any negatives, and the bracket became, and
as wide as the 9'6" beam 25-foot Trophy Pro and
remains, popular with a segment of the fishing
Sailfish) meant that the Gulfstream had a real
population. In 1986 Grady-White branded its
big-boat feel and performance. It literally could
own system Grady Drive.
handle big water and offshore fishing just as well
Although it was not the first boat to be
as many much larger boats. Because of its 23-foot
equipped with a Grady Drive outboard bracket,
size and the fact that it was available with either a
the 9'3" beam amidships 232 Gulfstream,
single outboard (the 232G) or twins (the 232GT),
introduced in the 1987 model year, was the boat
this model gave dealers a lot of flexibility in
most clearly advantaged. (In the 1986 model year
pricing. And consumers loved the boat.
all Grady-White models, except the outboard-
From its introductory year in 1986, the 232
only 20-foot center console 20 Fisherman, were
Gulfstream was available with a head, comfortable
available with either OMC Sea Drive or the newly
seating and two bunks (one a fold-down), an
branded Grady Drive bracket.)
optional hardtop with rocket launcher rod
The added “boat length” provided by the
holders plus all the fishing capability of the
bracket combined with the wide body beam
Offshore Pro 24-footer and Grady-White’s other
(wider even than Grady’s 24-footers and nearly
hard-core fishboats. Bottom line, almost from
In 1986, Grady-White introduced the Grady Drive outboard bracket, allowing boater to not only re-power easily but also to use reliable outboard power instead of Sea Drives and get many of the same advantages offshore. This is the popular 232 Gulfstream. 73