Breathless boat out of service for unforseen maintenance

raven

Well-Known Member
Oh, Really? Do you know the difference between the Breathless and the Fan-ta-sea? If you are not sure, then maybe you should take another look.

Sorry I could be wrong. But the blue tarp over the back of it prevents anyone from seeing the name of the boat.
 

Figment1986

Well-Known Member
The one time I saw the Brathless being used was going around the lake in front of the studios... in fact the friendship captain went onto the outside speaker and encouraged the captain of the breathless to go full speed to show off for us... but he wasn't going fast in the channels... just the lakes.
 

sweetpee_1993

Well-Known Member
I, also, have only seen the Breathless in motion a couple times and it seems it was always in the lake areas vs. the canal-ish areas or in closer proximity to other vessels. I've found that all the watercraft CM's are pretty good about sticking to rules & regs (we rented a Boston Whaler at DTD before). The driver could have made a mistake, no doubt. We're all human. But we need to also consider that when driving a boat there's a lot that is *not* under your control like loss of power, loss of steering, large floating debris, large gators, etc.

A good boat captain be it a small boat or a really big one will not only know his/her boat they'll know his/her surroundings. If my hubby puts his boat in a body of water he's not studied, downloaded all the maps onto his Lowrance units, taken time to familiarize himself with, etc. he wouldn't dare go tearing thru the water. But if it's a body of water he's familiar with, knows the depths, knows the obstacles, knows the traffic, etc. he'll open 'er on up with caution. It's not unusual for him to get out into the rural parts of the local rivers or waterways and get up to 75+mph. I'm quite sure there are designated areas for the Breathless captains to let her breathe and do her thing and these areas will be well-known down to all the details such as currents & depth.

I also can tell you 100% that if you have a boat that's built for higher performance and you don't stretch it out once it will cause damage. The Breathless was made to run and it needs to. That's not just someone show-boating or having fun, the boat needs to be run as part of it's proper care.
 

MythBuster

Active Member
Sorry I could be wrong. But the blue tarp over the back of it prevents anyone from seeing the name of the boat.

There is no blue tarp on the back, also they are entirely different boats. The Breathless is a 26 ft all mahogany wood hull replica of a 1920's era luxury boat with a open top and it only seats about 6. The Fan-Ta-Sea is about 50 ft with a fiberglass hull and has a covered top (similar to a jungle cruise boat) and seats maybe 20 -30 people. I'm just saying if you are going to report something, at least be accurate or if you are not sure just say you are not sure.
 

raven

Well-Known Member
I'm just saying if you are going to report something, at least be accurate or if you are not sure just say you are not sure.

Excuse me? You are very rude. I said "I could be wrong" in another post. But a tarp was on the rear of the boat but it has since been removed.
 

MythBuster

Active Member
Excuse me? You are very rude. I said "I could be wrong" in another post. But a tarp was on the rear of the boat but it has since been removed.

I'm rude because I'm trying to correct your bad information? I think you are just making some bad assumptions and that can mislead or confuse other readers.
 

raven

Well-Known Member
I'm rude because I'm trying to correct your bad information? I think you are just making some bad assumptions and that can mislead or confuse other readers.

Just drop it, dude. No need to blow this up when I already stated, twice, that I could've been wrong.
 

Monorail_Orange

Well-Known Member
So to get back on track...

Is there any info regarding the future of the Breathless? I know one poster said out of commission forever - not only have I not seen the damage, I'm no boat builder, so I have no hope of assessing its potential for repair.

If the boat is truly too damaged for repair, any rumblings of a eventual replacement? No doubt it was insured precisely against such losses. Don't get me wrong, it was a beautiful machine, but it is/was a very nice Chris Craft - not exactly entirely irreplaceable.
 

wild01ride

Well-Known Member
Just to clarify, a boat being in "Dry Dock" by no means distinguishes that it is intact. Dry Dock simply means that it is out of the water in a circumstance in which it can be easily accessed for maintenance, repair, or in some cases, just for storage.
Regarding "opening it up" to use it as it's meant to be run...that's part of the inherent problem with the Breathless: it is a boat which has capabilities easily exceeding the waterways at WDW. ANY legitimate boater will agree with me that regardless of the qualifications of the driver, Crescent Lake and the surrounding waterways do not contain ANY environment for truly safe operation of a powerboat at 40+mph.
A drivers qualifications nor any emergency justify a boat (in this case which is only used for pleasure cruises) which is travelling 40+mph in an area where it is continuously within 50yds of Transportation watercraft, small pleasure craft being operated by inexperienced individuals, and various natural creatures and features.
And anyone who hasn't seen WDW watercraft at high speed hasn't spent much time between Crescent Lake and DHS!
 

DavidS1234

Active Member
Looks like it's been five years since the last post here. Just thought I'd stir the pot. I got to ride Breathless ll twice before it's unfortunate demise. The first time was a gift to my gf at the time, and it was the Illuminations fireworks cruise. It was already dark as we walked up the Yacht Club marina to the waiting staff, and that gorgeous, mahogany runabout was sitting there with that big Chevy V8 gurgling away. It was a cold night, but we could feel the heat and smell the fuel from the engine as we walked up. We met our Captain, and he settled us in with life jackets and soft blankets. As we idled out at low speed, he asked us if we wanted a leisurely cruise, or an exciting one. Being a speed freak I looked at my girl with a big grin, and she gave the green light! The Captain faced forward, and without further ado, pushed the throttle lever forward. Let me tell you...it was as if that boat came alive. The engine behind us roared to life, the bow pointed up skyward, and suddenly we were flying across that lake! The Captain turned the wheel sharply to the right, and we began carving circles in the water...around and around. Before too long we began hitting our own waves, which were rebounding off the shores...but that beast's keel cut right through them like a hot knife through butter. After a few more revolutions the Captain straightened out and we shot into the canals that lead to Epcot Lagoon. We anchored just past the bridge to France in the lagoon, cut off the engine, and watched the fireworks. After the show there was quite a crowd standing up on the bridge above us, so when the Captain started up that V8 again it drew quite a bit of ooohs and aaaahs. We idled out a little into the lagoon and did a tight u-turn...at which point the Captain gunned it, and we roared back into the canal. As I looked back I could see people running to the other side of the bridge to see the boat. We blasted back to the resort lake where we had the Captain drop us off at the Boardwalk pier so we could warm up with some hot coffee. It is without a doubt one of the greatest memories I have, and I'll hang on to it till the day I die! Thank you Disney! :)
 

ford91exploder

Resident Curmudgeon
Thanks for sharing, but....
superthumb_by_cookie_fish-d8qqys3.jpg

Such a cute puppy :) is the puppy yours?
 

DavidS1234

Active Member
Never heard of breathless boat... Here I come Google!

I can tell you all about it! It was a HackerCraft runabout, modelled after the ChrisCraft runabouts from the 50's. All wood hull and deck, chrome accents, and powered by a 350 cu in shortblock V8 from Chevrolet. It sounded like an old hot rod on the water! It had a single keel design that was exceptionally stable at high speeds, and it could turn on a dime. It really was a performance machine.
 

DznyRktekt

Well-Known Member
Thread bump, but does anyone know what the story is with Breathless II? Is it hanging out with Walt's Plane and the Spectromagic floats?
 

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