FULL BROCHURE | REVIEW (MARLIN MAG)

As you clear the inlet and point the bow toward the horizon where the sky melds into the sea, you look at your watch with a smile. In less than two hours, you will be dipping your lines into the cobalt blue water 75 miles from shore, where wolf packs of bigeye tuna cream dolphin for breakfast. And majestic blue marlin smoke gold reels for fun.

But it is going to be different today because you are aboard a Viking 65 Convertible, quite simply the finest looking, strongest performing sport-fisherman ever to patrol the thousand-fathom curve where gladiators of the deep feel at home. With twin 1,800 bhp diesels, she has flank speeds approaching 40 knots.

In a fishing tournament where short minutes can make all the difference, she has the power to get you to the weigh-in dock with time to spare. And the mettle to make your own weather days, so you can fish longer and more comfortably when the other boats stay tied to the dock. Razor sharp entry slices cleanly through the seas. Inward tapered cabin sides at the after bulkhead reduce spray and exhaust back draft underway.

Matching this unrivaled offshore prowess are lavish accomodations for entertaining family and friends in absolute luxury.

Opulence fit for a King and Queen

Staterooms are spacious, luxurious, and thoroughly private, with gener­ous stowage throughout. The standard plan is four staterooms and a three-stateroom arrangement also is offered. The master suite is amid­ships and features a luxurious king-size walkaround bed that lifts easily on gas struts to reveal a huge stowage compartment suitable for golf club bags and other bulky gear.

An entertainment center and a remarkably large hanging locker are built into the hand-fitted teak joinery. The head is equipped with a solid surface countertop with a molded sink, a medicine cabinet, a fiberglass stall shower with a seat and a linen closet. A queen-size bed highlights the forward stateroom with a private head and shower.

Upper and lower berths provide restful accomodations for guests in the starboard stateroom. The fourth stateroom, opposite the washer and dryer in the companionway, is abaft the master suite. It has a separate head and shower as well as private access from the engine room, which makes the stateroom ideal crew quarters.

In the three-stateroom layout, the master suite also has an athwartships king-size bed. Steps lead to a private study or lounge area with an entertainment system, an adjoining work area and a voluminous cedar-lined hanging closet. In either arrange­ment, you also can select an optional VIP guest suite forward with a double lower berth and single upper berth. 

Think of it as a room with a 30-knot view

More than a helm station, the climate ­controlled enclosed bridge not only offers great visibility for operating in any weather with its thin windshield pilasters, but it also doubles as a great room with spectacular views. An after station facili­tates docking and fishing maneuvers with precision.

On the fishing grounds or at the dock. the 65 Convertible is the epitome of form following function. The 179 square-loot cockpit is the manual for tournament-proven efficiencies. Three refrigerated chill boxes keep drinks cold and perishables fresh. A molded console conceals a bait-prep center, freezer, tackle stowage and engine room access.

The extended flying bridge overhang does a superb job of blocking sun, spray and wind above the console, which is the perfect height for riding shotgun and watching baits. A 3/8-inch aluminum plate is laminated into the sole to anchor the fighting chair.

Gaffs and shore connections are conveniently tucked out of sight in weatherproof enclosures. 

The recessed anchor and rode locker on the foredeck is surrounded by aggressive nonslip. Lessons learned from tens of thousands of tournament hours have contributed to the design of the flying bridge with power-assisted steering to outmaneuver the wiliest billfish and maximum fore, aft and side visibility to spot a dorsal and tail at a hundred yards. Rod stowage, a freezer, a refrigerator and powder-coated grabrails are in all the right places.