Just thought I would drop you a line to tell you how happy I am with my 6700 Allrounder. I have about 100 hours on it now - in less than 12 months - not bad for an employed person, hey!

As you would be aware, I put a 250 hp Suzuki four stroke on it, spinning a 21.5 pitch prop and, I have to say, it is a fantastic combination as I can cruise at 25 to 27 knots at 4000 rpm for a total fuel burn of about 11 to 14 Lph, depending on conditions.

So, with my boat having the 300 litre fuel tank, I could go to Tasmania on less than a tank of juice.

..... As you would be aware, running straight into a nasty Port Phillip Bay chop is a little bit uncomfortable with about 15-18 knots being the best speed or, if you are brave, 38 knots and expect the odd bone shaker. Running down sea in just about anything can be done at 20 to 27 knots without any concern at all. As for broaching, it is simply not an issue.

In fact, Chris, I intentionally put the 6.7 Allrounder in a position where I had a 2.5m rolling wave at the stern... with [my] hand on the go stick in case things got ugly.... I had the boat moving at a slower speed than the sea conditions - generally a recipe for the perfect broach. What happened? As the 6700 Allrounder started to surf and, at the point that a mono would have broached, she leaned a little bit onto her port hull and picked up speed, tracking dead straight, so I cut the power all together and, bugger me, I felt like Mark Occhilupo as I surfed the almost perfect left break.

In fact, I was having that much fun, I did it about five times and found her to be very predictable. [With] a judicious amount of power, I found myself positioning her like a surfboard.

As for punching through a dangerous bar, this boat is nothing short of sensational, with its hull and big Suzuki making it not only easy, but confidence inspiring, and any water that does come aboard simply drains very quickly out the large rear scuppers.

Rough water handling i.e. 6 to 7m ocean swell with a 2m confused chop on top gives you an idea of what we found ourselves in at Bermagui last February and, I have to say, a lot of boats with supposedly pedigree blue water handling were doing it a lot tougher than we were.

At one point as we were trawling, half of a 2m wave (on top of the 6-7m swell) collapsed causing the boat to fall sideways - and I mean sideways. The result was that, as the boat hit the water (I presume due to the hull shape) she just came back down onto her hull like nothing had happened. The only unsettling thing was the fall itself [because] it happened so fast and without warning.

In fact, this happened [again 10 minutes later], at which point discretion [was] the better part of valour and we pulled the pin and headed home. I think it should also be said that the relax outrigger option as supplied by you proved its strength and quality: the starboard outrigger literally speared the water and, for the 2 seconds it took for them to emerge from the blue, I imagine any faulty or weak manufacturing would have showed - the pressure on the outrigger as it moved through the water would have been extreme......

All this talk about on water stuff and I have almost forgotten to comment on what is one of the most overlooked items on trailerable boats and that is the trailer. In this regard, I have to say [that] the trailer you guys at Lifestyle Boats build is every bit as good as the boat that it holds. It is strong, built like a brick out house and more than adequate for long range towing over the typically rugged road system that I need to travel on when I go north i.e. the Gulf of Carpenteria.

I have to say, Chris, that I do launch and retrieve my boat often single handedly and this task is actually easier than my previous 5 m boat, much to the amazement of onlookers. Your trailer makes me look better than I actually am.....

Finally, I would just like to commend you on your product as it is unusual that a boat can perform so many different roles so well and, more importantly, so safely. [I have 2 children - 5 and 7 years old. Being] normal kids, they like to move about a bit and, with the nice big walkway and substantial and attractive bow rail, can do so safely and without me having to constantly worry that they are going to fall over board....

So thank you Chris and the team at Lifestyle for basically doing a bloody good job.

Colin B