Getting fourteen boats to the Annapolis show

A boat show looks effortless from the dock: boats tied up stern-to, rugs down, flags flying, coffee on. Here is what it takes to get there, because people ask, and because it says something about how the shop runs the rest of the year.

Fourteen boats, six from our yard

Of the fourteen boats on our docks this year, six are trailered up from Selbyville: four Cobias — the 305 CC, 285 CC, 250 DC and 245 CC — and two Pursuits, the S 268 and the D 266. The rest of the Pursuit line, the OS 445 included, and a Cobia 265 CC are brought by the dealers we share the show with. Two of the boats, the Cobia 250 DC and the Pursuit S 288, are at a show for the first time anywhere.

The week, day by day

• By Friday the week before: every trailer is checked and back — lights and plug, tires and pressures, winch strap and safety chain, bearings greased.
• Monday: load day. Trailers, gear and all six hulls.
• Tuesday: move-in. The Cobias leave at 6:15 in the morning, the Pursuits at 9:15.
• Thursday: the show opens. Preview Day, with thinner crowds and more time aboard each boat.
• Sunday: the show closes and everything comes home.

What goes on every boat

Each of the six gets the same list before it leaves the yard: four fenders, four cleats and four dock lines, a boarding mat, a boarding ramp or a step and handle, the pricing sign and the dash menu, keys and lanyard, charged batteries, at least half a tank of fuel, its share of the booth gear, and a wash and detail.

The booth itself rides in the boats. The Cobia columns, rugs and signs, the Pursuit flags and towers, the furniture, the tables, the printer and the extension cords all go to Annapolis inside the hulls they are going to stand next to, so everything is on site from the first morning.

Fenders were short even before this year's boats. We count them onto the hull, not off a list.

What we check on the dock, not in the yard

Some of it cannot be packed: the carpet, the tent, the electric hookup, and credentials for every member of the crew. Those are checked at City Dock on the morning of move-in.

Why it matters to you

The same crew that loads those boats is the crew you would meet in Selbyville. A show is the easiest time of year to climb through a 250 DC and a 265 CC back to back, or an S 268 and an S 288, and see the differences you would never get from photographs. If you are coming, tell us which day, and the right person will be on the dock waiting for you.