Motor Yacht Shay la Vie
Make: Hatteras

Model: 61' MY extended to become a 70' CPMY

LOA: 70'

Beam: 18'2"

Height: 27'

Draft: 6'

Cabins: 4

Heads: 4
Galley: up, full sized appliances
Starboard Engine: Twin Detroit Diesel 12v71TI approximately 3500 hours

Port Engine: Twin Detroit Diesel 12v71TI approximately 3500 hours

Generator 1: Northern Light 20KW approximately 4800 hours

Generator 2: Northern Light 20KW approximately 500 hours

Stabilizers: Naiad

Fuel Tanks: 3, Forward, Aft and Cockpit

Fuel capacity: 1650 gallons

Water capacity: 350 gallons

Holding Tank: 210 Gallons

Range: 1100 nautical miles (approximately)

Well, I have the engines, generators, waste system and ac system running great, so she's very comfy if not very pretty. =-)

Now I'm tackling electronics and cosmetics, and I need a water maker. The one that came with the boat was dead. =-( And it's not a must have, but some dive equipment and I need to get the Bauer Jr. serviced/repaired. It works, but it needs some TLC. Some decent fishing tackle would probably be good, too. If I want to catch fish to eat, which of course I do!

And of course, I need people to ride with me. This boat is too big to handle solo, for sure, and even just two people is tough if there's issues. I'd love to find 2-3 boat buddies that can hang for a few weeks at a time.

I didn't actually mind the name it was before, Sea Dragon, but there were hundreds of boats with that name and I didn't like that. I was torn between a few names, Porpoise of Life, Shaynanigans, C'est la Sea, and while having drinks with a neighbor, I said the last one and she looked at me and quipped, "Shay la Vie". I responded, deeply chagrined, "Why didn't I think of that?"

I put it to a vote on Facebook and Shay la Vie won, though Shaynanigans was close second. No one got the pun about the Porpoise of Life, so it was dead last.

Now I've come to accept that Shay la Vie roughly translates to "that's Shay's life" meaning I'm apt to do just about anything on a whim. Like buying a boat! Although, it could be argued that it means this boat is now my life.

When I first considered the idea of buying a boat, I started researching on the internet. Hours every day watching videos and looking at listings. I thought I wanted a catamaran, but sadly, I couldn't afford one and honestly, I'm not sure I am boater enough to sail the world, although it looks lovely in all the YouTube videos!

I knew I didn't want a sailboat- all that heaving, I'd never get any work done while underway! So, I started looking at power boats. I spent hours every day for 10 months looking at literally every listing in my price range. At first, I just wanted a little weekender, and in fact I made an offer on a 35' Cruiser that was rejected. But like every kid in a candy store, I had to look at all the listings in my price range- some were over 100'!!!

When I found one I liked, I would then look up the engines and see what people said about them, then look at their maintenance schedules and costs, and the transmissions, generators, brand history, etc. I had a massive spreadsheet that helped me keep track of the boats I was interested in, and the features they had. One page was like a Cosmo quiz! I had a list of everything I wanted on the boat and if the boat didn't have it, it got a 0 and if it had it, the item got a score of 1-5 based on how good the item was. Then I added up the total and that helped me a lot to weed out boats that wouldn't be good for me. If the boat scored well, it went on a new sheet that broke down the costs of the purchase, ownership and immediate repairs needed, (because there is NO such thing as a turnkey boat, not even a brand new one!) and over time I started to narrow down what I didn't want and what I could really afford.

One thing that's always been important to me on any purchase, is the exit strategy. If I didn't like the lifestyle, I needed viable options to get out without loosing my investment totally. This is what led me to larger boats. They charter and Air BnB easier and that could be a viable way out. They also seem to hold their value better, which was also important. I fell madly in love with Fairline and Viking Princess, but they would not be comfortable for what I wanted to do. Then I fell madly in love with Broward, but most of those are 80' and larger. (Gus got so lucky with his at 70') and I also really liked Hatteras. The layouts were not quite as nice as Broward, (no country kitchen or raised pilot house) but I liked the Hatteras history, quality and reputation. I liked how people still love them 40+ years later, like a classic car, and that parts were still available. They also had Detroit Diesel engines, which compared to MTU or Mann, are super low maintenance and less expensive to service.

I watched a lot of YouTube channels, too, and learned a lot about cruising and this lifestyle from them. It was Ed & Lynn that made me look twice at an old Hatt, but the channel that inspired me to buy the fixer upper, though, was Tula's Endless Summer. After watching them restore that old trawler, I was not so afraid of repairs. After all, I had two good hands, a half decent noggin and YouTube to guide the way!

A boat owner will donate a boat to a charity and take the tax write off vs listing it for sale. Usually donation boats need LOTS of work, and this one was no exception. However, there are some that don't and the financing offered from the charity can be pretty advantageous to a buyer.

At 53, I found myself in the middle of a life crisis—no, not the “buying a convertible and dating someone half my age” kind of crisis (though I did briefly consider that, but I already owned a convertible and a man half my age would need OMG so much training!). It was more like the “I’m unhealthy, isolated, and it’s time to do something drastic before it’s too late” kind of crisis, but I was in such a dark place that literally nothing sounded good and so I did just that- nothing.  

So because I wasn’t listening, God clobbered me over the head with not one, but three wake up calls back to back. I had a stroke, then I got Bells Palsey from dental work that went horribly wrong and then I got the flu, which isn't such a big deal, but it took me 8 weeks instead of 2-3 weeks to get over it. Needless to say, I was really motivated and looking for a change when a customer sent me a picture of a sunset off the side of his boat. The sun was dancing on the water in a stunning display of reds and oranges, and I stared at that picture and thought, “I want to do that.” 

Suddenly, I could see myself—on a boat, wind in my hair, sipping a drink, and doing absolutely nothing.  (Ha! Was I in for a rude surprise!  One thing boat owners don’t do is sit around and do nothing!)  But for the first time in years, I felt interested in something.  So I loaded my dog, Jacques, in the car, took the top down and headed to Florida to buy a boat!

I looked at hundreds of boats online- big, small, huge and went to see a few in person. When I found Sea Dragon, she was the best option in my budget, but needed way more work than I really wanted to do, but she spoke to me. I figured I could fix her and she'd fix me!

My answer to that depends on the day, quite frankly. I've had days when it just couldn't get better and days when I want to sell her and go crawl back in my hidey hole, away from the world. The pros are the connection with nature- the pelicans, the dolphins and the glorious sunsets! And of course, there's the satisfaction of repairing things and seeing the boat come back to life. On the flipside, the cons are the people (pun intended) you have to deal with, whether it's incompetent repairmen, flaky crew or bad management at a marina.

That all said, yes, overall, I'm happy I did it. It's made a really positive impact on my life overall, which is what I needed it to do!

Jacques is a 55 pound mutt I adopted from the pet shelter in Plano, Texas in June, 2022. He was about 10 months old and had a rough start to life. He'd been in and out of the shelter numerous times and had been abused. He suckered me at the shelter- he was so sweet and well behaved and I fell for it hook line and sinker, but when I got him home, he turned into a bit of a nightmare and I was unsure if he would ever settle down and be happy and good.

But, I got a trainer and we kept working with him and eventually he got confident this was really home and I was really his human. I was still really worried about taking him to Florida, but after a few weeks he started to really enjoy being around so many people. Now, three years later, he's a totally different dog. He's still not sure about e-bikes and golf carts, but he loves people and other dogs and has turned into a happy social butterfly!

I would love help working on the production. If you are a videographer or editor, please reach out. I am a credited director/producer, so I can give IMDb production credit for the work on Shay la Vie.

This is real life, totally NOT scripted and so a step beyond guerilla filmmaking. It makes it very challenging, especially in editing, but is a lot of fun!

I am always open to making new friends, especially friends that have tools and aren't afraid to use them! I am getting into the "fun" work now, cosmetics and then there's always maintenance stuff, too. If you're curious about life on a boat and want to experience this first hand, drop me a line. If you're needing hours, I can document the hours for you, too. [email protected]

It is always more fun (and safer) to travel with a group. I am currently planning some short trips around Key West. Please email me if you're interested in knowing what's coming up and riding along. Ride-a-longs are expected to help crew, bring food and drink to share, be able to cover their own travel expenses (entrance fees, dinner out, etc) and be ready to have fun!

If you don't have boating experience, that's ok, I can teach you a few basics that will prepare you for the adventure. If you're working towards a certificate, such as first mate or captains license, I can document the hours.

If you'd just like to come for a short visit and hang on the dock, I have the cabins ready for guests. Please email me for details and availability. Just like a Ride-along, you are expected to help crew, bring food and drink to share, be able to cover your own travel expenses, entrance fees, dinner out, and the marina fees for more people on the boat, parking, amenities and electricity. Email me for details. [email protected]

I'm always open to new partnerships and sponsors as long as the product or sponsorship fits with my goal of encouraging people to live a healthy and happy life on a boat! Please drop me a line at [email protected] with a proposal or outline of what you need.

I love to try new things, but I cannot guarantee a favorable review if the product doesn't perform well. If you have a product that will fit in with my goal of encouraging people to live a happy, healthy lifestyle and/or work on a boat, please reach out to [email protected]