Strapped In

Your eyes aren't deceiving you; that's one heckuva yacht sitting in that TraveLift. To be specific, she's the 192-foot Ronin, and she and the TraveLift just made the record books. For not only is Ronin the largest private yacht ever hoisted by a TraveLift, but the 660-ton crane itself is the largest one at an American shipyard, Marine Group Boat Works in San Diego. And get this: The crane is just the second one made in the USA to be able to lift 500 or more tons, constructed in Wisconsin and shipped to Marine Group Boat Works in several pieces—carried on 19 18-wheelers.

Now that's what we call a heavy load.

Avast Mateys! Did You Make T' Party?

As always, PMY threw one heckuva party at the Miami International Boat Show. This year the party was at the Miami Beach Resort and Spa, overlooking the multi-million dollar Yacht and Brokerage Show on Collins Avenue. Highlights included a custom-built pirate-ship stage for the band, a tarrot card reader, live parrots and other birds, and lots of fun. Oh, and the costumes did not disappoint either; we had everything from a team of four wenches to a Jack Sparrow look-alike to a crazy green parrot.

Rounding Cape Horn, Part Deux

Talk about adventures in cruising...

Nordhavn announced this morning that, last week, the Nordahvn 57 Ice Dancer became the company's second vessel to successfully round Cape Horn, the southernmost tip of South America. The news comes just three weeks after the Nordhavn 46 Egret did the same—the first-ever Nordhavn to do so.

Due to the challenges posed by strong winds and currents, icebergs, and large waves, few production boats make it to Cape Horn, according to Nordhavn. And, interestingly, rounding Good Horn was not something that the crew on either vessel had intended to do; in fact, it was an afterthought for Egret's crew who, while cruising South America from the Med, fell so in love with the area that they decided to postpone cruising to their final destination of New Zealand in favor of exploring the region further. "We simply can't leave this last unspoiled cruising area...without spending time here," the owner said.

Is Cape Horn the next hot cruising ground? That remains to be seen, but Nordhavn's Jim Leishman sure thinks so. "A fabulous cruising ground awaits those inclined and equipped with the right vessel," he said, adding, "I think next year we'll see our boats in Antarctica."

Stay tuned...

Donald Trump Back in Yachting

Everyone's favorite real estate mogul and the former owner of the largest Benetti ever built is behind a new development in the Dominican Republic that will cater to the megayacht crowd.

To be called Trump at Cap Cana, the resort will cover an astounding 30,000 acres with more than three miles of beaches. Besides featuring luxury residential units and a handful of hotels (and, of course, golf courses), the big attraction for boaters will be more than 1,000 slips able to accommodate megayachts to 150 feet.

You'll have to wait a while before reserving a slip, however; the first phase of marina construction doesn't kick off until springtime this year.

Despite the wait, we say: Mr. Trump, you're hired.

MAN's Newest Common-Rail Engine

As seen at the 2007 Miami International Boat Show, MAN has added to its line of common-rail diesels with the R6-550. The six-cylinder, 550-hp powerplant is the smallest in MAN's line of common-rail power that extends to 1,550-hp. Preliminary data supplied by MAN list the R6-550 at 1,984 pounds; that's an impressive power-to-weight ratio of 3.6 lbs/hp.

Like the rest of the MAN family of common-rails, electronic engine control is supplied by MMDS (MAN monitoring and diagnostics system): The 6.3-, 10-, or 15-inch TFT diagnostic-system displays show speed, oil pressure, boost pressure, temperature levels of coolant and oil, and calculate gph and other relevant operating numbers. MAN developed the world's first diesel engine between 1893 and 1897 with Rudolf Diesel, when they were known as Maschinenfabrik Augsburg.

The Largest Four-Stroke Outboard Yet

One of the big announcements at the 2007 Miami International Boat Show last week was made by Yamaha when the company premiered the largest four-stroke outboard available in the industry: a 350-hp V8. The 5.3-liter, 60-degree, dual-overhead cam, 32-valve powerplant has a 1.73:1 gear ratio, weighs 804 pounds, and can be used in single-, double-, and triple-engine configurations. It is available with 25- or 30-inch shaft lengths and with right-hand or left-hand rotation.

According to Yamaha, the outboard-powered market for boats more than 26 feet LOA has grown 40 percent over the last four years and this powerplant will help fill the niche for more power.

"Small" Yacht, Big Features

In a size range that is increasingly dominated by fully production yachts, it's nice to find a fully custom yacht like LeClercq (pronounced "le-clair") Marine's 82, being presented in conjunction with OceanStyle at the Yacht & Brokerage Show in Miami.


When I toured her, I was impressed with her well-appointed interior, particularly the galley. As you can see here, it's a country kitchen setup, but it's far better laid out than similar setups on larger yachts. There's not only a great expanse of counterspace, but that same counterspace doubles as a convivial breakfast bar. It enhances the yacht's overall family-friendly feel so well that I'd be hard-pressed to leave the room if I were the owners.

Stolen Yacht

Here's your chance to help solve a crime. A blue-hulled Fairline Targa 62 was stolen from the Miami Beach Marina on Wednesday evening, February 14, at 10:45 p.m. The hull identification number is GBFLN 1111 7D607. As for the engines, they're Caterpillar C18s; the port engine ID is CKH01772, and the starboard engine ID is DKH01768.

There are only 4 Targa 62s in the USA—and two of them are at the Miami boat show, so hopefully Sofi III can be found quickly.

Anyone with information, please contact the Coast Guard, the Miami police, and/or Fairline's Florida office, which is (954) 525-7430. The owner is offering a substantial cash reward.

Carinthia VII Sold! Or, Sold?

Our popular Megayachts forum gets a good two dozen posts or so on a daily basis, but on Wednesday there was that amount of activity just in the thread devoted to Carinthia VII (ranked #12 on our exclusive feature "The World's 100 Largest Yachts"). It all started when forum member zippie stumbled across a photo of the yacht posted on Flickr. She bore a new name: Sylvia I.

Immediately keyboards started pounding and tongues started wagging worldwide, as everyone tried to guess whether the photo had been doctored. Even I had to wonder; if it had been, the guy was good at PhotoShop. A quick e-mail to Lurssen, and the truth was revealed: The joke was on all of us. I'm sure that wherever he lives, the photographer is still laughing; he got 293 page views of his photo in one night.

Cooking in the Blogosphere

Ever wanted to know what it was like to cook aboard a megayacht? Niall Harbison, the chef aboard the 153-foot charter yacht Argyll, shares some of his (and guests') favorite recipes in his blog, occasionally complete with video. He also posts daily about what life in general is like aboard, where the yacht is traveling to, and what he and his fellow crewmembers do in their rare downtime. Also noteworthy: his efforts to raise money for African orphans.

Cruise Missile

Forget zipping to the Bahamas for the day from Florida. The Pershing 90 will let you drive all around the island chain before dinner.

Just how fast is the 90? Pershing says she tops out at 44 knots (50.6 mph) and cruises at 38 (43.7 mph) with a light load. If you’re familiar with Pershings, likely you’re not surprised this 69-ton yacht is a speedster—a top speed of 35.4 knots, or 40.8 mph, and a best-cruise speed of 20.8 knots, or 24 mph. Part of the reason why the 90 is faster is her engine package: twin 2,435-mhp MTUs, versus the 88’s 1,830-hp DDC-MTUs. One thing that hasn’t changed, though, is the fact that she’s also equipped with Arneson surface drives—specifically ASD 16Ls that are customized for the 90.

Meet PMY at the Miami Boat Show

Meet the PMY crew at the Miami International Boat Show being held February 15-19, 2007. We'll be at Booth 070 at the Miami Convention Center.

Magic Expandable Yacht Table

Just when I was beginning to think nothing worthwhile can come out of YouTube, I came across this fantastic video. It's a demonstration of how a beautiful hand-made table aboard the megayachtIlona expands to accommodate 12 or more people. Forget adding leaves or folding out extensions, this is true artistry. Called the Fletcher Capstan Table, it was custom-built by DB Fletcher Design. Enjoy!