Even in the marine industry, journalists often get accused of reporting “only” bad news. And it’s funny, because while I have reported bad news in 2010, most notably that Geico vs. SBI lawsuit and the demise of Powerboat P1, in the first four months of this year I’ve reported a lot more good than bad.

This being Friday and all—and you know how much I like to report good news on Fridays—I took a look back at six of those stories that appeared either as my column on Boats.com or my blog on BoaterMouth.com in 2010. And I ranked them in order of their “good news” value, with a brief explanation of why.

1. Donzi Looks Ahead: You could say that Craig Barrie, the vice president of sales marketing for Donzi, is drinking his own Kool-Aid when he says the company will build and sell 70 boats this year. But without goals, ambition and hope, nothing good ever happens.

2. Mystic Powerboats Pumping Big-Turbine Cats: A high-dollar breed to be sure, Mystic is up—to the point of having to add another mold for its 50-foot-long catamaran—in a down market. That’s a tribute to the quality of the products, as well as the intelligence, experience and expertise of the company’s founder and owner, John Cosker.

3. Pier 57 Weathers the Storm: With go-fast boat dealerships tanking big-time in the last few years, it means something that this high-end dealership in rural Tennessee is holding its own. Owner David Woods must be doing something right.

4. Sunsation and Checkmate Fill the High Performance Gap: A major problem for production builders has created a majority opportunity regional customer builders—and the regional builders are stepping up.

5. MTI Fired Up on Mercury Racing Turbo Power: Has Mercury Racing’s latest and greatest engine turned around the entire high-performance boat industry? No, but it’s created one hell of a spark.

6. Performance Boat Loans Still Tough, But Not Impossible: No one says getting a boat loan now is easy (maybe it should not have ever been) and getting one these days is tougher than ever. But it can still be done if you’re qualified—and realistic.

If none of this strikes you as good news, guess what? It’s Friday. That has to be worth something.