It’s always a tough call. We Boating editors compile our lists of favorite boats during testing throughout the year. Then we all gather in closed sessions, each of us making our case to the othersm for which boat we think has earned Boat of the Year honors. As our edit team represents a combined total of nearly 200 years boating experience, nearly 100years of boating journalism experience and at, last count, our current group of editors has tested a combined total of over 1,200 different boats.
All of this is to say that we come to the table with some pretty firm convictions, and apply judgement tempered by experience.
For 2015, we whittled down our list of Boat of the Year contenders to a short list of four great boats. These were:
Boston Whaler 420 Outrage: This the boat that we ultimately selected. Read why.
Hunt Yachts 32 CC: Possessing a spectacular ride, a robust build, attention to detail far above the norm, this boat boasts one of the most innovative center console cabins we’ve yet seen. Check out our boat test of the Hunt Yachts 32 CC
Bryant Boats 223X Surf Edition: This boat represents the best in the new breed of watersports-ready runabouts and was the first-to-market (indeed it served as the test bed) for Volvo Penta’s innovative Forward Drive. Learn more about the Bryant 223 Surf
Sea Ray 270 Sundeck OB: This boat, which graced our October 2015 cover, utilizes outboard power in a category where sterndrives have traditionally ruled, rode great during a real choppy test day, and offers an innovative outboard bracket /swim platform that allows free passage from port to starboard, along with a plethora of interior niceties. One of the best big deckboats going. Read our complete test of the Sea Ray 270 Sundeck