Superyacht questions

Well, first must start with defining superyacht. Is it 80' or more? 100' or more? 150' or more? or 200' or more? I think that is growing. I don't personally think of 120' as a superyacht anymore. I guess when I hear the word superyachts today I tend to think of megayachts. Perhaps by owning a boat over 100' I don't think of it as large anymore.

So, I'm going to use 100' and 175' for the discussion.

At 100', the appeal is the ability to spend a long time on it comfortably with a few guests and a relatively small crew. Perhaps a crew of 3 or 4. Around 130' go to 6 or 7. You can cruise and handle fairly rough waters easily. Some of us do take the helm and pilot the vessel part of the time, but over 100' you need a crew. And to take the helm you really need to have a Captains License or equivalent experience. Many insurers will also require it. Most who go much beyond 100' have little desire to be at the helm, but like to just relax and enjoy. Also, taking the helm is a small part of operating. You need someone with engineering knowledge or experience. You need people to wash the decks down and keep the interior clean. You may want someone to prepare meals.

At 175' you're talking much larger crew. Typically 12 - 14 and more at each level higher. At that level very few owners take the helm. It's a hotel in many ways where you can invite large numbers of guests and cruise most anywhere, across oceans as well. Many have helicopter pads so you can quickly go back and forth between land.

I personally think above 150' or so they start feeling less like a boat. More like being on a cruise ship, but nicer. And your own.

Some people like to be treated by a large crew like royalty. White linen 5 star meals like the best hotels. Others prefer less formality. My wife and I are both 200 Ton Masters and we do spend a lot of time at the helm, but the crew is greatly needed to assist and take time there and to do all the other jobs on the boat.

We can operate a 60'+ boat as owner/operator. We probably could an 80-85' if we were more mechanically skilled and inclined. But at that point also, you can find yourself in a full time crew job and not having time to enjoy your boat. At that size you need at least one crew person and generally need 2 or 3.

Size of boats above 100' generally depend on where you cruise. If you cruise coastal waters and the med then near 100' is a good size. However as you start talking about crossing oceans you need more boat and you need more range.

"Each to his own" is a saying you may be familiar with, I guess you nailed your own in one with those words above.

If that is what you yearn for move to a locale with an active club racing scene and get yourself set up with a boat that can hurtle round the buoys, you will also need to find the other fellas to sail it while you steer but you as the Owner can helm it and listen to whatever music you like while stepping back in time however far you need to to achieve a re run of that time.

Just be aware, returning somewhere you had a great hoot after a long time that there is absolutely no guarantee that things will be as you left or remember them.

Good Luck in regaining that feeling.

So true. We loved boating on the lake. But if we had to go back to that and only that we'd feel so locked in now. When 40 miles is as far as you've been in a boat it seems pretty big. But then when you find you can go thousands of miles, 40 is lacking.

And going back in time is always only partial because you can't turn the age back and it's not just physical but the mental side of it. What if you've learned not to be as foolhardy as you once were?

+1 to that, and also I remember racing 16 & 18 ft. Hobie cats...you're so busy sailing the boat you don't have time to sit back and enjoy the wonders of the water and all that lie within it. I wouldn't/couldn't go back to racing both power and sail...it's a whole different mind set. When your young and stupid, you can do those things....there's an old saying "It's unfortunate that wisdom comes with age." When you see how easy it is to die being stupid, and thinking you can control the Ocean, you then embrace taking the slower road, and enjoy the things you've worked so hard for.

Blue Ghost, you don't have to be older to appreciate mega yachts...I think at some level we all do at any age. There are a certain group of people who want a crew, someone to wait on them hand and foot, so they can feel superior to us underlings, it's some kind of power trip. It comes from places I can't understand. I would fight tooth and nail to not have a crew, (which is why I would never by a boat over 100')...unless it was a Chef....that might be acceptable. I just have a problem paying a Captain 100 grand + a year for doing something that I enjoy so much. It would be like paying someone to drive my Bentley...what's the fun in that?
And on another note, I hope I never grow up, I wake up every morning trying to see the world through a child's eye, living in a constant state of amazement, I find something to laugh about everyday. I dance like nobody is watching, I do my best to enjoy life at it's fullest every single day. The moral to this story is ....you're approaching 50, once you get there...you're at the top of the hill, and all of a sudden your brakes fail...and time fly's by so fast it's scary. I'm 57, just started a new business last year, and for the life of me...can't figure out where or how the last 7 years past so quickly. The knowledge base here at YF is nothing short of incredible....do a little homework, narrow down what you really want, and the flood gates will open up to help you in any endeavor you choose.

Dunno but if what he says is true that might explain why it was such a hard sell. It could also be sour grapes by a disgruntled ex employee.

The drop a sketch on the table and build it behaviour is of a day gone by, Disdale's office is well known for very detailed drawings in recent times so things have moved on some.