Mother’s Day is this Sunday and the phone lines will be burning up and restaurants will be packed as kids (young and old) mark a day just for mom. If your mom likes to get out on the water one of our limited edition Inflatable PFDs with HIT in hot pink might be perfect for her. You can find a dealer on our main website.

If you are far from home or have some time Sunday check out the Toyota Texas Bass Classic on CBS. Two Mustang Survival sponsored pro-anglers are featured in the show. Dave Mercer of Facts of Fishing is the event emcee and also provides color commentary. BassMaster Elite Series Angler Mike McClelland is one of the anglers and was part of the top pro-am team in the event.

A new dragon boat season is upon us and teams are out practising on Vancouver’s False Creek in preparation for the region’s biggest festival of the year - the Rio Tinto Dragon Boat Festival. Since my team’s practices commenced in February we have endured rain, wind and even snow, all in the effort of having fun and becoming as strong a team as we can be for the festival. Training however is just part of peak performance; the other part is equipment. I figure my part in ensuring my team is well-equipped is to make sure they all have the best new paddling PFD on the market: Mustang’s MV5801 Deluxe Paddling Vest! I wore prototypes of this vest last season as it progressed through its design stages and have to admit that I have completely fallen in love with it. It is without a doubt the most comfortable paddling PFD I have ever worn. The tapered sides allow me to bend and twist, the comfort features on the shoulder straps, waist and armholes keep me chafe-free and the Dri-Lex (R) lining keeps me dry and comfortable all day. I haven’t even gotten to the pockets big enough to fit my camera, keys and pretty much anything else I could ever want to throw in there, the good-looking style lines or the contoured fit yet, but I think I’ve probably boasted about it enough for one day (Plus if I go on anymore I’ll ruin the surprise you’ll have when you try it on for yourself, realize just how comfortable it is and wonder how you’ve ever paddled in anything else.)

After the Ice Rescue training at Lifesaving Resources I headed to the warmer climate of Florida for the Miami International Boat Show. It was great to see some of the amazing new boats out there and to dream about finding myself on one cruising the Keys. After waking up from my daydream it was down to business, checking out the countless displays and meeting with some of my contacts in the boating media.

One person that I was pleasantly surprised to meet while I was there is Bruce Wright Recreational Boating Safety Specialist with the US Coast Guard. Bruce travels for many months of the year with this amazing trailer he’s built to show people how comfortable lifejackets are now and gives them an opportunity to try different ones on to see which one is right for them. It was great to check it out first hand.

One of the coolest parts of the trailer is a simulator for kids. They get to put on a lifejacket and sit on seats that actually show them how a boat moves in the water while they can see what would be happening on a big screen in front of them. Its really quite cool.

If you are ever at an event where Bruce has the trailer its really worth checking out. Not only is it fun, it will educate you about being comfortable and safe on the water too!

From all reports the Toronto International Boat Show was a huge success. Our friends at BoaterExam.com sent us these pictures today from their booth and seems even Toronto Maple Leafs Centre Nik Antropov and Defenceman Ian White had stopped by the show to see what was new this year. Great picture guys. Thanks for sharing! We’ll have to keep our eyes peeled at the Vancouver Boat Show for some Canucks as not to be out done!

Click on a picture to open up a larger version.

Its hard to believe we are almost half way through December and the Hot Pink Inflatable PFD is starting to show up in stores! Danielle from The Harbour Chandler was happy to model hers for us. A list of dealers that have or will be offering it can be found on our website. If there’s someone on your shopping list who this would be perfect for, there could still be time to put one under the tree!

This photo was sent into us by Svendsens Marine, one of our dealers. Annelisa looks like she is having a great time out on the water. Comment on what caption you’d put with this picture.

We found this great picture of the children wearing Mustang Survival PFDs online.