18 Oct
The Sealine C330 is stylish family cruiser recognised for combining sporty performance and artful use of space in a two-cabin, single-head layout of 10.31m or (33ft10in) in length.
Veteran boat owner Laurie Newhook calls Auckland and its adjoining waterways home. He and his wife Judy have cruised extensively on their Sealine 330 and have found it effortlessly fulfills the varying roles they require of it.
Korimako is the Maori name for a Bellbird. A family of Korimakos often greet the Newhooks with a dawn chorus at their beach house. It’s thought Korimakos’ calls differ from region to region, making each ‘dialect’ unique to that area.
Current Torque: Laurie thanks for talking with Current Torque. How long have you had your Sealine C330 and what were the features that attracted you to it?
Laurie: We bought Korimako new, imported by Windcraft, a bit over five years ago. We checked-out a similar boat elsewhere in New Zealand and were able to view for ourselves the manufacturer’s claims about layout and quality. Those claims held true for our boat when it arrived and have held up strongly since.
CT: What layout is your Sealine? Number of cabins/Engines?
L: We find the boat very roomy for a 10-metre launch, and the layout most efficient. There are two cabins, one forward and the other on the port side, each for two people. We went for a single Volvo 300hp engine, which performs more than satisfactorily for us. Having come out of another 10m launch which had twin engines, we elected to go for a single this time, for enhanced personal movement in the engine bay, and some storage space for items like the dinghy’s outboard, and a BBQ.
The engine offers ample performance for our needs, having a top speed of 24 knots, cruising (planing) at 20 knots, and fuel-use sweet-spots at the latter and displacement cruising at 8 knots.
CT: The clever use of interior space is seen as one of the C330’s main attributes. Have you found that to be the case?
L:The smart use of interior space is a high-point for my wife and myself. Placement of the galley adjacent to the dining facility is a must, remembering that our previous boat (and some new models from other manufacturers) place the galley downstairs. Not very sociable for the cook to be stuck downstairs and away from the entertaining of guests!
CT: What about way the cockpit can be opened-up to the saloon via the hinged sliding door creating a larger entertaining/relaxation space?
L: This is another great feature of this boat. Entertainment and relaxing space can be pretty much doubled in volume by this means, the cockpit area becoming a large “room” extension. Especially if the cockpit side and rear screens are in place in inclement weather.
CT: Where do you keep the boat?
L: The boat is moored permanently in a marina about 20 minutes walk from our home in central Auckland. The marina is on the inside of a major arterial road on Auckland’s waterfront, and we made the boat all-tide useable by having the radar tower hinged so we can pass under the road bridge with just sufficient clearance at high tide.
CW: How often do you use your Sealine 330?
L: I would like to say “constantly”, but the low engine hours (currently 400) would make that obviously dishonest. We cruise on Korimako every summer holiday for up to three weeks at a time; for the remainder of the year, she is a weekender. The amazing space and great layout, plus comfort and safety, make her perfect for the extended cruises.
CT: Where are some of your favourite destinations?
L: Our cruising range is quite extensive, Auckland being blessed with being on the beautiful Hauraki Gulf with its many islands, bays and harbours. Our favourite anchorages are around the stunning Waiheke Island coastline plus Great Barrier Island, and the ocean coast of the Coromandel Peninsula. We have a permanent licensed mooring in a sheltered corner of the bay in which our beach house is located.
CT: What other cruising grounds would you like to explore?
L: Future cruising could see us range further north along Northland’s eastern coast which we have done in the past, however what we have closer to home, is just as enticing.
CT: What options/extras does the boat have that have enhanced your cruising experience?
L: We added a bow thruster (pretty much essential with a single engine), dinghy rack, desalinator, and toilet treatment package.
CT: The C330’s performance is variously described by reviewers as “impressive” and “handling is lively, the ride across nasty chop pleasantly soft”. Auckland Harbour and the Hauraki Gulf can dish-up some challenging weather conditions. Can you share an experience of navigating a squall or bad weather in the Sealine? How did it handle it??
L: I agree with this description of our sea conditions on occasion. The safety and relative comfort in this boat is another strong point. We are experienced boaties, which helps, but the Sealine’s ability to handle a steep chop in winds up to about 25 knots, tide against wind, is impressive. We have headed home in much stronger winds and bigger seas, not for fun, but because the boat copes with them safely, despite the considerable motion and flying water.
CT: According to Power & Motoryacht, “Speedy and smart, Sealine’s new C330 ticks the boxes for a family in search of a cruising weekender”. Having lived with the C330 do you generally agree with this analysis?
L: I agree with that assessment but can add that a couple living aboard for three weeks is also very easily accomplished.
CT: What for you is the best part about being a boat Owner? What has been your favourite trip in Korimako?
L: The best part of the life of a boat owner, especially in our cruising area, is the sheer variety of the many anchorages we can seek out in varying wind directions. And we can cruise sedately to them, or get ahead of a weather pattern if needed, at a good speed.
Deciding what might have been our best trip is difficult. There have been so many. I can say however that our preference is relatively remote and uncrowded destinations, where again the good cruising speed is a benefit. There are some lovely harbours and bays around Great Barrier Island and Coromandel Peninsula that qualify strongly in this regard, and the C330 is the ideal platform on which to access them.
CT: Laurie thanks for sharing your knowledge and cruising highlights with us.
