Chicago Boat Show

So who went? What did you think?

I ended up going right when they opened on Thursday to meet with some people and had to tear out of there early (in the middle of the snow storm). I was going to make an appearance back on Saturday afternoon however I decided it would be a good idea to eat at Chipotle Mexican Grill to try to grab a somewhat healthy meal (fast) which led to food poisoning the rest of the weekend.

I went on board the Formulas, the 48 Cruisers, and the Prestige. Also ended up buying a Sea-Sucker mount, impulse buy! I would have loved to have seen some larger Sea Rays there or any Carvers. I have been talking with some people about the Chicago in-water show that just started last season and it seems promising for a larger show this year. I am really looking forward to that. I believe it will be in the new 31st street harbor.
 
I went yesterday ,(Saturday) , wasnt to impressed , glad to see most of our local dealers there , but sad to say there was not to many aftermarket parts/supply vendors there, was good however seeing my friends at Road Rage Customs and Bottoms Up Fiberglass repair,, I did not get a chance to get inside the larger Carvers or Prestige boats , I cant stand waiting in lines and dealing with the little kids , in my opinion there should be a age limit on kids for these shows , OR they should not allow little kids on these boats , I love kids , but can they buy a boat ? um no , so leave the kids and babys with strollers at home with a sitter , so us adults can look at new boats and new technology !
 
I did however buy the Wipe out earaser which is like the magic eraser ,but comes with a handle, and i bought the Balloon blow up key saver , if you drop keys in water , it inflates , no more diving for my keys
 
My highlight of yesterday's trip was being able to see a 4208 and 5208 garmin next to an E7... LOL. still don't know which I'm going to buy yet, but atleast I could see them live.

And I agree with fasttoys7619. The lines for the larger boats was insane. I actually think they should require a bank statement or proof of a similiar sized boat. There was a whole lotta folks that I'd be shocked could afford a dingy waiting in line when we were.... it was pretty bad... I guess the buy 3 get 4 tickets was cheaper than going to the movies...
 
I just came back from the show today and was impressed with how many more boats were there from last year and more than 3 times as many as two years ago. As some have mentioned, no Sea Rays over 30' which is somewhat of an embarrassment since Skipper Bud's is the largest dealer outside of Marine Max. I talked with my salesman from Skipper Bud's today and he said they sold twice as many boats yesterday at the show as they did in total last year. The primary Skipper Bud's doesn't pull out all the stops is the cost of the show for them is $200K and they have not generated that many sales in previous years. However, other dealers don't share SB's pessimistic viewpoint and had some larger boats. Munson Ski & Marine had some larger Chaparral and Formula cruisers, Basa’s Marine had some larger Regals, and Springbrook Marina had the largest with a Cruiser Cantius 41 and a Prestige. I talked to a few other dealer besides SB's and they all had sold more boats than they did last year. There were some larger trawlers there also but I didn’t go buy them to see size and make. None of the CSR crowd I met with last year came so I went by myself. There were longer lines for the Cantius and Prestige but the lines for the Formula cruisers weren’t that bad. If you are looking to see bigger Sea Rays, this is the show to attend but if you are interested in seeing other brands or sport boats like I was, then the show was well worth attending in my opinion. It will be open tomorrow on MLK's birthday instead of closing this evening.
 
psubill78 said:
The Cruisers show was great!! I've got a new respect for the Cantius line. My wife is in love...
Click to expand...

Interesting side note on Cruisers. We had Captain Phil from Skipper Bud's who is also their Manager of mobile mechanics out on Lake Michigan and he said that Cruisers were not nearly as well built as Sea Rays. Skipper Bud's is also a Cruisers dealer outside of Illinois but I agree on some of their appealing designs.
 
Back to boat show topic.... So I went to the Strictly Sail show yesterday at Navy Pier... The vendor showing was far superior to the show 2 weeks ago.

Nearest to my needs, both Simrad and Raymarine were there full court press... Along with West Marine and an expanded electronics showing. Simrad and Raymarine both had show rebates. A $300 rebate for an NSS8 and 4G broadband radar. Raymarine was $100 rebate on any purchase $1000-$2499 and $250 off $2500 or above....

Was shocked these guys weren't at the power boat show ....
 
Does anyone have any pics from the Chicago show?

I went to the Milwaukee boat show and that was a joke. All they had was a Canitus 41 and the Tiara Cornet.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Forum statistics

Threads
113,190
Messages
1,428,254
Members
61,100
Latest member
Raneyd85
Back
Top