We just wrapped up the 8th CT Spring Boat Show at Safe Harbor Essex Island in Essex, Connecticut April 26-28. At WindCheck, we tend to steer away from reviewing events. We prefer to preview events and let the rest of the media world fill you in on the Monday after. But even though this was our eighth go at this, it really was our third.
While 2019 was nice with sixty-eight boats and twenty-two exhibitors, 2020 was cancelled due to COVID 19 and by the time spring 2021 came around, there were simply no boats available. We opened with just twenty-five boats that year. The bright spot was that we raised over $20K for Sails Up 4 Cancer by sharing half of the proceeds of a then-prodigious gate. Being the first event in CT in 2021 where masks were not required, 2,300 people would have come to a hair-freezing festival on beautiful Essex Island, boats or no boats! (Ed’s Note: the International Hair Freezing Festival is actually a thing in Canada.)
Well, fast forward to a more normal climate and we are back on track. With the help of the great teams from Safe Harbor Dauntless and Essex Island, Essex Boat Works, and many, many other sponsors both old and new, we had sixty-five boats and forty-three exhibitors and raised over our target of $30,000 for SU4C. And we say Finally! because Mother Nature decided to take a break from April easterlies and bless us with three lovely days for the first time…ever.
A word about Sails Up 4 Cancer. Bob Davis and his volunteers have been at this from the beginning. They work really hard processing show attendees over the three days, not just taking and selling tickets, but also by serving as docents providing guidance on what to see both on the island as well as steering visitors to participating establishments on Main Street.
And it’s important to understand that funds raised go to real people who have been struck by the scourge that is cancer. Yes, much larger organizations raise funds larger by factors of hundreds that usually go towards research to find cures. But not many organizations focus on helping at the ground level. SU4C impacts regular folks by helping them with things like paying the mortgage, getting necessary staples, offering transportation to and from treatments and – crucially – providing knowledgable ears for people to tell their story too.
So, a very warm Thank You to the 2,400 folks who purchased tickets and of course to the exhibitors and yacht brokers, without whom we would not have a reason for those people to come! Strangely, hair freezing just doesn’t pull in Essex. You can still get a feel for the weekend and all that happened by checking out
ctspringboatshow.com.
See you on the water,
Publisher
Benjamin V. Cesare
ben@windcheckmagazine.com
