 After all the doubts and uncertainties of late 2010 – would Broom still be building, would they have a stand , did they want to work with BOC – it was great to be able to announce plans and issue invitations for the traditional Thursday night Boat Show party. Of course things were a bit different this year. With only one boat on display and the stand jointly funded by the dealers, space was limited and facilities less lavish. However despite having to contribute towards costs, the event was well supported with over 40 BOC members turning up to share a glass of wine and celebrate the re-birth of Broom with new owner, Mark Garner. It was good to meet some old friends from Broom, people like Jason and Colin Boast and Andrew Stone, along with the new faces and the new corporate livery. Gone is the familiar red of the Broom name, replaced by navy lettering on silver background. You can spot the Broom staff in the photo from their distinctive black “gilets”.
With the deal done just before Christmas, it was quite a challenge to get the necessary display boards, pictures and stand furniture organised for 6th January. In previous years we have relied on Broom Boats to draw the people in and provide the backdrop. David Harrison and I, having taken on the task, were a bit shocked by the challenge facing us when we arrived on the afternoon before preview day. However with some help from Jason and material “borrowed” from other stand builders, followed by frantic photo production overnight, Friday morning saw BOC with a facility which stood out well alongside the other club displays.  Over the ten days, visitor numbers were a little disappointing - averaging only four names in the visitors’ book per day, but this may reflect reduced numbers at the Show generally as well as our new location and does not take account of the many current members who called by to chat with the volunteers manning the stand.
As you might expect, the best day for visitors was Thursday, party night, and here you can see David Haugh, newsletter editor and duty officer, entertaining Keith and Fiona Robbins, Thames region along with David Harrison, technical coordinator and Mike Smith who’s wife Joan took the photographs.
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