO ADDRESS the flooding.. we looked it up.. that big storm off the east coast.. it did not move a fast at they thought and it caused a Storm/Tide surge.. in combination of the Full Moon. Also, Rain this past week in the Northern Tier of PA and NY state the watershed area....Global warming has increase the water.. but not by much yet..
 
Oct 17, 2017
17
Hunter 31 Deltaville
I was there Saturday got there early good thing because the flooding was like a growing shadow over the whole show closing the show early. My son and I left to get some lunch outside the show to get away from the huge crowds and when we came back we were not allowed to get back in because they were closing the show early. Show was OK they may need to change the name from the Annapolis Sailboat show to the Annapolis CAT Sailboat show. It shows the industry has given up on making money on monohauls and going almost entirely into CATS where they can get maximum profit. I understand it is a business but it is somewhat sad where SAILING is no longer the focus, partying on a huge CAT is the main marketing and selling point. I did enjoy educating myself with improvements I can make on my current Hunter 31. I plan to add a new roll furler, add refrigeration to the cooler box, add a dinghy davits, improve blocks and line etc.
 
Oct 22, 2014
23
Hunter 36 MD
I was there Saturday got there early good thing because the flooding was like a growing shadow over the whole show closing the show early. My son and I left to get some lunch outside the show to get away from the huge crowds and when we came back we were not allowed to get back in because they were closing the show early. Show was OK they may need to change the name from the Annapolis Sailboat show to the Annapolis CAT Sailboat show. It shows the industry has given up on making money on monohauls and going almost entirely into CATS where they can get maximum profit. I understand it is a business but it is somewhat sad where SAILING is no longer the focus, partying on a huge CAT is the main marketing and selling point. I did enjoy educating myself with improvements I can make on my current Hunter 31. I plan to add a new roll furler, add refrigeration to the cooler box, add a dinghy davits, improve blocks and line etc.
Agreed!!!! it was "swamped" (sorry for the pun) with Cruise Offerings they need a separate show for them now. I saw the same thing in the ski and snowboard industry. Snowboards came in on the coat tails the big ski industry and then the tables reversed. A chartered cruise is much less expense than buying and maintaining a boat. You get to the sweet spot Islands, suck up memories for a life time and don't break the bank. I have spent more than a really nice chartered cruise for my wife and I.. and still have not been to the Bahamas.
 
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Oct 22, 2014
20,933
CAL 35 Cruiser #21 moored EVERETT WA
Not to enter into the whole global warming thing, but for eons folks have chosen locations near water to site their villages. These change into towns then cities. We build buildings and pave roads and construct McMansions so close together that we can reach out thru the bathroom window and snag the toothpaste from the neighbors bathroom cupboard. All of this is identified a progress.

Yet we complain as the water intrudes on our living style progress. What happens when you pave over all the open land? You make the water run off into the sea. Oh it is just a little water. A drip or two.

I have been visiting New Mexico these past 2 weeks. At one time the desert was under water. The crustaceans of the time have long died, leaving their shells as a memory of their existence.

Perhaps it is time to consider moving up the hill as the waterfront tries to reclaim the land in the never ending change between water and land.

Or not.
 

Dr. D

.
Nov 3, 2018
272
Beneteau Oceanis 35.1 Herrington Harbour North
Agreed!!!! it was "swamped" (sorry for the pun) with Cruise Offerings they need a separate show for them now. I saw the same thing in the ski and snowboard industry. Snowboards came in on the coat tails the big ski industry and then the tables reversed. A chartered cruise is much less expense than buying and maintaining a boat. You get to the sweet spot Islands, suck up memories for a life time and don't break the bank. I have spent more than a really nice chartered cruise for my wife and I.. and still have not been to the Bahamas.
Chartered cruises just don't appeal to me. I'd much rather enjoy sailing my boat.
 

Dr. D

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Nov 3, 2018
272
Beneteau Oceanis 35.1 Herrington Harbour North
We used to own a 2001 Jeanneau SO 37. Very traditional inside. The interior of our 2018 Beneteau O 35.1 is bland in comparison. It surprised me that all the Jeanneau, Beneteau, Dufour, etc., boats all look the same inside now. Not that the look is bad, but interesting all the production boats are heading to the same look.
 
Oct 26, 2008
6,024
Catalina 320 Barnegat, NJ
Also, I’m told this is the new normal during peak tides in Annapolis. Some people actually blaming the sewers (while water was coming up from the sea through the storm drains). Yeah ”global warming” is just fake news.
The land mass surrounding the Chesapeake is actually subsiding at a faster rate than the water level is truly rising. In my opinion , the fake news is the discussion that fails to distinguish the difference, which often leads to blaming global warming for "sea level rise". I've found that writers often conflate land subsidence with sea level rise and don't recognize any distinction because the result is the same thing … local flooding. Perhaps conflating the two separate issues is purposeful?

Geologists know that the land mass surrounding the Chesapeake was located in the "forebulge" that resulted from the weight of glaciers during the ice age for a hundred thousand years, ending about 12 thousand years ago. The glaciers that once covered the area just to the north of the Chesapeake compressed the Earth's crust and caused a forebulge out in front of the ice-covered northland. The forebulge has been subsiding ever since the glaciers disappeared and will continue to subside for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. But then again, I suppose "global warming" actually is responsible for these flooding occurrences after all!

BTW, the same thing is happening surrounding the Great Lakes as the southern regions, including Chicago, are sinking while the northern areas are rebounding.

Annapolis is going to continue to sink and the water is also going to rise while we squabble over an issue that we're not going to make go away. I suggest that the city should adapt by relocating. I'd bet that there were once some wetlands that have been paved over. Perhaps the city should reclaim the wetlands?
 
Jan 4, 2013
269
Catalina 270 Rochester, NY
" interesting all the production boats are heading to the same look."
Except Catalina Yachts which still haves a very traditional interior.


 
Oct 26, 2008
6,024
Catalina 320 Barnegat, NJ
Going back to impressions of the show … I was there with @Ward H and Stu @lehighsail on Friday. This was my first return after many years. It was the 50th anniversary of the show, so perhaps that is the reason for the crowds. I'd say that skyrocketing consumer confidence in our nation overall is one of the reasons for the crowds. Keep in mind that Annapolis is in the heart of the wealthiest economy in the country - thanks to the American taxpayer, of course! The crowds and the display of boats is a testament to that fact! My impression is that the yachting community is ready to throw around money like we have never seen before. I saw a lot of young folks at this show. If it's any indication, the younger generations with money will spend money on boats. They aren't sitting in their parent's basements when they can be out in the sun with some good-looking partners on their arms.

We had a great time, lots of laughs, some controversy to clear up (involving my purchase of a pair or winches from Lewmar) and we got a lot of good information talking to some vendors! It really is good to go there and get exposed to so much information!

We weren't very interested in looking at new boats. I was probably the most interested among the 3 of us. We're a bit more interested in how we are going to trick-out our older boats, and there was plenty to look at. I did have some interest in the Catalina 315 because it is right in the zone where I have been interested in looking (Catalina 310 and 320). I'd have to say that the new 315 does not impress at all. I felt that it is a regression to a "manila envelope" version of a small cruiser that does not have any creative or distinctive characteristic. I left having no favorable impression of it at all. I would much rather have an older version of the 320 instead.
 
Apr 27, 2015
24
Hunter 37 Cutter Perth Amboy
My son and I was there on Saturday. The water from the tides kind of pushed everyone to the docs that were dry. With the crowds at the show on Saturday, we will do the Thursday and Friday days and avoid the crowds.
Mcgarvey's was great for lunch though.