Smooth Sailing

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By Timothy Rubacky, Senior Vice President of Sales, Marketing and Product Development

As effortless as American river cruising may seem aboard the American Queen, it is anything but. There’s a lot of hard work going on behind the scenes to ensure what you, the guest, experience is smooth, coordinated and joyful. We’re constantly receiving accolades for our entertainment and activities. While you might think that someone just sets a schedule once a week and the rest of the team follows it, nothing is further from the truth.

Make no mistake. Schedules are set. The overall schedule of activities for the cruise is adjusted every morning. Is the forecast for showers? If so, then extra activities are planned indoors. The afternoon tea will likely be even better attended than it normally is. If more people are indoors, then maybe what was once just a pianist in the Main Deck Lounge is augmented by the Steamboat Syncopators, the American Queen’s orchestra. Bingo and the trivia contest are likely to be more popular than ever. More questions and more bingo cards just might be needed.

The person who makes all this happen is the cruise director and we’re lucky enough to have some of the absolute best in the business. One of our stars is Bill Wiemuth, originally a Texas resident who now resides in northern Idaho with his wife Laura Sable, a remarkable entertainer who he met aboard the American Queen and who will be featured as a headline entertainer on several voyages this season.

At Great American Steamboat Company, we are the latest caretakers of the American Queen, a true national treasure. She was originally built in 1995 and had a life before finding happiness with us this year. Back in 1997, she was operated by the Delta Queen Steamboat Company, her builders two years earlier, and part of a larger cruise company called American Classic Voyages. AMCV, as it was commonly known, also owned American Hawaii Cruises and that’s where Bill began his career in 1997. By 1998, he was a Steamboater and was serving as the cruise director on the American Queen.

While the landscape of river cruise companies changed over the next 14 years, Bill’s dedication never wavered. He has served as a dynamic entertainer, lecturer, writer, producer, and entertainment manager for numerous boats cruising America’s waterways. For Delta Queen Steamboat Company, America West Steamboat Company, and Majestic America Line he has traveled rivers including the Mississippi, Ohio, Tennessee, Cumberland, Columbia, Snake, Willamette, and Hudson – in addition to Alaska’s Inside Passage. He even dipped his toes into “big-ship” cruising briefly, writing, producing and performing for two of the major ocean-going cruise lines.

While some people take their jobs as, well, jobs, Bill’s is clearly a passion. He loves the river and he loves traditional steamboat voyaging. Bill has written and recorded a “River History Series” collection of 15 CDs which dynamically share the history and stories connected to America’s rivers. As a river authority, he has appeared in many print and broadcast media interviews including CNN’s “Headline News,” ABC’s “Good Morning, America,” the Food Network, and on National Public Radio. He also wrote and co-produced the documentary film “Delta Queen: Turning the Page” which chronicled the career and final steam-powered journey of that historic steamboat. When not aboard the American Queen, Bill and his wife tour and perform across the U.S. and internationally. You can stay in touch with Bill at www.tunefultwosome.com and www.riverhistory.com.