1 LiveBloggin' the ICW: Did Santa Forget Something?

Thursday, January 2, 2014

Did Santa Forget Something?

Boca Chita Key, in Biscayne Bay
Hello all, and belated Season's Greetings from Aduana and I. I hope everyone had a fabulous Christmas season (or holiday season for the terminally PC) and that Santa was good to you. But....just in case he wasn't - I found (courtesy of LiveBlogger Daren Magness) some really great boat deals online.
Unfortunately, the 63 foot Oyster with a crew of former Hooter girls was not either in my dry bag (hung up by the propane heater with care), nor on the list of boat deals here, but LET'S ALL REMEMBER - my birthday is next month, and it's a big one ending in a '0'. I continue to hope...
Oh, in other news - Canadian LiveBloggers who are not frozen solid should be at the Toronto Boat Show, where I'll be showing off my suntanned bod - and doing seminars on the ICW and on Cuba. So, there's something for everyone, boaters, droolers and imps! Hope to see you there, I'll be watching for you!
This year's seminar line up at the Toronto Boat Show is absolutely amazing - I am just stunned at the caliber of the speakers.
First off, Lynn and Larry Pardey are speaking in their first time ever Canadian show. In addition to being interesting speakers, they are also really great, down to earth folks and you'll immensely enjoy meeting them. By the way, did you know that Larry is a Canuck? Yes!
Another speaker, Herb McCormack, hails from the publishing industry as do I - you'll have seen his writing in Cruising World, as well as other publications. We last met in Georgetown Bahamas, so there will surely be a few brews hosted sometime soon.
Paul and Sheryl Shard are of course at the show. Eternally popular with their Distant Shores tv series, they make cruising look easy! Hey, what am I saying, it IS easy! Sort of....btw, if you haven't picked up any of their videos, you're missing a true cruising treat.
John and Amanda Neal are once again at the show - I missed their seminar the last time around, but NOT this time. I've heard nothing but great things about them, and this seminar. This seminar is NOT to be missed if you plan on any serious cruising.
There are two speakers discussing how to buy your first boat - you should check this out, since a mistake here can be both expensive and VERY frustrating - like having to replace both main and genoa the first season because you didn't know what you were doing when you bought your first boat...'nuff said.
Liza Copeland, ever popular, returns with an interesting group of seminars....I first heard her speak at Strictly Sail, St. Petersburg Florida, in the late 90s, and I still find her excellent advice from that seminar applicable to my sailing today.
Tania Aebi, another world famous sailor, is also speaking. She was one of the first female solo around the world sailors - at age 18 in a 26 foot boat. I've not yet met Tania, but always looked forward to it.
Another female solo sailor, Pamela Bendall, will be speaking. Her book, What Was I Thinking, pretty much sums it up - at least for those of us who've gone cruising!
And, last but surely not least, there's myself, speaking on cruising the ICW, and also on Cuba. Here's the total Speakers List - check it out and mark your daytimer for the seminars you want to see.
And this is just a partial lineup of the show speakers - I'm really looking forward to this.
Lastly, here's the links to some really good boat deals I mentioned above- check out the Seidelmann and the Watkins - if you're looking to do some cruising, both of these boats will get you nicely on the water for well under $10k - Inexpensive boats