The Boat Show - is it because I's black?

I've just spent the day at the London Boat Show.  As I expected, there's little there to appeal to inland boaters.  At every twist and turn, it markets to what I call 'white boats', the sea, coastal and tidal market, or the river boats such as you see on the Thames and Great Ouse.

What I shall call 'blackboating', the traditional black-hulled steel narrowboats, were just completely absent inside.

The IWA was there, stoically holding up the flag for the inland waterways.   But hardly anyone else was promoting them.  Not British Waterways.  Not the Environment Agency. 

Waterways Ireland was there, though, if that counts.

Outside, a half-dozen conventional narrowboats supported our type of boating.   Kudos to:

• Sea Otter
• Nantwich Canal Centre
• Napton Narrowboats
• JD Marine (and Viking Afloat)
• Oxfordshire Narrowboats
• Sherborne Wharf
• Alvechurch

But it was telling that I had no problem in just walking in to the floating exhibits outside.  No appointments, no queues.  None of them had waiting lists to climb aboard, like you get at, say, the Crick Boat Show, the narrowboater's show of choice.  I wonder if they appear there just to get 'cred' with the British Marine Federation.

Of course, the real action was the boats inside the Excel exhibition centre.  Dozens of them, hundreds, some enormous compared to Granny Buttons.  I was astonished: how on earth do they fit them all in?

I was out of my depth at the London Boat Show.  I daresay, though, it's probably a pygmy compared to some boat shows around the world.

Comments

[Alex]

We live and work within half an hour of Excel and are now glad we didn't attend 'The Boat Show' ( used to be held at Earls Court ) Thanks Andrew for that lovely picture of Victoria dock where I caught my first fish approx 1965 and my son took part in his first tri-athalon 2007 ! My father and his father before him worked the london docks, for us as a family it holds many memories must be where I get my passion for boats from ( not plastic ) !
Alex

[Andrew Denny]

No, Andy, not 'the boatshow', but 'The Boat Show'. The London Boat Show:
www.londonboatshow.com

In London they always have one at this time of year.

[Andy]

Yesterday you said you were at the boatshow but didn't publish any details

I was thinking "What boatshow?" I'm not aware of any boatshow. Is it Anderton? They must be mad having one at this time of year

Andy