Robertson and Caine New Web Site

Robertson and Caine presents its new web site.  Robertson and Caine was founded by John Robertson and Jerry Caine in 1991 at Cape Town, South Africa.  John Robertson entered boat building in 1977 and founded John Robertson Yachts in 1981 building mostly custom race sail boats, while Jerry Caine founded Caine Custom Yachts in 1990.  At first Robertson and Caine starts by building custom racing yachts debuting with a 36 foot mono-hull.  Two years after the founding two Robertson and Caine build yachts will impress the racing circuit; the carbon fibre 70 foot Simonis designed Broomstick which will win the 1993 Cape to Rio International Yacht Race, and the Fast42 Orion Express, which lead to the attention of interested parties.  One of those impressed was charter operator Moorings, who will ask the builders if they were interested in building yachts for charter, and is followed by competing operation Sunsail.  Robertson and Caine takes this challenge and in 1997 launches its first sailing catamaran the Leopard 45 as designed by the still responsible designer's Simonis Voogd. The 45 is followed by the Leopard 38 a year later.  In 2000 Robertson and Caine will debut the Leopard Yachts brand, as before this most models were operated and sold under the Moorings or Sunsail name.  In 2002 Robertson and Caine Leopard debuts into power catamarans with the 46 PC model produced for three years in twelve units.  This is followed by its replacement the 47 PC in 2006, and the 37 PC in 2008.  In April 2025 Robertson and Caine delivered its three thousandth yacht, these delivered in nine power catamaran, and seventeen sailing catamarans from 38 to 62 foot in 28 years.  Robertson and Caine has also won 27 awards, the first coming in 1998, and four of these for the Power range. In 2000 Jerry Caine will leave to the other World following a motorcycle accident, with John Robertson managing the business alone.  Robertson and Caine will change ownership in 2015 sold to Capitalworks, and to Cypriot Vox Ventures a subsidiary of European investment firm PPF Group in 2023.  Currently Robertson and Caine produces six catamarans divided equally into the Sailing and Power ranges; with the range starting from the Leopard 40 PC, and going up to the Leopard 53 PC.  Robertson and Caine new web site takes you around with the following buttons; Home, Overview, Achievements, Manufacturing, News, Media, Careers, and Contact.   

www.robertsonandcaine.com

Production History and Ownership: *Power Catamarans only

Leopard 46 PC 2002-05 (12)

Leopard 47 PC 2006-12 (59)

Leopard 37 PC 2008-10 (10)

Leopard 39 PC 2011-14 (34)

Leopard 51 PC 2013-18 (137)

2015 Capitalworks ownership

Leopard 43 PC 2015-21 (135)

Leopard 53 PC 2019-

Leopard 46 PC (ii) 2021-

Leopard 40 PC 2022-

2023 Vox Ventures ownership

New Model: Admiral GA 72 m

A vision between Giorgio Armani resulted in this unique looking Admiral GA 72 m mega yacht, the first yacht totally conceived by Giorgio Armani, who oversaw both all aspects of exterior and interior design. Bringing Armani's unique vision and love for the sea to a 72 meter mega yacht. The GA 72m is more than the outcome of a partnership; it stands as the embodiment of Admiral’s custom and semi-custom philosophy. From Armani’s essential minimalism to the engineering rigour of The Italian Sea Group centro stile, every detail was conceived without compromise. This project affirms a principle that defines Admiral: to craft yachts as living ideas, unique in their genesis, uncompromised in execution, and impossible to replicate. The Admiral GA 72 m megayacht presents a strong architectural statement, where geometric volumes and sweeping curves combine to form a structure that is both dynamic and disciplined. Her sleek, satin-finished aluminium and polished steel details create a sophisticated play of light, while expansive, full-height windows seamlessly connect the luxurious interiors with the surrounding seascape. The interior designed by Armani/Casa, accommodates twelve guests in six suites and embody the refined vision of Giorgio Armani. A masterful blend of precious materials; black Marquinia, golden Calacatta marble, and Canaletto walnut, integrates with bespoke lighting and elegant furnishings to create an intimate, timeless, and sophisticated atmosphere. The result is a décor that balances a relaxed elegance with a precise, tailor-made attention to detail, reflecting a truly discreet luxury.

Technical Data:

LOA - 72 m (236.3ft)

Beam - 13 m

Draft - 3.44 m

Displacement - 2070gt *volume

Fuel Capacity - 209,000 l

Water Capacity - 54,000 l

Accommodation - twelve guests in six cabins, nineteen crew in eleven cabins

Engines - 2 x MTU 16V4000 M63 2638hp

Propulsion - line shaft

Speed - fifteen knots max, fourteen cruise, eleven knots long range

Range - six thousand nautical miles at eleven knots

Construction - steel hull, aluminium super structure

Project - Giorgio Armani and The Italian Sea Group exterior and interior

Certification - Lloyds Register ✠ 100A1 SSC Yacht, Mono, G6, ECO, Ice Class 1D[1C FS Hull]

www.admiral-yachts.com

Sportfish Yacht Collides into North Bay Village Bridge, Florida

A sportfish yacht of sixteen meters in length collided into the bridge at North Bay Village, in Florida, for a story shared on the Fast Response Marine Towing and Salvage Facebook page on Sunday thirty November.  The sportfish yacht is reported to have dragged anchored during the strong winds of the day, with the Police and Fast Response attending the scene.  The yacht was reported not attended as it collided stern to the bridge, and its transom getting stuck into it.  

The sportfish yacht in this collision is a first generation Ocean Yachts 55 Super Sport as produced from 1981 to 1990 in 170 units.  The 55 Super Sport was Ocean Yachts flagship when released, with the model replaced by the 58 Super Sport.

Project: Sunseeker 40M Superyacht

In recent times Sunseeker present the project for a forty meter super yacht at every important boat show, which does not materialize. The replacement for the 131 and 40 Metre Yacht, which together sold 32 hulls in a twelve years production run seems hard. After presenting two projects with the 135 Yacht at the Dusseldorf 2025 boat show, and a 133 Yacht project back in 2019 this time around Sunseeker present the 40M Superyacht project, bringing the partnership with Italian superyacht designer Francesco Paszkowski. The announcement was made during the Sunseeker press call at the Cannes Yachting Festival 2025, marking a significant moment in the brand’s continued evolution of yacht design and innovation. The collaboration brings together Sunseeker and renowned super yacht designer Paszkowski, celebrated globally for creating timeless and contemporary yachts of the highest calibre. Paszkowski is currently designing yachts for Baglietto where he started in 1994 and his name is now a trade very much connected to the 1854 founded today super yacht signature, and currently has design duties for Tankoa, and CDM.  Paszkowksi also won best Exterior Design at the World Superyacht Awards in 2009 with the Sanlorenzo 40 Alloy. The first Sunseeker partnership project is to be this new 40M Superyacht, with initial designs revealed. This highly anticipated superyacht will embody the shared vision of Sunseeker and Paszkowski, delivering a striking uniquely Sunseeker exterior profile and sophisticated interiors that balance elegance, performance, and comfort.  Among its standout features is a forward plunge pool that ingeniously transforms into a spacious seating area when drained, maximising versatility and entertainment space on board. 

www.sunseeker.com

Carlo 'Chicco' Abbate 1945 - 2025

Carlo 'Chicco' Abbate left for the better World on the morning of Sunday thirtieth November, after being recovered at the hospital of Gravedona following cardiac-heart problems.  Second son of Guido Abate, Carlo was born third August 1945 the middle brother of the more famous Abbate's Tullio and Bruno.  Carlo was the cautious one, and unlike his brothers, takes the role of the paternal figure in the Abbate boat building dynasty which originated in 1873, and became a power-boating power-house after World War II as father Guido started to win races and break speed records.  Chicco like his bigger and younger brothers will actually do some racing in his early years, to replace this with the management duty at the family's yard, and then help Bruno in founding and managing his boat yard.  Carlo will also be important to create and manage the Museo Barca Lariana; Lake Como's International Museum of Vintage Boats which was founded in 1982.  Carlo 'Chicco' Abbate will now join his brothers Tullio and Bruno, and is remembered by his wife Albertina, son Simone, sisters-in-law, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and his nephews; Marco Abbate who manages Bruno Abbate Primatist, and Tullio Abbate Junior who manages Tullio Abbate.

New Launch: Winter Custom Yachts 66 Express W-36

Winter Custom Yacht launch its 36th custom yacht, as they launch the 66 feet Express hull W-36, titled Iron Man.   With this launch Winter Custom Yachts launch its largest yacht to date, but also its largest express convertible as it goes one foot more to the 65 Express W-23 which was launched in 2017.  While all custom builders have express builds in their portfolio, Winter Custom Yachts seems to have specialized in the genre building a total of seventeen hulls from 29 to this 66 foot flagship.  Winter Custom Yachts W-36 features a triple cabin interior with a master cabin forward, and a living dining galley all on the main deck in classic sport-fish configuration, accept that it has a helm in a fully enclosed protected environment, be it rain or shine.  Winter Custom Yachts 66 Express is powered by twin Cats 2433hp engines for top speeds up to fifty knots.

Technical Data:

LOA - 20.11 m (66ft)

Beam - 

Displacement - 

Fuel Capacity - 6613 l

Accommodation - six berths in three cabins

Engines - 2 Cats C32B 2433hp

Propulsion - V-drive line shafts

Speed - fifty knots max

Construction - cold moulded, wood covered with epoxy and resins 

www.wintercustomyachts.com

Project: SAY Carbon Yachts 32

 

SAY announces the project for a new 32 entry level model.  The SAY 32 joins the portfolio as the most compact and versatile yacht in the SAY line-up, a replacement to the 29 E which debuted the brand in 2019.  The SAY 32 is expected to displace just 2.5 tonnes, showing again the brand’s signature carbon construction with a footprint that’s agile, lightweight, and even trailer-able.  Details of the SAY Carbon Yacht 32 are not much known, apart its weight and that it should arrive next year.  We do not know what the cabin space will be about, and engine propulsion options.

www.saycarbonyachts.com

Sport Cruiser Saved from Sinking Near Casco Township, Lake Michigan

 

Two boaters were rescued as an eleven meter sport cruiser titled Lavean started to take on water off the shore of the Casco Township Nature Preserve, South Haven on Lake Michigan, on the afternoon of Sunday twelve October.  South Haven Area Emergency Services responded to the call, and guided the US Coast Guard and Saugatuck Fire Department to rescue the boaters with a drone.  Following the boaters rescue, the rescuers also blocked the water entrance and towed the sport cruiser to a boat yard, and then dry-docked it.  No one was injured, with the cause of the vessel taking on water reported to be its starboard sterndrive.

The boat in this accident is a Cobalt 373 as produced from 2009 to 2014.  Announced as the 37, the 373 was Cobalt's second model in its cruiser and yacht line which debuted with the 47 model in 2008.

New Model: Hinckley Picnic Boat 39

Hinckley debuts its new Picnic Boat 39.  Their is a lot to say of the Hinckley Picnic Boat 39, what is down East lobster boat re-invented and catapulted into the future bringing with it bow-rider, dual-console boat features into the most exquisite of lines.  The forward seating redefines the Picnic Boat 39, and with it offers three separate but adjoined entertaining areas.  The foredeck also come with easy unparalleled access making mooring and docking effortless. Crafted with convenience in mind, a smart sliding window mechanism grants access to the foredeck, ensuring smooth transitions around the boat.  The Hinckley Picnic Boat 39 also does not forget its cabin, with an entrance by the helm station, this offers a double berth, and a shower head to starboard.  The Hinckley Picnic boat 39 is powered by twin Volvo 480hp with Hamilton water jets propulsion for top speeds up to 36 knots and a fast cruise up to 34.  The Picnic Boat 39 also comes with Hinckley's latest features, from its first generation JetStick4 joystick manoeuvring, which now features virtual anchor, and thanks to integrated dynamic steering uses fly-by-wire technology to communicate with military hardware.  The Picnic Boat 39 is also to be available with triple outboard set up, renamed as the 41 and able to reach speeds up to fifty knots with the three Mercury 400hp option. 

Technical Data:

LOA - 12.97 m (42.7ft)

Hull Length - 11.8 m

Beam - 3,93 m

Draft - 0.66 m

Displacement - 9525 kg

Fuel Capacity - 1135 l

Water Capacity - 151 l

Accommodation - two berths

Engines - 2 x Volvo D6 480hp

Propulsion - water jets Hamilton HJX27s

Speed - 36 knots max, 34 cruise

Hull Shape - deep Vee with 22 degrees deadrise

Construction - Scrimp DualGuard carbon E-glass with vinylester resin

www.hinckleyyachts.com

Center Console Power Catamarans Dominate Fort Lauderdale Boat Show

The 2025 Fort Lauderdale boat show, held at the end of October has seen the dominance of the power catamaran center console's grow more.  They started to appear more towards the end of the noughties looking in those times as a niche, but by the start of this decade, the power catamaran is eating sales from the mono hulls as much can do.  The reality is that at the moment, they cannot sell more to mono-hull center console, because the famous brands as Freeman, Invincible, TwinVee, Seahunter, and World Cat to name a few cannot build more.

Freeman has been the name which accelerated the center console power catamaran rise.  Founded by Billy Freeman it debuted the first Freeman 33 model in 2007.  From there on Freeman has just seen growth, and by the end of the twenty-tens had a super yacht waiting list for some of its models.  Seeing this success, others most notably center console builders, like Invincibile and Seahunter also jumped on the power-cat-center-console offer and have also seen success.

At Fort Lauderdale 2025 some fresh names also appeared as Kush from Columbia who debuted with a 37 foot model which was considered by some the center-console boat of the show.  Last but not least the custom Front Runner who produced its first catamaran model with the Cat 37 back in 2023, also debuted the very down east looking 43 HTX; an enclosed hard-top catamaran with full sport-fishing amenities aft, and a cabin arrangement inside with a queen size berth.  As catamarans go this was probably my favorite of the show, for being also an interesting all-around platform.

How are the mono-hulls names responding to the cat menace?  I think the strong mono-hull names are answering by adding more cabin spaces.  New models like the Grady White Express 340, the Tiara 39 LE, and the Pursuit S 388, bring a nice cruiser cabin space mix to that of a mid to soft-core sportfishing platform.