Boat show expo closes on slow note

By NICOLE JOHNSON
Published January 22, 2007

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ST. PETERSBURG - As the third and final day of the ninth-annual Boat Show Expo closed Sunday, some dealers noted that the tide of buyers has been a bit slow coming in this year.

With soaring homeowners' insurance rates and property taxes, it's no secret that spending a college tuition on a seagoing toy might not exactly be timely.

"It's not like having a car or house, it's not something you have to have," said Dan Widener with Sunray Marine. "It's something you want."

Organizers would not immediately say how many people showed up at this year's expo at Tropicana Field. More than 400 boats were arrayed inside and outside the stadium - ranging from a $700 kayak to a $350,000 Carver yacht.

"We're not immune to the economy," said salesman Howie Scarboro, whose company required browsers to remove their shoes before entering the Carver. "But the people who want this lifestyle can afford it."

And then there are people like John and Janet Anderson, who make their own boats and turn a trip to Honeymoon Island into a getaway every chance they get.

"A boat can make a weekend feel like a vacation," said John Anderson, who makes fiberglass boats for his company, Palm Harbor Boats. "You're away from the traffic, the phone, the newspaper."

Anderson's wife, Janet, added: "You just have to go out once and you're sold," she said. "It's just you and the dolphins."