Experience Report SR30 YACHTLINE: Rhine and IJsselmeer

Starting point

As experienced trailer captains of the Crownline 250cr with a rather high and unfortunately not permissible total weight of 4100kg, we decided to buy another boat after 8 years.

After careful consideration, we looked at boats with trailers up to 2700 kg at the Interboot trade fair in Friedrichshafen 2018. Since our ideal tow vehicle could easily tow 3500kg, many variants in the “towable segment” were possible.

The only important criterion for us was a shelter cabin with a toilet. But because we needed some space, the plan for a smaller boat was canceled after the first day of the fair. Instead, we even included the idea to follow up on a good offer and transport a new twin-engine Bavaria to Croatia. But after many nights of reflection in the Hotel Wasserburg, we decided to call again on the planned second day at the fair. And then it happened as it should have: we canceled our offer for Bavaria on the second day of the fair and then switched to the SR30 YACHTLINE. This was the best boat with enough space for us.

Afterwards I went on board and we made contact with the hitherto unknown Mr. Küffner, who explained to us the improvements that the SR30 offers. After realizing the added value this boat offers us with the possibility of a legal trailer, we immediately made an appointment in Kürnach. There must be something special to see, namely a special model of the SR30: SR30 Panorama with a larger bathroom. The special model SR30 Panorama spent in Kürnach convinced us and with a few tears made us order this boat fully equipped.

Handover

Thus began the 8-month waiting period for the ordered new boat, which was to end in June 2019 with the handover and instruction of Mr. Öchsner.

We combined the handover with the end of our vacation and made a detour via Kürnach on the way back to Cologne. There Mr. Öchsner met us and took us and the new boat for a test drive to a slip on the Main.

We were shown how easy it works to get in and out of this big boat. It was funny that as experienced trailer captains we got a tip or two. You never stop learning. Thank you again for that at this point.

During the short test drive, it became immediately clear what added value the “Öchsner technology” will bring us this year in terms of weight reduction and WideBeam hull. And I am convinced that I made the right decision with a boat in this class. It is a true demonstration of how this boat with the Volvo Penta 280PS engine pushes out of the water and literally lifts up. In addition, there is tremendous lateral stability, which I believe is one of the best in class for a boat with this critical length-to-width ratio. This lateral stability will pay off on the Rhine and IJsselmeer this year.

After taking the boat out of the water again, the ultimate goal was achieved on the calibrated scales. With its trailer and about 50 liters of premium gasoline, the boat fell just under the 3500kg mark. Admittedly without “Pütt and Pan”, but that’s how it was decided. After the papers were finished, we turned on the autobahn towards Cologne.

First trips

After the boat was equipped with all the necessary equipment, we first drove to the gas station in Cologne’s Rheinau harbor. On the way there, my wife told me that this boat no longer lies like our old boat.

In Cologne, the Rhine is surrounded in some places by walls that prevent the waves of commercial shipping from escaping. Here it is not uncommon for uncomfortable cross waves to occur, which our old boat often tilted sideways when gliding. With the WideBeam hull, the situation is different: the boat tilts a little and quickly returns to its place. The average consumption of just 0.8 liters per kilometer shown in the glass cockpit in a smooth glide also put a smile on our faces. Together with the 300-liter tank, which is too big for a boat of this size, we get very large ranges combined with low consumption. This means that the problem of finding a gas station in the future is no longer necessary.

Boat Name

A large number of harbor boaters were present for the opening of the boats in the harbor. Almost all of them were convinced of the quality of the boat and were especially surprised by the universally usable bathing platform with dinghy mount. The fact that a Kölsch box fits exactly on the water bed was another pleasant side effect. The boat’s towability was questioned by many, but after a few Kölschs it was accepted.

Our first trip to Düsseldorf

Our first trip took the Rhine river to the “forbidden city with the dark Altbier” for Cologneans. As expected, the 120 km over the waterway to Düsseldorf was child’s play for crew and boat. The good sailing characteristics were confirmed by the two accompanying sports boat captains. The boat lies extremely well in the water when on board and does not sink astern.

On this trip we also realized how comfortable it is to spend the night on such a spacious boat in this class. There is plenty of storage space for two people and the standing height and freedom of movement is enormous.

Our trip to the Netherlands and IJsselmeer

We made the longest journey of 360 km from Cologne to Lemmer in two very comfortable days. We left Cologne at 11 o’clock to spend the night shortly before Kampen and entered a beautiful harbor in Kissel at 19:00. The next day we drove via Ijissel to IJsselmeer near Kampen and with the best weather and smooth sea we crossed the lock in Lemmer in the morning with a lot of fun. A house with a jetty in Marinapark Lemmer was available to us for three weeks. We used the house as a base and set off in a star shape by boat on many excursions along the IJsselmeer and the canals. Of course we experienced a wide variety of sea conditions and the boat never made us feel unsafe. Even on the Dutch canals with speed restrictions, the SR30 Panorama was great fun to drive.

Continue reading

After more than 1000 kilometers of day and weekend trips on the Rhine, a number of lakes and the IJsselmeer, we would like to praise the Öchsner team for the quality construction of our SR30 Panorama. We are very happy that we chose this boat because it fulfills our wishes in every respect.

We wish the Öchsner team continued success and are already looking forward to next season.

Ailen D.