You could see the Tamsen’s masts from basically anywhere you can see the water surrounding Campbell River’s downtown.
The 52-metre (171-foot) yacht, owned by the Firestone family out of California, was docked at the Coast Marina for the weekend – it came in Friday night but couldn’t dock until Saturday due to the windy conditions on the water – and it certainly drew a crowd.
“I’ve never seen this many people down here to look at a vessel,” says marina owner Derek Pallan. “It is truly an amazing boat and we’re very happy to welcome it here to Campbell River.”
With a mast height of 170 feet – so tall it requires red lights to warn low-flying aircraft of its location – and a total sail area of over 12,000 sq.ft., the vessel also carries over 10,000 gallons (almost 40,000 litres) of diesel to power its two massive Caterpillar engines.
The Tamsen was was launched in 2007 – built by Perini Navi of Viareggio, Italy, one of the world’s best-known and most prestigious yacht construction companies. Each Perini vessel is said to cost approximately $625,000 (USD) per metre of length, depending on the amount of customization, so that would put Tamsen in the $30-50-million range to build. Pallan estimates the boat would sell for between $70 and $100 million if it were on the market right now.
Sorry to say, however, that it is not. So those who were down there hoping to get their hands on it are out of luck.
