How NOT to do boat shipping!

How NOT to do boat shipping!

Everything looks perfectly normal until suddenly a snap, crash, and splash. This poor boat is now back in the water, upside down. I sure hope that this shipper is fully insured and properly licensed like what we use here at Ship Your Boat Now! When boat shipping goes wrong you need to know you’re covered. Make sure you and your boat are protected.

Palm Beach International Boat Show

Palm Beach International Boat Show

palm beach florida boat showOn Thursday West Palm Beach is opening the Palm Beach Boat Show in Florida, which will be showing over $1.2 billion worth of boats and yachts. All this week crews have been setting up boats, docks, booths and tents downtown on Flagler Drive for the boat show – Which will be here from March 21 through March 24.

This is the 28th year of the Palm Beach Boat Show which is located in West Palm Beach, Florida at the Lake Worth Lagoon.

What to Expect at the Palm Beach Boat Show

At the West Palm Beach International Boat Show you’ll be able to see equipment and goods ranging from inflatable boats to super yachts, and the accessories that go with them. Included in the displays are a large variety of power boats, bow riders, and personal watercraft.

The boat show brings with it a large impact on the Florida economy. Boating business booms and the taxes bring a strong economic growth. Last year’s boat show generated $2.8 million and State exise and sales taxes.

Time and Tickets

The show hours are 12 PM – 7 PM on Thursday, 10 AM- 7 PM on Friday and Saturday, ad 10 AM – 6 PM on Sunday. Tickets are $16 for adults, $7 for children ages 6 to 15, and are free for children under 6 years old. You can also save $2 by purchasing tickets online at ShowManagement.com.

After the show the attendees are invited to submit their favorite Instagram photos taken during the show by tagging them with #PalmBeachBoatShow for a chance to win a one year subscription to any of the following publications:

  • PassageMaker
  • Power & Motoryacht
  • Soundings
  • Soundings Trade Only
  • Yachts International

These photos will be uploaded to the Palm Beach International Boat Show Facebook page, and the top 5 with the most likes will have a chance to pick one of the magazines above for the free one year subscription.

The photos can also be uploaded directly to the Palm Beach International Boat Show facebook page for entry.

Florida Boating Restrictions in Everglades Park

Florida Boating Restrictions in Everglades Park

Florida Boating in Everglades National ParkThe Everglades National Park has put restrictions on boaters’ by closing one third of the park to traditional boating. After examining damage and threats it was realized that to repair the damage restrictions must be put on boating in the area.

Boating Restrictions in the Park

Some of the restrictions include minimized combustion engine boating and limiting access by boat to areas in the park. There are several meetings that the public can attend to have their input heard, reviewed, and analyzed for the plans to the park.

Florida Sportsman featured: Everglades Park to Close One Third of Florida Bay to Traditional Boating

 

From Press Release/Everglades National Park

Everglades National Park is seeking public comment on its Draft General Management Plan / East Everglades Wilderness Study / Environmental Impact Statement (Draft GMP). The Draft GMP was released today for public review and public comment is requested by Sunday, May 12, 2013.

Superintendent Dan Kimball said, “The park has been working hard to complete the draft plan, and we’re pleased to have reached this important milestone. We now look forward to presenting the results of this collaborative effort, hearing directly again from the public and many stakeholder groups, and working together to shape the long-term vision for the park.”

The Draft GMP is available for review and comment at: http://parkplanning.nps.gov/EVER (then go to the “Open for Comment” link). A limited number of paper copies and compact disks (CDs) of the plan are also available upon request by contacting Everglades National Park at 305-242-7700.

Seven (7) public meetings will be held the evenings of March 19 – 21 and April 8 – 11, 2013 (5:30 to 8:30 p.m.; the April 8 meeting will also be webcast through the link above). The meetings will be organized in three parts:

• Open House – opportunities for the public to review Draft GMP materials, meet with National Park Service (NPS) staff, and provide comments
• NPS Presentation – overview of key features of the Draft GMP
• Formal Comment/East Everglades Wilderness Hearing – comment session that allows the public to comment on the Draft GMP and the East Everglades Wilderness Study (session will be transcribed)

The Draft GMP provides broad guidance and describes desired conditions to be achieved and maintained regarding natural and cultural resource protection, appropriate types and levels of visitor activities, and facility improvements and development. Also included is a wilderness study for the East Everglades Addition (an area added to the park in 1989, after the park’s original 1978 wilderness designation). The Draft GMP presents and evaluates the NPS Preferred Alternative and three other alternatives. Superintendent Kimball believes that the Preferred Alternative would most effectively achieve the park’s long-term goals and be compatible with Everglades ecosystem restoration efforts.

Superintendent Kimball added, “We have carefully considered public input received during many rounds of public and stakeholder meetings, the park’s mission and legal responsibilities, and current and future restoration projects, in crafting the Preferred Alternative. The Preferred Alternative is also identified as the environmentally preferred alternative.”

Among other features, the Preferred Alternative includes important proposals for two areas of the park that have been of particular interest to the public and park managers: Florida Bay and the East Everglades Addition.

In Florida Bay, extremely shallow areas would be managed as pole and troll (non-combustion engine use) zones, while still providing traditional access and use through the channels and deeper basins.

Superintendent Kimball supports this proactive measure, stating, “Careful examination of damage and threats to natural and submerged wilderness features, and patterns of visitor use, pointed to the need for a new strategy. The Snake Bight Pole and Troll Zone pilot project, with overwhelming public support, showed me that new approaches to park management are possible. The Snake Bight project demonstrated that resource protection and enhanced visitor opportunities, designed in close consultation with the public, can work. Our approach in the Draft GMP is the same; it’s a multi-faceted program (mandatory boater education, improvements to navigation and enforcement, and strategic zoning) and builds on work by the state of Florida in its 1995 statewide report for protecting vital seagrass resources. I’m confident that over time, we can effectively implement these strategies and see benefits to resources and visitor experience in the park.”

In the East Everglades Addition, for the first time since passage of the 1989 Expansion Act, a framework would be established for managing commercial and private airboating, and backcountry uses.

Superintendent Kimball says, “The Preferred Alternative outlines a zoning strategy that would lead to implementing a limited number of airboat tour concession contracts between NPS and four eligible companies identified in the 1989 Expansion Act, and identifying areas for eligible individual airboaters, and backcountry recreational users. The Preferred Alternative also proposes 80,100 acres of wilderness and 9,900 acres of potential wilderness in the 109,600-acre Addition.”

The Draft GMP also highlights a new, smarter approach to sustainable development in coastal areas like Flamingo and Everglades City, where consideration of sea level rise, storm surge and fiscal realities have led to innovative investment strategies for both the NPS and its partners, such as park concessioners.

To guide complex efforts like Florida Bay and East Everglades Addition management, a stakeholder-based advisory committee would be established. This committee would help park managers in GMP implementation by working with park managers to assess projects, and inform monitoring and adaptive management activities to meet resource protection and visitor use goals.

After the public review and comment period ends on May 12, public input will be reviewed and analyzed, and adjustments to the plan will be made. The Final GMP and Record of Decision will be issued in 2014.

Schedule of Public Meetings (all 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.):
Date Location
March 19, 2013 Homestead, Florida
John D. Campbell Agricultural Center, 18710 SW 288th Street
March 20, 2013 Islamorada, Florida
Coral Shores High School, 89901 Old Highway
March 21, 2013 Everglades City, Florida
Everglades City School, 415 School Drive
April 8, 2013 Dania Beach, Florida
International Game Fish Association – Fishing Hall of Fame, 300 Gulfstream Way
Live webcast will be available: http://parkplanning.nps.gov/EVER

April 9, 2013 Naples, Florida
Edison State College, Collier Campus – Building J, 7007 Lely Cultural Parkway
April 10, 2013 Key Largo, Florida
Murray Nelson Government Center, 102050 Overseas Highway
April 11, 2013 Miami, Florida
Florida International University – Stadium Club, 11200 SW 8th Street

High Hopes for Repair

The park hopes to repair damage done over years of boating and other activities in the Everglades. The Superintendent believes that the preferred alternative will be the best choice for the environment of the Everglades Park, and has faith in the chosen method.

See The Quadski at the 2013 Miami Boat Show

See The Quadski at the 2013 Miami Boat Show

GIBBS QuadskiAt the 2013 Miami Boat Show we’re looking forward to getting a look at the new Quadski that was released in mid-November 2012. The Quadski is an ATV that has an addition that others don’t, the ability to ride on water. With one push of a button, and a few seconds for transition, this ATV goes from powering through trails to making waves like a jet ski.

Make sure you come and check it out this year at the Miami Boat Show!

 

First in the World

Named “The World’s First High-Speed Amphibian (HSA)” the Quadski is built with a durable light-weight composite hull, and it utilizes patented water-jet technology and combines with the power of a BMW Motorrad engine and transmission for an extreme ride.

The Quadski comes with a 15-gallon tank and is available in five colors – red, blue, yellow, silver, and black – and is also on sale at dealerships in Florida, Texas, New York, Michigan, and in some Midwestern and southeastern states.

See the Quadski at the Miami Boat Show

Come to the 2013 Miami Boat Show and see the GIBBS Quadski on display at the National Marin Super Yacht Toy Store and get a closer look. Along with the Quadski, you can expect to see nearly 3,000 boats being showcased by over 2,000 companies, a wide range of marine engines, and boatloads of gear and accessories.

The Quadski converts from land to water at the push of a button, which activates the unique retractable suspension system that offers outstanding ride and handling on land, and reacts in just seconds after entering the water. The engine is a four-cylinder, electronic fuel-injected, water-cooled engine that is considered the lightest in its segment.

This HSA is over 10.5 feet long, is 5.2 feet wide, and 4.3 feet high with a wheelbase of 5.8 feet to meet applicable state and federal safety regulations.

About Gibbs Sports Amphibians

Gibbs Sports Amphibians, Inc. (BIGGS) put millions of dollars and years of work into developing the Quadski, and are manufacturing it in a 54,000-square-foot plant in Auburn Hills, Michigan. GIBBS development of the Quadski has made them a pioneer in the development of HSA technology that will lead the way to a new way to have fun with ATVs.

GIBBS other division Gibbs Amphitrucks Inc. put out similar products, but designed for military or first responders instead of for sporting.

More information about GIBBS and its HSA technology can be found at www.gibbssports.com.

See the Quadski in Action

Houseboats – Live It Up On The Water!

Houseboats – Live It Up On The Water!

HouseboatsAll over the world people are moving off land and into the water. Houseboats are becoming bigger and better every year, and life on them is becoming more comparable to living on land thanks to technologies’ leaps forward.

Staying Connected

Just a few years ago if you wanted internet without the wires you were stuck with two options, get satellite or get over it. Now, with worldwide 3G and 4G data connections and how common mobile phones are moving into a houseboat is an easy transition with multiple options.

If you decide that it’s time for your life to move to sea you won’t have any worries about how to transition, and more and more new houseboats are coming standard with features you need for a move like that. Now that it’s so easy to keep connected after leaving land to live on a houseboat you won’t have to worry about losing contact with family and friends, or with playing your favorite online game either!

Extreme Houseboats

These days having a custom houseboat isn’t difficult, and with so many options you can have almost anything you want. There are houseboats that look like houses, like submarines, like domes, and so much more! You can have your own sea mansion to float around in, and have it as roomy as a land house!

With houseboats like the Jelly-Fish 45 and the Trilobis 65 out there, it seems like there is hardly anything that can’t be built for the sea just as well, or even better, than on land!

If you don’t want a houseboat mansion you can do what some others have been doing. Build a raft base, or have one built, and put a camper or trailer on it! This makes for an easy move back and forth from land to sea any time you want!

So if you want to travel the world on your cozy houseboat and then just roll off the raft and cruise around without having to make any real adjustments, then this is perfect for you. It also helps with keeping with a tight budget!

Live Free

With so many options out there for moving your life to the water, you can live as free as you want and nearly anywhere you want. Now you can move off land and travel the seas and still live in the comfort of a house that is still on land.

Check out these 17 Extreme Houseboats and House Boat Designs: From Luxury Habitats to Humble Floating Homes for ideas on living the sea life in style!

 

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