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520 S. Claudina St;
Unit P |
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A 1st Time In-Situ Promotional Show for SeaRay Boats. Our highest and lowest moment ever. "An amazing exercise in elevating a top brand name using MPC Technology." 
In September of 2005 Martin Rouser of
The Rouser Group out of Knoxville, TN
Inquired about using our water screen systems for a promotional
event for a boat manufacturer.
He mentioned that he’d done this same “Dealership Meeting” show for
several years and wanted to bring something “really new and
different” to the event. He had successfully upped the level
of intensity and excitement of the show each
Martin originally had the idea of using our WaterScrim™ systems in a long line to form something of a cyclorama in front of the boat presentation area. After the usual round of questions about the venue conditions and production details I mentioned that we should look at using a peacock tail screen as a backdrop because it wouldn’t take any support trussing (which would be somewhat big and unsightly) and it would be much higher and larger in scale than the WaterScrim™. Our MPC system was still brand new and relatively un heard of, so, I said that we had the perfect system for the job and sent him some MPC Literature. After further investigation of the venue conditions and attributes Martin decided to give it a go. To our knowledge, nothing like it had ever been done, so, we were getting pretty excited about it. SeaRay would be the first to use a Peacock tail screen for the introduction of their new boat line for a live show.
The biggest challenge was the depth of the venue. It was a back bay estuary in San Destin Florida (Sykes Creek). We were very concerned about the depth from the beginning as it was estimated to be only a few feet. We had inquired with the hotel, the SeaRay folks and the producer and all gave it the thumbs up, the SeaRay folks even walked the show area. As it ended up, the depth was barely 3’ when the tide was in, so, we were at minimum operating depth for the MPC system, in fact we actually had to dig out a small area below the MPC’s final resting place just to keep it submerged during low tide.
For the show, each boat was to enter the show area and circle/parade in front of the screen while its features and benefits were announced. During that time promotional content was projected on the screen showing that particular boat in action. At the end of each boats presentation, it would exit the stage area in front of the screen and make way for the next boat.
We designed some truss based fountain systems to produce two 50’ tall geysers on either side of the entry way to create something of a “gate”. The geysers were illuminated with MAC 550’s which gave them some amazing animated looks. Along with two 10K Video projectors, the screen was illuminated with six MAC 2000’s and a YAG laser system.
The exit area was very, very shallow at the time of the show. so, the boats had to be very careful about the path they would take to exit. We had routed the Power cords to the MPC system and the projection platform so they were out of the running area and then encased them in PVC piping for added protection. Rehearsals went great and the level of excitement was amazing. The show was going so well you could feel the goose bumps as the audience gasped and whooped in unison. Half way through the show we were absolutely high on success as the whole idea and concept which had seemed risky at first had proven to be a stunning hit. Our emotional high was about to be shattered into little pieces. In that last moments of the show when the biggest and most important boat was about to make it’s debut, disaster struck. The 2nd to the last boat pilot was way off his mark, but, we weren't too worried about it as the tide was up and there was at least 12” of clearance between the prop and the PVC encased power cords. They were also told to go easy on the throttle. Well, we were wrong………………………. The 2nd to the last boat was drifting around a bit during the features and benefits segment, so, he used the trim to lower his prop (while it was stopped) into the sand to stop the drift. Well, he forgot to raise the trim back up before hitting the starter,,,,,, he was so far off the rehearsal mark that he had lowered his prop right onto the power cord for the MPC pump. Needless to say, the prop smashed the PVC, slashed the power cord, and it took exactly 250 Milliseconds for the GFCI system to trip the pump off. As the pump tripped off, the video system got spiked by the dead short and it shut down. It was one of those rare moments where you're not quite sure if you’re not in the middle of a really bad dream.
Right at the climax of an absolutely breathtaking first of its kind show, the whole thing went dead…………..We all shit our pants and then started running around bumping into each other like Laurel and Hardy. After a few seconds, we all ran for the generator to see if it had shut down, but, I knew before taking the first step what had happened. It was a feeling as close to having a heart attack that one could have without actually having one, (I know, I had one), Ben ran to the GFI unit and tried to reset it, but, with a dead phase to phase short at 480 volts in salt water….it was locked out…… The water screen portion of the gig was over. When the GFI tripped and the screen disappeared, we heard a huge gasp from the audience and then a sigh that was just as big. It was one of those moments that was like a bad dream, you can’t believe it’s happening, but, reality sets in real fast. The MC laughed it off and went right on introducing the boat and reading the features and benefits script. The boat still looked great with the spotlights on it and it was all good. We were feeling very dejected after the show and ended up sharing the hotel elevator with a few dealers from Australia. I asked them what they thought of the whole show and they said “fucking unbelievable right up to the moment the thing shut down”. I felt even worse, so, I explained what had happened and that it wasn’t our fault. Even with the show being cut short, the folks at SeaRay must have thought it was pretty impressive as they asked the Rouser Group and us back for the next year's Dealers Meeting at their factory in Cocoa Beach. We blew that show out of the water and everything worked right through the end.
We owe a huge thanks to Martin Rouser, Mack Daddy and Mickey at The Rouser Company. In fact I would say that they are the most pleasurable clients we have ever worked for and just plain nice guys. The boat pilot that ran over the power cord apologized profusely and we smiled and said not to worry about it, “Shit Happens”.
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INNOVATION ENGINEERING & DESIGN |
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