Sports special

The quality of build shows through when we head out for sea trials with Final Quality Control & Sea Trials Manager Dean Brickell, who was involved in the initial bare-bones hull test.

“We waited for a 2-metre-plus day, when we took out the stripped-down version of the boat and beat the hell out of it,” says Brickell. “This was to make sure that what we were building was going to be super strong, and because of the build technique and quality, there was no cracking and nothing moved. The test was a huge success.”

The first thing that strikes me as I arrive dockside at the Runaway Bay Marina is the fact that the arranged dock is sans boat. When Brickell pulls up, singlehanded, he simply engages the dynamic positioning system while he readies ropes and buoys. The final step is a little shunt sideways, when the boat kisses the dock – it’s amazing the ease with which this 73-foot yacht can be handled.

The drive up through the Broadwater is no real sea test of a boat of this proportion, except for its cornering capabilities. And this is where the technology with the Humphree fins, trim tabs and engines really shines, with very little to no heel on a full lock turn at 27 knots. I kid you not, my tea remained flat in the cup.

We then head out through the seaway, where the conditions are a fairly sloppy mix of a moderate northeast wind and around 1.5 metres of easterly swell.

Clipping along at 27 knots at around 2,200 rpm gives a fuel burn of 10 litres per nautical mile total, which is impressive for the 40-plus tonnes (including fuel) we’re pushing through the water.

The ride is dry, effortless and almost surreal, particularly when all the windows are closed and you can talk in a quiet voice and still be heard.

We return to the Broadwater where shoehorning the vessel into an inside berth at Marina Mirage reinforces that the 6800 is very easily handled by just one couple.

Exploring the 6800 begins with the bathing platform, which at the flick of a switch sinks down to water level and breaks into four well-positioned steps to enter the brine – it also raises to form steps leading up, useful for stern-to moorings or even for getting it out of the way in a following sea.

The transom garage is large enough for a 3.8-metre amphibious boat, and to the side of the tender is a fully integrated computerised air pump for the toys and the roller wheels that insert onto the platform for launch and retrieval. At anchor, with the toys out, the transom door becomes a roof over the swim platform, keeping the sun off. Seriously, the whole space becomes a beach hut, complete with rain shower to wash the salt off.

The final trick here is the engine room access, placed in the transom for easy ingress without interrupting the owners or, in the case of owner-operators, getting grease all over the decks. The forward engine room door opens into the captain or crew quarters, which has its own all-in-one shower and head with the single bunk sitting on top of the washer and dryer. This area can be used as a laundry or for crew, with two locked doors and a small void space between it and the master.

The engine room is well laid and thought out. It’s a little squeezy getting to the main engines, a pair of Volvo Penta D13 IPS 1350s that each generate 1,000 horsepower fed by the 4,500-litre fuel tank further forward in the vessel. But all the service bits are all very accessible, with plenty of room around them, although slightly impeded by the head height.

I must admit I do love a well-labelled engine room and there’s no guesswork here, right down to the port and starboard shore power cables. This is basically like a vacuum cleaner with an extendable power cord either side – you simply pull it out the stern to attach to shore power and press the button to retract. There’s also a 22.5-kilowatt generator and a backup genset rated at 11 kilowatts.

The on-deck innovations of this boat are clearly superyacht-inspired, and this is the part that superyacht designer Luca Vallebona must have played. From the rope boxes cleverly hidden under the cleats that tail away ropes out of sight to the massive cockpit area and huge adaptable lounge, this vessel just screams big boat.

A quick tot up of the fore and aft seating accommodation makes me think you could seat around a dozen comfortably on the front and probably 15 or so in the cockpit. Opposite the rear seating is a bank of fridges and a fabulous integrated outdoor galley with a clever extractor set-up that pushes the smoke over the side and away.

Moving into the galley, which is separated from the cockpit by a lowering glass window, you’ll find everything you’ve come to expect from Riviera. There’s a 10-seat dining area that transformer-style turns into a family day bed facing starboard, which just happens to be where the giant TV pops up and voila, you have a media room. A little further forward to port, opposite the helm, is another lounge that converts into a day bed that gets the same view as the skipper.

And then there’s the helm, a solid, clutter-free station with two sturdy helm chairs, with the mate’s chair spinning 180 degrees to become part of the conversation when at anchor. The skipper has everything at their fingertips and the chair itself has electrically controlled adjustment to meet all skipper sizes. The right of the helm has window wipers, which from a practical standpoint are great at sea, and the nav screen operation uses a handy little integrated mouse that drives the three screens on the dash.

A button on the dash operates the two side windows, which to close, you hit the button and they go up on tracks, sealing out the elements with a thunk – it’s an incredible piece of engineering.

Below, I discover a forward guest cabin, a portside twin/double and a starboard guest cabin with large twin bunks. Each cabin has either its own ensuite or a shared facility, but it would be remiss of me to leave out the finish that ties the whole vessel together.

The timberwork is no longer flat areas of polished polyurethane like on so many boats. It has grain, dimension and eye-catching patterns that sit perfectly within the cream-upholstered walls of the cabins for a feeling of sheer luxe.

The owner’s cabin is the pièce de résistance: a huge cavern with a walkaround king bed midships running fore-aft. The facilities include one of the biggest ensuites I’ve seen in this size vessel in terms of height, double vanity and sheer volume. There’s an abundance of wardrobe, locker and storage space with a morning coffee or late-night tipple bar set-up. It’s all super quiet and extremely comfortable while clipping along at 28 knots, the Gold Coast skyline flying past.

Riviera is a name synonymous with boating not only in Australia but right around the globe. Here on Australia’s Gold Coast, the true beating heart of Australia’s boat manufacturing, the brand is something to be proud of – not only for the boatie brigade, but as a locally owned and operated company that truly puts its money where its mouth is in terms of reinvestment. The Riviera boatbuilding facility is where the rubber meets the road, from skilling up apprentices right through to its pay-back into its research and development programs. In short, it’s where the magic happens – and the 6800 is proof of that indeed.

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