Boat International US Edition – May 2019

boatinternational.com • 05 2019

PHOTOGRAPHY: CHARL JORDAAN/ WWW.YACHTINGIMAGE.COM

The commonbondamongthe

three of uswhoownBigSkyisthat

we have homes in Big Sky,

Montana,andaremembersofthe

YellowstoneClub.SteveTaylorand

I are full-timeresidentswhileEric

Yonke spendsmostwintermonths

here skiingwithhisfamily.Itwas

Steve, a previousyachtowner,who

suggestedthatiftherightboat

came along,wemightlookinto

joint ownership.BigSkyisallwe

could haveimaginedandmore.

Betweenuswehave 11 children,

so even thoughBigSkysleeps12,it

is not possibletovacationtogether.

Our threefamiliestalkedthings

throughandwehaveascheduleof

six trips ayearperfamilywithtime

for eightto 10 chartertrips.

Steve oversawarecentremodel

of the interior;sheiscomfortable,

warm andchic.Weliketobelieve

we have themosttoysofanyyacht

this size–fourSeabobs,slide

board, fourjetskis,a36ftNor-Tech

tender, paddleboardsandkitesurfs.

I grewupinNewYork,wentto

the US MerchantMarineAcademy

and sailedonmerchantvessels

as an engineerandadeckcadet–

I could gointotheengineroom

and turn somewrenches,but

I choosenotto.

MYLIFEINBOATS

Theco-ownerof157ftBigSkytellsGraceTrofa

aboutfriends,familyandsharedexperiences

FAMILY TIME

Ray, wife Lydia

and their six children

have enjoyed

Big Sky to the fullest

FUN FACTORY

Big Sky, built by

Oceanfast in 2010,

carries a whole

host of water toys

IN IT TOGETHER

Ray co-owns the

yacht with two

friends from back

home in Montana

OWNERS’ CLUB

RAY BARTOSZEK

We picked up Big Sky in Europe

and although we love cruising there,

we all agreed the yacht would get

more use in the Bahamas. Staniel

Cay is where we usually anchor to

have private beach moments with

family, swim with sharks, visit

Thunderball Grotto and

have amazing warm-

weather experiences. We

have a private jet so just

four-and-a-half hours

after leaving Bozeman we

are cruising on our yacht.

I have six children.

With my wife, Lydia, and

all of us on board, we have

shared many memorable

moments. Watching my

eight-year-old son Owen

and my seven-year-old

daughter Natalia jump off

the 30ft-high top deck is a moment

I will never forget.

Our chefs do a lot of themed

dinners with costumes, which the

kids really enjoy, and later we watch

movies under the stars. Right now,

the bloom is not off the rose for Big

Sky. We are all happy with the yacht

and the arrangement we have,

watching our childrengrow up

right in front of our eyes.B

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