The Viking Yacht Company proudly announced its latest large sportfishing yacht – the 82 Convertible. The five-stateroom, six-head world-traveler builds upon the tremendous success of the Viking 80, pushing the genre to new heights of excellence. “We’ve taken a boat that has been proclaimed by the sportfishing community as the most successful 80-foot sportfish boat ever and improved upon it,” says Viking President and CEO Pat Healey. We’ve been able to design and build a better boat by using our experiences on multiple Viking 80 demo boats and collecting a tremendous amount of feedback from owners, captains, and mates. And like every new model, the 82 is going to be another industry leader. “The Viking Yacht Company has delivered more than 110 convertibles over 80 feet. The first-generation 82 Convertible was introduced in 2009 during some of the toughest economic times in recent history, and still, 27 boats were sold. Viking’s largest-ever sportfisher – the 92 – premiered in 2014. Twenty-one 92s were delivered before misguided emission regulations forced the model to be discontinued. The Viking 80’s numbers are astounding, with 54 boats delivered. Our new flagship, the Viking 90,has been utterly unstoppable since its recent world premiere, with 19boats sold. And now here comes the 82, proving once again that Viking is the leader in the design, development, and production of the biggest convertible sportfishing yachts in the world. The 82 is offered in three different models – open bridge, enclosed bridge, and sky bridge. Hull No. 1 is an open bridge model with a Pamlico Blue gelcoat and a custom tuna tower from the Viking subsidiary Palm Beach Towers. The yacht made its world premiere at the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, Oct. 30-Nov. 3.“Like the 80 and our previous large sportfishing boats, the 82 will prove that a boat of its size can not only meet the demands of the tournament circuit – but also win,” says Viking Design Manager David Wilson. “We’ve broken that barrier, and we’re doing it again with the82, making refinements and improvements in every area – speed, performance, ride, maneuverability, and fishability.”