Michigan Boat Show Ranks Among The Best In The Country

It's the time of year when boats across the country come out of their winter hibernation and start their engines. To build excitement and in anticipation for this, USA Today's 10BEST recently compiled the best boat shows across the country, and a Michigan boat show made the list.

"Boat shows in the United States captivate enthusiasts with a showcase of the latest in maritime technology, vessels ranging from personal watercraft to luxury yachts, and a vibrant atmosphere where the boating community comes together," they said.

Depending upon which type of boat show you are interested in, typically, these events have two different purposes. Some boat shows allow owners to browse boating, fishing, and yachting items that are new for the season. These are more convention-style shows that display booths or docks full of boating items. We're talking everything from the best cleaner spray to fishing poles to thousands of dollars worth of high-end engine gear.

Then, you have more of a car show-style boating show. As you would assume, this gives boat owners and enthusiasts the opportunity to showcase that pride and joy. This is a chance to explore that massive yacht that houses people for a few months of the year or that custom Stingray motorboat with crazy speed that can pull every level of water skier.

Regardless of your boat show preference, these events seem to be synonymous with sunshine and positive vibes. Certain boat shows even make an experience out of the day, bringing in food trucks and live music.

The Detroit Boat Show ranked number three overall. The show will be back in January 2025 at Huntington Place. Here, you have a nice combination of pre-owned boats for sale in addition to parts and unique accessories.

10BEST further explains, "There's live music, educational workshops, career days, and informative exhibits to keep visitors entertained."

This past year, the 2024 Detroit Boat Show included highlights such as Captain Sandy Yawn from BravoTV's Below Deck show attending the show for meet-and-greet opportunities. Plus, kids could paint paddles, there was a full tiki bar and career day seminars were held. Wilson's Marine, Tommy's of Detroit, and Devil's Lake Watersports are some examples of local exhibitors who also participated.

Tickets for the Detroit Boat Show can be purchased in advance so that you can skip the line the day you plan on attending. They are typically $14 each, and kids under 12 get in free.

Bob Seger has a career that many artists only dream of, from selling millions of records to being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

While Seger bid touring farewell in 2019, legions of fans still adore this "Beautiful Loser" and always will. In honor of his birthday on May 6, we take a brief look at 10 interesting Bob Seger statistics that might surprise you.

In June 2021, Seger spoke with David Fricke and reflected on his life in music and the December 2020 passing of longtime Silver Bullet Band saxophonist Alto Reed.

Seger said Reed phoned him to tell him about his colon cancer diagnosis and said, "I listened really hard to him, and he said 'how grateful I am for my wonderful life.' ... I thought that was so beautiful, and I thought he was so brave. I don't think I could go out (on tour) without him."

As far as the touring part of his career goes, Seger said, "You know, I've had a great life, oh my goodness. I loved what I did. Never worked a day in my life, really. The hard parts were in sleeping in hotels, having rotten food."

However, it seems as though Seger isn't completely retired from music. He touched on his experience during the pandemic and how Bruce Springsteen offered some supportive words saying, "I was getting kind of down on myself, down on the world and down on everything. [Springsteen] said, 'Bob, go out there and start writing, start singing, start playing, start recording."

If you ever feel like getting lost in the wonder that is Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band, you might want to wander over to the Seger YouTube Channel. Not only does the channel feature official music videos, but there's also various live clips of Seger over the years, which are real gems.

Much like with streaming services like Apple Music and Spotify, Seger was one of the last few major artists to not have an official channel on the platform.

When the channel was first unveiled in January 2020, president and CEO of Universal Music Enterprises (parent company of Capitol Records) Bruce Resnikoff said, "What’s really important is that Bob is first and foremost a storyteller, and we now live in a world where artists are able to tell their stories and give their message to old fans and new fans in way that goes well beyond touring and live appearances. In the world of YouTube and videos, we get a chance for Bob to tell his story in way that’s very real to people, and to reach a much broader and younger audience."

Only one Seger album has topped the Billboard 200 Album Chart, and that was 1980's Against the Wind. And Seger's lone number one hit? That was 1987's "Shakedown" from the Beverly Hills Cop II soundtrack.

Seger's been nominated for seven Grammy Awards and has won only one, which came in 1981 when he won Best Rock Performance by Duo or Group with Vocal for "Against the Wind."

Seger's catalog boasts 10 platinum studio/live albums, and they are:

Ample could be said about the amount of time it took for Seger to get inducted into the Rock Hall, but that rant could take a long time. However, we still think it's a massive oversight the Silver Bullet Band were snubbed.

Rolling Stone has an interesting piece on the history of the "Like a Rock" ad campaign for Chevy trucks, which ran from 1991 until 2004, and its impact on advertising during sporting events. He would tell Ultimate Classic Rock, "When Chevy asked for it, for a long time I turned it down, because I just didn’t want it to be in an ad. I’m really glad I did it now, because it sold a lot of trucks to save a lot of jobs, and, you know, this is my home state. So it’s a good thing. And people keep hearing it, so that’s great!"

Seger covered a diverse selection of tunes including Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Fortunate Son," Ike & Tina Turner's "Nutbush City Limits" and an absolutely beautiful rendition of the Christmas classic "The Little Drummer Boy."

According to IMDb.com, "Old Time Rock & Roll" has been featured in a wide variety of films/TV shows including WKRP in Cincinnati, Scrubs, Glee and more. Often, the use of "Old Time Rock & Roll" post-Risky Business was to reference the iconic scene of a young Tom Cruise in his underwear, as evident by this scene from ALF.

Seger would appear in season 32, episode 17 of the iconic animated series. It's pretty amazing it took so long for this to happen considering Homer Simpson's love of classic rock, especially fellow Michigan natives Grand Funk Railroad.

According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), Seger's Greatest Hits was certified Diamond (selling 10 million copies) on May 30, 2017. Sure would be interesting how many units the compilation has moved since then.

Per Pollstar, Seger's farewell tour was the 3rd highest-grossing tour in North America in 2019 bringing in $97 million. The two artists that out-grossed him that year were Elton John ($157.4 million) and The Rolling Stones ($177.8 million.)