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The first Commodore Dave Booster Rally took place in the National Capital Region on July 2 within full view of Canada’s Parliament buildings.  Unfortunately, the Prime Minister was unable to attend despite his great affection for cruising on the public purse. However, the Official Opposition was resplendently represented by two student Liberals who promised to exempt cruising from any potential “Dion” carbon tax. Unfortunately, they were referring to another type of cruising – one that involves bars in the nearby Byward Market area.

The event was organized by my daughter Lindsay at the urging of two friends who live across the street from her – Privateer Paul and Cannoneer Kyle.  The duo discovered the Tripharbour Community site when Lindsay started blogging with me about our Mediterranean cruise in June. They were soon hooked on living vicariously through the reports and photos of our 12-day voyage from Rome to Venice. So they decided a nautically themed pizza and beer night with the old Commodore would be a cool way to learn more about our trip and cruising in general.

Before the questions got underway, we assigned everyone (most of them students from the University of Ottawa) a nautical “nick name” to set the right mood. The nicks included Commander Caitlin, Master Merrick, Lido Lindsay, Admiral Andrea, Galley Wench Gail, Pirate Peter and one for Mike that we won’t mention here to avoid embarrassment. After a few beers, the questions flowed easily.

“What were our 3 favorite ports of call from the recent Med cruise?” (Montenegro, Capri and Corfu). 

“What are the 3 cruising regions that we’ve enjoyed the most?” (Greek islands, French Polynesia, the Med.).

“What are the cruise lines we like best?”  (Regent, Princess, Star Clipper).    

 “Would a cruise be a good option for a spring break?” (Yes, try Carnival or Royal Caribbean International in the Caribbean or Mexico).

Next came some advice on what type of themes would attract people under 25 like them to take a cruise. Film, fashion and sports themes were at the top of the list. “How about a cruise with Leo Di Caprio or Paris Hilton? What about a Zombie or Dracula theme cruise with a famous horror movie director?  Does anyone do a cruise with hockey players or racing car drivers?” (The latter might be a great opportunity for my NASCAR racing buddy, Pierre).

However, the most popular theme was the one where the parents pay to take everyone on a multi-generational cruise!!

There was some marketing advice. They said tripharbour was a cool site and that we needed to do more to promote cruising as a great alternative to the beach or a land vacation.

Finally, they had some advice for marketing Commodore Dave. “Start using the photo with the Captain Stubing hat more often. It’s you!” 

And then they came up with great idea for a running gag – the Commodore Dave fish ornament. 

“Fishy Dave” is an ornament we bought at a Christmas shop that features a white captain’s hat on a chubby, multi-coloured fish with a big smile. The Stewart Street squad thought “Fishy Dave” should become my personal icon and that I should take photographs of it in various spots around the world as we cruise.

By this time the beer was running out and the pizza was finished. In other words, it was time for Commodore Dave and Galley Wench Gail to return to our hotel. We gave everyone a big hug, grateful for the opportunity we had been given to meet some great young people, and confident that we had planted the seeds for some fantastic cruises in future.