Riviera 3600 Sport Yacht owner George Salmon says the boating education workshops on offer at the Riviera Festival of Boating are a must for anyone looking to enjoy the luxury boating lifestyle.
Having now twice attended the four-day festival of fun and learning at the home of Riviera on Australia’s Gold Coast, George says the expertise and education on offer simply should not be missed.
“The technical side to the Festival is fantastic,” says George. “It’s a very important opportunity to pick up information on maintenance and gain hands-on experience using your boat’s systems.
“I really valued the Raymarine navigation workshop and the maintenance workshops, especially sanitation.
“You learn that it’s not all rocket science – you can usually resolve many common issues yourself.
“And the full factory tour is a real eye-opener.”
George, from Stockton in New South Wales, took delivery of his Riviera 3600 Sport Yacht, Maleela, 12 months ago and, despite some challenging weather, has since spent time cruising the picturesque and protected Myall Lakes.
He has also ventured out to Broughton Island, 14km north east of Port Stephens – running up a total of 130 hours on his twin Volvo Penta D4-IPS400 engines in his first 12 months.
As this issue is published, he’s making the 137 nautical mile passage from D’Albora Marina Nelson Bay north to Port Macquarie with his wife Debbie. In the next few years he would like to cruise as far north as Queensland’s Whitsundays for a winter.
“The 3600 Sport Yacht ticks all the boxes for us,” says George.
“We wanted a yacht that could easily navigate the Myall Lakes and I wanted a lock-up interior … and when I discovered the ease of driving and maneuvering with pod-drives, I wanted them too.
“I have friends with shaft-drive boats and they always seem to have stress on their brows.
“IPS is very smooth, very quiet and takes all the fear out of skippering a luxury motor yacht – it makes for very relaxed and enjoyable boating.”
Also providing great peace of mind is having Gary Lee from R Marine Port Stephens close at hand.
“I have to say the support I receive from Gary is fantastic and dealing with him is a very pleasant experience,” says George. “He deserves a big wrap.”
The Riviera Festival of Boating will be held from 25-28 May 2017. If you would like to pre-register your interest, please click here >>
If you would like to contact R Marine Port Stephens, please click here >>
