All aboard Scotland’s Boat Show, the largest boat show in the country and the largest brokerage (pre-owned) show in the United Kingdom with 16,000 visitors last year.

This year’s 30th anniversary event starts tomorrow at Kip Marina, Inverkip and will be officially opened by HRH The Princess Royal, who will also unveil a plaque to mark the occasion.

Scotland’s Boat Show will feature 120 boats on display, exhibitions and on-the-water demonstrations including the wheelchair-accessible Wheely Boat.

Celebrity chef Nick Nairn will hold a series of food demonstrations in the show’s Food & Drink Pavilion, assisted by young hospitality students from West College Scotland.

Nick, who is currently filming another series of Big Food Trip with Paul Rankin, said: ‘I’m thrilled to be at Scotland’s Boat Show this year. I absolutely love boats, I even started my career in the Merchant Navy, and did my first TV series Wild Harvest sailing around the Scottish coast visiting Kip Marina during filming.

‘I’m also really looking forward to working with the young hospitality students of West College Scotland and together we will be demonstrating some great dishes using some of our country’s finest produce.

‘I’ve had to cook many a meal at sea, though I think I’ll be on terra firma for these demos so come and visit us – it should be a fun weekend.’

The West College Scotland Food & Drink Pavilion will be filled with Scottish food producers selling and demonstrating their wares in an indoor ‘street market’-style setting, plus the live kitchen and stage area where Nick and the students can be found each day.

Tickets for the demonstrations are £5 and available from www.scotlandsboatshow.co.uk with shows at 1pm and 3pm on Friday 14th and 11am, 1pm and 3pm on Saturday and Sunday.

On the water opportunities

Head to the Get On The Water (GOTW) pavilion and you will find experts to help and offer advice on how to get involved in sailing, powerboats, RIBs, jetskis, paddleboards and canoes, or try the model boats on an indoor pool.

Owners associations including Moody, Westerly, Hunter and Leisure will be offering beginners advice and showcasing affordable small boats.

For those who wish to actually ‘Get On The Water’ during the show, RYA Scotland are offering their biggest ever range of on-water taster sessions with partners SportScotland National Centre Cumbrae, Clyde Muirshiel Country Park, plus You and Sea Training, so that visitors can experience yachts and motor yachts, RIB driving or dinghy sailing in a safe environment and with expert tuition.

For mobility-impaired visitors Clyde Muirshiel will also be featuring the wheelyboat ‘Discovery’ which takes up to four wheelchair users and their friends/carers on a short tour out and around the marina while sailing taster sessions will be available in the accessible Hansa 303 dinghies.

GOTW is proud to be part of Scotland’s Year of Innovation, Architecture and Design and has received support from EventScotland, a team within VisitScotland’s events directorate.

Part of the appeal of Scotland’s Boat Show is always the large numbers of quality pre-owned boats on display from Michael Schmidt & Partner and this year promises to be their largest brokerage range ever.

For new boats on the water, expect a display of yachts from Hanse including the 345, 385, 415, and, making their Scottish début, the Hanse 455 and 505.

Stan Prosser’s Marine Sales Scotland will also return with a display of 20 powerboats ranging from Bayliners, Bavarias, Regals and Quicksilvers to Sunseeker.

At the opposite end of the size scale, don’t miss the Hartley Boats stand in the Small Boats Area where visitors can see some of the most popular sailing dinghies in the UK.

On shore the centrepiece RYA Scotland Pavilion will be filled with marine trade exhibitors showcasing the latest trends and developments in marine and leisure products from local and UK-wide companies, while elsewhere visitors can enjoy seeing luxury cars from Porsche, Lamborghini, Morgan and, for the first time, Tesla.

Practical talks

For a second year running, Practical Boat Owner magazine will be bringing free practical talks and demonstrations on a range of boating topics to the RYA Scotland Pavilion. All are welcome, just turn up!

FRIDAY 14TH OCTOBER

11.00-12.00 Essential sealant tips and tricks

Sika’s technical services expert Gareth Ross will return to Scotland’s Boat Show for a second year to give a talk with demonstrations on how to use sealants or bonding and waterproofing on board.

2016 marks Gareth’s 27th year at Sika® and he has been working in a technical capacity with sealants and adhesives in the marine industry since 1996, supporting all types of user applications from DIY to Superyacht construction.

He said: ‘These practical sessions offer an excellent opportunity to be able to meet and educate people who may not know the full potential of Sika’s Marine range of products. I am always open to as many questions as people want to throw at me.’

1.00-2.00 Top 10 equipment choices for the ARC and the realities of crossing the Atlantic

World Cruising Club’s director Jeremy Wyatt and ARC provisioning guru Clare Pengelly give insight into long-distance cruising.

Now in its 31st year, the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC), is a 2,700NM passage, which runs downwind with the trade winds from Gran Canaria to St Lucia in the Caribbean, that regularly attracts some 250 boats each year.

Jeremy Wyatt is a director of sailing rally organisers World Cruising Club (WCC), where he provides advice to aspiring offshore cruisers on boat selection, preparation and training based on 30 years of bluewater experience in the annual ARC. He is also involved in WCC’s varied seminar programme, helping sailors turn their offshore dreams into reality. Jeremy a keen sailor and has cruised in the Caribbean, Australia, New Zealand, the Indian Ocean and the Pacific as well as European waters.

2.00-3.00 Boating on a budget

PBO contributor, former BBC cameraman and round-Britain sailor Dylan Winter will be bringing his ‘clonky old bucket-shop Centaur’ to the show to share top tips on affordable cruising.

Dylan, who runs the popular website www.keepturningleft.co.uk, has spent the past eight years slowly sailing around the UK in a number of rather elderly small boats making films, writing articles and blogging about the UK’s miraculous coastline.

He said: ‘I was surprised to be chosen to talk about sailing on a budget because my wife would say that my spending is well out of control. But then I sail around 100 days a year – and the boat is currently 550 miles from my home – so she has a good point.’

He added: ‘It should be a great show, I’m looking forward to it.’

3.30-4.30 How to read the skies

Met Office and London 2012 meteorologist  Penny Tranter, who is a sailor herself, will share her knowledge of understanding weather forecasts and preparing and responding to the weather out on the water.

Met Office marine meteorologists work around the clock, 365 days a year, to provide an accurate and reliable range of weather and metocean information, helping sailors to make informed decisions.

SATURDAY 15TH OCTOBER

11.00-12.00 Essential sealant tips and tricks.

Gareth Ross (talk description as above)

1.00-2.00 Top 10 equipment choices for the ARC and the realities of crossing the Atlantic

Jeremy Wyatt and Clare Pengelly (talk description as above)

2.00-3.00 How to read the skies

Penny Tranter (talk description as above)

3.30-4.30 Boating on a budget

Dylan Winter (talk description as above)

SUNDAY 16TH OCTOBER

11.30-12.30 Biosecurity and invasive species

Sarah Brown of Clyde Marine Planning Partnership and C2W Consulting gives insight into the battle to keep Scottish waters free from invasive species and what you can do to help.

C2W stands for Cradle to Wave –a small but perfectly formed consultancy based on the beautiful west coast of Scotland. Sarah Brown is the principal consultant, specialising in projects with a marine recreation, tourism, environment or sustainability theme.

Sarah said: ‘I was delighted when PBO asked me to be part of ‘Ask the Experts Live’ at Scotland’s Boat Show. No boater wants invasive species on their hull. Trust me, they are nasty, damaging, ugly things!

‘I’ll tell people what to look out for, what to do about it and why you should care – the law has changed recently in Scotland and boaters need to know about it.’

1.30-2.30 Top 10 equipment choices for the ARC and the realities of crossing the Atlantic

Jeremy Wyatt and Clare Pengelly (talk description as above)

2.30-3.30 What’s causing your corrosion?

PBO contributor Colin Brown, of CB Marine Services, will return to Scotland’s Boat Show for a second year to give a corrosion-specific talk on boat surveys.

Colin has more than fifteen years of varied marine industry experience including commercial diving, aquaculture management, yacht delivery and training, repairing and installing systems on a variety of vessels from iron Dutch barges to modern production yachts.

He owns a 1965 Nicholson 32 yacht with his wife Sarah (who is giving the 11.30am talk!).

Colin said: ‘I’m looking forward to Scotland’s Boat Show in my home country. It’s been fun and interesting writing for PBO and I’m looking forward to meeting the readers.’

3.30-4.30 Boating on a budget

Dylan Winter (as above)

Artisan craft

The Clyde LifeStyle Pavilion returns with a range of new artisan craft and design companies and is even bigger and better than last year with everything from fashion to furniture on offer while elsewhere you can find pipe bands, children’s play areas and street food.

Fashion shows

Kip Chandlery boss Sven-Arne Johansson and his team of models will present a Pelle P fashion show in the RYA Scotland Pavilion at 12.15-12.30pm Saturday, and 12.45-1pm on Sunday.

Pelle P is an outdoor and active clothing brand from Sweden, founded by Pelle Petterson, the America’s Cup sailor and yacht designer who also designed the Volvo P1800 sports car which was driven by Roger Moore in the TV series ‘The Saint’. His design skills began the Pelle P clothing brand, which is now run by daughter Cecilia, and the range is on sale from Kip Marina’s chandlery and online store 55-degrees.co.uk

Flyboarding display at the Scotland’s Boat Show 2015High-speed rides

Helicopter flights will be running throughout the show, offering views of the Firth of Clyde and Scotland’s Boat Show. Priced at £39 per person, the flights by Heli Scot will operate on Saturday and Sunday (weather permitting) from a site adjacent to the Ardgowan Car Park.

Advance bookings at www.scotlandsboatshow.co.uk

There is also the chance to experience an F1 Powerboat courtesy of Gordon Cook Racing. This two-seater racing craft can reach speeds of up to 120mph and exceeds 6gs during cornering, and you can be there for £35 per trip and relive the experience afterwards thanks to on-board cameras.

Jet ski and flyboard displays

Acrobatic flyboarding displays from European Champion Sonnie Bean and WetJets.co.uk are scheduled to take place on Fri 2pm Sat and Sun 11am, 1pm and 3pm.

Freestyle Jet Ski Displays from the DJR Racing team will be held on Sat and Sun 11.30am, 1.30pm and 3.30pm (subject to change and weather permitting).

Find out more at www.scotlandsboatshow.co.uk