Tims doughnut baron Joyce drops $30 million on new power yacht

HALIFAX - You won't find this prize when you roll up the rim.
Doughnut baron Ron Joyce of Tim Hortons fame says he has forked out $30 million for a new power yacht that has just hit the water in Gulfport, Miss.
It's big - just a few metres shorter than the Canadian navy's coastal defence vessels.
The bunks are a little cushier, though.
''We don't get too many of this size being built by Canadians,'' said Diane Byrne, executive editor at Power & Motoryacht, one of North America's better-known luxury boating publications.
Joyce's newest water-going palace, Destination Fox Harb'r Too, was launched Tuesday from the yards of Trinity Yachts in Gulfport.
The triple-decked vessel was to undergo initial water trials and finishing touches before being handed over to its owner sometime in the next few weeks.
Joyce, the Tatamagouche, N.S., native who co-founded the Tim Hortons doughnut chain and made millions from its sale, said Tuesday he is very impressed with his new vessel and wants to bring it to Halifax as early as June.
''There was a bit of a problem getting my other boat to Canada,'' he said. ''This one is made in the U.S. so I'm hoping we don't hit the same snag.''
He said he would not bring the new vessel to Canada if he must pay excessive customs fees, as was the initial case with the original Destination Fox Harb'r, which was built in New Zealand and had a reported price tag of about $50 million.
Destination Fox Harb'r Too is not on Power & Motoryacht's list of the world's top 100 yachts because, at a little over 49 metres, it is shorter than the standard of 60 metres the magazine uses.
''It isn't one of the biggest boats out there, but it's certainly nothing to sneeze at,'' Byrne said.
In Mississippi, where launches of luxury yachts seem as commonplace as church barbecues, it says something that local television and print media were on hand as Joyce watched his sleek powerboat slide into the water.
Unlike the original Destination Fox Harb'r, a 41-metre cruising sloop, the new vessel is strictly engine-driven, with propulsion from two 2,250-horsepower Caterpillar engines.
A huge bridge offers a host of TV screens and monitors, according to images available on the Trinity Yachts website. There is a split-level owner's suite that offers ''magnificent'' 180-degree views, according to the website.
The vessel also offers sleeping for 12 in six staterooms, a couple of water-jet-propelled vessels for recreational use and a Zodiac capable of high-speed, ship-to-shore transport.
Joyce said he is in the process of submitting the appropriate documents to Canadian officials so he can use the new vessel in Nova Scotia to promote his Fox Harb'r resort and golf course near Tatamagouche.