Aussie Rules in Melbourne

by Matt Cust on 29 Jan 2003 Aussie Rules, the 69.5m (228') motoryacht built by Oceanfast and owned by golfer Greg Norman, recently arrived in Melbourne after one of her first oyages.

The yacht, located at Melbourne's Victoria dock, is in town while Norman competes in the Heineken Classic at Royal Melbourne Golf Club.

The boat left Oceanfast in Western Australia Jan. 22. It was delivered to Norman just before Christmas.

Aussie Rules, the 69.5m (228') expedition motoryacht owned by Greg and Laura Norman and built by Oceanfast, was successfully launched Oct. 13.

Aussie Rules is the first of a series of yachts built by Oceanfast under the Norman Expedition nameplate. Oceanfast also says the yacht is the largest private aluminum motoryacht in the world.

Attending the launching in Perth were the Normans, select Oceanfast personnel, the 12-person crew, and designer Sam Sorgiovanni.

Aussie Rules is expected to cruise at 12.5 knots with a range of 8,000 nautical miles on 220,000 liters of fuel.

She has accommodations for 16 guests with a traditional theme used throughout the interior.

Because Norman plans to use her for a variety of activities she also carries an impressive selection of tenders:

A 12.8m (42') sportfisherman, launched from the main deck by double slings when the yacht is in port. The sportsfisherman includes four berths and a galley.

A 9.2m (30') SeaVee for smaller fishing excursions.

A 7m (22') Novurania Equator 800hp for diving and taking guests ashore.

Two 5.5m (18') Hewes bonefishers to fish over sand flats and estuaries in areas such as Key West, Florida.

A 4m (13') Narwhal rescue boat.

Four Yamaha jet skis.

The dive equipment onboard Aussie Rules will cater for up to 30 people and includes a decompression chamber and two dive compressors. For the fishing enthusiast there are also 200 fishing rods.

The sun deck features a spa/pool able to seat 12 people and boasts over 100 jet outlets arranged differently for each individual massage position

Specs:

* LOA: 69.6m (228')
* Beam: (38m)
* Draft: 3m (9.84')
* Hull: Aluminum
* Superstructure: Composite
* Accommodations: 16 guests, 14 crew
* Top Speed: 17 knots
* Range: 8,000nm @ 12 knots
* Classification: Lloyds Register
* Yacht Design: Oceanfast/Greg Norman
* Interior Design: N I Design/Sam Sorgiovanni Design