Cruising Life

Firefighters Suspect Lithium Batteries Caused Yacht Fire

By George Day on September 19, 2024 Cruising Life

On August 5, Rob Tyler was at his home in Ontario, Canada, when he checked the boat monitoring system and onboard cameras on his Aqila 70 Steady AF which was moored in Longboat Key, Florida. To his horror, he saw smoke coming from the starboard hull. Tyler made several phone calls and finally a marina dockhand inspected the boat and confirmed that smoke was indeed coming from the transom of the starboard hull. He also called 911. By next morning Steady AF lay wrecked with her starboard hull burnt and underwater. The previous evening firefighters arrived at the marina at…

New Omikron 60 Blends Tradition with Modern Innovation

By George Day on September 19, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

One of the boats that caught my eye while at the Cannes Boat Show was the Greek-built Omikron 60 power cruiser. The boat was designed by Juan Koyoumdjian who is best known for his stylish and fast cruising and racing sailboats. The builder’s brief to the designer was for a family cruiser that offers the quiet and peace of a sailboat with the luxury and conveniences of a powerboat. The Omikron 60 is the result and it’s traditional deck house and strong sheer line have echoes of Eastern Mediterranean boats from the 1950s. Missing is the acre of varnished mahogany,…

U.S. Coast Guard Hearings Unveil Causes behind Titan Submarine Disaster

By George Day on September 19, 2024 Cruising Life

Fifteen months after the deep submersible submarine Titan imploded while visiting the wreck of the Titanic killing all five adventurers aboard, the U.S. Coast launched hearings this week to delve into the disaster. Experts and members of OceanGate’s staff, the parent company, testified that the submarine had been plagued with equipment and system problems in the years before the disaster and that an engineer who oversaw the Titan project had been fired because he would not certify the submarine for deep dives. In the months before the fatal dive, the Titan had been stored ashore in Newfoundland in subfreezing weather…

Outer Reef Yachts Announces Merger with Dutch Builder Lynx Yachts

By George Day on September 11, 2024 Cruising Life

This week, Jeff Druek, CEO of Outer Reef Yachts, based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, announced that his company was merging with the Dutch builder of luxury long-range motors yachts and high end outboard yachts Lynx Yachts. Long in the works, the merger brings together two brands that will expand the reach of both, Outer Reef into the European market and Lynx into the American and Australian markets. Druek stated, “Expanding our presence in the Netherlands and integrating the highly regarded Lynx Yachts management team into our operations marks a significant milestone for Outer Reef Yachts. This partnership aligns perfectly with…

Riviera Introduces New 6800 Sport Yacht Platinum Edition

By George Day on September 6, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Coming to America this fall for a debut at the Ft. Lauderdale International Boat Show in October, the new Riviera 6800 Platinum Edition represents the pinnacle of design, style and engineering from this highly regarded Australian builder. Now in their 44th year, Riviera, based on Australia’s Gold Coast, has launched more than 6,000 motor yachts and is distributed through dealers around the world. The Sport Yacht line, one of five on the builder’s product list, is comprised of family cruising sedans with multiple living and lounging spaces. Rebranding the Sport Yacht line as the new Platinum Edition emphasizes the long…

Globemaster 50 LRX Is Built for Long Haul Cruising

By George Day on September 5, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Built in the Netherlands on a semi-custom basis, the Globemaster 50 LRX is a long-range-exploration vessel for an adventurous couple. The design brief, created by designer and builder Erik Leander, was to build a CE Class A all-ocean boat in aluminum that would be self-sufficient while cruising and could be recycled when its cruising days are done. The hull and deck are unfinished 7mm aluminum plate that give the craft a workboat or military appearance in much the same way the Steve Dashew’s cruising powerboats do. This all-business style outside is offset by a warm, wood-finished interior that evokes old-time…

New Swedish Speedster from Viggo Yachts

By George Day on August 29, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

Here is something a little different for Cruising Odyssey, a 60-knot, aluminum speedster with twin outboards and only basic accommodations. The builder, Viggo Yachts, is based in Oregrund Sweden where it builds only aluminum power boats, all of them designed and engineered for speed. The C10 that was introduced recently, has a narrow beam and a double chined hull under the water. This configuration allows the boat to get up onto a plane very quickly despite the hull’s 24 degrees of deadrise. The deep V hull, which is a sharper V than most hulls of this type, will provide those…

Go Foiling on New Spirit BAR F35 Electric Runabout

By George Day on August 29, 2024 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life

The new, one-off, electric-powered runabout built by Spirit Yachts in England started life as the brainchild of an existing owner of a Spirit sailboat. The brief that he passed along to the builder was for a modern, efficient runabout that evokes the look of rum runners from the 1920s. But then the project developed wings, or more accurately, foils. And it got an electric propulsion system. Partnering with BAR Technologies, a leader in the field of marine foiling systems, Spirit was able to create an entirely new type of motorboat. The finished product, the F35, is not only classically beautiful,…

Protect Your Boat and Gear from a Lightning Strike

By George Day on August 29, 2024 Cruising Life, Electronics

Of all the natural phenomena that we run into out on the water, lightning may be the most worrisome. A direct strike can blow a thru-hull right off the boat creating a gaping hole, it can fry your electrical panel and battery bank and it can start a fire. Even near misses can create a mess inside marine electronics and the autopilot, or in the alternator and starter motor on your engine, or it can blow up an inverter-charger. Lightning works in mysterious ways so you can never predict where it will go and what damage it can do. That…

Tiara to Build All-New 56 LS Luxury Sport Cruiser

By George Day on August 29, 2024 Cruising Life, On Watch With Peter Janssen, On Watch with Peter Janssen

This month, Tiara Yachts of Holland, Michigan, announced the introduction of the all new 56 LS Luxury Sport cruiser with four 600-horsepower Mercury Verado V-12s on it transom. The new 56 will join the 43 and 48LS in the builder’s outboard sport line Weighing in at 39,000 pounds and with a dead rise of 21 degrees in the deep V hull, the new 56 will be both very quick and provide a truly soft ride through chop and larger waves. The addition of an optional SeaKeeper stabilizer will add to that sense of stability. The 56 is designed for indoor-outdoor…

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