Project: Pershing GTX80

The show flows on, and following the launch of the GTX116 this 2023 year, the Pershing GTX range enters its second phase with the project for a smaller GTX80 announced during the Dusseldorf boat show and set to launch in 2024.  These are some of the first renderings for the smaller GTX, the grand tourer crossover by Pershing. The GTX80 unlike all previous Pershing since the brand was founded, features an important departure as it is the first model not designed by Fulvio de Simoni, with Vallicelli being given design duties.  For his first Pershing Vallicelli presented a profile which is sportier leaner and symmetric, unlike the bigger 35 meter which is a more adventurous looking and features an asymmetric design with a side deck to port side and full-width to starboard.  Long time Pershing fans might also notice the GTX80 semi-circle side profile coach roof window design which echoes that of the integrated windscreen the brand and Fulvio de Simoni introduced in 1991 with the 70.  Another different feature of the GTX80 to that of the larger sister will also be the opening drop down bulk-heads aft which double the size of the beach club bathing area.  The Pershing GTX80 will offer a four double guest cabin eight berths layout, with a crew cabin sleeping two located to starboard in between the engine room and cabin area.  The main deck of the GTX80 layout is an open astern galley to port side, a relax chaise lounge with low table opposite, an American dinner sofa forward, and central two-seats helm station, with port and starboard doors which lead to the fore deck.  The Pershing GTX80 also has a sport-flying-bridge leading you up with a stair-way to starboard, and a layout with a central sun-pad, dinette and helm station.  The fore-deck also features an entertainment dining relaxing area with dinette and a sun-pad further forward.  The Pershing GTX80 comes with a host of options from dark to light mood finishing inside, to the choice to offer a dining table in replacement to the chaise lounge to starboard, the fourth cabin replaced by a lower L-shaped dinette, and the optional T-top serving the flying bridge.  The Pershing GTX80 is to be powered by triple Volvo 1000hp with IPS pod drives, and so far no other engine options are known, although the official press release for the model is not yet out.  

www.pershing-yacht.com

Hurricane Otis Goes Apocalyptic in Acapulco

Hurricane Otis made an apocalyptic arrival in Acapulco on Wednesday 25 October, devastating the waterfront of the Acapulco Yacht Club in the North-West of the bay.  Otis was a compact and so far the most powerful Tropical storm category five hurricane of the 2023 Pacific Season reaching speeds up to 143 knots on the morning of October 25. Forming on the 22nd November, and reaching its peak on the 04:00 hours of October 25, Otis hit and made landfall in Isla de la Roqueta, to the South of Acapulco, killing 49 people, with 57 still missing, and is estimated to have made seventeen billion US dollars in damages.     

Scene from the North part of the of Acapulco Yacht Club, you can see an Azimut 54, and a Sunseeker Predator 63 Open to the left corner, along with a few Sea Rays.

Here is the South side is a Ferretti 800, followed by a Sunseeker Predator 57, a mid nineties Horizon Elegance 82, and an Azimut 100 Jumbo.

A before and after Hurricane Otis view of Acapulco Bay.  Possibly one of the biggest single areas destructions, and devastations ever seen.

New Model: Galeon 450 HTC

Galeon presents the new 450 HTC, the hard top coupe variant of the second generation 440 Fly model which debuted in early 2022.  That means the 450 HTC is hard top coupe with a fully enclosed patio door main deck, with a sunroof which opens for a third of the coach roof length to let sun and fresh air in.  Beside sportier leaner looks and an opening hard-top replacing the flybridge the 450 HTC is nearly identical to the 440 Fly, full of Galeon fourth generation features like the hexagonal bow shape, and latest in transformational drop down bulk heads which extend cockpit space by another forty per cent aft.  Beside the transformative features the Galeon still surprises for its spaces, offering three different lower deck layouts, from the standard two master and forward VIP cabins layout, to two different three cabin layouts. One of the three cabins layouts moves the master cabin forward and offers two nearly identical sized guest cabins at midships with double berth to starboard, while the third optional layout keeps the layout of the two cabin and offers a third cabin with two bunks berths to starboard and eats away some space from the fore cabin with the bed resting to starboard side from the central position of the two cabins layout.  The Galeon 450 HTS is to be powered by twin Volvo 480hp engines with line shaft V-drive propulsion for top speeds of about 27 knots.    

Technical Data:

LOA - 13.97 m (45.8ft)

Hull Length - 12.5 m

Beam - 4.2 m

Draft - 0.83 m ex drives and propellers

Displacement - 15701 kg light, +3005 kg loaded

Fuel Capacity - 2 x 850 l

Water Capacity - 255 + 170 l

Max Persons - fourteen

Accommodation - four berths in two cabins, or six berths in three cabins

Engines - 2 x Volvo D6 480hp

Propulsion - line shaft in V-drive

Speed - 27 knots max speeds 24 cruise, 

Project - Tony Castro

Certification - CE B

www.galeon.pl

Project: Cruisers 55 Fly

Cruisers present the project for a 55 Fly set to debut before the first half of 2024, and the first in a three model flybridge range, with a second model set to arrive in 2025.  Designed by Luiz Debasto, the Cruisers 55 Fly replaces the 2017 launched 54 Fly model which came from a Facheris design and was based on the 54 Cantius.  The 55 Fly is the first totally new Cruisers range to come from the since April 2022 ownership of MarineMax, which is also North America's largest boat dealership and a distributor to both European made Azimut and Galeon yachts.  With Luiz Debasto presenting a head to toe Euro-designed offer from an American brand ever, it will be interesting how the Cruisers 55 Fly and the following models will affect the dealership of these brands.  With a length overall just shy of seventeen meters Cruisers is saying the 55 Fly will offer a three cabin layout, with rendering showing a full beam midships owners stateroom and an astern galley main deck.  Another feature of the 55 Fly will be a drop down bulwark to port side, which is not really a new feature for Cruisers, who offers this in its sporty 38 to fifty feet GLS models, but never in the eleven to eighteen meters Cantius yacht series.  The Cruisers 55 Fly is to be powered by twin Volvo 725hp engines with IPS pod drives propulsion.    

www.cruisersyachts.com

Hurricane Norma 2023

Norma is the ninth hurricane of the Pacific 2023 season.  Forming from a low pressure appearing on the fifteen October to the Southern Coast of Mexico, which on the seventeen became a Tropical storm, and becoming a Hurricane the morning after of the eighteen. For the next 24 hours Norma will increase speeds from sixty to 112 knots becoming a category four Hurricane and causing chaos in the Southern Western Coast of Mexico.  Norma started to weaken on October 20, but made a second round of seventy knots winds on the 21st doing damage to the West-North-West of Cabo San Lucas, with a third round on the 23rd at Sinaloa near El Dorado.  After this Norma became a remnant low pressure.  

Hurricane Norma has caused major damage to La Paz and Marina Cortez to the East of Baja California Sur, with about fifty boats reported lost or damaged.  Above is a photo screen from one of the videos circulating on social media showing the damage to La Paz marina.  This video showed a few catamarans and sail yachts sank, with the above motor yacht looking like a Hampton 490 Pilothouse semi-sank, and other motor yachts showing damage to the bathing platforms and hull sides.  

A video on YouTube by Your Saltwater Guide also showed a Cantieri di Pisa Akhir 30 S which was taken aground by the storms surge power.

While Alan Flores Ramos on Twitter showed the 2021 Ferretti Custom Line Navetta 33, hull #16 m/y Ricacha mostly sank vertically with its port side anchor out.  It is reported on some sources that Ricacha sought refuge in La Paz only for it to sustain damage in a collision and then sink.  The crew were rescued, with an operation to salvage Ricacha being underway.

New Model: Dominator Midi Ilumen M35

The smaller Ilumen series has been coming for three years from Dominator, with the first announcement for a mini-sized tender at about seven meters coming in 2020.  In 2022 Dominator announced a slightly larger Midi Ilumen, at over ten meters in length is under construction, and finally the M35 has debuted the past Summer 2023.  A request from a customer who owns a Dominator Ilumen 28M, the Midi Ilumen M35 is a scaled 40% smaller of the bigger super yacht version in both looks and size.  A day cruiser and boat with an exterior layout offering two sun-pads aft with a central passageway which one step down leads you to cockpit with two L-shaped settees, and a wet-bar. The lower deck in the Midi Ilumen M35 offers a V-shaped dinette forward which transforms to a double berth, with a small galley to entrance and well sized shower head opposite to starboard.  In the Midi Ilumen the style versus practicality is a recurring theme, but the M35 has practical details in its own way.  One of the things to like is for example the deep central cockpit wrapped around by the super yacht looking windscreen and radar arch.  The Dominator Midi Ilumen M35 hull one is powered by twin Volvo 300hp diesels for a top speeds up to 37 knots, and a 25 cruise giving an important 350 nautical miles range. 

Technical Data:

LOA - 10.5 m (34.9ft)

Beam - 3.20 m

Draft - 

Displacement - 8.5 t

Fuel Capacity - 

Max Persons - twelve 

Accommodation - two berths

Engines - 2 x Volvo D4 300hp, V8 430hp petrol gas

Propulsion - Volvo DPI dual propeller stern drives

Speed - 37 knots max 25 cruise with twin diesel 300hp, 45 knots estimated with 430hp petrol

Range - 350 nautical miles at 25 knots

www.dominatoryachts.com

Sea Ray Sport Cruiser Beached in Southbourne Beach

A seven meter Sea Ray sport cruiser titled m/y Bone Idle with one person onboard ended beached on the sands of Fisherman's Walk, Southbourne Beach in Bournemouth, Britain South coast on 13:20 of Monday 23rd October.  Bone Idle is reported to have jammed one of its propellers with its own anchor chain as this exited out whilst in navigation that same morning, and then incapacitating the sport cruiser and ultimately ending beached. The one person onboard was not injured with Southbourne Coast Guard rescue team inspecting the vessel, and this planned to be removed on the following day. 

M/y Bone Idle is a second generation Sea Ray 240 Sundancer as produced from 1996 to 1999.  The second generation 240 was a replacement to the Sea Ray 230 Sundancer, and evolved into the third generation 240 which featured a wide body cockpit for more space.

Sunseeker Sport Yacht Runs Aground in Pijavica, Croatia

A 28 meter Sunseeker sport yacht titled Code, with a captain and two crew ran aground in the islet of Pijavica, near Trogir Bay in Croatia at 06:35 morning hours of Monday 23rd October.  No one was injured in the grounding with Telegram news reporting that the captain of Code deliberately ran the yacht aground in order to save her from sinking. During the preliminary inspection by Split harbour master, Code is reported to have its hull fully resting on the island cliff, and carrying just over 3,000 liters fuel, and as precaution was surrounded with floating dams by the Voluntary Fire Company of Kastela.   

M/y Code is a 2009 Sunseeker Predator 92 Sport as designed by Don Shead and produced from 2008 till 2010 in ten units.  The Predator 92 Sport was replacement by the slightly shorter Predator 84.

Project: VanDutch 75

VanDutch present the project for a new 75 flagship model, which will expand the size of the Italian, Pardo owned brand since 2020 by just one foot short of twenty feet from the current 56 flagship. Designed by Mulder, who is also responsible for naval architecture the 75 is an evolution of the 70 project which VanDutch announced back in 2014.  The Van Dutch 75 is to be available in standard three or optional two large double cabins layout.  In both layouts a galley and dinette is located in between the cabins.  In the optional two suites layout, the master stateroom is full beam midships.  A crew cabin is located in between the cabins area and the engine room.  The exterior of the VanDutch 75 will offer a large central sun-pad, followed by a central C-shaped settee, while a step up will lead you to two C-shaped dinettes with the one to port side also offering a mezzanine settee looking aft.  A helm station is to port side, with an L-shaped wet bar located opposite.  The VanDutch 75 as has been the range from its founding in 2009 is to be a classic open yacht, with clean uncluttered lines and a bow which echoes the early twentieth century fast commuters, as used by the super rich to move around the bays of New York. The VanDutch 75 is offered with an optional light open hard-top as pictured above or the standard full open version.  The VanDutch 75 is standard powered by triple Volvo 800hp engines with IPS pod drives, which can go up to the optional 1000hp units.  Speed estimates are for a max of forty knots.

www.vandutch.com

Ghost Motor Yacht Ends Aground in Fregenae Beach

This starts as a ghost thriller, when an eighteen meter motor yacht titled Carpe Diem under French flag and without crew, ended aground in-front of Controvento, on the sands of Fregenae beach, to the outskirts of Rome on the Eastern water-front at about 16:00 hours of Sunday 22nd October.  At the grounding the crew-less yacht gathered a group of curious persons, with a first under-water inspection coming from the Centrovento establishment staff, and then later in the afternoon followed by that of the Police.  Finding some clothes and a confused messy interior, with a fishing rod at the stern, and following the yacht registration the Italian police found that Carpe Diem was previously owned by a Croatian who sold it in 2022, to the current ownership.  Later on in the evening the thriller was partly solved with the investigation telling that the yacht was navigating to Marseille with three Croatian crew, when it developed a mechanical problem seventy nautical miles offshore from Anzio on the fifteen of October.  Calling a May-Day also due to the rough seas, the three crew abandoned the yacht with assistance and boarding on the Excelsior ferry, who dropped them in Genova harbour.  Following further investigations by the Rome Coast Guard and of receipts found onboard it was also discovered the itinerary for the yacht before it was abandoned, berthing in Lecce, and Marina di Camerota harbours.  The coast guard is now organizing the removal of the yacht from Fregenae beach to avoid any environment and pollution damage.

Carpe Diem the yacht in this grounding is a 1999 Guy Couach 185 Fly from 1999 as produced from 1996 to 2000.  The 185 Fly was a replacement to the  Guy Couach 1901, and was replaced by the 1900.