We’re on a mission. Rowing a Whitehall could save your life so that’s why we are clocking over 10,000 miles this Winter attending high-profile boat shows from San Diego to Chicago and Seattle.

People are realizing more than ever the benefits of rowing and also sailing these classic designs. Our boats never go out of style, are built to last generations, don’t make noise or stink and pollute the environment and – bonus! they make and keep you fit. That’s a wise investment.

Give us a call if you intend to order your boat for later this year because spring is coming we are booking up faster than usual.

If you’ve already got one – congratulations! You made the right decision. And you already know we stand behind everything we do

CHILLY CITY BUT WARM RECEPTION!

As luck would have it Wilf Lewis and Nick Brech arrived in Chicago January 15 for five of the coldest days of the year! 30 mile an hour winds and a temperature of minus 27. I joined them on day two and crossing the street was like stepping into a blast chiller freezer.

Inside McCormick Place it was nice and toasty. Although this was pretty much a powerboat show there was a huge amount of interest in the Whitehall Spirit Classic 14 and the Solo 14 we had on display. The highlight of being in Chicago for me was catching Buddy Guy playing live at his own club on the south side.

ACRES OF BOATS AT SEATTLE BOAT SHOW

On January 23 we were in Seattle setting up at Quest Field. The Seattle Boat Show is the largest on the West Coast. There are acres of boats and marine products of all kinds. Most of the Whitehall crew was there to spread the gospel for part of this ten day show. We had two classic Whitehall Spirits, a Westcoast and a number of Solo 14s which sparked conversation and intrigued new customers. Response was overwhelming and we loved every minute of it.

WHITEHALL HULL DEFEATS BODYBUILDER’S ATTACK

Call us crazy! In the Solo 14 display we had a partial hull set up, along with a hammer and a baseball bat that people could use to whack on it showing how extraordinarily tough the thermoformed copolymer is.

After 10 days of being smacked and pounded there was not a trace of any damage. At one point a huge fellow came up to the hull sample and boasted to Sales Manager Andrea Guyon, “I can break that.”

He pranced around explaining how he had a fast and powerful blow. Flexing his muscles he then walloped the hull with all his might.

The bat bounced off the unscathed copolymer and he looked at it in disbelief muttering, “That’s strong s**t.” Andrea shouted gleefully “Whitehall wins!” Everyone laughed. This bothered the fellow a bit so he moved to the side took careful aim and dealt repeated mighty blows. Again the bat bounced harmlessly off. He said, “That’s really strong s**t!” and finally left.

Another fellow came up and said, “I’m a Canadian and even though we have all that health care I’m thinking it’s time to get into some preventative health measures. This boat looks like it would do nicely.” I told him I could not agree more and mentioned to him the book “Younger Next Year” by Dr. Henry S. Lodge. He states that two hours of slide seat rowing a week will keep you at 50 until your 80.

I do just that more or less so check me out in twenty years – so far so good!

We met well over a thousand really nice folks, a few who already own a Whitehall boat but mostly folks who had heard of our reputation, and made a special trip to cast their eyes and run their hands over these impeccable boats for the first time.

One of the Solo 14’s was featured as a prize and at the end of the show Andrea and two show personnel drew out the name of the lucky winner who was Shannon McGregor on Lake Union. We plan to feature him in the next newsletter.

WHITEHALL ROWING AND SAIL IN CALGARY BOAT SHOW

The next show we are attending is in Calgary (from the 14th to the 17th of February. It’s the first time we’ve done a show there and Wilf Lewis will be on hand with Andrea Guyon and myself standing by to take orders or answer any technical questions.

MOTTO FOR 2008:
LET US BUILD YOUR VERY OWN WHITEHALL MASTERPIECE

With our nice new boat building facility in Victoria getting more and more organized we are primed and ready to build your very own masterpiece. As I said at the beginning of this newsletter– just give us a call.