Boat enthusiasts will gather at the RBC Convention Centre in early March for the Mid-Canada Boat show.

The show will feature over 60 exhibitors and a number of other activities including live music, food from Danny’s Whole Hog BBQ & Smokehouse and a celebrity fish cook off.

There will also be draw you can enter if you buy a boat at a value exceeding $15,000 before taxes. If you enter the draw, you can possibly win $5,000 in credit towards the boat you purchased. In order to qualify you have to be paid in full and take delivery of your boat.

Ryan Peterson is with Peterson Boat Works, a company that restores antique boats, builds custom wooden boats and provides indoor and outdoor storage and winterizing for boats.

They’re also a first time exhibitor at the boat show and will be showcasing 3 classic mahogany inboard boats, including a 1936 Gar Wood, a 1938 Chris Craft and a 1948 Shepherd.

Peterson says Manitoba has a large boating community and the showcase is a good way to bring them all together.

“Winnipeg is the hub for boat businesses in the area,” he said. “Manitoba is, after all, the land of 100,000 lakes.”

Peterson says the boat show is a good way for his company to showcase how they are preserving the history of boating in Manitoba.

“We’re not only restoring boats, but we’re helping facilitate of living history,” he said. “Many of these boats have been handed down from generation to generation and often from cottage owner to cottage owner.”

 

 

“They reflect a different time when boats were built in fewer numbers and when small Canadian companies built reputations for high quality workmanship throughout North America.”

The Mid-Canada Boat Show starts on Thusday, March 3 and runs through Sunday, March 6 at the Convention Centre. Tickets are just $15 and admission is free for children who are 13 and under.  

For more information, visit midcanadaboatshow.com.