Innehållsförteckning för January 2019 från Boating NZ

Renowned New Zealand yacht designer Murray Ross’ 16.6m performance catamaran was the perfect example of this. Built for speed while being spacious and comfortable to live aboard, the boat (originally named Isis) with bright red hulls was launched in 2004 and regarded as a build ahead of her time, showcasing numerous attributes of a designer keenly in tune with high-profile racing yachts of the day. Fourteen years on, long-time friend and fellow Whitbread and Volvo Round-The-World and America’s Cup sailor Erle Williams adopts exactly the same opinion of ‘cruising’ with the need to have a boat that’s light, strong and easy to handle shorthanded – not to mention the ability to simply sail fast. As the new owner of the Ross-designed catamaran, Williams has just project-coordinated an extensive six-month re-fit…

Situated on the eastern side of Vancouver Island, this large, sprawling home – eight bedrooms and nine bathrooms – was built in the 1880s. It has an eventful history and ownership has changed many times. But George and Koula O’Brien – who bought the place in the late 70s – were responsible for its unusual piece of art. By all accounts a colourful character with an impish sense of humour, George did a lot of work transforming what was a relatively derelict old building into a home. His pièce de résistance, though, was enlivening the grand front room’s décor with the hull of a 41’ 6” yacht. He purchased the boat – a Cooper 41.6 – from Cooper Industries in 1979 and barged it over from Abbotsford on the mainland.…

Growing up, James Frankham would spend summers with his family at the bottom end of Waiheke Island. On any given day, he could look up or down the Waiheke Channel and see two or three ‘work-ups’ of kahawai. The work-ups – where baitfish are rounded up into a ball and pushed to the ocean’s surface by their predators, like kahawai – would make the water appear to boil at the centre of the feeding frenzy. But last summer, when Frankham – publisher of New Zealand Geographic – went out on to the Hauraki Gulf in search of one of those work-ups to capture on underwater video, he was left flabbergasted. “We spent days roaming around the Gulf, covering miles and miles. We had someone on the roof of our boat…

BUILDING AMPHIBIANS IN QATAR NEW ZEALAND’S ALAN GIBBS – founder of Gibbs Amphibians – is establishing a strategic partnership with the Madaeen Al Doha Group to supply and assemble the GibbsHumdinga. The subsidiary – Gibbs Amphitech – will be based in Qatar and supply Gibbs products to the region and other key markets. Gibbs founder Alan Gibbs says there’s a developing global demand for the Humdinga, with high levels of interest from all kinds of customers, from governments to private individuals. The company has locations in the UK and New Zealand, utilising engineers and expertise from both countries to continue to develop High Speed Amphibian (HSA) technology and the vehicles designed around it. Over the last 20 years Gibbs has invested millions of pounds, and more than three million man-hours,…

Set like a precious gem in the southwestern part of Vancouver Island, Victoria is a beautiful city built on a human scale. Its resident population numbers just 83,000. The British heritage and colonial past is distinctly reflected in its parks, museums, the city squares and monuments – and particularly in its English-style pubs. Two buildings that certainly fit into this category have been the architectural backdrop for the Classic Boat Festival: the Fairmont Empress hotel with its castle-like shape and steeply sloping roofs, and the Parliament of British Columbia. This year’s event drew several thousand visitors and 85 craft (both sail and power) from various American states (mainly Washington and Oregon for obvious geographical reasons) and the province of British Columbia. Boats that enlivened the port with their white-painted planking…

UP ANOTHER GEAR Auckland’s Royal Akarana Yacht Club embarks on a new strategy coinciding with the move into its new clubhouse. A HANDSOME COUPLE What do you get when you mate an Extreme 885 with Yamaha’s super-grunty 425hp V8? A smile that wraps right around your face. ELECTRIC CONVERSION Tired of tending to his yacht’s ailing diesel, an enterprising DIYer swapped it for a slim, efficient electric motor. GRAND BANKS 60 SKY LOUNGE The world somehow seems a better place with the views offered by the latest Grand Banks cruiser. www.boatingnz.co.nz…

The attractions of a flybridge are several and top among them for Pacific boats is the commanding view of our coral-strewn coastlines. Luxury builder Riviera has gone further by creating a complete living space on the new 72 that even includes a bed – talk about room with a view. The latest in the Australian company’s new Sports Motor Yacht (SMY) collection, the 72 offers more space and a new tweaked hull while still showing off those famous curves and bold sheer that defines a Riviera. These yachts are intended as bluewater adventure boats and come with long range capability – our review boat can do more than 2,000 miles in displacement mode – and has levels of selfsufficiency to match. Also, many systems are duplicated or can be over-ridden…

The heavy-duty Hypalon tubes in two-tone grey, the white centre console, the gleaming pair of silver/black 250hp Evinrude E-TEC outboards, the teak-coloured Deck King flooring and the Tek Dek boarding platform are all pretty standard. But it’s the orange supports for the grey and black hardtop, with matching orange rod holders and even an orange trim strip on the Evinrudes, that grabs the eye. And rather than the usual stainless brightwork, the owner’s elected to have it all powder-coated in bright orange. Which makes this a very distinctive boat that certainly stands out from the crowd. Not that Dave Pringle, owner of Smuggler Marine, needed to do much to make her conspicuous. At 9m LOA and a beam of 3.3m, she’s a big boat that will turn heads in any…

The tell-tales from the gorgeous Evolution sails streamed parallel, the Waitemata water flashed past, feet resting on the teak footstop, my eyes flicking down to the Raymarine speedo. Everything was just right. Hard to define in words. The French have a saying “Je ne sais quoi” which literally translates to “I don’t know what” – but it really means an indefinable quality that makes something attractive. She’s been specifically designed for racing – that’s foremost – and a great example of this is the removable cockpit lockers which just expand the room available for the crew. It may seem a small touch, but when you add up all the design features of this new Dufour, you get something special. Of course, Dufour has optimised this yacht for performance compared to…

An Integrity 380 Sedan, Marvic is the first of this latest version in New Zealand. Integrity Motor Yachts is an Australian company, now part of the Whitehaven Group, that builds traditional trawler-style yachts in China and a range of luxury powerboats in Taiwan and Taipei. I reviewed an earlier version of this model a few years ago (Boating NZ, September 2013). The Chinese manufacturer, Jianghua Marine, has been building yachts for many years, and Integrity yachts for eight years. Essentially, the 380 Sedan is a development of the popular Integrity 340 Sedan, extended and updated. The 380 is available in flybridge or sedan versions. Marvic is a sedan-style launch with a full-beam cabin top that covers the cockpit and walkaround side decks. Wrap-around bulwarks (with scuppers) and railings are family-…

A keen sailor, acquiring Manitou was one of the first things Kennedy did when elected as the 35th President of the United States in 1961, having fallen in love with the 27-tonne, mahogany-hulled yacht. He first saw Manitou at Annapolis while still a senator, earmarking her as a more stylish alternative to the existing presidential yacht – the 28m launch Honey Fitz. Built in 1931, that vessel was used by President Eisenhower as a shuttle to the Newport Golf Club and was colloquially known as the ‘Floating Locker Room’. Kennedy, though a golfer, had sailing in his blood and received his first boat as a 15th birthday present. This was the 26’ Wianno Senior Victura (Latin for ‘to come alive’). She is now displayed at Boston’s John F. Kennedy Presidential…

…around 300 boats and 350 youth sailors are expected to take part in the Barfoot & Thompson Beachlands Auckland Championships… SMALL SIZE, LARGE NUMBERS They may be small in size, but the centreboard fleets taking part in the Ports of Auckland Anniversary Regatta represent by far the largest portion of participants, with hundreds of sailors expected to take to the water in dinghies all over Auckland as part of the event on 28 January. Most will be located at Maraetai Sailing Club, where around 300 boats and 350 youth sailors are expected to take part in the Barfoot & Thompson Beachlands Auckland Championships, the final day of which coincides with the Ports of Auckland Anniversary Day Regatta. Over Anniversary Weekend, Maraetai will host the Optimist, Starling, RS Feva, 420 and…

To win the next Cup, says Dan Bernasconi, Emirates Team New Zealand’s (ETNZ) Head of Design, we first need to win the innovation race. “The America’s Cup is as much a technology race as it is a yacht race. We know the scope for 5G technology to help make the boat go faster is significant.” Bernasconi’s comments came at the November launching of New Zealand’s first interactive 5G test lab in Auckland’s Wynyard Quarter. Created by Spark, the lab has a dual purpose. It’s designed as a collaboration space for New Zealand innovators, entrepreneurs and companies – like ETNZ – to have early access to 5G, “to test and develop products and experiences that will define the future.” Spark aims to have the country’s first 5G network live on the…

The amazingly intact wreck of the 54m steel steamer, Manasoo, lost in a storm on September 15, 1928, has been located in deep water by an international team of searchers/divers. She’s resting at an unusual angle in Georgian Bay near Owen Sound, Ontario. Built in Glasgow, Scotland in 1888, the Manasoo spent the first 39 of her 40 years named the Macassa, carrying tourists and cargoes between Toronto and Hamilton on Lake Ontario. In 1928 the ship was purchased by the relatively-new Owen Sound Transportation Company (today it operates the famous Chi-cheemaun ferry between Tobermory and Manitoulin Island, and the Pelee Island ferries on Lake Erie). Scheduled mainly for the Manitoulin Island to the Soo (Sault Ste. Marie) run, the refurbished vessel was renamed the Manasoo, reflecting these two harbour…

Whitianga is home to the superior Hopper lifestyle development of Whitianga Waterways. The waterways project is a third of the way through and upon completion will contain over 1500 residential lots, a 100+ room resort hotel, mixed use commercial/retail areas, retirement village and a marine precinct with live-aboard berths and floating homes. The vision for Whitianga is not just to create a subdivision but provide a vibrant, innovative and exciting community, flush with amenities that enhances the natural area and grows the region. Whitianga Waterways is a haven for those who desire a lifestyle by the water and want to spend more time enjoying the quality things in life. The Waterways lifestyle clearly appeals to boat owners and the canal-front sections enable owners to moor their boats right on the…

Puzzle no.255 Across 1. “Six Months in a _____ Boat” – Split Enz song (5) 4. Steered boat slightly sideways to compensate for current (7) 8. Another name for trysail (7) 9. Marine cetacean mammals also known as killer whales (5) 10. _____ of way – one of rules of navigation (5) 12. Navigable route for vessels marked on charts (3,4) 13. ____ and white – colours of dive flag used in NZ (4) 14. ____ V – this refers to shape of boat’s hull (4) 17. Warned of marine hazards, eg (7) 20. Skin _____ – measurement following line of yacht hull (5) 21. Warm dry part of boat (5) 22. Boat flooring and mats should be this for safety (3-4) 24. Periods of time when vessel is delayed…

Auckland ferry company Fullers360 has launched a bold initiative for greater prioritisation of ferry planning. The Gulf 2025 initiative – Unifying the Hauraki Gulf – calls for commercial and public collaboration and investment across the Hauraki Gulf to meet Auckland’s exponential population and visitor growth. It details the extensive benefits of ferry travel to Auckland: decreased road traffic congestion, reduced carbon emissions, increased productivity and contributions to the economy, a boost in tourism spending – and improved social and community connectivity and well-being. These benefits were identified in research by the NZ Institute of Economic Research (NZIER), commissioned by Fullers360. Auckland’s population is anticipated to reach two million by 2029, and ferry passenger numbers are forecast to reach 8.59 million by 2025 – up from the 6.16 million who travelled…