yacht 500 million

The ask didn't go over well. It caused so much public outcry, in fact, that more than 1,000 residents threatened to throw eggs at the yacht if the dismantling came to fruition. Oceanco later withdrew its request to dismantle the bridge , and the yacht was quietly towed under cover of night to another shipyard.

During that voyage, the yacht was towed without its masts, which would be installed later, and it avoided going through the city center and past the Koningshaven Bridge, according to German magazine Der Spiegel .

Watch the latest video of Bezos' yacht here:

Read the original article on Business Insider

The Most Incredible Features Of Jeff Bezos' $500 Million Mega Yacht

Jeff Bezos, the second-richest man in the world, will soon be the owner of a $500 million newly-constructed mega yacht in the Netherlands. While there is not a lot of information about the super yacht, there are a few facts that can be gleaned from the ship manufacturer's website and also several media publications. However, what is confirmed is that this yacht is supposed to be 417 feet long (127 meters), have several decks, and feature three gigantic black masts (via Bloomberg ).

The ship is called the Y721 and it is reportedly made by Oceanco, a custom ship builder that produces some of the world's largest and most luxurious boats. The company is owned by Omani billionaire businessman , Mohammed Al Barwani, and is based in the Netherlands. According to the luxury magazine  Robb Report , this uber-luxurious boat is expected to be the world's largest sailing yacht when completed.

It is super-sized

As superyachts go, the Y721 is extremely large. At 417 feet, it is one of the largest sailing yachts ever built in the Netherlands, according to Time Magazine . It is so colossal that for it to sail out of the harbor to go to the ocean, it has to pass by an iconic Dutch steel bridge that has a center part that can be removed so the vessel can pass through safely. This bridge, known as De Hef (literally translated as The Lift), is a lift bridge that can raise 130 feet in the air. That still isn't high enough to accommodate the yacht's tall masts, and the process of raising the bridge so the ship can exit can't be described as simple, either. Additionally, the breadth of its sails and supports makes it unsafe for a helicopter to land on the yacht without clipping its masts, so Bezos has reportedly commissioned a support yacht with a helipad to travel alongside the titanic cruiser (via Time).

The 246-foot shadow yacht known as the YS7512 will be the base for the Amazon billionaire's helipad, but it will also feature meeting spaces, and storage for his jet skis, water toys, and snorkeling and diving gear. It can accommodate up to 45 crew and guests (via Architectural Digest ).

It is a clean, green machine

In Brad Stone's book, "Amazon Unbound: Jeff Bezos and the Invention of a Global Empire," the vessel is described as being "one of the finest sailing yachts in existence." Although this luxury cruiser will almost certainly have fineries fit for a business mogul like Bezos, it is also said to be environmentally friendly. Oceanco based the blueprint on its award-winning , sustainable Black Pearl Yacht. The company says on its website that this ship is one of the largest and most eco-friendly sailing yachts in the world, and can cross the Atlantic without burning any fossil fuel.

It features technology such as DynaRig carbon masts, solar power, and a hybrid-propulsion system. It also has a waste-heat recovery system onboard that uses thermal energy and residual heat from exhaust gas to transform into electrical energy. While the construction of the superyacht has been reported by multiple media sources, the Daily Mail reports that Oceanco has declined to comment on whether this yacht was commissioned by Jeff Bezos.

Bezos can fly to the yacht, but only with the help of a support vessel

If Bezos is on land and the superyacht isn't docked, the Amazon owner isn't going to have to row back to his vessel when he wants to get on board — he can simply take a short flight to the boat via helicopter (via Bloomberg ), though that requires him to land on a support yacht. Using a helicopter to fly to his yacht is something that would have, at one point in time, sounded very unlikely given Bezos' mixed history with whirlybirds. He actually survived a helicopter crash back in 2003 when scouting for sites to use for his spacefaring venture Blue Origin. 

Bezos was on board with the pilot and two staff members when the overloaded aircraft started to struggle after taking off. The pilot was left dodging trees and desperately trying to get the helicopter out of danger. He didn't succeed, and eventually, the tail boom collided with a tree, causing the chopper to spin. The helicopter eventually ended up in a creek, but Bezos walked away from the incident. Recalling the crash in Fortune Magazine, Bezos quipped, "I thought, what a dumb way to die."

Given the circumstances, it is unsurprising that Bezos allegedly hated helicopters for many years. However, his hatred of the transportation method had reportedly evaporated by 2018 and been replaced by enthusiasm. It was this switch in attitude that, according to the New York Post , alerted Amazon executives to Bezos' affair with helicopter pilot and owner of Black Ops Aviation Lauren Sanchez. Bezos would eventually divorce his wife and the mother of his four children, MacKenzie Scott, and make his relationship with Sanchez public.

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Has the World Finally Had a Glimpse of Jeff Bezos’s $500 Million Mega-Yacht?

By Shivani Vora

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is appears to be getting closer to welcoming the superyacht he reportedly commissioned in 2018: a fancy toy fitting for the world’s second-richest person, given that it costs a reported $500 million and breaks one world record after another.

Called Y721, this vessel of all vessels is being custom designed by Dutch builder Oceanco and was spotted at a shipyard last week in Zwijndrecht, a town in the western Netherlands. It’s reportedly heading to another Netherlands town, Alblasserdam, for a final fitting. With a length of 417 feet, Y721 is the biggest sailing yacht in the world and the longest vessel to be built in the Netherlands. Features include a black hull, classic shape, three large decks, and three masts.

Superyacht Bravo Eugenia , belonging to the U.S. billionaire Jerry Jones, owner of the Dallas Cowboys, was built by Oceanco, which is also rumored to be behind Bezos’s new massive vessel.

Y721 is going to totally change the world of yachting with its design and innovation, says Fernando Nicholson, a luxury yacht sales broker with the yachting company Camper & Nicholsons. “It’s a boat with the latest technology and bells and whistles that have never been seen,” he says. “This will be the standard for all superyachts to follow, but in years to come, when its features become more affordable. Right now, only someone with Bezos’s wealth can swing the cost.”

The superyacht is said to be modeled after Oceanco’s famous yacht, the Black Pearl , which the company site says , “is one of the largest and most ecological sailing yachts in the world. She can cross the Atlantic without burning even a liter of fossil fuel.” Y721 will go through sea trails following its fitting-out in Alblasserdam and is expected to be ready sometime next year.

The Flying Fox , allegedly owned by Bezos.

However, it’s only one of two new boats for Bezos: He has also commissioned a shadow vessel called YS 7512 from builder Damen Yachts. This support ship measures 246 feet in length and accommodates 45 additional crew and guests. It will also feature a helipad and meeting space and have a vast amount of storage for Bezos’s endless number of water toys, with diving and snorkeling gear, jet and water skis, waterslides, and surfboards among the bunch. Shadow vessels are a growing phenomenon in the superyacht industry and one more extra toy that their owners want to have at the ready, says Nicholson. “You see them more and more now as an add-on to a superyacht purchase,” he says. “They’ve almost become a must.”

There’s no doubt that Bezos will be sailing the high seas in full panache and style come 2022. But really, is there any other way when you have more money than almost anyone else in the world and attract an endless amount of attention too?

By Katherine McLaughlin

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Jeff Bezos’ New Yacht Is Finally Ready to Set Sail

Amazon’s founder has been spotted on Koru, a massive schooner with a design that evokes the golden age of sailing in the early 20th century.

By Kevin Koenig

Just in time for the high season of yachting in the Mediterranean, when multimillion-dollar megayachts descend on ports like Monte Carlo and St. Tropez, Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon, has been photographed with his partner Lauren Sánchez on his new boat, Koru, off the coast of Spain.

Mr. Bezos’ vessel is a sailing yacht, a departure from the diesel-powered, floating palaces popular with other billionaires. But it is still massive. At 417 feet, Koru is the world’s largest sailing yacht, according to Boat International , and it cost an estimated $500 million to build, Bloomberg reported . (Parsifal III, the boat featured on Bravo’s reality series “Below Deck Sailing Yacht,” is 177 feet long — less than half the length of Koru — and cost $18 million , according to the website SuperYachtFan.)

A spokesperson for Mr. Bezos did not comment for this article; neither did Oceanco, Koru’s builder. Here is what to know about the boat.

For traditionalists, Koru is refreshing. At a time when yacht design skews outrageous — see the lizardlike, 262-foot Artefact or the otherworldly 463-foot Yas — Koru stands out as a schooner, a sailing vessel with two or more masts. Photos reveal a large sailboat with three masts, an on-deck pool and a voluptuous mermaid on the bow, that bears a resemblance to Ms. Sánchez. But otherwise, the sleek, classic lines suggest the patrician age of yachting in the early 20th century, said Robert B. MacKay, author of “The Golden Age of Newport Yachting: Between the Wars.”

“With the clipper bow and the dark hull and the masts,” Mr. MacKay said, referring to Koru’s concave, pointy forward section, “it reminds me of a boat built in 1930 for J.P. Morgan Jr., Corsair IV. It is almost like a reincarnation. It’s certainly at odds with the stuff the oligarchs are building — those look like bloated Clorox bottles.”

Compared with the world’s very largest motor yachts — built for sheer size and the accompanying bragging rights — Koru could almost be considered quaint. Azzam, one of the world’s largest motor yachts, is nearly 200 feet longer.

The Experience

Koru will be propelled primarily by the wind. “Sailboats are usually greener than most powerboats,” said Don Anderson, a former captain of M5 , the world’s largest single-masted sailboat, at 256 feet. “I’d like to think that Koru will be one of the most ecological yachts out there, with its sails and also with the technology that will be aboard.”

“When you’re on a sailboat, you’re more in touch with the wind and the waves than on a powerboat,” he continued. “You’re more susceptible to the elements, too. But you can leave California, and once you get past the Catalinas you can basically surf downwind all the way to Hawaii. All you need to do is run with the waves.”

Mr. Bezos has been a guest on similar boats, according to Bloomberg: In 2019, he was spotted on Eos , a 305-foot sailing yacht owned by Barry Diller and Diane von Furstenberg.

Bill Tripp, a Connecticut-based naval architect, said the appeal of this type of boat is clear: “When you are on a powerboat, you ask, ‘Are we there yet?’ and on a sailboat, you’re enjoying the ride and the ocean so much that you don’t ask that question.”

Koru will be trailed by Abeona, a 246-foot support vessel. Superyachts often have support vessels following along behind them. These “shadows,” as they are colloquially known, are for the “toys” — the ATVs, supercars, seaplanes, motorcycles, smaller boats, scuba gear, personal submarines and even helicopters that pleasure boaters might bring on a trip. According to its builder, this model of boat can carry these gadgets along with dozens of crew members. (Ms. Sanchez flies helicopters, and the couple was recently photographed taking a helicopter to board Abeona and then Koru.)

Abeona, a motor yacht, will have enough range to follow Koru from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean — a common course for yachts — on a single tank of gas.

The Kerfuffle

Koru set off a controversy last year — before it was even completed — in a face-off with the Dutch city of Rotterdam. The boat was built at Oceanco’s facility in Alblasserdam, the Netherlands, and needed to pass the historic Koningshaven Bridge, known as “De Hef,” in Rotterdam, to undergo testing in the North Sea.

When the city announced it would dismantle the bridge to allow the boat and its mainmast — an estimated 230 feet tall — to pass through unscathed, locals were angry. They planned a protest to throw eggs at the yacht as it cruised by. In the end, the bridge was not taken apart, and the yacht was towed to a different location to have its masts attached.

Koru is Maori for “coil” or “loop” and refers to the unfurling of a fern frond. The koru design is common in traditional Maori art, where it symbolizes new life, growth and peace. Mr. Bezos included a photo of a koru frond in an Instagram post on Jan. 1, 2022.

Brad Stone, who was the first to report on Koru, in his 2021 book “Amazon Unbound: Jeff Bezos and the Invention of a Global Empire,” said the name was “consistent with where we see him today.”

“He is no longer this single-minded tech guy,” Mr. Stone said. “He’s in media and Hollywood and has a new relationship.”

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Jeff Bezos' rumored $500 million yacht has finally made its maiden voyage

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A $500 million yacht believed to belong to Jeff Bezos has been delivered to the Amazon founder.

The 417-foot vessel, the largest sailing yacht in the world, recently made its maiden voyage to Gibraltar, according to Boat International.

It previously stirred controversy for nearly dismantling a historic bridge for it to pass.

A $500 million megayacht believed to be commissioned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has finally completed construction and made its maiden voyage.

The vessel, called Koru, left facilities owned by Dutch shipmaker Oceanco on Thursday and traveled to Gibraltar, according to yachting publication Boat International . At 417 feet long, the boat is believed to be the largest sailing yacht in the world.

It began sea trials  — a series of tests that mark one of the last phases of construction — in February.

The ship's construction hit a few snags over the over the past year. Last year, Oceanco, requested that a historic bridge in Rotterdam be dismantled because the yacht's three masts were too tall to pass under the bridge, despite its 131-foot clearance.

The 100-year-old Koningshaven Bridge, known to locals as "De Hef," was renovated in 2017, at which point the city vowed not to take it apart again, according to Dutch broadcaster Rijnmond .

The request sparked public outcry, prompting more than 1,000 residents to threaten to throw eggs at the yacht if the bridge ended up being dismantled. Oceanco later nixed its request , and the yacht was towed under cover of night to another shipyard, without its masts, which were installed later.

Read the original article on Business Insider

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Jeff Bezos $500 Million Dollar Yacht

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The founder and executive chairman of the well-known corporation Amazon , Jeff Bezos, recently made headlines by investing about $500 million in a new yacht. Controversy surrounds this insane build of the world’s largest sailing yacht, which will necessitate the removal of a historic bridge in order to move it. Let’s take a closer look at all of the features of this incredible yacht, as well as the current transportation scenario.

(Source: Forbes)

The SuperYacht

There are three other well-known tech millionaires who are commissioning boats, but they are not as huge as the one Bezos is building. Many say this is another opportunity for these well-padded men, Google co-founder Sergey Brin, Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, and new People magazine owner Barry Diller, to show off and one-up one other. Needless to say, the scale of these yachts is amazing, and you will be astounded by everything that has been intended to be on board.

Y721 Overview

Once completed, this boat will be known as the world’s largest sailing super-yacht.

Owner: Amazon founder Jeff Bezos Cost:  $500 million Features:  Three deck levels, a swimming pool, a helicopter landing pad on the tender, and a kinetic-propulsion system. Length:  417 feet Speed:  20 knots Passengers:  40 crew, 18 guests Running costs:  $25 million a year www.nypost.com

(Source: BOAT International)

Transportation Dilemma

Many local citizens in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, are outraged by the necessity to dismantle their historic bridge in order to transfer Bezos’ yacht. As a result of their rage, one person has organized a Facebook event to hurl rotten eggs at his super-yacht in retribution. Over 20,000 people have indicated that they would attend the event via rsvp. There isn’t another option for Amazon’s founder to relocate his ship, unfortunately. As a result, we sincerely hope he finds a way through this coming stumbling block. We are eager to see how the sailing super-yacht will appear after the sails have been attached.

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The unspoken rules about how to behave on a superyacht

• The superyachting world is very small, with only 5,800 yachts longer than 30 meters at sea.
• That insularity has bred a specific etiquette, which is often hard for outsiders to know about.
• These are the de facto rules of the most expensive billionaire toys, superyachts .

For the owners of superyachts , privacy is often the most valuable thing money can buy. It's one reason centimillionaires and billionaires pay eight or nine figures for a palace at sea, far from the prying eyes of land dwellers.

Even the most gossipy crew members should stay tight-lipped about the name of a former owner or charter guest, and many brokers shy away from answering benign questions.

That means that, aside from basic safety guidelines, most of the rules of superyachting are unwritten. The very few who need to know them — there are only about 5,800 yachts longer than 30 meters at sea, according to SuperYacht Times — already know them.

But if you do happen to be a lucky guest at a party on a billionaire's $500 million ship or find yourself included in a $1 million-a-week vacation, there are a few things you need to know.

After four days of touring superyachts that sell for as much as $75 million and chatting with the people who buy, sell, and work on them at the Palm Beach International Boat Show , Business Insider gleaned a few key edicts. Given the discreet nature of the industry, almost all the people we spoke with requested anonymity to protect their working relationships, but here's what they had to say.

Take off your shoes

While it's a basic rule for anyone in boating, it may come as a surprise to an outsider that no matter how rich you are or how expensive your heels are, in the vast majority of cases, you can't wear shoes on board.

It's partly for safety — you don't want anyone slipping on a wet deck — but partly to keep the yacht clean. So expect to see barefoot billionaires, and if you forgot to get a pedicure, bring a set of special boat shoes.

Don't make any assumptions about money — but know the signs

In the superyacht world, it's safe to assume almost everyone you meet is very, very rich, and many brokers and builders say you can't judge a book by its cover when it comes to prospective clients.

"It has nothing to do with how they're dressed," one broker told BI. "It's the biggest mistake you can make because a complete slobby-looking guy or couple could be a multibillionaire."

There are, however, a few clues. Watches are one; new footwear is another.

"Rich people always have new shoes," a superyacht expert said. But because of the shoe rule mentioned above, this tip probably applies only when they're on land.

Book your massage early

Wellness areas, including spa rooms with a massage bed or two and a professional-grade facial machine, are becoming must-haves on superyachts . Most have a customized spa menu and a crew member who doubles as a trained masseuse or beautician — and they're usually in high demand.

One captain said he'd implemented a booking system to ensure people weren't fighting for the same spots. A broker said sometimes masseuses would be so busy they wouldn't leave the small spa cabin for hours on end.

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So if you want to make the most of your relaxing time on board, reserve your pampering slot as soon as you get your welcome cocktail.

Pirates are more real than you'd think, and many superyachts have hidden safe rooms

While you might dress up as a fake pirate for an onboard theme party, there are very real ones — and other dangers — on the high seas.

In certain areas, including parts of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden, pirates are a cause of concern . In the Red Sea, owners are concerned about the Houthis .

Superyachts can come equipped with sonic weaponry, lockdown systems, and anti-drone protection. Builders are even designing safe rooms — which are apparently just as plush as the rest of the ship.

The longer the boat, the closer to $1 billion

While you can't judge a buyer based on appearances, you can judge them on the length of their boat.

One rule of thumb: If someone has a brand-new 50-meter vessel, chances are they have $1 billion to their name. If it's over 100 meters, expect the owner to have at least $2 billion. And for a boat bigger than that — like Jeff Bezos' 127-meter megayacht Koru — it takes many, many billions.

Money can't buy you everything

The world's biggest, most expensive yachts are custom-built by shipyards that produce only a handful of boats a year.

But no matter how many tens of millions of dollars clients are spending, there are things to which builders will refuse to say yes.

"In the end, the boat has our name," an executive from one of the world's biggest shipyards told BI.

They recalled a client who requested a yellow hull to match his Lamborghini . The shipyard declined, steering the client in another direction.

"If I don't like it, I don't build it. I finalize two or three contracts a year," another builder said. "If somebody can say your vessel is ugly, my reputation is bad."

Yacht crews are trained to make the impossible possible. A guest requests fresh caviar flown into the middle of the Caribbean? No problem. Fresh flowers every day while at sea? It'll cost you, but it can be done.

But they can't time travel, and captains and crew members say the thing that causes the most friction is when a client or owner wants to go from point A to point B — right now.

"The hardest request is when they want the boat in a place — yesterday," one captain said.

The best person to know? A friend with a superyacht

Superyachts are expensive to build and expensive to maintain . According to the industry standard, owning a superyacht will cost 10% of its new-build price annually. For a $100 million yacht, that's at least $10 million yearly going to crew, regular maintenance, insurance, fuel, and dockage.

Chartering, too, is costly . Beyond the list price, which can be hundreds of thousands a week, guests must pay for provisions, which are pegged at 35% of the charter fee, and are expected to tip between 10% and 20%.

So the most important unspoken rule of superyachting is actually that the only thing better than owning a superyacht is knowing someone else who does — and invites you along, of course.

Watch: Why it costs $1 million a day to run one of the world's biggest cruise ships

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Braving the China Sea in a thrifted yacht and motley crew, all in the name of sustainability

K orean artist Song Ho-jun's yacht sailed 18 days to get to Hong Kong to participate in this year's Rolex China Sea Race that kicked off on March 27. Song's team of eight sailors - Team Random () - was the first Korean team to compete in the race. The team was sponsored by Bungaejangter, Korea's online secondhand trading app. [BUNGAEJANGTER]

HONG KONG — On April 19, 2013, Korean artist Song Ho-jun, 45, launched a homemade $500 satellite into space at the international space launch site in Kazakhstan, becoming the world's first individual to do so. Though he doesn't know what ended up happening to his satellite OpenSat, whether it's still drifting in orbit or burnt to a crisp, Song said his main objective in the first place was “to show the world that there's someone who actually brings an idea into action no matter how foolish they may seem.”

Eleven years later, on March 27, Song set sail on a new adventure, competing in this year's Rolex China Sea Race 2024  in Hong Kong with his own boat, again becoming the first Korean to do so.

The race, with a 62-year history, is known for being one of the most tactical and challenging offshore races, attracting many of the world's best sailors and yachts to Hong Kong.

The race is hosted by the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club and sponsored by Rolex. Since obtaining the qualification to compete in this category 1 race — meaning long distance and offshore sailing where your yacht must be completely self-sufficient and able to withstand storms and serious emergencies — doesn't come easy, it was a surprise for Song and even the organizers themselves that the Korean team and Song's modest-looking yacht would have a chance. But the artist wanted to challenge the prejudice and show that he can make what others called a "crazy idea” into a reality.

Even Song's seven other crew members, who competed in the race as Team Random (), said they half doubted that they would be able to finish the race. For one, the yacht that Song purchased secondhand in 2021 was not meant for racing — it was one of those so-called furniture class yachts that people often purchase for leisure after retirement.

And more than half of the crew members in Team Random () were not professional sailors: Song only took up sailing as a hobby several years ago, Choe Sang-back is a music producer, Timothee Franco is a French photographer living in Korea, Kim Tae-ho used to work for a fintech company up until joining Song on this journey and Cho Byoung-chan dreams of sailing around the world, but is busy making ends meet by teaching scuba diving. Kwon Tae-woo and Kim Young-ho are the two oldest members in the crew who are most experienced. But Kim said his wife told him “half seriously and half-jokingly” to sign a divorce paper if he wants to go on this race after hearing how challenging and dangerous it can be for amateurs. 

But that did not stop Song and he managed to pursuade his team. Song's motivation for entering the race was largely to get across the same message as before, but this time with an added value: sustainability.

On the day of the race, sailors of the other 20 boats looked all set, donned in their team uniforms, leisurely taking monumental photographs and being interviewed by different media. However, as newcomers to the race, Team Random () seemed to be on pins and needles, jumping around here and there and busy doing last minute safety checks on their yacht that Song described as "a Hyundai Elentra parked next to Ferraris and Porches — not that I'm looking down on the Korean automobile.”

"What I mean is that my yacht, compared to all the others competing in the race, is a slower one,” Song said.

"It'll be great if Team Random () wins the race, but that's not the whole reason we are here,” he added as he hoisted a sail with the logo of his sponsor, Bungaejangter, one of the country's largest online secondhand trading apps.

Korean artist Song Ho-jun sells many of his preowned things on Bungaejanter to come up with money to buy himself a yacht. [BUNGAEJANGTER]

To come up with the money to buy the yacht, he launched the “Song Ho-jun Yacht Project” on Bungaejangter, also known as Bunjang. On the platform, he put many of the collections that he had accumulated at his studio up for sale, including tools and equipment he had purchased to make the DIY satellite over a decade ago. He managed to earn around 41 million won ($30,340) by giving new life to his stuff that was doing nothing more than collecting dust, then got a loan from the bank to cover the rest of the sum to purchase the yacht for a little over 100 million won.

Witnessing what this eccentric artist was doing on her platform, Choi Jae-wha, CEO of Bungaejangter, thought there was no better way to actively show their support for sustainable consumption, which her company has advocated for since day one, than by backing Song.

“People continue to find new tastes and develop new interests every now and then. But it’s impossible for us to purchase new things whenever we go through that process,” Choi said.  

“Sustainability has become a buzzword on all fronts, and consumption should also be sustainable. ‘To make consumption sustainable by giving second life to everything; waste nothing for the planet and your lifestyle’ — we take this very seriously, and this was a great opportunity to speak about it out loud through Song, especially when he’s in a race of one of the most sustainable sports.”

For the Rolex China Sea Race, yachts have to sail from Hong Kong’s Victoria Harbor, across the South China Sea to Subic Bay in the Philippines, for a total of 565 nautical miles — without a motor.

Clockwise from left, Choe Sang-back, Cho Byoung-chan, Kim Young-ho, Seo Kyoung-seok, Kwon Tae-woo, Timothee Franco, Kim Tae-ho and the yacht's skipper Song Ho-jun. Team Random () pose for a photograph after arriving at the Philippines’ Subic Bay on April 2. [BUNGAEJANGTER]

Team Random () reached the Philippines’ Subic Bay on their seventh day of sailing, just as they had anticipated. Having witnessed three teams drop out before or during the race, Song said it’s “a miracle that [his] team successfully and safely ended the race.”

“We experienced a number of moments where we got cold feet, like when a sail ripped right after we departed and the one we replaced it with ripped again about halfway into the race, water backing up from the sink and flooding the boat, as well as issues with the rudder. But we managed to overcome all those obstacles and finish the race. I just can’t believe it,” Song told the Korea JoongAng Daily on April 2, right after reaching the finishing point.

Though the race is over, Song says it only signals the start of his grand project.

“Most of the teams that participated in the race this year said they all felt the climate was abnormal,” Song said. "Many of them compete in this race regularly, and they said it was especially unusual this year. The race gets held around this time because April is a windy month. But we hardly had any wind and it was unusually warm. This was global warming. We were able to experience it, witness it and document it on tape.” 

Crew member Seo Kyoung-seok is a documentary producer with expertise in filming in the wild.

Song's DIY satellite [BUNGAEJANGTER]

Song said it was similar to how his satellite launch was not done for the purpose of sending back information about space or to give GPS signals. "In fact, it didn't have any purpose,” he said. 

"I just put my idea into action, and the fun part of it is witnessing how new discussions get generated from it.”

That is why participating in the race with Bungaejangter, according to Song, was more meaningful, as the company strives to raise awareness about sustainable consumption.  

"Making consumption sustainable” is written across Song's yacht, which is a catchphrase of Bungaejangter. Song said he wasn't too keen of it when he was first putting the phrase across his yacht, but it's now engraved in his and all the other sailors’ hearts.

"As we witnessed all the plastic waste pollution in the ocean, we got to think about all the things we buy and throw away thoughtlessly just because they're cheap. It was us who ruined the ocean, and it was us who hastened global warming,” Song said. "Many of the participating teams also raised concerns about the fate of the race.”

Will Team Random () participate in the race next year?  

“Definitely,” he said. “But first, I'll have to log into Bunjang and probably sell this yacht along with some more of my preowned stuff so I can come back with a faster racing yacht.”

BY YIM SEUNG-HYE [[email protected]]

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Jeff Bezos drops $90 million on Billionaire Bunker estate — and his neighbor is Tom Brady

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Jeff Bezos has scooped up a third property on Miami’s elite Indian Creek Island for a staggering $90 million.

The Amazon founder purchased the waterside mansion in the ritzy neighborhood, nicknamed “Billionaire Bunker,” in an off-market transaction, Bloomberg reported Tuesday.

The resort-style manor features a plush yard overlooking the twinkling ocean with several manicured gardens, a large driveway perfect for the billionaire’s many luxury cars and a beautiful swimming pool and guesthouse.

Insiders told The Post that Bezos intends to live in the home while completing the demolition of his two other island abodes.

Bezos purchased his new manse for an exorbitantly high price, with records obtained by The Post indicating that it last sold for just $2.5 million in 1998.

The inflated fee signals how desirable the area has become.

But sources in the know claimed Bezos’ move to snap up yet another property on the exclusive 300-acre island with just 41 residential homes could rub some of his neighbors the wrong way.

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“This is the hottest spot in the country right now. If there is one thing wealthy elites want, it is a slice of exclusivity,” a real estate source familiar with the area told The Post.

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“Property on the island is already scarce, so there is no doubt that Bezos making off-market deals will rile up a few who have been eyeing homes there.”

Indian Creek is already home to several A-listers, including Tom Brady , Carl Icahn and Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump .

The tech titan previously purchased his other two neighboring Indian Creek residences for $147 million.

Bezos owns several other lavish properties outside of the Sunshine State, including homes in Washington, Maui and a Beverly Hills mansion he acquired for $165 million in 2020.

He also purchased a $500 million mega-yacht that he and fiancée Lauren Sánchez have sailed on numerous occasions.

Bezos popped the question with a 20-carat ring  said to be worth an estimated whopping $2.5 million while aboard the 417-foot vessel  in May 2023 during the couple’s romantic trip to the South of France for the Cannes Film Festival.

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Billionaire known for high-interest loans to car buyers with poor credit is chairman of the insurance group that underwrote Trump’s $175 million bond

  Donald Trump  posted a $175 million bond on Monday in his New York civil fraud case, halting collection of the more than $454 million he owes and preventing the state from seizing his assets to satisfy the debt while  he appeals , according to a court filing.

A New York appellate court had given the former president 10 days to put up the money after a panel of judges agreed last month to slash the amount needed to stop the clock on enforcement.

The bond Trump is posting with the court now is essentially a placeholder, meant to guarantee payment if the judgment is upheld. If that happens, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee will have to pay the state the whole sum, which grows with daily interest.

If Trump wins, he won’t have to pay the state anything and will get back the money he has put up now.

“As promised, President Trump has posted bond. He looks forward to vindicating his rights on appeal and overturning this unjust verdict,” said one of Trump’s lawyers, Alina Habba.

Until the appeals court intervened to lower the required bond, New York Attorney General Letitia James had been poised to initiate efforts to collect the judgment, possibly by seizing some of Trump’s marquee properties. James, a Democrat, brought the lawsuit on the state’s behalf. Her office declined to comment Monday.

The court ruled after Trump’s lawyers complained it was “a practical impossibility” to get an underwriter to sign off on a bond for the $454 million, plus interest, that he owes.

The company that underwrote the bond is Knight Specialty Insurance, which is part of the Knight Insurance Group. The chairman of that company, billionaire Don Hankey, told The Associated Press that both cash and bond were used as collateral for Trump’s appellate bond.

“This is what we do at Knight Insurance, and we’re happy to do this for anyone who needs a bond,” said Hankey, who is best known in the business world for making high-risk, high-interest loans to car buyers with flawed credit histories. Hankey told the AP he has never met or spoken with Trump.

Trump is fighting to overturn  a judge’s Feb. 16 finding  that he  lied about his wealth  as he fostered the real estate empire that launched him to stardom and the presidency. The trial focused on how Trump’s assets were valued on financial statements that went to bankers and insurers to get loans and deals.

Trump denies any wrongdoing, saying the statements actually  lowballed his fortune , came with disclaimers and  weren’t taken at face value  by the institutions that lent to or insured him.

The state courts’ Appellate Division has said it would hear arguments in September. A specific date has not been set. If the schedule holds, it will fall in the final weeks of the presidential race.

Under New York law, filing an appeal generally doesn’t hold off enforcement of a judgment. But there’s an automatic pause — in legalese, a stay — if the person or entity obtains a bond guaranteeing payment of what’s owed.

Courts sometimes grant exceptions and lower the amount required for a stay, as in Trump’s case.

Trump’s lawyers had told the appeals court more than 30 bonding companies were unwilling to take a mix of cash and real estate as collateral for a $454 million-plus bond. Underwriters insisted on only cash, stocks or other liquid assets, the attorneys said.

They said most bonding companies require collateral covering 120% of the amount owed.

Trump recently claimed to have almost a half-billion dollars in cash — along with billions of dollars worth of real estate and other assets — but said he wanted to have some cash available for his presidential run.

Recent legal debts have taken a sizable chunk out of Trump’s cash reserves.

In addition to the $175 million he had to put up in the New York case, Trump has posted a bond and cash worth more than $97 million to cover money he owes to writer E. Jean Carroll while he appeals verdicts in a pair of federal civil trials. Juries found that he sexually assaulted her in the 1990s and defamed her when she went public with the allegation in 2019. He denies all the allegations.

In February, Trump  paid the $392,638 in legal fees a judge ordered him to cover for The New York Times  and three reporters after he unsuccessfully sued them over a Pulitzer Prize-winning 2018 story about his family’s wealth and tax practices.

In March, a British court  ordered Trump to pay to pay legal fees of 300,000 pounds  ($382,000) to a company he unsuccessfully sued over the so-called Steele dossier that contained salacious allegations about him. Trump said those claims were false.

Trump could eventually generate cash by selling some of the  nearly 60% of stock  he owns in his newly public social media company, Trump Media & Technology Group — but that would be a longer-term play. Trump’s stake could be worth billions of dollars, but a “lock-up” provision prevents insiders like him from selling their shares for six months.

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