Tulsa Boat, Sport & Travel show opens Monday
BY KYLE ARNOLD World Staff Writer
Saturday, January 26, 2013
1/26/13 at 7:46 AM
More than 11 acres of boats, motor homes and outdoor recreational gear will roll into the QuikTrip Center at Expo Square next week as the Tulsa Boat, Sport & Travel Show gets under way.
The annual event, a sure sign of the warmer months ahead, marks the start of the sales season for dealers and outdoor recreation enthusiasts alike. The show will feature hundreds of boats in the 500,000-square-foot building, along with many RV dealers, organizers said.
The show starts Monday with a preview night and runs through Sunday.
Continuing the low-cost trend of the last 18 months, pontoon boats are expected to be a major seller again this season, said Larry Stockhausen, an organizer of this year's show who works on dozens of similar events across the country.
"Surprisingly, Tulsa is one of the four or five biggest boat shows in the country in terms of square footage," he said. "Pontoons are expected to be big, but the manufacturers and dealers are starting to put their resources behind the smaller ski boats again."
The boating industry has been hard hit in the last five years by tough economic conditions, but the large, less expensive pontoon boats have been popular because they can do many of the things that ski boats can do at a lower cost.
Stockhausen said fishing boats should also be a popular category this year, particularly with the Bassmaster Classic tournament coming to Grand Lake starting Feb. 22.
"Boat shows are starting to see the uptick in attendance again," Stockhausen said. "It's been slow but it is moving upwards."
Tulsa Boat, Sport & Travel Show
QuikTrip Center at Expo Square
Monday, Jan. 28 through Sunday, Feb. 3
Preview Night: $15 admission Monday from 5 to 9 p.m.
Regular admission: $10, children 12 and under free with adult
Hours: Tuesday-Friday, noon to 9 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Original Print Headline: Annual boat show kicks off next week
Kyle Arnold 918-581-8380
kyle.arnold@tulsaworld.com
Associated Images:
Last year's Tulsa Boat, Sport & Travel Show featured millions of dollars worth of merchandise for outdoor enthusiasts. The 2013 edition of the event will do the same, organizers say. STEPHEN PINGRY/Tulsa World file
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