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When you’re looking to have fun on your boat, join a rendezvous

Reprinted from the June 2002 issue with permission of Go Boating Magazine.

June 2002 Issue

Sure, the new Crownline models were spiffy, the boat parade was a hoot and the lake was gorgeous, but the best thing about the event was intangible.

For the O’Neils and growing numbers of boaters nationwide, the joy of participating in a manufacturer or dealer sponsored rendezvous is all about friends. Put simply, we love to boat with like-minded, enthusiastic boaters.

“I’m a social creature, and the best thing for me is combining the opportunity to interact with people with similar interests in a quality craft on a fantastic lake,” Mike O’Neil said. “Whenever we can do something that we already do frequently with new friends, it’s refreshing. It makes boating even more special.”

Most manufacturer-sponsored boating events share a number of common denominators. For one thing, they typically take place on a large, beautiful and easily accessed lake or a protected saltwater port. These venues offer excellent marine facilities as well as a range of accommodations, activities and attractions.

Last year, Crownline held its rally on Norris Lake in Tennessee. Formula owners chose from three regional locations: Northeast (Newport, Rhode Island), Midwest (Kelly’s Island, Lake Erie, Ohio) or Southeast (Lake Lanier, Florida). Lavey Craft hosted some 110 boats at Nevada’s Lake Mead, while Advantage Boats attracted 231 boats and 1,500 people to its regatta at Lake Havasu, in Arizona.

Dave Sundin, the marketing manager for Crownline, said that the corporate office keeps two things in mind when planning the national event. First, because boaters often travel up to 2,000 miles to attend, the location must offer worldclass boating. Second, Sundin said, “We pick lakes and waterways that also provide a unique experience. We select different environments each year, so our owners can grow as boaters.”

Rendezvous, Regattas and Rallies Rock

Last year, Jokers Wild Promotions (JWP) located in Havasu City, Arizona, produced 10 manufacturer-sponsored events, most of which were held on the West Coast. Rendezvous, regattas and rallies have become so popular that in 2002, JWP will orchestrate nearly two dozen such events around the country. Clients include boat companies such as Advantage, Eliminator, Essex, Shock-wave and V-Drive.

With nearly a decade of experience, owner Darrin Davidson said JWP offers either a regatta or a poker run. Both events usually entail a dealer boat show where new products are displayed.

Regattas include parties, boat parades, barbecues, raffles, giveaways and family fun activities. Poker runs are similar to regattas, yet focus activities around a laid-back poker run.

By way of example, Davidson described Advantage Boats’ recent weekend poker run event at Lake Havasu. Friday night, while owners registered, they were invited to peruse the new-product boat show. Attendees received a wristband that entitled them to participate in all events. One of the crazier ones involved racing Hot Wheels cars around a track. The winner scored a CD player.

On Saturday, the drivers’ meeting was held at 8 a.m. A disc jockey started playing non-stop music, and people gathered on their boats for the group photo. At their leisure, boaters departed on the poker run, picking up cards at pontoon boats anchored around the lake. Two safety boats patrolled the area.

The Advantage Boats’ “Kids’ Corner” opened after lunch. Here, an 80 foot waterslide and canopies with sprinklers and a basketball hoop, as well as a football and basketball toss, kept everyone pumped. Each child received a prize.

Later, the “guys” assembled for the annual stereo contest, in which the finest, but not necessarily the most expensive, sound system won. A lavish barbecue and poker run awards followed inner tube races on the lake.

“Nearly half of the people in attendance at the event won something,” Davidson said.

Everyone Wins

Other manufacturer-sponsored events expand this formula with regional activities and food. At “Crowndezvous,” Crownline owners typically participate in a cardboard boat regatta, where teams build and race makeshift crafts made entirely out of cardboard and duct tape. Some owners head off for a round of golf while others go fishing.

Formula owners are often provided with educational forums on subjects such as boat detailing, navigational skills, onboard cooking and diesel mechanics. At the Lake Erie Formula event, boaters won awards for the oldest, newest, smallest and longest boat. Lake Lanier participants enjoyed a scavenger hunt. With disposable cameras provided by Formula, boaters took snaps of all the right things based on the clue sheet and lake map.

At both Sea Ray and Formula rendezvous, held recently in Newport, Rhode Island, boaters indulged in raw oyster bars and New England lobster dinners. Live music, dancing and parties ran late into the night. Sunday morning, boaters were awakened to the sound of a Dixieland jazz quartet.

These rendezvous are family affairs where everyone wins — manufacturers, dealers and owners. Jokers Wild Promotions manager Todd Taylor described each event as “a giant thank you and a handshake.” Sundin called the rallies a way for the manufacturer to celebrate its loyal owners as well as celebrate boating.

For manufacturers and dealers, the events are a boat show where they can display new products, cultivate brand loyalty and interact with owners. Current owners are the manufacturers’ best customers, as well as their best advertising.

“Not only do owners love to daydream about their next boat, but they usually bring a guest who could be a future buyer,” Taylor said. “The rendezvous ‘plant the seed.’ You should see the men drooling.”

Jerry Trapp, a Crownline dealer and owner of Walt’s Boats in Nixa, Missouri, observed that the big events, as well as rendezvous organized by owners, help bring customers together. “It’s a family thing that promotes boating,” he said, referring to the Table Rock Lake rendezvous. “People get excited, too. One owner down from Chicago wanted to trade during the rally. He wanted to show off a new boat and then trailer it back home.”

People Who Need People

Owner participants are intelligent consumers who appreciate learning about new products at rendezvous preview shows. But outweighing everything else, owners love to get together with other owners of similar boats.

Crownline understands this, and, over the past four years, has developed and maintained an Internet site called the Owners’ Club. Here, “Crownies” exchange information, talk about destinations and plan their own gatherings.

“We provide a forum for our owners to communicate,” Sundin said. “Once they start talking, they want to go boating together. A huge volume of friends has been created through the Internet.”

Last year, a group of 30 Crownline members planned, via the Internet, a “Crownvoy” from Cincinnati to Norris Lake. Organizers contacted municipalities such as Lexington, Kentucky, so the police could escort them “parade-style” through town.

The Internet has become a powerful communication tool that enables owners to comment on why they participate in manufacturer-sponsored events. When we asked Crownline owners the question, scores of responses arrived within hours. The messages were all the same.

The very first boater to respond joked, “I go for the beer.” In the next sentence, he observed on a more thoughtful vein, “I go to be with friends I have made through the years at these rendezvous and the chance to do nothing else for a few days but boat.”

Another boater responded, “Friends, old and new, are the reason my family and I make the trek every year. Never in my life have I made friends quicker and kinder than those I meet at the rallies.”

One boater’s response summarized why thousands around the country, like him and the O’Neils of St. Louis, saddle up for a manufacturer-sponsored rendezvous. “Friendship. Everyone there has a common interest: boating. We have made lifelong friends all over the country. It’s great to see what boats and accessories others have, but it all comes down to the people.”

Reprinted from the June 2002 issue with permission of Go Boating Magazine.