This Just Floated Into Seattle

[madsb]

Originally Posted by fjwiley1

Ya gotta call it a Mega Yacht when you must have a Helicopter on the bow and the stern.....

Especially if you ride the chopper from bow to stern to avoid walking.

[beverley]

Originally Posted by ShaktiGurl

I heard it is controlled by 5 iMacs! I do think it would be interesting to be inside in a stormy sea. All those glass panels come to a point so you must have quite a view.

I wonder if any of these are much use in stormy seas? I would not be surprised to find that some of the "arty" boats like Jobs' are designed for looks rather than practicality. I know that these billionaires will probably only ever board in calm conditions but I feel sorry for the crew that have to move these boats in bad weather.

[sailcruiser]

Originally Posted by Tim R.

I saw this Russian's yacht at Mustique in the Grenadines in 2010.

Ah the ever homely (IMHO) 'A'. Found it in St Martin a couple years back. I'm sure the shape makes sense to naval architects but it isn't pleasing to my eye.
SC

[ShaktiGurl]

Originally Posted by beverley

I wonder if any of these are much use in stormy seas? I would not be surprised to find that some of the "arty" boats like Jobs' are designed for looks rather than practicality. I know that these billionaires will probably only ever board in calm conditions but I feel sorry for the crew that have to move these boats in bad weather.

Yes probably true. It just sat here at Rybovich all winter. Never saw it go out until it left around May. Wonder if it will be back. I might see if they would let me have a looksy.

6! 6 iMacs, ha ha ha ha!

[beverley]

Originally Posted by ShaktiGurl

6! 6 iMacs, ha ha ha ha!

How does that work? I think I will surf the net a bit and see what I can find. I cannot imagine how that would work.

[edit - I have had a look and the "bridge" looks very odd. I will stick to a more traditional layout as my preferred choice]

http://cdn.macrumors.com/article-new...acht_imacs.jpg

[minaret]

Originally Posted by Aussiesuede

Paul Allens "Big Boat" is pretty impressive as well. It's starting to look like there's some Billionaires convention going on.




His "Baby Boat" ain't too shabby either.

I've done a load of work on these two yachts. We built the helicopter landing barge at his house too. I think he finally got it rezoned so he can land heli's at the house without having the barge though.

[capt-couillon]

Boat: What you work on.
Yacht: What other people work on.

[fjwiley1]

capt - couillon, you and Boatman got it right.......I have a boat, I like my boat. We are both alike....Old.

[Liunatic]

I don't begrudge people their toys, but honestly, how big a boat do you really need? Unless you're in the cruise ship industry where is the benefit of having a megayacht that sits idle and mostly empty for vast amounts of time? I'm not impressed.

[Group9]

Originally Posted by Vasco

Saw this one in Nassau a few years ago. How come all these big ones are owned by Russians? In addition to the sailboat and the helicopter there is a large motor yacht on deck on the starboard side.

Most of these guys had serious KGB/Politburo connections, some serious tradecraft training and experience, and access to lots of government funds, and a lot of intelligence on people and governments, squirreled away, when the Soviet Union fell. You really think a Vodka business he couldn't have started until after 1989, really financed that yacht?

I have a friend who works at Trinity yachtbuilding. You should see some of the "options" that some of these boats have (with a lot of secrecy clauses in the contracts). A lot of the people who own these yachts are not somebody you would have wanted to meet in a dark alley in Russia twenty or thirty years ago (or get sideways with now).

[Zanshin]

Originally Posted by Vasco

The rumour was that this one's Steven Spielberg's. Seen in the Bahamas last season.

That boat is called "Skat"and is owned by a Microsoft engineer. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Skat_(yacht)

[IdoraKeeper]

If the yacht is pointless...was the money spent to build it pointless as well? I guess the yard workers and crew get some benefit. Seems like it would be utterly boring in short order.

[RedHerring]

Originally Posted by Group9

You really think a Vodka business he couldn't have started until after 1989, really financed that yacht?

Yes. In 1987, when Russian Wild West started, the owner of that particular boat was a 20 year old from a provincial town, no higher education. Deep contacts in KGB? Fieldcraft training? Give me a break.

The owner of another boat mentioned was a scientist and low level administrator in some research institute. I worked with a guy who was his subordinate at that point in his life.

Vast majority of Russian "oligarchs" had neither prominent parents, nor a successful security services career in their biography. Quite a few were Komsomol (Communist Party youth branch) activists though.

There were several million others playing the "get rich quick" game, most of them failed, a lot of them died, many succeeded moderately, and a few succeeded wildly. Products of natural selection in all of its beauty.

Your comment about dark alleys is rather accurate though - one had to be (or become) a predator to win in that environment.

[foolishsailor]

Originally Posted by Bash

Ya gotta wonder where they store the folding bikes, with those choppers taking up so much deck space.

Just snorted my drink through my nose! Damn funny post Bash!

[foolishsailor]

It's a shame that the they aren't sailors! Look at this beauty that just got signed for build this year

http://www.freivokh.co.uk/wp-content.../06/141-04.jpg

141m with a wood hull. Oh my.....