Fort Lauderdale, Florida, lives up to its nickname as “Yachting Capital of the World”, hosting the 52nd Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show on October 27-October 31, 2011. Show exhibits range from yacht builders and designers to exotic cars and brokerage yachts. The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show is the world’s biggest boat show in terms of exhibit space sold with more than 3 million square feet on land and in the water. The annual show is spread across six sites: Bahia Mar Yachting Center, Broward County Convention Center, Fort Lauderdale Grande Hotel & Yacht Club, Hyatt Pier 66 Hotel & Marina, Hall of Fame Marina and Las Olas Marina, all in South Florida. The Fort Lauderdale boat show is known for its collections of superyachts, which are boats 80 feet and longer. More than 200 of the vessels, some of which exceed 200 feet, are on display each year in the water. In addition to superyachts, the show has all types of other vessels and boat related items.

The boat show is probably one of the boating show highlights for boat enthusiasts in Cayman. Jonathan Cuff from Harbour House Marina is a regular visitor to the show. “The Fort Lauderdale Boat Show offers boat dealers/owners and potential owners the largest variety of boats in the water at a venue which is easy to get to from Cayman. It’s a good chance to check out the latest models from companies such as Boston Whaler and Sea Ray.”

As the Boston Whaler dealer here Cuff is particularly interested in checking out the Boston Whaler new Conquest 285. Boston Whaler’s engineers have applied customer and dealer feedback in designing the new 285. The helm design has been improved with unobstructed captain’s visibility and three distinct hardtop-windshield system variations while hardcore anglers will appreciate state-of-the-art Raymarine electronics options, a 30-gallon livewell, and a decked-out starboard prep station.

Super yacht

Among this year’s head-turning boats is Screaming Eagle, a 50-foot Mystic high performance catamaran that’s on display at the Hargrave Custom Yachts exhibit at Las Olas Marina. Sleek and sensual, Screaming Eagle was designed to have the look, feel and performance of a Ferrari.

The boat was built by Mystic Powerboats of Sanford, is powered by a pair of 1,950-horsepower Apache helicopter engines from Turbine Marine of Pompano Beach, has a plush cockpit that accommodates six people outfitted by Yacht Interiors by Shelley of Fort Lauderdale and a stunning paint job by Dave Hunter of Invisions of Fort Lauderdale.

Its owner, a Texan who has an extremely successful company that develops computer software for pharmacies, envisioned using the boat to visit friends in the British Virgin Islands but he has now put it up for sale with a price tag of US$1.79 million.

Also making their debut

Some of the brand-new boats at the show are Marlow Marine’s 101-foot Marlow Explorer 97E and 75-foot Explorer 70E, Overmarine’s Mangusta 92 and Persistence, a Jarrett Bay Convertible 46 sportfisherman. All those boats are at Bahia Mar Yachting.

New gadgets

SI-TEX Marine Electronics will debut their new Koden MDC-2000 Series Radar with a 10.4-inch color LCD display, a long list of advanced features and a range of power outputs from 4kW to 12kW. This professional-grade radar series is ideal for a variety of vessels, from recreational yachts to commercial fishing boats to passenger transport vessels. Real-time target detection and tracking is further enhanced by the MDC-2000’s two-speed antenna scanning (25 and 50 rpm), providing optimal performance at any vessel speed. Koden’s Hyper Digital Processing (HDP) technology adds real-time presentation of targets that allows for smooth movement on the display as the bearing changes. HDP technology also provides superior target discrimination, virtually eliminating unwanted “noise,” to deliver a clear, highly detailed image and enhanced detection of smaller targets for added safety. Koden’s True Trail function clearly differentiates moving targets from stationary objects such as buoys, moored vessels or land features. Koden’s high-resolution LCD screen features a bonded anti-reflective coating that provides superior visibility in direct sunlight and prevents condensation.

Also new in the boating technology section, Global Satellite will launch the first Bluetooth-enabled device that is compatible with a satellite phone, BGAN terminal and other mobile phones.

What ever type of water-based activity you enjoy, the boat show is an great day out as well as the place to find out about what’s new in the boating world.