b'PVA AT 50Vessel Review:PVA AT 50RIVERBOAT TWILIGHTThis year marks the 50th anniversary of the organization that started out as the National Association of Passenger Vessel Owners before its name was changed to the Passenger Vessel Association in 1993. Throughout the year FOGHORN will share stories and photographs from PVAs five decades of representing the interests, vessels and people of the passenger vessel industry.T heRiverboatTwilightisownedandoperatedbyCaptainKevinStier,whoholdsa1600-tonMasterlicenseforGreatLakes Kevin (who was PVA President in 2010) and Carrie Stier. Theand Inland Waterways, got his start piloting the Julia Belle Swain, the 149-passenger riverboat that today plies the Upper MississippiTalisman, and the Riverboat Twilight while working for Denny. He met from its homeport of LeClaire IA, got it start years before. Borne ofhis future wife Carrie there. But, Kevin was more than just a captain. He an idea of Dennis Denny Troneone of the founders and originalwas also instrumental in the construction of the Twilight, a vessel he got membersofNAPVO/PVA,aswellastheassociationsfirstviceto know very well. presidentthe Twilight was built at LEEVAC shipyard in Jennings,Taking a step away from the riverboat, Captain Stier spent 13 years working LA.for Diamond Jo Casino in Dubuque, IA as marine director. Then, in It was Trone himself that designed the Twilight.It wasnt the first2006, he and Carrie purchased the Twilight and continued operations on passenger vessel that he had designed. Years before the Twilight wasthe Upper Mississippi river between the Quad-Cities and Dubuque when completed in 1987, the Julia Belle Swain was designed and operated byCaptain Trone retired. Kevins the Captain and Carrie runs the front office Trone as well as a few others. The Julia Belle Swain was launched inbusiness.1971 and was operated for many years to the delight of many. Today,OperatingtheseasonalbusinessunderthenameRiverboatTwilight, this beautiful vessel has its own Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia. the Stiers have established a unique operation. Unlike most PVA Vessel org/wiki/Julia_Belle_Swainmembers who offer daily cruises or overnight service, this vessel does both.Their signature cruiseisatwo-day,roundtripcruiseonthe Mississippi between LeClaire IA and Dubuque IA.Guestsspendthenightshore-sideat ariverfronthotel.Aone-daycruiseisalso attention to detail available allowing passengers to see more of the area north of Dubuque.Other times passengers can enjoy a 90-minute sightseeing cruise out of LeClaire IA.Twlights main deck has a length of 126 feet and breadth of 30 feet. Its full load draft is five-and-half feet.The riverboat is exceptionally fast for a vessel of its type and handles quite well. Using the 65 hp bow thruster and the twin screw configuration, this vessel can easily pivot 360 degrees in its own length. The Twilight has even been known to pull the occasional water skier.Her propulsion is a twin screw, diesel-electric www.beurteaux.comPVA AT 50 18 FOGHORN'