A bunch of yachta yachta yachta

June Casagrande

NEWPORT BEACH -- It’s the biggest boat show in the West specializing

in some really big boats. So, this year, organizers saw just one way to

make the event better: Make it even bigger.

The Lido Yacht Expo will cast off Thursday, transforming Lido Marina

Village into a showcase of some of the most sizable, most spectacular

boats money can buy.

For this show, nothing under 26 feet long will do. In fact, the

largest specimen on display, the Horizon cockpit motor yacht, spans a

whopping 92 feet and carries a $3.45-million price tag.

This year’s event is designed to be even more impressive than previous

years. About 250 powerboats and motor yachts from all over the world will

be on display -- a jump from last year’s 200 boats. Some sure

showstoppers include the 60-foot Grand Alaskan, which will be available

to any lucky skipper ready to pay the $1.13-million sticker price. The

80-foot Novatec, a Taiwanese titan like the Grand Alaskan, will be on

hand sporting its $2.7-million price tag.

“It’s really a preview of the future of boating,” expo promoter Don

Franken said. “There will be a lot of the 2002 models, and some have as

many as five staterooms, barbecues, multiple entertainment centers --

it’s incredible.”

Specializing in international yachts, serious skippers and incredulous

dreamers can ogle vessels from places such as Australia, France,

Singapore, Malaysia, Argentina and Costa Rica.

“We have all the biggest boats here,” show organizer Duncan McIntosh

said. “It will be really something to see because more than 100 of the

boats here will be over 40 feet long. And the weather’s going to be

beautiful too.”

The ships on display will be docked in the marina -- all except for

the tiny tubs. Boats small enough to be put on trailers will be relegated

to land, stationed along the cobblestone Via Oporto, which will be closed

off for the show.

The show will kick off Thursday with a luncheon saluting the Southern

California-based survivors of the Indianapolis -- a World War II ship

that lost 800 men when it was sunk by a Japanese submarine. Of the 317

men who survived, 118 are still alive, including eight Southern

Californians who will be honored at the noontime event.

The expo will continue through 6 p.m. Sunday.

FYI

* WHAT: Lido Yacht Expo

* WHEN: Noon to 7 p.m. Thursday

11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday

10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Saturday

10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday

* WHERE: Lido Marina Village, Newport Beach

Corner of Lido Way and Newport Boulevard, one block south of West

Coast Highway

* COST: $8 for adults; children 12 and younger admitted free