As I write this comment, the audience research was still not finished. Pity. It will be nice to see who those extra 68,500 people were.

Because while the sales figures from the show are gradually sounding better - Derek Carter says Fairline sold 31 boats - my spies tell me there are those who feel NBS may have paid too much attention to getting the attendance numbers to the detriment of the quality.

Certainly some on the sailboat side seem to think their usual customers stayed away. Hopefully National Boat Shows will be able to a) find out why, and b) take steps to get them back next year.

In the meantime, it seems ExCeL has set us up for another great year. In spite of the dollar and the euro, all the signs are favourable.

Even the City thinks life is getting pretty rosy. The headlines today are of the FTSE reaching a 20-month high and everyone's getting bullish.

The CBI says confidence is returning to smaller manufacturers for the first time on two years as they begin to see a reversal of the threeyear decline in orders and output.

Hugh Morgan Williams, chairman of the CBI's SME Council was reported recently as saying smaller manufacturers will be greatly encouraged.

Even the US shadow seems not to be worrying the pundits too much.

But quite what will happen when Dubya's budget deficit comes home to roost is anyone's guess.

The only cloud is interest rates. The housing market refuses to cool down and consumer borrowing remains at high levels. Analysts think we will see 5% interest rates sooner rather than later.

Buy hey! Let's file those thoughts gently away for quiet future reflection while we make a little hay.

ExCeL brought us a huge crowd of people; enough to keep us busy until NBS delivers another batch for us next January.