Indholdsfortegnelse for February 2018 i Boating NZ

As someone hyper-aware of Auckland’s hyper-fickle weather – it’s unavoidable when trying to coordinate photographers, video crews, writers, owners and agents for boat reviews – it may come as a surprise to learn that I’ve recently adopted a far more accepting view of the rain. The trigger for this “Paul-on-the-road-to-Damascus” conversion is the catastrophic drought playing out in Cape Town – a city I’ve always considered Auckland’s twin. The two cities share the same latitude and are subjected to very similar weather patterns. Both have wet winters and dry summers, and both are built around the sea, with strong maritime industries, cultures and traditions. For those unaware of the scale of the drought in South Africa’s mother city, analysts are now suggesting Cape Town is likely to be the world’s…

Royal Akarana Yacht Club’s Murray Gilbert and Jonathan Burgess in Ffrenetic took the title in this year’s Flying Fifteen National Championship hosted by Waikawa Boating Club. The nationals – held in the Marlborough Sounds at the top of the South Island for the first time ever – were part of the Lawsons Dry Hills Keelboat Regatta. While the area is renowned for fantastic wine and stunning scenery, it also has a reputation for what out-of-town competitors discovered the locals call ‘Soundsy weather’. Deep coves and high hills make for interesting and hard-to-predict changes in both wind direction and velocity, and the regular ferries add another interesting dimension. “One of the trickiest Nationals in 14 years. No matter how big our lead was it was never comfortable and often evaporated and…

My mate Neil accidently bought a boat in France. We were mucking around with his yacht Sea Monkey at Seaview Marina, when he casually remarked that he had put in a ‘cheeky offer’ for a 2001 ‘Aquanaut Beauty 1050’ Dutch river cruiser, which was rated for coastal and inland waterways, and would be ideal for the French canals. Looking at the advert online I had to admit it was a pretty vessel: 35’ long, steel, nice condition and layout, with a useful Yanmar 130hp engine. Nice name too – Moderato is a musical term meaning ‘without haste’, entirely appropriate for a boat on the French canals. He also mentioned he had ‘no chance of buying it’. Of course, he did end up owning it after some negotiation back and forth…

A new freehold, waterfront apartment development at Pine Harbour Marina in East Auckland is a unique offering, located just three metres from the water’s edge. Situated on a sunny, north-facing site at Pine Harbour Marina in Beachlands, the 28-apartment development will offer generous, high-end living, complemented by a waters-edge lifestyle and supporting commercial spaces including eateries, retail options and a neighbouring golf course. L175, named after the location’s longitude on marine charts, is purpose-built for those who love the ocean and the idea of mooring their boat on their doorstep. L175 residences each have internal parking, outstanding interiors by Paula Herbert, and immediate access to the downtown ferry. The development will be completed by Empire Capital, the owners of the marina. Apartments are on sale now and construction will be…

The Tin Tin-inspired shark also looked devilishly sleek on the beach... You would think that a shark or an orca could easily outswim a bunch of butterflies but the 12th annual Tata’s Titanic Cardboard Boat Race sank that theory, literally. Twelve teams rocked up to the Golden Bay event on Sunday, 14 January with home-made boats made of cardboard, tape, paint and creativity. Judges inspected the boats before they got wet, noting crafty use of longitudinal cylinders, taped boxes within boxes, pontoons and even ring frames that would hopefully provide sufficient strength, water-tight integrity, buoyancy and stability for long enough to finish. The women-dominated team of the Community Hospital brought Like a Butterfly, a large platform decorated with about 100 paper butterflies made by the hospital’s elderly residents. The 12…

Why be ordinary when I can be original? A 78-year old Australian sailor has completed a record 10th circumnavigation – and like many of the other voyages, this one was mostly single-handed. Jon Sanders returned to Carnarvon in Western Australia aboard Perie Banou II, a S&S 39, late last year. It appears the extraordinary sailor – who underwent open heart surgery in 2015 – lives by an unusual mantra: “Why be ordinary when I can be original?” A native of Fremantle and schooled in Perth, Jon began his sailing career at a young age. He started breaking records and became the darling of the Australian press when he completed a solo triple nonstop circumnavigation in 1988 aboard Parry Endeavour, a 71,000nm journey that took 658 days. Parry Endeavour now takes…

Forest & Bird has released details of a letter from fishing industry leaders to the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) seeking to prevent the public from seeing images of by-kill and discarded fish. The letter – and accompanying images – was released through the Official Information Act (OIA). In July last year a number of commercial fishing organisations wrote to MPI seeking a change to the Fisheries Act to prevent the public release of information collected by MPI about fisheries activities. The letter, sent by George Clement of the Deepwater Group; Dr Jeremy Helson from Fisheries Inshore New Zealand; Storm Stanley from the Paua Industry Council, Tim Pankhurst from Seafood New Zealand and Daryl Sykes from the New Zealand Rock Lobster Industry Council, suggested that “the Fisheries Act be amended…

Watch the wall my darlings,” Rudyard Kipling advised in his 1906 poem The Smuggler’s Song, “while the gentlemen go by.” He was warning Cornish villagers about the menfolk smuggling “brandy for the parson and baccy for the clerk,” across the English Channel. But smuggling is no longer the preserve of gentlemen and it’s likely that whatever gets spirited ashore after dark these days is a lot more deleterious than “baccy or brandy.” Working in the Caribbean as a charter skipper, it wasn’t uncommon to see a boat arrive and disappear after dark – and the crew reappear, gaunt and haggard, weeks later. “It’s not easy money,” one of them told me ruefully. “We had an old CSY charter boat loaded to the gunwales with bales of dope – just enough…

At January’s Düsseldorf Boatshow, Bavaria released seven new models. The C Series of yachts, designed by renowned Italian designer Maurizio Cossutti, welcomed the C45, C50 and C65, joining the previously-released C57. These highly spec’d models represent excellent value and outstanding comfort with features such as a dinghy garage, self-tacking jib, cockpit wet bar (BBQ grill and fridge), huge tankage and generous modern L-shaped galleys that are well-suited to the modern New Zealand sailor. Bavaria Yacht’s popular motorboat range received two new additions – the R55 and E34 Fly. The R55 will be the largest powerboat the company has ever produced – no expense has been spared in creating a luxurious and elegant vessel. With three large double cabins (the owners’ cabin even has its own walk-in wardrobe), each with its…

An electric-blue, twin Verado 250hppowered Stabicraft 2750 is making waves in the Bay of Islands – for all the right reasons. “The new owner absolutely loves it,” says Craig Lewis, Dealer Principal of Gulfland Marine, which installed the Mercury JPO (Joystick Piloting for Outboard) system that’s attracting all the attention. When the owner picked up the vessel from Whangaparaoa, north of Auckland, he decided drive it home by sea, a five-hour trip. “On the way, he stopped over some pinnacles about 300 metres deep where he engaged the Skyhook on the JPO and threw a line in,” says Craig. Skyhook is the digital GPS positioning system which holds a boat in position, regardless of tides or wind. “He filled the fish bin with hapuku in half-an-hour, which he’s never done…

Pitched as an entry level offering and built to a price point, the Montura is well-equipped without being over the top. It has everything you would expect in a boat of this type, plus a few things you might not, like a powerful 200hp 4.5-litre V6 engine. The Monterey is a good-looking boat and fun to chuck around. The bowrider layout is optimised for recreational boating with the emphasis on entertaining family and friends, fishing, towing water toys and generally enjoying a warm summer’s day on the water. Supplied by Lakeland Marine in Taupo, the boat is sold on an American-made, dual-axle Karavan galvanised steel trailer, braked, with bunks rather than rollers. Like many American boats, it is meant to be carried on a bunk trailer, which offers better hull…

Conceptually, the Floating Dock’s fairly simple. Twin, 13.7m long longitudinal cylinders support a grated raft floor 9m wide. Six, 3.4m high vertical cylinders are mounted on the longitudinal cylinders to give three compartments each side. Similar to a submarine’s pressure hull, each compartment has large holes in its bottom, and there are intake and outlet air pipes in the top of each vertical cylinder. To sink the dock, the air is bled from the top of each cylinder, which then allows water to enter into the lower compartment to flood the raft floor. To use the dock, it’s flooded deep enough in the water to suit the boat’s draft. The boat enters the dock and is held centrally by hydraulic arms either side. Compressed air is fed into the top…

Now in its 18th year, the Trillian Trust Classic Yacht Regatta provides an opportunity for skippers and to enjoy great camaraderie and competitive racing on Auckland’s Waitemata Harbour. The regatta is open to all classic yachts, classic replicas and ‘spirit of tradition’ vessels. The fleet is segmented into nine divisions ranging from 19th century A Class yachts to modern Stewart 34s, H28s, M-Class yachts, Townsons and Pied Pipers. The event is expected to draw some 60 overseas competitors from as far afield as the UK and Canada. Yachts will arrive on Wednesday 14 February in the Viaduct and at Westhaven. The race briefing for skippers and crew follows at the RNZYS on Thursday 15 February. A series of races over the next three days take place on the inner Auckland…

Nelson’s Iron Duke Sea Scouts have won the Jellicoe Trident, the top award at the 28th National Scout Regatta on Porirua Harbour, held earlier this year. The Trident was first presented in 1924, and the Dukes last held it 50 years ago, in 1967. Nearly 600 youths and volunteers – with a fleet of 80 boats – took part in the triennial event. It attracted 19 contingents representing 27 Scout Groups from across New Zealand – as well as a small group from Australia. The nine-day regatta saw youths competing in sailing, rowing, kayaking and seamanship events. An estimated 15,900 meals were made by a team of volunteers to keep the crews well-fed and energised throughout the event, with all excess food donated to the Salvation Army to help those…

A Zodiac Pro 550 won the coveted 2017 Innovation Award at the 2017 Nautic Paris Boat Show in recognition of it being the first RIB in the world to be equipped with foils. The award was presented to Lorientbased SEAir. The company has been working on the foil development for two years. SEAir founder Richard Forest says the company is finalising the configuration of the flying RIB and it will soon go to market. For more information visit: https://seair.fr Photo: Sébastien Véronèse…

The Maori name Wawata roughly translates as ‘hopes and dreams,’ says owner Peter Dickinson, the driving force behind this Kiwidesigned and built luxury sportfishing cruiser. Taking a design by Don Senior and working with Marine Evolutions and Donna Maree Yacht Interior Design, Peter has realised a stunning vision of superyacht quality in a thoroughly Kiwi-style motoryacht. Marine Evolutions founder, Daniel Dickinson, Peter’s son, used to lead construction at Alloy Yachts. Along with business partner Mark Boyce, Daniel is well-versed in high quality custom boatbuilding: Marine Evolutions’ bread and butter is refurbishing superyachts. Wawata was built alongside several such projects and subjected to the same exacting standards. Peter grew up with Kiwi-style launches – efficient, easily-driven hulls with layouts that suited the Kiwi boating lifestyle. He wanted to replicate those attributes…

In the 70s and 80s there were two boating revolutions which ran simultaneously. The first was the trailer-sailer revolution which promised an affordable way to get the family out sailing in comfort. The other revolution was the beachcat one. It offered high speed, fluorescent sails and get-wet fun and was championed by a surfer and thumbed its nose at the yachting establishment. It has taken until now to blend the best of the two into a small trailerable trimaran which is starting a revolution of its own. The French company Astus is one of a handful of companies that has developed quality trailerable trimarans that are fun and affordable. With the Astus 16.5 Sport it has combined production nous with the design excellence of VPLP Naval architecture which is at…

A New Zealand sea anchor manufacturer has again scooped international awards, this time at the largest specialty fabrics tradeshow in the Americas. Coppins Sea Anchors of Motueka has been judged ‘Top Winner’ at the Industrial Fabrics Association International (IFAI) Expo in New Orleans, with two International Achievement Awards. Its winning entry was for a line of sea anchors for superyachts. This is the sixth time in 16 years the company has been recognised in this award scheme. The product incorporates several features never seen before, including an integrated rescue towline and an innovative method of retrieving and repacking it, which can be achieved by just one person. The superyacht sea anchor is also far smaller, lighter and stronger than any comparable product, according to Managing Director Bill Coppins. The IFAI…

International Marine is one of Australia’s oldest and largest manufacturers of fibreglass boats, but is better known as Caribbean Boats. Based in Melbourne, it has been manufacturing boats since 1958 under several brands including the USA-designed Bertram. In the late 1980s International Marine went its own way and rebranded as Caribbean and has now built more than 60,000 boats. The range is extensive – from a 16-foot (4.88m) offshore runabout to the massive 49-foot (14.77m) flybridge cruiser. In New Zealand the brand is perhaps best known for the midrange sportfishers and cruisers – it has a reputation for luxurious and well-constructed boats. The 2400 hardtop sits right in the middle of that range and has been in production since 2000. This hull has achieved considerable success in Australia with the…

A lightweight speedboat that can be ‘mated’ with most PWCs to create a much larger vessel, the just-released Wave Boat 444 accommodates five passengers – all without sacrificing too much of the PWC’s performance. Depending on the PWC used, the 444 can run at 50 knots. The 444 fits snugly around the PWC’s hull, with the latter providing the power and steering. In effect, the two vessels become one – and the result is an ingenious 2-in-1 solution to the traditional mis-match between a PWC and family boating. It’s a clever way of sharing the adrenalin-filled thrill of PWCriding with friends and family. The 4.44m Wave Boat is manufactured by Sealver, a French company based at Sanguinet in the country’s southwestern corner. It specialises in vessels that are mated to…

Puzzle no.244 Across 1. PFD - _____ flotation device (8) 6. Bilge ____ - device to remove water accumulated in bottom of vessel (4) 8. _____ about - changing to opposite tack (5) 9. Measure of sea depth (6) 10. Legendary island that disappeared into ocean (8) 11. Top part of 18 Down (4) 12. Vessel used for racing or luxury cruising (5) 14. White-faced heron seen on rocky shores is this type of bird (5) 16. ____ anodes - these help protect metal parts of boat from corrosion (4) 18. Notices to _____ - regular updates for navigational safety (8) 21. Qualified coastal navigators (6) 22. Fishing stories about the one that got away! (5) 23. Swing boom across wind (4) 24. Joining ropes in nautical manner (8) Down…