What a whirlwind week! After only two days back in the office catching up on “office stuff” and replenishing “show stuff”, we had to move the Krogen 55′ Expedition to her slip at the US Powerboat Show in Annapolis. Larry, John, Bill and I hopped aboard for the short voyage from Port Annpolis Marina and were prompt for our 11AM move-in.
Larry at the starboard wingstation ready to take off! Don't you feel safe behind that portuguese bridge just looking at this picture??
However, because of the nasty weather (mainly the wind) the move-in process was not as simplistic as planned. We spend 3 hours tooling around. With the chop in the water, I was a little concerned about getting green in the gills. BUT! With the excellent view and comfort of the pilothouse, I was good to go. Bill and I even learned how to play dominoes as they were onboard as a prop – Thanks, Karen!
John patiently sitting at the helm during our wait.
Once it was our turn to move-in, Larry masterfully backed the Krogen 55′ into her slip. As we were moving in, the carpet team finished our float and we were able to offload said “show stuff” and get set up in what felt like a matter of minutes. It was smooth like butt-ah.
Per tradition, the Powerboat Show weather was nothing like the Sailboat Show weather. Pretty much every day of the show had its bouts of rain. And by “bouts of rain”, I really mean “mini-thunderstorms”. And let me tell you, having a tented float made us quite popular from time to time.
Storm rolling through and bringing blue skies.
On Friday night, we decided to have a Kadey-Krogen Docktail Hour. We had wine and beer and had hors d’oeuvres from Portside Cafe that’s in the Port Annapolis Marina. The amazing trio dip, crab imperial crab dip, Italian antipastas and chicken satays were not only delicious – but they arrived in style.
John delivering our goodies by boat. Now that's service!
Because the food and booze were onboard the Krogen 55′, most people stayed aboard in lieu of mingling on our tent. Good thing it could accomodate the 20+ people that decided to come. And just like at home…. people congregated in the kitchen (galley, obviously. But you’re pickin’ up what I’m puttin’ down.)
Five people mingle comfortably in the galley.
After a storm one of the days, a beautiful double rainbow appeared. I’m happy to report that I was able to get this shot from the bow of the Krogen 55′:
Pretty, right?
Overall, the traffic and flow of the show were good. Nice and steady. As expected, Saturday was a little overwhelming. I think we were at 10:05AM when the wait to get onboard began and it was about 4:30PM when the wait subsided. But, when you’re busy like that – the day flies by! I saw quite a few familiar faces and made a lot of new friends with genuine interest in Kadey-Krogen. And on a personal level, I especially love it when someone approaches me to ask about something I’ve written in my blog. There were a few people who did that!
The Krogen 55' headed back to Port Annapolis Marina. Queen's "Fat Bottomed Girls" plays in my head when I look at this picture.
Speaking of our fat bottomed girls, have you checked out the new animation we have on our site detailing the differences in our hull form against boats with flatter aft sections? It’s definitely worth checking out. We had it running at the show and it generated a lot of interest and conversation. Click HERE.
Next weekend we move on to the Open House followed by the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. Kadey-Krogen hasn’t exhibited in that in a few years, so I’m excited to see what this show is like. It will be the biggest boat show that I’ve been involved in and I hear there are some incredible displays. I’m also excited to be exhibiting alongside Outer Reef Yachts, who represent us in Europe and Australia. Should be a fun show!
