THOUSANDS VISIT BOATLIFE SHOW

Last month SBS BoatLife drew in 14,000 visitors over four days at the NEC, putting this Midlands show firmly on the map.

This year’s event saw the addition of a number of new features including the Marine Power Suzuki Angling Zone, GJW Activity Pool and Isuzu & SBS Trailers experiences. There were also various demos, 40 speakers and have-a-go sessions on the pool.

tried but failed miserably to take a worthy dolphin shot using my usual DSLR camera equipment.For this shot I decided to sacrifice image quality to increase my odds of capturing a unique composition.

"I used a GoPro 360 on a long selfie stick, with the camera set to record video rather than stills. This way I was able to review the footage, then screengrab the best moment showing boat, crew and dolphins.”

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In total there were more than 200 boats displayed, including power, narrowboats, dinghies, RIBs and watersports. Not forgetting the craft, services, holidays and accessories on show.

Richard Dove, MD BoatLife Events Ltd, said: “What has struck me is the definite beginnings of the community that we always wanted to create. To see this coming together in only year two is extremely positive. The team has worked incredibly hard on the show, and I am immensely proud of what we have collectively achieved.”

Green tech was well represented with Mastervolt, Torqueedo and Solar Technology, while brands exhibiting RIBs and motorboats included The Wolf Rock Boat Company who showcased models from Idea Marine, Iron Boats and Brig, alongside impressive exhibits from Moomba and Supra, Highfield RIBs and Suzuki Marine. A great range of Buster RIBs were on show, with brand exhibitors The Aluminium Boat

Company

Of the show Andrew Adams, Parker Adams, said: “SBS BoatLife has been fantastic, there is a really wide range of visitors and a diversity of customers who come to the show. It has been great to see them travel from all over the country. We are excited and will definitely come back. It is really important to be at, and support, shows like this.”

New to the event, Chris Clayton at Seaward Boats said: “It has been a great first show for us, we are so pleased to be here and getting really positive feedback. We have already started talking to the sales team about booking in for next year.”

Looking ahead to 2024, the show dates have been confirmed as 15-18 February at the NEC, Birmingham.