Say Hello to Sea Ray’s Lake Yacht

After spending decades churning out charming little 20-footers, the American giant is going big. Really big.

Yeah, you’ve been on a Sea Ray. That 20-footer you used to go wakeboarding behind in college at the lake? That was probably a Sea Ray. And for years, boats like that have been Sea Ray’s bread and butter. Sea Ray has always marketed itself to lake people and close-to-shore cruisers. Sea Ray was supposed to be your first boat, then your first boat with a cabin, then your first boat with twin engines—up and up and up.

Now the company is taking it up one more notch with the L650, which broaches into the rarified realm of true, honest-to-goodness yachts. The boat is 65 feet 1 inch long and has a truly massive flybridge with tons of seating and sunpads. Another entertainment area on the foredeck supplies even more outdoor space, as does a partially covered cockpit in the rear of the boat.

Sea Ray realized a boat this large would need to be up for more than a casual cocktail cruise at sunset. So the company designed the boat for big seas. She’s built to CE Category A Ocean standards, which essentially means she can stand up to seas greater than 13 feet and winds in the 40-knot range. Even better, her hull approximates that of a sportfishing boat, and is designed to slice through big waves and cast water off to the side—and not onto the passengers. And that’s important, because this isn’t that lake boat you had in college. You’re all grown up now. And the L650 proves it.

Photos by Sea Ray