For a brief period back in the 1980s James May and I used to work together. James was the production editor of Autocar magazine and I was selling adverts for a sister title called Car Choice. It didn’t end well. Car Choice closed – I never was any good at sales. And James got sacked. At least he went in style; while sub-editing a supplement, he changed the first word of every article so that the capital letter at the start of every page spelled out a witty little message. We thought it was hilarious. Our managing director didn’t and fired him on the spot. Thankfully, James found a more appreciative audience for his famously dry sense of humour presenting Top Gear and I ended up scribbling about boats for a living.
Despite our divergent career paths, we have stayed in touch over the years so it didn’t come as a huge surprise when a message popped up on my phone from James in 2013. It simply read, “I have been gripped by the desire to buy a Riva Junior. Is this a crap idea?”
I was tempted to give an equally succinct answer but as it happened I was sea-trialling a classic Riva Tritone in Italy at the time and was able to ask the people who really knew what the pros and cons of running an old Riva were. In the end James decided not to take the plunge but it clearly triggered a boating itch because six years later in 2019 an email dropped into my inbox from him with a link to a secondhand XO270 and the even more concise message, “Is this sort of thing ridiculous?”
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Denne historien er fra April 2021-utgaven av Motor Boat & Yachting.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Lofoten or Bust- Part 4- Grandezza owner Per Harrtoft heads back to Sweden after an epic 3500nm adventure deep into the Arctic Circle to visit the mythical Lofoten islands
After ten memorable days in the Lofoten Islands in the far north of Norway, we are on our way back south towards Sweden. We have already made it as far as Trondheim, a charming place even if it was raining so hard we had to cycle round the city centre clutching umbrellas. But now we are back on board Deamare, our Grandezza 40 Fly, eating up the miles at a steady 31 knots.
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YACHT TRANSPORT
As the name suggests it's a means of having your boat moved professionally from one location to another. It might be as simple as hiring someone to tow your RIB a few miles down the road or as complex as shipping a superyacht halfway around the world.
HANDLE A SINGLE SHAFTDRIVE BOAT PART 1
Single shaftdrive boats are relatively rare these days but the reduced costs of buying, servicing and fuelling such a simple but reliable drivetrain does mean they are making a bit of a comeback.
COCKWELLS MOTOR LAUNCH
There can be very few boats that have appeared three times at the Southampton Boat Show and been sold off the stand each time.
INSTALLING AN AUTOPILOT
Rick Channon makes solo boating simple with a Raymarine Evolution Autopilot
GOOD AS NEW
Why fit a brand new engine when Volvo Penta's remanufacturing service can rebuild you an old one to the same standard for a fraction of the price?
BENETEAU SWIFT TRAWLER 54
Alex Smith heads to France's Beneteau HQ for a UK exclusive on what might just be the best Swift Trawler yet
ΧΟ EXPLR 44
Can XO's all-new aluminium flagship really make it big in the Med?
BUYING OUR FIRST CLASSIC
Instead of whiling away their retirement playing bowls, Rob and Shona Adams decided to invest their time and money in a classic Silver gentleman's yacht. Would the gamble pay off?
PRINCESS S65
Torn between the V and F Class flagships? The new S65 might be the boat you've been waiting for...