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NYC boat show brings summer dreams amid freeze

Matthew Diebel
USA TODAY
People cruising yachts at the New York Boat Show at the Jacob Javits Convention Center.

When the weather outside is frightful, there's nothing more delightful…than getting a taste of summer at the New York Boat Show, held at Manhattan's Javits Convention Center through Sunday (Jan. 25).

The floor of the oldest such show in the nation — there are 110 candles on the birthday cake — is a veritable ocean of watercraft, from massive million-dollar yachts to cute kayaks. The glare of white fiberglass, the material most used in recreational boats, mixes with the sparkling stainless steel, touches of teak and splashes of navy blue across on some 300 boats.

The whole scene is so summery that it warms up even the most snow-weary New Yorker and soon has them dreaming of zooming across the waves or gently cruising scenic waterways.

Among the stars at the Javits Center is the so-called "Queen of the Show," the Sea Ray 470 Sundancer, which is the longest boat on the floor and will set you back almost $1.25 million (though, like in a car dealership, prices tend to float down a bit if you're ready to negotiate). For that, you get more than 1,000 horsepower from two massive diesel engines, two sumptuous staterooms (bedrooms, for us landlubbers), a flotilla of flat-screen TVs (one of which pops up from a marble-topped side-table) and a gloriously equipped galley (sea-speak for kitchen) that would be the envy of most New York City apartment-dwellers.

The luxurious cockpit of a Meridian yacht.

Is 47 feet — actually a little over 50 with a back swimming platform — too big for your dock in the Hamptons? Then maybe the Meridian 441 is for you. And you won't sacrifice any floor space, because while the Sea Ray is long and lithe, the Meridian is all about height. Three stories of it. On the top floor is the cockpit, with great views and plenty of seating. On the middle floor is a lounge and galley, and comfy seats for sipping a glass of wine or two. And on the bottom floor are two expansive staterooms complete with luxurious heads (seafarers' lingo for bathrooms).

The main cabin in the 45 Cantius from Cruisers Yachts.

At just a foot longer, the 45 Cantius from Cruisers Yachts has the looks of the Sea Ray but brings the galley out of the bottom of the boat and places it near the lounging area at the back (stern, in captains' language). Just like in a suburban kitchen, you can sit on bar stools at the kitchen island and watch the host (or a deckhand?) cook while you imbibe a cocktail or two.

Not a luxuries person? More about bare-bones speed and thrills? Then a Formula boat is probably more likely to be at your slip, in particular the 400 FX model. The FX stands for effects, and that's what you get. A flick of the control panel changes the color of the interior lighting. The upholstery looks as if it's lifted from a '60s super-car. And the dials in the cockpit, made by an old-line firm in Connecticut, could have come from a '50s Ferrari.

The biggest effect, though, is the power. Crank up the two 520-horsepower engines, hulking and handsome in their hidden compartment, and this boat will whisk you to 60 mph in no time. Want one? That'll be $800K, please (though wheeling and dealing is, again, part of the boat-buying experience).

Dream on. For now, it's back out into the flurries on Manhattan's freezing 11th Avenue.

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