Visitors arriving at the boat show on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 March 2026 will find a packed programme stretching from early morning through to early evening. Racing, classic craft, family activities, and a Saturday night social event combine to make this a genuine celebration of boating in all its forms.
The day kicks off with a land-based boat display running from 8am to 1pm. Compact outboard-powered boats sit alongside larger motorboats and traditional craft, with crews on hand to answer questions and talk through their vessels. Walking the display gives a vivid sense of just how varied the boating world can be, with boats rarely seen together in one place.
Competitor registration opens at 8am and runs through to 11am, and the showgrounds will be anything but quiet during that time. Crews will be rigging, checking engines, and attending to last-minute preparations, with the general atmosphere of anticipation forming part of the experience for anyone wandering through.
The boat classes taking part in the powerboat programme are worth knowing about before you arrive. The Minis class brings together small outboard boats running engines of up to 40 horsepower. Jetsons are jet-powered craft built around agility and speed. Grunters are runabouts fitted with engines over 40 horsepower and measuring up to 19 feet in length. Then there are the Monsters, larger motorboats and outboard-powered craft that more than earn their name.
Seeing these categories gathered in one place gives a fascinating window into the breadth of powerboating as a pastime.
At 2pm, attention shifts to the water. The fleet assembles west of the West Jetty for the All Boats Drive Past, a parade-style procession that gives spectators a clear view of the assembled craft before competition gets underway. Racing is scheduled to follow at around 2.15pm.
What unfolds from that point is a genuinely varied afternoon. Sailing races, competitive rowing, canoe racing, and powerboat events all feature on the programme, and the ever-popular Seagulls' race, run in both standard and modified forms, is reliably one of the more entertaining spectacles of the day. Small outboard races for engines under 10 horsepower sit alongside family rowing and women's rowing events, and younger visitors have their own dedicated kids rowing race to take part in or cheer on. Sculling contests and a swimming race from the beach to a buoy and back round out a schedule that caters to a wide range of interests.
A steamboat parade will circle the course twice during the afternoon, giving spectators a rare chance to watch these heritage craft moving under their own power.
The programme is subject to adjustment depending on wind conditions and entry numbers on the day, which is simply the nature of any water-based event.
Once racing wraps up, the lake reopens to general boating. A 5 knot speed limit within 200 metres of the shoreline remains in place throughout.
Saturday evening has its own appeal. The Commodore's Award Ceremony takes place at the Alpine Lodge Bar, and the door is open to everyone at no charge. A relaxed, sociable way to close out the first day of the show.
Sunday follows much the same shape as Saturday, with the specific schedule confirmed on the day. Weather will have a say in how things unfold, as it always does at boating events, and organisers will adapt the programme if conditions require.
Across both days, the show delivers a concentrated mix of boats, competition, and the easy-going atmosphere that tends to settle over any gathering built around the water.
