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    At Reliant through Jan. 15

    Lake levels may be low but enthusiasm is high at Houston Boat Show

    Caroline Gallay
    Jan 8, 2012 | 6:00 am
    • Photo via Houston Boat Show/Facebook
    • Race boat
      Photo by Caroline Gallay
    • Fish-o-Rama
      Photo by Caroline Gallay
    • Discounts
      Photo by Caroline Gallay
    • $425K
      Photo by Caroline Gallay

    Lake levels may be low in Texas, but the crowd on opening day of the 2012 Houston Boat Show Friday was anything but.

    Tens of millions of dollars worth of merchandise, from $400,000 yachts all the way down to $30,000 flat-bottom skiffs and saltwater kayaks (not to mention custom seat upholstery, water-resistant cookware, pet accessories, food, clothes and more sunglasses than you could shake a polarized lens at), filled the 650,000 square feet of exhibit space at Reliant Center.

    After a one-day hiatus — the boat show closed Saturday for the first time in its 56-year history to accommodate the Texans game next door at Reliant Stadium — the show is open through Jan. 15, with extended hours until 9:30 p.m. Jan. 11-13.

    Despite the overwhelming number of boat-related items condensed in one place, there were plenty of free trailer offers and deep discounts, with one 2011 Cobalt 262 we spotted discounted $25,000 with the trailer included — a sign that, although Texas' leisure economy has fared better than other states' during the recession, it hasn't gone unaffected.

    Dealers in the state's interior are struggling due to the summer drought that lowered lake levels, not because of the lagging leisure economy.

    A dealer's take on Texas

    Dave Foulkrod of Ron Hoover RV and Marine tells CultureMap that the summer drought that lowered lake levels — not the lagging leisure economy — is the main reason many dealers in the state's interior are struggling. Dealers nearer the coast, however, have held relatively steady sales and seen gradual growth since 2010.

    "2011 was considerably better than 2010, and in anticipation of a good year, we have pretty good stocking levels," Foulkrod says.

    Foulkrod works out of Ron Hoover's La Marque dealership, where he benefits from coastal access. One of the company's other four Texas dealerships, however, in Boerne (near San Antonio), where the drought hit hard, saw a pull back on stocking boats.

    Something for everyone

    Whether you're already a boating enthusiast or not sure you're even in the market, there's plenty to do and see at the Boat Show. From the Comic Bot robots to Fish-O-Rama, where kids can fish from a pre-stocked pond, to the wide selection of RVs, there's something for nearly everyone.

    One of our favorite finds was a racing boat (one of two we saw on the floor) that managed to reach more than 102 miles per hour using only a conventional outboard motor. And if you (like me) tend towards the snazzy looking sport boats, Axis has a range of wakeboard boats to make you drool over your press pass.

    For more information about the Houston Boat Show, including hours and admission, click here.

    unspecified
    news/city-life

    Summer swelter

    Texas charges up as No. 2 state most at risk for summer power outages

    John Egan
    Jun 11, 2025 | 5:00 pm
    Electric wire towers in the sunset
    Getty Images
    Texas led the list of states with the most hours of summertime power outages.

    Warning: Houston could be in for an especially uncomfortable summer. A new study puts Texas at No. 2 among the states most at risk for power outages this summer. Michigan tops the list.

    Solar energy company Wolf River Electric analyzed the number of large-scale outages that left more than 5,000 utility customers, including homes, stores and schools, without summertime electricity from 2019 to 2023. During that period, Texas experienced 7,164 summertime power outages.

    Despite Michigan being hit with more summertime outages, Texas led the list of states with the most hours of summertime power outages — an annual average of 35,440. That works out to 1,477 days.

    “This means power cuts in Texas tend to last longer, making summer especially tough for residents and businesses,” the study says.

    This news comes on the heels of another study that said Houston is among nine major U.S. cities that now experience at least 50 more days per year with above-normal summer temperatures than they did in 1970. The average summer temperature in Houston rose by 4.6 degrees from 1970 to 2024, according to Climate Central.

    The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), which operates the electric grid serving 90 percent of the state, predicts its system will set a monthly record for peak demand this August — 85,759 megawatts. That would exceed the current record of 85,508 megawatts, dating back to August 2023.

    In 2025, natural gas will account for 37.7 percent of ERCOT’s summertime power-generating capacity, followed by wind (22.9 percent) and solar (19 percent), according to an ERCOT fact sheet.

    This year, ERCOT expects four months to surpass peak demand of 80,000 megawatts:

    • June 2025 — 82,243 megawatts
    • July 2025 — 84,103 megawatts
    • August 2025 — 85,759 megawatts
    • September 2025 — 80,773 megawatts

    One megawatt is enough power to serve about 250 residential customers amid peak demand, according to ERCOT. Using that figure, the projected peak of 85,759 megawatts in August would supply enough power to serve more than 21.4 million residential customers in Texas.

    Data centers, artificial intelligence, and population growth are driving up power demand in Texas, straining the ERCOT grid. In January, ERCOT laid out a nearly $33 billion plan to boost power transmission capabilities in its service area.

    ---

    This story originally appeared on our sister site, EnergyCapitalHTX.

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