Posted on 08/07/2005 2:09:15 PM PDT by kingattax
In days of yore, there were only yachts. Until there came superyachts. Twice as large as their predecessors, with midocean necessities such as spiral staircases, split-level saloons and flybridge hot tubs, these floating mansions did more than eclipse conventional yachts -- they made them appear impish, toylike.
And then, along came megayachts.
These Poseidons, in good truth, possessed not only grandeur (nobody dared describe a yacht less than 150 feet as a "mega"), but touches of lavishness, such as crystal elevators and goatskin walls.
They even came with gyroscopically controlled swimming pools -- to keep the water smooth in the most turbulent of seas.
By the late '90s, however, there was talk that the megayacht's reign was coming to an end.
It so happens they were right: In these post 9-11 times, ever bigger yachts are rolling out of shipyards, replacing jets, palaces and Jaguars as the premier demonstrations of wealth among the world's superrich.
Consider:
The largest privately owned boat now spans 525 feet.
In yachting terminology, "fully loaded" now means boats with onboard helicopters, submarines, full-size movie theaters, missile detection systems and 18-hole golf courses.
Rafts are stowed nowadays on dinghys, which in turn are kept on 36-foot tenders, which in turn sit in the belly of the main yacht -- essentially, a boat in a boat in a boat.
The "grow, grow, grow your boat" craze has shipbuilders, brokers and marine architects in a tizzy.
Frank Herhold, executive director of the Marine Industries Association of South Florida, is ecstatic. Still, the expansion of yachts over the past six years has created something of a quandary.
(Excerpt) Read more at sun-sentinel.com ...
Well if your gonna have one I guess you might as well go for it
It looks to me like "Gigayachts" provide giga-employment
I don't need anything so fancy.
In fact, I'd pay hansomly for a Letter of Marque from Congress, and a fair claims court to settle prizes.
Yeah, just wait till they take that thing out for a three-hour cruise and get stranded on Gigayacht's Island.
Pish-tush. It's so big, they'll probably be able to walk to the nearest continent.
"How 'bout a cruise, little buddy ?"
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What do you think, Lovey? Our old yacht is getting a trifle small, wouldn't you say? |
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I believe I have some spare change, dear -- perhaps we should try it out for a few hours... |
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Landlubbers, the lot o' ye.
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