GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — A West Michigan tradition cruised into DeVos Place for its 79th year. We heard from boat enthusiasts at this year’s Grand Rapids Boat Show.
Kelli Felmeden and Lori Vanderweele are both sisters who happen to be boat owners. They’ve owned their boats since 2007.
“We have separate boats. We have a 2005 Bennington and it has been fantastic.”
It’s an investment they decided to make to add to their precious family memories.
“It was something that we wanted to bring in for our kids and let them experience that, and we have more of a pontoon and a fishing boat rather than a speedboat.”
When they’re not on their boats, they’re looking at others — like Sunday at the 79th annual Grand Rapids Boat Show.
“We love coming. We try to come every year and look at all the new things and fun stuff.”
Show manager Ben Nielsen says every year the show brings in around 30,000 attendees who are looking to learn about boats, take advantage of rebates and make sure their summer’s ready before it’s too late.
“If you order your boat right now, you can pick out the color; you can get the right interior, the right motor, electronics, all those different things, have it delivered and get it when it's really nice outside,” says Nielsen. “This is the time you want to get down there and look for that boat and pick it out for summer.”
This year’s show featured 30 different boat dealers from around 80 manufacturers — with more than 400 boats inside of DeVos Place.
Kelli and Lori say coming here is better than looking through a catalog.
“[You can see] different brands. You can see different layouts. You can see different pricing.”
If you’re new to boating, they suggest you start small, work your way up and take advantage of shows like this one.
“We actually weren't coming here to buy a boat and I think we may have found a boat. And we may actually pull the trigger, so we'll see how this goes.”
Sunday was the last day of the Grand Rapids Boat Show. For information on future shows, visit DeVos Place's website.
