On The Water

Not the best of days to visit the YachtMarket.com Southampton Boat Show with heavy skies and high winds and just the hint of rain, but there were still plenty of sailing enthusiasts milling around.
AS the 50th anniversary of the founding of the yearly show I wouldn’t miss it, having been each and every one of the previous shows, right since the early day. I do not recall too much about the very first show back in 1969, except to make a point of remembering the date in each September since.
After all, it was one of the original founders of the Show who supported my bid to join the Royal Southampton Yacht Club. Much has changed over the years, and the growth and popularity of the Southampton Boat Show is remarkable..
For sure, the early Boat Show was a far more modest affair than this year’s event, with about 50 exhibitors, and was contained solely within the waterfront Mayflower Park, with the army, based on he other side of Southampton Water at Marchwood Military Port supplying a small pontoon where just a handful of boats were moored. For the 50th anniversary year, there are more than 500 exhibitors and the floating pontoon is reckoned to be the biggest in Europe.