Dan

The 10% off has finished now though! :

I got some amended confirmation's this week too from bookings made before the 10% offer & new prices came out. One (platinum fleet) had dropped by the damage waiver & one by the damage waiver and taking into account the benefit if I'd booked at next years price with the 10% off. Nice to have them corrected without asking (Team Richardson continues to be an efficient and commendable machine) and always good to see a bit of a reduced figure, it's almost enough to tempt you to book another holiday! Dan

On the plus side, if it is starting from Maffetts you would expect the relevance & quality of instruction to be first class Dan

Cant imagine they'd be very practical/viable when it came to a location that was stern on mooring only? Dan

They came out for 1969 and finished very late 70s I think. 1969-75 was probably their production heyday. There's a few more bits of info here... www.fbwilds.horning.org.uk Dan

It's a Buccaneer 44 where the cabin has been pushed further forward over where the well would be and then a restyled front has been made that is a bit more like the Alpha sloping forward drives of the period, and then quite a lot of tinkering at the back! Dan

This little beauty Clive?! http://www.canalscape.net/Dont%20Call%20it%20a%20Barge/Cruiser%20Diversity/LR%20Caraboat%201.jpg I have been having a think, there has been a few funny ones over the years but I think I have normally found something I like about them in the end! I always thought the 41ft Powles with the high forward deck was a strange one.... when I first saw them I think I just thought how on earth would you get off the front doing a side on mooring, but I guess the answer is simple! I saw one recently on the Thames (with a blue hull nonetheless) and thought it looked sort of alright actually, but perhaps I had my rose tinted spectacles on at the time? Dan

Remember to underprice them on year one too, err, while they err, find their place in the fleet

Interesting Strow, Whatever the setup though I'm sure the hiccup has caused some difficulties and time sapping things to sort out as so often comes with change. Dan

Hi Everyone I posted a while back about what people thought was the best design or favourite that has been created so far and recently I was thinking what does everyone consider was the worst? If anyone mentions a boat that you own then don't worry because beauty is in the eye of the beholder! Dan

Hi Neil I didn't make any post about them doing lots of hard work, infact other than stating they seem to bring first time visitors in a fair bit I just listed a few questions, for people to perhaps consider. On the new brochure... I quite like the front cover (but I tend to like anything retro!) The opening pages are quite nice and paint nice pictures. I like the 'starboard' concept/name too, in first theory anyway. I agree that as has been said it loses its effect and some credibility that only some fleets are covered with others such as Richardsons & Barnes Brinkcraft etc having their own elite type of ranking for some craft. Is for example a Richardsons Carousel less luxurious or eligible than a Silverline 'Simoom? Both are top end fitouts (though one, the none featured one's also a much newer external design too) so the fact some fleets have bought in & others not is quite indicative of what has been discussed regarding how the role the agents play & their influence has changed. Once it gets to the fleet sections I agree that the individual boat representation is still a bit too small for my liking, though it is better in that the bigger pictures seem to be better arranged and have more relevance and are also more often captioned than before (though quite a few are incorrectly captioned and some still not all). I think the layout plans especially are just that bit too small. It is interesting that some fleets seem to have sold a couple but don't appear to have replaced or at the same level (Swancraft, Royalls, Sandersons etc) I don't actually mind the summarised pricing indicators rather than set full pricing, and think it was only a matter of time before this came because as has been pointed out the industry has changed & is still changing. What there is allows you to gauge price levels between craft to gain an idea of whats lower priced, comparisons etc, and if you didn't have the internet - well, you'd have the option of picking up the phone for pricing & booking queries which is I guess what you'd have done if the exact price was there anyway, though perhaps slightly further down the selection route previously. Overall.. it seems a bit better than the last one. Best Wishes Dan

Is the good they do being overlooked / is it really all bad?.... As just posted often they are instrumental in getting the first booking for a yard Who else can or does spend as much on marketing as them Would the boating industry be what it is today without them Would any hirefleets website be what it is today without them? Dan

I think the Broom Bolero is an opal 28 but using an alpha photo for rough illustration? Dan

The businesses are covered a bit as well as the consumer. Imagine what fun some would have moving price labels if the fact it had the wrong price on meant they had to sell at that price It could be very advantageous if shopping for a 'new' motor car and accidentally one of the first number or two 'fell' off, or genuine error had been made! As has been said though, if the difference is small as in this case they may have just lost more than they have gained, looking at things less directly and to the "big picture", but I guess not all operate on that outlook Dan

Errrm, an awful example Mr R... that only survived for forty years! I just wondered why yards (mostly) moved away from having the number with the name really Dan

Great photos Simon! Is that that boat that was for sale at Wroxham for some time maybe a year or two back? Here are a couple of happy (even if I don't look it!) memories from my first trip Dan

I have always thought this was a bit unusual. At one time the numbers used to be after the name across all fleets really, then it seemed that mid nineties everyone grew allergic reactions to this and numbers within a class started to appear only on the back, away from their name. I notice Faircraft Loynes have put the numbers back after the name now on the side of the boat, which made me much happier! I guess it is more to help finding the right boat in their yard though? I never really got the logic to the trend. Is it thought to be more desirable/exclusive to not be one of six or something, so the fact there is more than one must be disguised a bit? Is this actually true or just one persons opinion that got adopted and spread across all fleets, or is there some other perceived benefits? Add me to the it would be nice to have the class number in chrome after the name on the back panel group please! Dan

Great service indeed. Despite lots of claims of great customer service and it all being about the customer there are not that many businesses that I think actually really get this right, so it is good to hear of genuine and kind service like this. I wonder if many people just don't look forward enough, but the amount of recommendations this kind of thing brings (although probably less than people hear about if a bad service is encountered) and that you will probably not think of going anywhere else now for any canopy work is not a reward that enough see (I guess as there is no instant gratification/reward, especially if you don't enjoy making people happy) or really genuinely care about good service. This said it always seems to me that there is a higher share of Norfolk businesses that do a good job compared to where I live but this could be partly to do with the change of businesses I deal with when in Norfolk than when at home Dan

Thanks for taking the time to set the questions Jill and Lisa for keeping score. It would be good if there were enough people interested in popping in and doing the quiz, even if not all weeks, that it can be a success again and help bring everyone together for a bit of friendly chat and banter too Dan

Hi Lori Here you go... imagine how amazing they would look if they were all white & with tinted windows! Dan

Mmmm... I think that dolphin you snapped might just be the same one we saw last week near Irstead

I'm not so sure Andy, afterall a free map could come in handy for some of my crew based on this years experience, so mustn't be under-estimated! I did wonder if he meant free fuel and free damage waiver though, as I had found clever ways round most of the things mentioned! Dan

It is a truly shocking idea! I had worked out if it was cheaper to do that that with the 20% off than a short break without.... was pretty close tbh! Dan

Hey no way, no way.... don't be dressing up the plastic fantastic Aquafibres with firewood dressing! Dan

Well I have booked up four breaks for next year with you! Your re-pricing meant I booked different boats to what I would have previously chosen and indeed the value was hard to argue with, though not getting the 20% off the second trip (unless a week long holiday)will mean one break less for me each year with you, which will probably go down well at home to be honest and help us shoehorn in those pesky non boaty holidays! Dan