Giving Thanks, St. Pete Boat Show & Holiday Gift Certificates

It's that time of year again. The time of year for friends and family to get together and to give thanks for all of the wonderful blessings we have. It's the time of year for us to refocus on the things that really matter - like spending the day on your boat and making memories that last a lifetime.

It's also the time of year for the St. Pete Boat Show. It starts on Thursday, December 4th and runs through Sunday the 7th.
We are very excited to offer the first ever Factory backed "Boater's Stimulus Package". That's right, a stimulus package that pays you direct. Our manufacturers are stepping up and helping you, "Joe the Boater", purchase a new boat by offering you direct financial aid.
Are you looking to purchase a new boat? Use the Stimulus cashas an additional discount over and above the already reduced Boat Show sale price.
Do you owe more on your boat than it's worth? Use the Stimulus cash to help reduce your negative equity. Then you can trade it in on that new boat you've been wanting.
This one time "Boater's Stimulus Package" begins Friday November 28th and runs through December 7th. Do not hesitate. If you have been waiting for the perfect time to buy, it is NOW.
Please contact us to set an appointment to see the boat of your choice and take advantage of this rare opportunity.

Can't decide on that perfect gift for that special someone? How about a gift certificate from Thunder Marine Parts and Accessories? Choose from hats, shirts, dock lines, fenders, cup holders and much much more. Click on the link below for more information on our gift certificate special and avoid the crowded malls.
http://www.thundermarine.com/specials_service.asp?indid=1&disid=179950&

Everyone here at Thunder Marine would like to thank our thousands of customers for their loyalty and friendship and wish them and their family the very happiest of Holidays.

Fall Happy Hour @ Thunder Marine

Want to get away?

With all the negative news in the media, woudn't you like to have a day or two where you didn't have to hear about the market or political campaigns? Well, picture this - a beautiful sunset, temperatures in the low to mid 70's, the gentle sound of waves crashing and the crisp smell of the salty autumn air. Where is this you ask? Anywhere Tampa Bay. You can find it in St. Petersburg, Tampa, Clearwater, Sarasota, Bradenton - you name it.

We are so blessed with the area we live in because there are so many places to go to get away on a boat. Sure, you can take long trips to places you haven't been but the joy of boating is just getting away. Many times that can just mean an overnight stay at the marina where you keep your boat or anchoring up for the weekend at a favorite local island. Shoot, even the Intercoastal Waterway has plenty of spots outside the channel that you can anchor at and feel secluded. It's just like when you were a kid and you pitched a tent in your backyard. You weren't that far from home, but at least you were away!

These short vacations or "staycations" as they are sometimes called can be rather inexpensive no matter the company.
-If it's just you and the better half, it can be a romantic way to spend some "alone time". Pack a lite dinner, some wine and your favorite music. A Gulf sunset and a quiet night away can do wonders for a relationship.
-If you've been spending to much time at work and you are starting to forget what your spouse and kids look like, a weekend away with the family on the boat can make you a hero. Pull out a couple of those dusty board games you have, make some sandwiches and you've got a start to your weekend. Find an island that you're familiar with and the kids will be able to run off some energy. Bring a small grill and you'll not only be able to cook up some hamburgers & hot dogs, but you'll be able to make smores later on!
-If the day to day grind is starting to get to you and you are ready to blow off some steam, invite some of your friends to join you for a docktail party or raft-up. Grab your favorite livation, some good Jimmy Buffet tunes and start changing your latitude and attitude.

So if any of these fits your current state of mind, let your boat be the escape you intended it to be. And if you don't currently have a boat or are in the market for another one, Four Winns should be on your list. The Four Winns Vista cruisers are the perfect boats for these "staycations". From 25 feet to 50 feet, Four Winns has models to fit everyones needs. Enjoy all the comforts of home in the serenity of your tropical cove. If you'd like to look at the beautiful Four Winns line-up, just click on the link below:

http://www.thundermarine.com/brochure_search.asp?bsCID=1027&bsYear=2008&bsProdCat=807978&indid=1&

And if for some reason you still have to have contact with civilization, most cell phones and wireless cards work in the surrounding waterways - just don't let anyone else know because you might spoil their fun & relaxation!

Thunder Fishing Team

With fall season upon us, the inshore fishing is starting to gear up. Water temperatures are starting to fall and the fish are starting to feed. Our in-house fishing team has spent some time jumping tarpon out at our 90 foot hole and with a moving tide, crabs have been the ticket. They have also been pretty successful on the flats with redfish, trout and snook. The snook & redfish are schooling up in the mangroves so you have to be quiet and sneak up on them. The snook are turning their nose up at the greenbacks but seem to be loving the big shrimp.

Fortunately for our team, they are on the perfect boat for getting in front of all of these species. The Hydra-Sports Bay Bolt is that boat. Whether it's the 19 or 23 Bay Bolt, they can get into the skinny backwaters for the redfish and snook or head off the beach to hit the tarpon. And on a good day, head out into the gulf for grouper. With a 14 degree deadrise and a draft of 10 inches, these bay boats take them where they want to go. When they get to their favorite spot, they love the wide open layout, the stability of the boat and the accessibilty of all the features these boats have to offer. Just ask local radio host and fishing guide Captain Todd Wood. "In a Hydra-Sports, my only limits are the number of fish I can keep."

For a look at either of these great fishing boats, just click on one of the links below:

http://www.hydra-sports.com/vids/19baybolt.html

http://www.hydra-sports.com/vids/23baybolt.html

For a live look at one of these or to pick yours out, come down and see us at our store in St. Petersburg. We recently made a special purchase and curently have a few of each model in stock with sale pricing. Check them out - http://www.thundermarine.com/specials_new.asp?indid=1&disid=178682&

IPS Demonstration

Boating is such a relaxing lifestyle. Anyone can get on a boat, no matter what kind it is, and their worries will drift away. Whether it's fishing, skiing or cruising, it takes your mind off the daily grind and the normal hustle & bustle everyone deals with. What a stress reliever - that is until you have to dock in front of a bunch of people.

Docking might be the one time their is a little anxiety when boating. Fortunately, Volvo has designed the IPS drive with Joystick control. This feature makes for worry free docking. They have made it so simple that your children or grandchildren that play video games might be able to dock the boat better than you!

Below is a link to a demonstration we did on a Four Winns 378 Vista Express Cruiser in our harbor in St. Petersburg. This boat is almost 42 feet in length and is being easily manuevered in an area a little over 50 feet. Check it out for yourself.

http://www.thundermarine.com/content.asp?nav=117713&cpid=10271&

Docktail Party Extended

Thank you to everyone that came out last weekend. The weather was great and everyone had a good time.

We had such a good time, we asked our manufacturers to extend their specials so we could do it one more weekend.

So, if you weren't able to make it out, come join us for the festivities and pick out your next boat at a great price.

Just click on the link below for more information.
http://www.thundermarine.com/calendar.asp?ce2id=51018&siteid=&top_siteid=&bvdid=16341&top_bvdid=16341

Docktail Party Event

Well, the Tampa Boat Show was great. The weather turned out to be perfect for the weekend and plenty of boaters were out strolling the docks looking for their next dream boat. Many of them took advantage of the great incentives and will be enjoying their new Hydra-Sports & Four Winns this weekend.

We are also happy to say that the manufacturers & lenders have extended their incentives through this coming weekend. In light of that, we thought we would throw a docktail party. Starting today through Saturday 9Am - 6PM.

We will have our large inventory of boats (fishing boats, runabouts, deckboats, cruisers and yachts) on display. There will be music, food, drinks & lots of fun - along with all the great incentives and pricing.

So whether you came to the Tampa Boat show or not, we hope you can join us at our waterfront location on Bay Pines Blvd.

To prepare for it, we kindly ask that you click on the link below to RSVP.
http://www.thundermarine.com/event_registration_form.asp?nav=98404&


We hope to see you here.

Tampa Boat Show

Next weekend is the Tampa Boat Show and we will be there in full force. The show is at the Tampa Convention Center and runs from Friday to Sunday. We will have all of our brands (Four Winns, Hydra-Sports, Riviera & Silverton) on display. So whether you like runabouts, deckboats, fishing boats, express cruisers, sport yachts, convertibles, motor yachts or sport bridges, we will have them there. The 52 Ovation will also be premiering for the first time on the West Coast and there will be great discounts on all the boats. If you watch the show "Deadliest Catch", the captains from the Time Bandit will be there signing autographs. It will be a great way to spend the day, so come join us - you might find the boat of your dreams. For more information, go to http://www.tampaboatshow.com/ or http://www.thundermarine.com/events.asp?cal2id=&topsiteid=&content=&siteid=&bvdid=&bvdid_filter=&this_start_date=9%2F1%2F2008

Island Party Raft-Up Postponed

Unfortunately, due to the weather from Hurricane Gustav, we will be postponing our Island Party. We are certainly disappointed because we had a great bunch of boaters signed up. We plan to reschedule and will let you know as soon as we have a new date.

Thunder Island Party Raft-Up

Even though the official last day of summer isn't until September 21st, Labor Day weekend is always considered the beginning of the end of summer. And though we are blessed with great boating weather year round, we were thinking: what better way to welcome in the fall than enjoying the holiday weekend with our boating friends?

With that in mind, we are planning on having a Raft-Up Island Party Sunday August 31st. Nothing formal - just a fun day in the sun on the water. All Thunder customers are welcome so whether you own a runabout, yacht, performance boat or fishing boat, we hope you can join us.

We wanted it to be as close to St. Pete, Clearwater & Tampa as possible so we picked an island that is centrally located in Pinellas on the ICW just north of the Bellair Causeway bridge. The plan is to meet around 11 AM. We'll bring some sandwiches and everyone can bring a side dish and beverage of their choice. With the next day being Labor Day, why wouldn't you join us? For more details go to http://www.thundermarine.com/. We ask that you just fill out the quick registration so we know how many sandwiches to bring. We hope to see you there!

Storm Preparation for your Boat

With Tropical Storm Fay approaching our area, we figured we would post a few tips and reminders on preparing your boat for the storm.

Trailer Boats
1. Make sure your batteries are fully charged so that your bilge float switch can operate throughout the storm.
2. Remove drain plug at the transom for back-up drainage.
3. Elevate the bow of your boat.
4. Remove bimini tops and canvas and store away.
5. Let out some air on the trailer tires and chalk them.
6. Secure your boat to trailer with tie downs.
7. Remove all loose items from vessel.

Lift Kept Boats
1. Make sure your batteries are fully charged so that your bilge float switch can operate throughout the storm – you may lose shore power.
2. Remove drain plug at the transom for back-up drainage.
3. Raise lift as high as possible with the bow of your boat slightly elevated.
4. Remove bimini tops and canvas and store away.
5. You may want to strap your boat to the lift for additional protection.
6. Remove all loose items from vessel.
7. Stay in tune with tides and storm surge.

In Water Boats
1. Make sure your batteries are fully charged so that your bilge float switch can operate throughout the storm – you may lose shore power.
2. Double tie all lines.
3. Use plenty of fenders.
4. Remove canvas enclosure and eisenglass. Cover electronics if possible.
5. Make sure all dock hardware is in good condition and secure.
6. Stay in tune with tides and storm surge

These are just a few reminders and good common sense should always be exercised. For more tips go to
http://www.thundermarine.com/content.asp?nav=116995&cpid=10020&

Stay Safe

Alstott / Thunder Marine Fishing Tournament Recap

Just like Thursday's Captain's Meeting, the weigh in on Saturday was great. Almost all the boats that were entered in the tournament weighed fish. Mike Alstott & the McKenna Family (the winning bidder)decided to fish inshore so they took a Hydra-Sports 23 Bay Bolt & hit the flats. Although they didn't place in the top three, it was a memorable day. The winning inshore team was Ian Dougherty & crew who came in with a 54 lb. cobia as part of their haul. On the offshore side, the James Gang beat out Mike DeOliveria's team with some nice size grouper, snapper & amberjack. The ladies winners were Brittany Kelling & Jean Gifford and the youth division winners were Parker Ferris and Karissa Cobb. Karissa and her dad Kelvin also took home the family division award. Everyone had a good time and as the saying goes "A bad day fishing on a boat is better than a good day at the office". Thunder Marine thanks all the anglers, spectators, sponsors and volunteers who helped make this event a success. We will be proudly presenting a check for $16,000 to the Mike Alstott Family Foundation next Saturday after the Old Salt's Kid Fishing Tournament at the Pier. We hope you can join us. For more pictures of the event, go to http://www.thundermarine.com/news.asp?chsid=&nav=90561&chaid=202495 We look forward to seeing everyone at next year's Tournament.

Mike Alstott Family Fishing Tournament Hosted by Thunder Marine

What a great night! The captain's meeting was the offical kickoff to the Mike Alstott Family Fishing Tournament and it brought hundreds of boaters, fisherman & Mike Alstott fans together for a great cause. With great food & giveaways everyone enjoyed themselves and one lucky bidder will be fishing with Mike & his son on Thunder's Hydra-Sports Tournament boat. Mike was gracious throughout the evening. He was regularly signing autographs and taking pictures with kids and adults alike. Since purchasing his Hydra-Sports Bay Bolt from Thunder, Mike has spent even more time with his family on the water. He is often found on his boat with his son fishing and he thought having a tournament would be a great way to raise money for his foundation. By the looks of the captain's meeting, he appears to be right. We are looking forward to a great weigh-in on Saturday with anglers arriving by boat with their day's haul between 3PM and 5PM. For more information on the tournamnet visit http://www.thundermarine.com/. If you are in the area, come by and join us for the fun.