Every event has one. An annoying guy with a camera who is constantly walking around snapping candid and posed photos, clearly obsessed and determined to capture the moment. When it comes to the National Houseboat Expo, I know that guy very well because that annoying person with the camera is me. I tend to wear a little tread off the bottom of my shoes each year as I pound the docks during our annual On Water Expo looking for great photo opportunities. In fact, don’t be afraid to flag me down this year at our show if you’d like me to snap a photo. Who knows? You may appear in our post-Expo recap in our magazine.

Now don’t worry, I won’t be loafing it this year, but I could use a little help if you plan on attending the three-day event that kicks off Friday, June 6. For the sixth straight year, the National Houseboat On Water Expo sponsored by Sunbrella will be held at the State Dock Marina on Lake Cumberland in beautiful Kentucky and this is where I could use your help.

While flipping through a State Dock brochure last year I couldn’t help but notice all the fun lifestyle shots that were included in the pages as the marina promoted its houseboat rentals. As a photographer I was trying to figure out if State Dock had a new staff photographer and if so, did this shutter bug spend the entire summer on the water to capture these pics?

Then I looked a little closer and realized that the majority of the fun, lifestyle type photos were taken and submitted by the renters themselves and that’s when I started to wonder what fun photos I was missing out on at our own Expo.

We had over 20 new and used houseboats on display last year and the 2014 offering will once again give attendees an exclusive look at the latest houseboats in the industry, plus check out some used versions of near-new houseboats as well. And that’s not including the countless vendors and exhibitors that will also be on hand to cover your houseboating needs with products and services. Throw in informative seminars, fun contests, an informative captain’s course and an on-dock poker run and you have a recipe for a fun-filled weekend.

But as hard as I try, there’s no way I’ll be able to make it to at all of these places at the same time so that’s why we’re introducing a new contest this year called, “Show Us Your Expo!” As you’re enjoying the show with family and friends this year, take a moment to click a few photos for a chance to win the ultimate Expo experience. The winning photo from this year’s 2014 Expo will win a three-day pass for two to next year’s On Water Expo, two free poker run hands for a chance to win another Apex Marine pontoon package or other top prizes, plus we’ll put you and your friends up on Houseboat Row in one of our “botels” on the dock for the entire show so you can stay close to the action.

Photos can be taken while touring one of the many houseboats on display or while you’re enjoying the live music on Friday or Saturday night; the opportunities are endless!

Visit our site, www.houseboatexpo.com, for more details and, of course, the best way to show us your Expo is to make sure you’re out walking the docks with me this June for a fun houseboat tradition that is like nothing else.