DYNAMIC DUO

Sports car lover Stephen Chun and his wife Sharly are hands-on owners of an Absolute 58 Fly, which they keep between Aberdeen and Sai Kung, and take out up to four times a week.

- NICK HUNG

When you see Stephen Chun at the wheel of his Absolute 58 Fly, you see a man who loves to drive. After all, before he and his wife Sharly owned a boat, Stephen owned a black Ferrari 430 Spider, a car notable for many things including a top speed of 315kmh.

The Italian sports car may have been Stephen’s pride and joy, but after the pair married, Sharly was quick to mention that the sleek speedster wasn’t the most family-friendly vehicle.

“Sharly told me a sports car is only for two people and we have to think about our family. It made sense to have a boat instead of a sports car, so we started looking into it,” says Stephen, who turns to his wife. “Then what happened?”

“We started having our own kids and our friends had started buying yachts, small ones,” says Sharly, not missing a beat. “We realised owning a small yacht doesn’t cost that much, especially if you get a licence and drive it yourself, like we do. You don’t need to hire crew, except maybe part-time to keep it clean.”

As their interest firmed up, Stephen started researching yachts online just as he had researched sports cars. But before deciding on a yacht, they needed somewhere to keep it, so were fortunate when a friend offered them a swing mooring in Aberdeen Typhoon Shelter.

“It’s very hard to get a berth in Hong Kong, so we were very lucky our friend was able to rent a mooring to us cheaply,” says Stephen, who works in the garment industry. “This reduced one major cost.”

It also influenced the size of their yacht as the mooring only allowed for up to 50ft. After a lot of research, Stephen found a preowned Ferretti Yachts 500 that fit the bill, buying the yacht in 2013.