| |
 When one boat is never enough
 | | Yamaha FX SHO Yamaha WaveRunner |
If it's not a proverb it should be: Man shalt not live by boat alone.
A lone boat – or a loan boat for that matter – can't please all the people all the time because of the vagaries of weather, location and circumstance.
Some trailable hybrids go close to satisfying both the fisho and the family, or the skier and the family, but there's a case to have at least five boats, preferably simultaneously...
 | | Zodiac Pro Jet Zodiac |
For getting ashore and playing around in anchorages, a jet-powered RIB is the go... and I mean go. The Zodiac ProJet 3.5-metre, for example, has a turbo-charged engine that cranks out 98hp through a jet drive, making it more fun to drive than the mothership.
Speaking of jets, you really must have a personal watercraft in your quiver. When someone else is riding them they're a poser – when it's you, it's all good clean fun. Give me a Yamaha FX Cruiser SHO and a wetsuit that screams 'mid-life crisis' and I'm a happy man.
The kids will want a skiboat and there's some brilliant wake rigs with bowrider seating to choose from. The Yanks seem to do these best, especially in value for money.
For fishing, there's something about the Cruise Craft Outsider series that catches the eye as well as they catch fish. The construction inspires confidence and the deep-vee hull is supremely capable of handling chop.
Now all you need is a flybridge sportscruiser for entertaining and those quick coastal getaways. The temptation is to think big, but there's ease of berthing to consider.
The model that impressed me most last year was the new Riviera 53 Enclosed Flybridge. It offers the full-beam master stateroom and is perfectly mated to a pair of Volvo Penta IPS 1200 units.
And to think, we're just one lottery ticket away from achieving it. I'd be interested to see your top-five wish lists...
Mark Rothfield
If you do not want to continue to read about Motor boats and boating on a regular basis you can
and you will not receive another Powerboat-World newsletter.
|
