The early reviews from Fort Lauderdale are in, https://www.speedonthewater.com/fort...light-traffic/

why don,t you do a walk around video tour matt? was there any stern drive speed boats ? these fat way too many engine CCs seem to have run there trendy course

always wonder if truth is told...

if the show ( any) is a little slower ,that might happen. But as a manufacturer, if you don't say
you sold many orders, it is like telling people market is slow / slower / not good...
So this could lead people to think they, maybe, should not buy.

on the other hand, saying it was good when it was not, gives the show organizer a false '' great value'' to the show.
wich they may not adjust ( down) their price to try to help the company renting their show space...

then the year after, some don't show up to showcase their products, because they feel it was too expensive for the sales it produced the previous year,
and the organizer are wondering why they are not there since they said it was good the year before...

always 2 sides to a story...

Promoters don't give a FVCK. One year Covid closed the Palm Beach Show...........so their is NO SHOW. Not a single vendor got their money back, they told them it was now a "virtual show" meaning interested customers could go online and look at what the show was going to offer.

Lauderdale has a problem brewing, the Bahia Mar complex is going to be redeveloped which likely means 2 years of "no show" there like Miami had a couple years back during the convention center remodel.

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There were no stern drive performance boats there, at least not that I seen. as for video, It takes a slight production crew to shoot video for a day, and then edit it.by the time its all said and done, it not worth the time and effort. Sort like print magazines, all the work and effort that goes into them, the cost of production. shipping etc. for 2 to 3 month old news. Look at the forum boards and how much they have fallen off with social media being the bases for so many.

While I understand skepticism—it's vital and helps foster the truth—I have no patience for cynicism. You are expressing the former, and I have no issue with that.I appreciate it, really.

There's a time-honored expression in journalism: If your mother tells you she loves you, check it out.

That said, I trust every source I interviewed for this story because not one of them has ever given me reason not to. Brett Manire of Performance Boat Center, for example, said it was not a strong show for PBC when it came to catamaran sales. (I'm paraphrasing but you can find the exact quote in the story.) This not a statement from a man trying to distort the truth.

I am sure there are builders who didn't fare well in Fort Lauderdale last week, simply because that has happened since the event was launched. But those I interviewed reported success despite what they saw as relatively light foot-traffic.

I thought fort lauderdale was more of a high end yacht and offshore fishing boat show ?

Not sure how you figure this? People are continuing to spend $500k - $3M++ on CC's.

Working the show each day, it was busy all days. Saturday was so busy that as a vendor you had to find ways around restroom breaks and food.

Sunday was slower but the people that came in our booth were educated boaters and were seriously shopping or making deals. Miami playing during mid-day might not have helped getting the locals to the show.

My statement about CATS being slow was due to lack of demo opportunities. The wind was blowing hard, and the display boats are locked into the show until Monday.

Key West brings a new set of opportunities!!!!

Regardless, you weren't shading the truth. Which is why you are. trusted source.