Highfield’s Sport 800 RIB Boat is the first of its series. Highfield’s construction, design, and in-house fabrication lead to a very well-built boat that looks great. It reached over 52 mph and got us nearly 3 miles to the gallon. Most boats of this size, traditional fiberglass boats, don’t get this type of efficiency or speed.
The helm and nice built-in drip edge keeps things in place and provides some relief for drainage. Some notable features include two swim platforms, two swim ladders, a cockpit table with dedicated storage for it, and a standard drawer-style refrigerator that slides out of the bench. The deep V-hull allows it to be stiff and light, and boy is this light! With twin 150 Mercury, it weighed 3600 pounds. Half the weight of a competitively-sized fiberglass boat.
The helm and nice built-in drip edge keeps things in place and provides some relief for drainage. Some notable features include two swim platforms, two swim ladders, a cockpit table with dedicated storage for it, and a standard drawer-style refrigerator that slides out of the bench. The deep V-hull allows it to be stiff and light, and boy is this light! With twin 150 Mercury, it weighed 3600 pounds. Half the weight of a competitively-sized fiberglass boat.
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 - Hey, Kevin Falvey, editor-in-chief of Boating Magazine here.
00:13 I'm aboard Highfield's new 800 Sport.
00:16 This is the first 800 series rib
00:18 that Highfield's built with twin engines.
00:20 And we had twin Mercury 150 horsepower outboards
00:23 propelling us today to some really sporty speeds.
00:26 I'm gonna tell you about the performance,
00:28 the construction, and the features,
00:29 so stick around.
00:30 (upbeat music)
00:33 Let's start off by talking
00:44 about the Highfield's construction.
00:46 We can talk about how they fabricate the aluminum in-house,
00:49 the Hypalon tubes in-house,
00:51 and also the fiberglass components in-house.
00:55 So they really are in control of their whole boats.
00:56 As far as being aluminum,
00:58 the deep V-hull of the Highfield
01:00 allows it to be stiff and light.
01:02 And boy, is this light.
01:04 With twin 150 Mercuries, this boat weighs 3,600 pounds.
01:08 That's lighter than competitive ribs with fiberglass hulls,
01:11 and that's half the weight
01:12 of a competitively-sized fiberglass boat.
01:14 Now, they also make the Hypalon themselves.
01:17 Everything is cut from C and C.
01:20 It mates exactly to the hull.
01:22 In fact, they even cut the EVA foam flooring
01:25 and accent pieces.
01:27 Cut to fit precisely into the hull and around the boat.
01:31 All in all, Highfield's construction and design
01:34 and in-house fabrication leads to a very well-built boat
01:38 that looks great.
01:40 I'd like to point out a few details.
01:41 These are the kind of small details
01:43 that boating magazine editors look at
01:45 when reviewing a boat.
01:46 Check out the helm,
01:47 and look at the nice drip edge built in at the helm.
01:50 It'll keep stuff in place
01:51 and also a little relief for drainage.
01:54 When you open a hatch aboard a Highfield,
01:56 you'll note that the hatch swings on hinges
01:58 that are through-bolted,
02:00 and the perimeter of those hatches
02:02 is fitted with a deep gutter,
02:04 so any water that might make it past the edge of the hatch
02:07 is going to drain away from stowed gear
02:10 and keep your stuff dry.
02:12 These are high-end details and worthwhile in any boat.
02:16 Highfield 800 Sport comes very well-equipped.
02:18 Some notable standards include two swim platforms
02:22 and two swim ladders, a ski pylon,
02:25 a cockpit table, and there's dedicated storage for that,
02:28 a Simrad touchscreen, a transom shower,
02:32 and an anchor windlass hidden under a hatch.
02:35 And finally, there's a standard
02:36 that I was really surprised that was standard.
02:39 It's a drawer-style refrigerator
02:40 that slides out of the aft-facing bench.
02:42 How cool is that?
02:44 Let's talk about the layout of the Highfield 800 Sport,
02:47 and let's start with the stern.
02:48 There's a folding lounge in the back.
02:51 It'll seat four people abreast facing forward,
02:53 or you fold down the backrest, and it creates a sun pad.
02:57 Forward of the aft lounge is a lounge that faces aft,
03:00 and will seat two people.
03:01 Let's see what's in the bow.
03:03 So as you move to the bow,
03:04 there's a single seat fitted to the front of the console.
03:07 And then, up in the bow proper,
03:09 there's a standard sun lounge.
03:10 These cushions come with the boat.
03:12 They're beautifully sewn together,
03:14 and they're made with a foam
03:15 that allows water to run through,
03:17 so they'll never stay damp, and they won't accumulate mildew.
03:21 Remove them, and you can access tremendous storage,
03:24 as well as the hidden windlass
03:26 to help you bring up the anchor.
03:29 In addition to the massive storage under the bow,
03:31 there's storage inside the console,
03:33 and under the transom lounge.
03:36 The Highfield 800 Sport's helm is pretty great.
03:40 It's ergonomic, there's plenty of room for screens.
03:42 There's a touchscreen Mercury VesselView display,
03:45 phone charger, two cup holders,
03:47 and the helm seats are great.
03:48 There's a bolster that flips up and down,
03:50 so you can stand or sit in comfort.
03:52 Let's talk a little bit about performance.
03:53 This boat, again, the first 800 Series Ribbed from Highfield
03:57 with twin 150s, drove us to over 52 miles per hour.
04:02 We're burning 29 gallons per hour at that speed.
04:05 At 4,000 RPM, we're doing 38 miles an hour,
04:08 burning 13.9 gallons an hour.
04:12 That's nearly three miles to the gallon.
04:14 Other boats this size, conventional fiberglass boats,
04:17 just don't get those kind of speeds,
04:19 or that kind of efficiency.
04:21 And this is the prototype.
04:23 They're still working on props,
04:24 they're still working on engine height.
04:27 Well, my time on the lake has come to an end,
04:28 but let me close by saying,
04:30 the Highfield 800 Sport is a really fun boat to run.
04:34 With twin 150 Mercuries,
04:36 this boat is a blast to run on the water.
04:39 For more information, visit boatingmag.com
04:41 or highfieldnorthamerica.com.
04:43 Until next time, I'm Kevin Falvey.
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