4 pivotal steps to a successful contract:
1: A strong business partner
To even keep my investment, the first mayor issue is the solvency of the my contract company. I picked DYC because of its size at the time, it’s business model and management. It offered the right mix for the type of contract I chose.
Anyone mentioned the word ‘Pandemic’? It’s one of those hidden words you would find an insurance contract and only if you really really read all of it.
Well, we all know how that went. Suffice to say, I think I dodge a bullet and DYC is still around to charter another day (the DreamEasy contract makes you an unsecured creditor). Perversely enough, Pula, being driving distance from Germany, was so busy, ‘No Shoes’ was booked almost full-time.
2: Good clients
The boat needs to stay afloat, preferably in one piece, without holes in it. This becomes even more relevant as the contract period progresses.
Here is that insurance contract again; the value of the boat decreases over time as the company depreciates its asset. This is the marine industry, it’s not a “new for old” policy. If the boat sinks because some very unfortunate incident or some YachtWeek schmuck having had more booze than experience in being a skipper, the insured value of what was effectively a 35% deposit on a new yacht quickly wattles down to small change.
I looked into taking out additional insurance, but as the boat isn’t mine until the end if the contract, there was nope hope in getting that in place successfully.
Fortunately, ‘No Shoes’ is based in Pula and has to date attracted a reasonably responsible clientele, with many charters being crewed.
3: Good, constant maintenance and care
Constant maintenance. Boats need it, especially when they get older.
And it needs to be done right, which is certainly a challenge if the base is busy or the relevant people don’t have your boats interest at heart.
4: Location, Location, Location
I start to sound like a real-estate agent, but the fact is, the boat’s base seems vitally important.
I already mentioned the clientele which gets attracted to certain destinations. But there is also the climate. Pula is what I would refer to as tempered with low humidity – compared to the tropics. Also, in Pula, boats don’t operate all year around, which is good for my type of contract only.
There are many more factors under the ‘location’ banner that are worth considering, like coral reefs, moorings, tides, seasonal storms etc, but most important, in my opinion, is the person who manages the base….
I was not prepared for this...
By now, I have had the opportunity to use DYC boats all over the world, sailed different types and boats of all ages. Whilst the overall state of these boats was pretty much as expected for ‘high turnover’ charter yachts, none of them were mine. You look at things that seem ‘tired’ and think: “yeah, one would expect that”. But all of a sudden that feeling and associated expectations changed – now we are talking about my money that is tied up here.
This reunion, 3 years on, had me on the edge of my seat. I had sporadic feed back from readers and the odd update and picture form the base manager Davor who, over a coffee in downtown Pula the day before getting onto ‘No Shoes’ , seemed to be preparing me for the worst.
However, as soon as I saw the boat, I could not believe my eyes. The level of attention and care she has received was beyond what I expected (but hoped for). ‘No Shoes’ looked like new. Well, almost new. No actually, near new.
An eager, initial inspection showed virtually no sign of damage, scratches, corrosion, wear or tear. Did I read the booking schedule wrong? I though this boat was booked and out on the water for most of the past 2 years.
The biggest issue was not damage caused by usage but manufacturing related issues, some of which are well know amongst Helia and other late model FP yacht owners.
The number 1 issue would be the discoloration (slight yellow tinge) of areas on the hull – mainly the bows. Apparently it has something to do with a reaction between gelcoat and what separates it from the mold when the hull is taken out of it. I am not sure how that will pan out between DYC and FP because it would require repainting of the hulls, or at least certain areas. Let’s leave that one alone for now – though she would look really cool with a blue hull…
I have seen photos taken by Davor during this spring’s application of new antifoul and all was looking perfect there.
The leather upholstery in the saloon, wall linings, ceilings, galley equipment, heads, decks and hatches all where in impeccable condition. All original outdoor cushions were accounted for. Sure, they showed sign of usage and sunscreen, but nothing was ripped or torn.
All lights, air cons, power and charging outlets worked, apart from the chart table light… is there a trick to get it going? The watermarker has never been used and the Generator is the quietest I have heard from any of the boats I have been on.
The only thing that seems to be an issue was the upkeep of the fridges. Davor told me that the outside fridge had to be replaced once already and the interior drawer type fridges had signs of slight surface rust. The oven on the other hand had never even been used apart from being an extra storage compartment.
A DYC added coffee and icemaker as well as a full set of proper glasses made for perfect morning coffee and well tempered sundowners. Can I keep them?
There was some slight surface corrosion on the oil filler caps of the engine and auto pilot hydraulic plumbing, some minor play in the rear auto pilot hydraulic jack bracket as well as some air bubbles in the hydraulic line but the rudders were true and aligned correctly.
The upper bridge Garmin screen seems to be delaminating and the Smart Sail system lost some of its digital input / data converters. Spares are out of stock and are not expected until the end of 2022.
So the base neatly installed 2 individual analogue, backup fuel gauges near the engines and a water tank gauge in the front cockpit for the time being.
Standing and running rigging, sails, lazy jack … all in good shape. I guess people just don’t sail these boats. Jib and mainsail are almost unused. That would explain the 2800 odd engine hours each. Winches were well serviced and smooth.
Anchor locker, anchor, chain (all 70m of it), windlass and controls, mooring lines and fenders all like new.
Every interior and exterior locker, engine compartment and cupboard was so clean, you could have eaten of the floor. That was impressive.
All lights, air cons, power and charging outlets worked, apart from the chart table light… is there a trick to get it going? The watermarker has never been used and the Generator is the quietest I have heard from any of the boats I have been on.
And that’s that. Honest and no sugar coating. So I clearly hit the jackpot when it came to base location and the resident manager. Thank you Davor.
When I first sailed ‘No Shoes’ straight after its original commissioning, I had a small list of items I passed on the Davor, all of them got looked after.
Even a flippant remark that I never wanted to see anything less than at least a 10hp engine on the back of my dinghy instead of the charter-standard limp 6hp seemed to have found its way into my client files – 10hp it was.
Is the honeymoon over?
‘No Shoes is now 2/3rds through it’s contract as a DYC bare boat and almost 3 years old. No doubt, required maintenance will increase over the next 2 years to keep her in perfect shape. It’s something that will be a drain on the companies resources and hard to accomplish when the yacht is fully booked during the season. There is little time to do anything else but put fires.
I am actually considering booking 1 week during the shoulder season, not to use the boat myself but give my base manager time to catch up on ‘preventative maintenance’ to stay ahead of the game. Still trying to analyze if it would actually be of any benefit though.
I found a small list of things that you can only identify when underway and with some yachting experience. Because I had to leave 3 days early, Davor had time to, and promptly did, fix all those items. He even sent me photos of what he had done.
I have no doubt that if she stays in Pula under Davor’s teams care, she will be a very nice, tidy yacht at the end of the contract and a good example that bare boat charter yachts can be an investment scheme worth considering as a pathway to yacht ownership.
I will keep you posted. Only 27 months to go.
Great to read that all is well with “No Shoes” What a great result after 3years. Hope you can get out and sail her again soon…
Hi Sunil, yes, it was awesome. The boat was so well looked after. I just hope they can pull it off for another 2 years 🙏. Booked her again for 2023
I thought I read that you were looking to get out of this contract, was that true at some point?
Glad to see that the boat’s in good shape!
Hi Nick, yes that was the case but lucky, things turned around on multiple fronts
Great report Nils.
You seemed to hit the jackpot with that company.
So good to hear they are looking after you.
Thank you Greg.
It seems to work out so far. We still have 2 years to go but I feel that the engagement with the basemanager will stay a positive one.