Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, March 27, 1994 TAG: 9403270056
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-13 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BILL COCHRAN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
\ SUNDANCER 300 - When it comes to size, luxury and price, this 30-foot Sea Ray is the Queen of the Show. It lists for $97,364, but Smith Mountain Yacht Club has a special boat show price of $85,000.
When you are talking that kind of money, the "Please take off your shoes" sign at the stern is less intrusive.
The unusually large cockpit area is a great place to spend a weekend, says Dick Arnold, the Sea Ray dealer. It wouldn't be that bad a place to spend the rest of your life.
Even if you don't have $85,000 to spend on a boat, take a look at this one just for the fun of it. It's worth removing your shoes to see.
\ SIZZLER - One of the first things you notice when you give the Sizzler a serious look is there are handholds just about everywhere inside the cockpit.
That's because it is "a brace-your-feet-and-hold-on" type of performer, says Harvey Burgoon, a regional sales manager for Sunbird, the manufacturer of the Sizzler.
This is one of the latest entries in the jet-boat market, which has exploded onto the scene with an impact seldom seen in boating. The 14-foot Sizzler is turning heads at the Valley Marine Center display.
Also new in the jet-boat line are the Checkmate Playmate, shown by Central Boat and Trailer Sales, and the Reflexx by Bayliner in the Bay Roc Marina and Yacht Club display.
The boat show is an ideal spot to compare the new generation of jet boats. The biggest problem is you'll want to do more than just look when somebody like Burgoon tells you they will spin 360 degrees with a quick turn of the wheel and hit 40 mph in a straight stretch.
\ LEISURE CAT - People who demand room but prefer a bit more performance than a pontoon boat can deliver have been giving serious attention to deck boats. Now Buck Wood of Magnum Marine says this metamorphosis has advanced a notch further.
The 26-foot Leisure Cat has the space of a deck boat, but the big difference is the hull. It is a catamaran, which Wood says will slice through rough water with a smoothness that simply is impossible for a deck boat to achieve.
\ ROUGHNECK - First take a look at this 16-foot aluminum boat outside the Roanoke Civic Center, then go inside to the Conrad Brothers display and ask Mike Ratcliff to turn on the video that shows the craft "walking" up a series of rapids.
Ratcliff sees the Roughneck as ideal for the serious New River fisherman. With its 65-horsepower jet Evinrude, it will run in as little as 6 inches of water with no prop to pop.
For improved visibility, Ratcliff has moved the stand-behind console near the bow, where the driver has a close-up view of rocks and rapids.
This boat isn't flimsy aluminum held together by rivets. The Roughneck is constructed of 100-gauge aluminum that has been welded. The price is hefty, too, at $10,200. Like we said, it is for the serious river fisherman.
\ YAMAHA WAVERAIDER - Purple is the hot color in personal watercraft. Purple and bright red and blazing yellow.
Kid's stuff?
"I sold one to a 65-year-old grandmother," says Calvin Carr, a Yamaha salesman for Gios.
When you get past the paint, you'll notice some other eye-catching features on the Waveraider, such as the dual-carburetor 701cc power plant that produces 80 horsepower at 6,250 rpm.
Personal watercraft buyers are looking for performance, Carr says.
The Waveraider even has sleek rearview mirrors.
Why?
So you can keep an eye on the competition, Carr says.
\ HUNTER 23.5 - Dave Condon of American Marine and Sail Supply has been around sailboats long enough to remember how difficult it was to launch a fixed-keel job.
"I've sunk my car before getting a boat into the water," he says.
The new Hunter line is what Condon calls "user-friendly." An innovative water-ballast system makes them easy to trailer and launch. And there's a mast-raising system that allows for single-handed rigging. You no longer need a half-dozen longshoremen to get under way.
Maybe the toughest part of all is finding a Hunter for sale, considering all the "This boat is sold" signs in Condon's display.
by CNB