We have been to US Sailboat Shows in prior years, like other folks, looking at boats and boat gear. Last spring while we were well along in the process of purchasing s/v AVIVA, Dorothy and I attended "Cruisers University" in Annapolis, and it was there that we happened to enquire about how they put on the boat shows. We mentioned that we planned to be cruising south through the Chesapeake around fall Boat Show time, and in the course of conversation we found out they hire cruisers (and others), and it was suggested that we could contact Marci Kolb. Marci, with her husband J. Kolb, are the Operations Managers of the US Boat Shows, roles they have served in for many years. During the summer, as our cruising / live-aboard plans took shape, we contacted Marci and were invited to submit resumes, and were pleased to be hired to work at the 2013 fall shows. A condition was that we work both the US Power Boat Show and the Sailboat Show, which are back to back. With show setup, show days, changeover in between shows, and disassembly / removal, it would be at least a 3-week commitment. The pay is modest ($8 an hour), but we would get meals and -- if we stayed through the whole time -- we would get a 10% bonus. Plus, free admission to the boat shows, with lots of opportunity to look at boat gear and rigs/setups, and to meet other cruisers -- our real interests more so than the $$$, though some money in the cruising kitty helps as we are now in bank account depletion mode.
We arrived in Annapolis on September 25, 2013, anchoring in Back Creek, between Port Annapolis Marina and the Watergate Apartments (Nixon made Watergate famous or infamous in Washington in the 1970's; these are not THOSE Watergate Apartments...). Although we could have paid for a dock space / slip, we have been trying to save $$$ and anchor out wherever possible. The Back Creek anchor-holding was not good; lots of soft mud.... it took us three tries to get our anchor dug down into solid mud with adequate scope and swinging room. We then dinghy-ed in to to look for Marci at the Annapolis Landing Marina (ALM). This is the base office of the US Boat Shows, which is an event business enterprise owned by Ed Hartman, who also owns the ALM. At the ALM facility, we discovered that Marci's office had already been moved over to an office trailer at the Annapolis waterfront, but meantime we met 'Meeester Beeeg,' Ed Hartman, and got familiar with the facilities.
Sunrise in Back Creek
The Orientation for the 2013 boat shows crew was a Friday street meeting at the trailer offices on an alley abutting the US Naval Academy fence. The site was already abuzz with workers who had started earlier in September and we joined a small crowd who assembled to hear J. Kolb tell us what were in for, and for Marci to hand out our schedules. Fred was assigned to the Water Crew, which would assemble the marina docks -- and Dorothy was assigned to the Tent Crew, which puts up a gazillion tents for exhibitors around the periphery of the waterfront. During the shows we would work the gates. Later, as our skills and abilities were recognized, Dorothy was promoted to ticket sales and moved from tents to the water crew and Fred was promoted to a boat driver. Sweet! But everybody got their hands dirty, and we all chipped in wherever a hand was needed -- and a LOT of hands were needed!
There are about 90 people hired each fall to put these shows on, a few who are veterans, some with moderate tenure, another group with 2-4 years, and about 40% newbies, like us. Besides the staff there were an assortment of contractors, all the boat and equipment vendors / exhibitors and their staff ... we later learned that it takes well over $2 million to put on the Boat Shows. The US Boat Shows essentially rents the downtown Annapolis waterfront and pays the city several hundred thousand dollars in fees. Indirect economic benefit to the local economy is in the several $millions with the thousands of attendees who flock to the local shops and restaurants during the shows. It is the biggest boat show in the country ... and at the orientation session the organizational plan was laid out, roles and crew leaders assigned, logistics explained and the tone set -- the SHOW MUST GO ON!
Indeed, it is a theatrical event. The docks and tents are assembled, like building a stage set -- and there is Act One -- the Powerboat Show -- and a set change, and then Act Two, the Sailboat Show. Then the crew strikes the set, there is a cast party ... and there is a terrific comraderie amongst all involved. Reflecting on our experience, it was this comraderie and new friends made, that was so worthwhile. And all while being around boats!
But this was bloody hard work, and long hours. During setup and changeover and teardown, we started at first light and came home most evenings well after sunset, dinghying home in the dark to Aviva -- exhausted, with aching joints, sometimes partly soaked ...
Below are some of the images from both Dorothy and Fred of this experience:
Piles towed over to the site, which Fred was assigned to distribute to the pile driver contractors
 |
| Piling driver |
Towing strings of preassembled docks from Carr Creek over to the Annapolis waterfront...
Fred in one of the work boats (aptly named "Push," "Shove," "Pull," and "Yank"), here pushing one of the dock strings into place, to be chained to the pilings ...
Below is Sean Dunn, a professional captain and veteran boat show worker / boat driver and a great guy ... Sean drove the "Brick"-- a barge that laid thousands of feet of underwater electrical cable
 |
| "The Brick" -- laying electrical cable |
Most of the vendor rental docks had carpeting installed and tents erected on them:
Below are two of our co-workers, Denny Flanagan and Mary Larson -- at about 9:30 pm after a hard day of water crew work. The are also cruisers, on their own sailboats, anchored like us in Back Creek. Most days we shared a dinghy ride to the 4th Street dinghy dock, then walked or rode the approximately one mile to the shows together. They and their spouses / families are among the many wonderful comrades we came to know and will keep in touch with as friends...
The Power Boat Show, opening morning:
Boat gear vendors /exhibitors - ready in the tents...
Power boaters oogle at big propellors and big propulsion...
Each year more and more horsepower .... is 900 hp enough?
The Fleet Reserve Club adjacent to the Boat Shows cooks up their famous "Pit Beef"-- a Boat Show tradition and about the best hot roast beef sandwich ever! One attendee told Dorothy the pit beef is the reason he comes to the show. With horseradish ....YUM!
Powerboats of all sizes nested in, washed and ready for the SHOW!
Dorothy in her ticket booth...
Some of the boat names ...
And some odd boat show sideshow characters:
Act Two - - conversion to the Sailboat Show
The Sailboat Charter brokers had a whole section of the show:
A 90' Catamaran - available for your charter with crew...
You can buy these to color code your lines /sheets /halyards...
Below is a section of parking lot under water with temporary boardwalk/bridge to exhibitors (it rained non-stop the first 3 days of the sailboat show...)
The site is also subject to high tides / rising sea levels (below the same spot after the boat shows):
This was a riverfront plaza with park benches and parking spaces - - transformed into Boat Show!
Computer simulator for testing out your skills at the helm of a large power boat in the New York City Harbor -- the Staten Island Ferry even comes out at you suddenly from port...
boat gear...
and the latest electronics /navigation/radar fish-finders, always amazing new technology...
Dinghys from cruisers visiting the Boat Shows:
more and more catamarans each year...
'Walking the plank' these days....
"garage"s for dinghys and all the water toys:
some classy smaller sailboats:
and some really small sailing craft:
And huge ones - -here an 80' Swan:
Dorothy tries out the 80 footer helm...for size...
 |
| "Eh" |
flush deck; even the dodger folds forward ands is recessed into the deck...
aloft:
master cabin:
galley:
state of the art controls - so the crew can monitor /adjust the refrigerators and freezers...
and at the helm, push button sailing controls:
OK, time to strike the set! The Water Crew assembles: Ray Edwards (right), the mastermind of assembling a marina with 6000' of docks in 3 days -- directs the disassembly:
strings of docks are pulled apart opening sections, allowing boats to start to leave...
Docks temporarily tied out in the harbor...
The worker bee boat drivers --
here Frank drives the Yank, his assistant hams it up lying down for the photo...
It isn't all boat driving - - note Fred in knee pads - - -needed for unbolting /unpinning docks
Dorothy, too sporting knee pads while Keith unpins this one...
Another Boat Show tradition - the Pussers bar crowd gathers to watch the boats leave and docks being dissembled:
Below, a big sailboat shows off its bow thrusters to spin the boat in front of the Pussers bar crowd...
meanwhile the water crew continues on, readying the docks for towing...
Last docks towed out of Ego Alley:
we work well into the evening, to return the City's waterfront to normal
We push strings of docks past the Naval Academy towards Carr Creek, where they are temporarily tied up, just to get all 300 dock floats out of the Annapolis waterfront as quickly as possible.
Meanwhile local sailboat races continue on amidst dock movement...
And the Show sailboats depart for the next show, somewhere south....
Dock towing continues ...
and continues
and continues...
and continues:
 |
| Pulling floating dock segments to Carr Creek |
piles are removed:
tents disassembled...
Co-worker Mary Larson, enjoying the great food fed to Boat Show workers (Ok, it was almost exactly the same menu every day, but to hungry workers, it was great!)
And more dock towing...
amidst more sailboat races...
docks finally all towed to Carr Creek (acres of docks, it seems, all together:)
Bob Crane, electrical mastermind of the Boat Shows, on a fork lift...
And ----The Cast Party!
Then, the post Cast party work:
Dorothy doing some boat driving, with Fred
Sean Dunn hams it up with discarded boat vendors' baskets and plants
Docks moved in strings of 5 from Carr Creek into Port Annapolis...
300 docks at 5 per trip = 60 trips - - -each trip was about an hour...
so this took a few days....
300 docks at 5 per trip = 60 trips - - -each trip was about an hour...
so this took a few days....
Pushing the "Vacation Basin" string back to Port Annapolis
Dorothy working with the crane operator hoisting dock floats out - -all 300 of them!
Brad unloading, draining and stacking the docks at "Site X"
Ann Barr, who with her husband Lynn, has worked at the Boat Shows for many years. Ann was wonderful to us, helping us re-supply as we prepared to continue cruising -- we look forward to seeing Ann and Lynn at Thanksgiving in St Marys, Georgia with other cruisers...
Marci Kolb, amazing manager, (together with her husband J. Kolb -- who we have egregiously seemed not to photograph -- sorry J. -- either you in the Panama hat or the fork lift driving pics of you should be in this album...)
Amazing, what a huge undertaking and it seems like you made some really great connections with other cruisers!
ReplyDeletewhat a huge undertaking! my heavens...looks like a lot of hard work, but lots of fun and many acquaintances made! Glad you're heading further south as it gets frostier up here!
ReplyDeleteGreat documentation of the Show! Looking forward to seeing you again in October!
ReplyDelete