review
Matuku Artnautica 60 Sportfisher
A round two years in gestation, Matuku is remarkable for the sheer detail and cleverness of her design. She’s unquestionably built for hunting (the Kilwell outriggers a not-so-subtle clue) but she’s also a fuel-efficient, long-distance passage-maker, yet equally at ease as a luxurious family cruiser pottering around the Hauraki Gulf.
If the synthesis of these attributes sounds unlikely in a single vessel, even more unlikely is that the driving vision for Matuku stems from an owner who’d never held a fishing rod prior to arriving in New Zealand 11 years ago.
A British gent with years of sailing experience, his first impressions on arrival can be paraphrased as follows: “OMG we’re going to need a boat. This Hauraki Gulf is a jewel – we can’t live here and not have a boat.”
Sailing memories evaporated. The mind shift evolved into the purchase of a Protector RIB powered by a pair of inboard diesels – an excellent platform for family jaunts around the Gulf. But then fate intervened.
“We began building a house and when the builder saw a photo of the RIB he said – ‘Oh, you have a boat. You must be a fisherman.’ I said – No, I’ve never fished in my life – why would I do that? He said, ‘Well, you’re missing out big time
