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Swimming and snorkelling in shallow, clear water off Salmon Bay off Rottnest Island.
Eleven Riviera yachts came together for a weekend of cruising, fun and camaraderie for R Marine Perth’s Port Coogee Weekend Escape in October.
The yachts arrived at the Port Coogee Marina, in the city of Cockburn, Western Australia, 16 nautical miles south of Perth at 11.30am with all yachts tied up and in place along the one arm by 2pm.
The first event of the weekend was remote-controlled power boat racing, something R Marine Perth Dealer Principal Ryan Lloyd discovered while reading our story of the Roche Harbor Rendezvous in a previous edition of Experience magazine. Next was the hole in one golf challenge – from the boarding platform of course – with live music happening for both events. Then it was time to catch the bus to dinner at Bread and Common – a mainstay of the West Australian culinary scene.
The following day, the yacht owners were invited to a Volvo Penta Assisted Docking demonstration followed by a day of local boating around the Fremantle Beach Precinct, Carnac Island and Garden Island areas.
With more live music in the background, it was time for drinks and lunch rafted off Salmon Bay off Rottnest Island around R Marine Perth’s staff boat, a 5400 Sport Yacht.
Enjoy this film of the R Marine Perth Port Coogee Weekend Escape.
A weekend of cruising, fun and camaraderie.
Then it was back to the marina for aperitifs before another trip into town, this time to the Dart Club for a game or two of electronic darts, and then dinner at Nunzio’s Restaurant, another Fremantle institution.
Sunday morning was time for everyone to make their way home, at their leisure, after a coffee delivery from the R Marine Perth crew.
R Marine Perth Dealer Principal Ryan Lloyd said events like the escape weekend were about teaching yacht owners new and different things.
“When our yacht owners are learning and experiencing new things and seeing different ways of boating, you see their real enthusiasm for adventure on trips like this.
“Then there’s the enjoyment factor of the other shared experiences, like the remote-controlled power boat racing – boats that they can flip, crash and have fun with – or the hole-in-one golf challenge chipping over the water. Our events bring out the competitive personalities. And, of course, there is always some live music playing in the background to set the mood.
“The Riviera family in Western Australia is very vibrant and they all just love being a part of our events. And while we had 11 yachts at the escape weekend, for our raft-up in December, we have around 80 Riviera yachts confirmed. It will be almost a world record, which is currently held by New Zealand who had 106 in 2020.”
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"We learn a lot on the escapes. For instance, they used my boat to demonstrate the docking system and one of the other boats for another practical demonstration."
BARRY WARWICK
Taking part in the weekend were Barry and Julie Warwick, who previously owned a 4400 Sport Yacht and have recently purchased a 4600 Sport Yacht Platinum Edition Noosa.
Barry said Ryan and his team were always pro-active in getting owners together to experience different boating locations.
“We’ve done a few escapes with them in the past, including Dunsborough where we did the raft-up. They really turn it on and entertain us and the group of Riviera owners. The group is just getting bigger and bigger. We learn a lot on the escapes. For instance, they used my boat to demonstrate the docking system and one of the other boats for another practical demonstration.”
Barry said getting out and about was also fun, especially with a group of like-minded Riviera owners. “They bussed us into Fremantle twice – the first night we went to a restaurant called Bread and Common – an architecturally award-winning converted warehouse which has become a mainstay of the West Australian culinary scene.
“The second night we went into the Dart Club where you play electronic darts, and then we walked around to Nunzio’s Restaurant, which was great because Nunzio has been a friend of my family for a long time. And then of course my wife Julie won the hole-in-one golf drive which we did from the back of the boat.”
Barry said the couple were loving their new Riviera with it perfectly laid out for entertaining, right down to the servery bench opposite the galley and adjacent to the aft deck.
“You and your guests don’t have to move around much to talk to each other as all the living and entertainment is on the one level. And everybody that’s come on board has said ‘Wow’!”
They’re a great bunch of people and events such as this are very social and very well organised.
"I’d have to say the highlight of the weekend was probably just having a lot of good fun, with my family, friends and the other yacht owners."
DAVE D'ORAZIO
Dave D’Orazio joined the weekend as a first-time Riviera owner on his 4600 Sport Yacht Platinum Edition Adoracion. “We have just purchased our first Riviera, a 4600 Sport Yacht that we took possession of in April. She is a good looking yacht, and we are very happy with her. In fact, we couldn’t be happier with it, to be honest, and the buying experience that we had was fantastic. I think the actual experience dealing with the guys from Riviera and R Marine Perth was world class. Like the way they kept us in the loop, including different events, just like a prestige brand experience should be – faultless.”
Dave said he joined the Port Coogee Escape Weekend for a number of reasons.
“I guess it’s good to follow the fleet and get some tracks into different places, but we’ve also met quite a few other owners through these events, and they’re a great bunch of people. Events such as this are very social and very well organised.
“Everyone gets on well, and it’s just a fantastic community of boaties. In our case, because we’re new to it, we also pick up a lot of skills from the people who have owned yachts for a long time. And obviously Ryan and (Senior Marine Specialist) Stuart Eddy are both very, very knowledgeable and helpful.”
Dave said dealing with some of the more experienced boaties was also fantastic. “They’re great guys, and they give you a lot of info as well. A highlight for us was discovering a new spot on Rottnest Island – Salmon Bay. It’s famous for swimming and snorkelling in shallow, clear water – and lived up to its name. A beautiful spot, just sitting inside the bay in the breeze, but out of the sea conditions. The Port Coogee Marina is a great set up too. We’d not been there before, either.”
Dave said his favourite thing about his yacht, Adoracion, was the addition of the yachting lifestyle. “It’s the whole yachting experience. It is just an entire ecosystem put together that you can live on. It’s got great spaces, great flow, performs well and is simple to understand. What’s not to love about that.”
Ryan Allan also enjoyed the trip which was his first, thanks to always being away travelling, aboard his 5400 Sport Yacht Platinum Edition Monopoly.
“The Escape Weekend was a fantastic experience and obviously getting to meet other Riviera owners and exchanging stories was also great. I found Ryan very knowledgeable and helpful in exploring the waters around Coogee.
“I’d have to say the highlight of the weekend was probably just having a lot of good fun, with my family, friends and the other yacht owners. There was a good level of entertainment and fun was had by everybody with a great amount of camaraderie.”
Ryan said he loved his 5400 Sport Yacht because it was so stable on the water thanks to the work of the gyro – “you don’t move around as much as you would on a yacht without a gyro”.
“And I enjoy the entertainment, with it all being on one level. Everything from the helm seat all the way through to the cockpit is on one level. But having said that, the new boat that I have on order is a 64 Sports Motor Yacht. That’s because with my kids getting older they’re wanting to bring their friends along. The larger yacht will give us different zones so we can either all be together or have separate spaces.”
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