New Model: Cantiere Delle Marche Explorer 40.22

Cantiere delle Marche is glad to announce that Explorer 40.22, titled by her owners Crowbridge, a 42-metre ocean-going super yacht designed by Tommaso Spadolini, has been successfully launched.  Explorer 40.22 is a full custom explorer super yacht, another example of CdM’s ingenious approach to yachting. Her clean and well-defined lines are undoubtedly those of a pure expedition vessel besides being cohesive to CdM’s tradition. She encompasses all qualities that define a top-class explorer yacht designed to handle all weather conditions thanks to a very efficient, sea-kindly and sea-worthy hull form. Safety and comfort of guests and crew are key points of her design. High-end equipment in a large and well laid out engine room designed for ease of service by crew is another important feature of Explorer 40.22.  Throughout the design and building process the owner availed himself of a team of technical consultants that usually work with him.  

Technical Data:

LOA - 42 m (137.7ft)

Waterline Length - 39 m

Beam - 8.50 m

Draft - 2.60 m

Displacement - 400 t

Fuel Capacity - 60000 l

Water Capacity - 8000 l

Accommodation - fourteen guest berths in seven cabins, seven crew in eight cabins 

Engines - 2 x Cats C32 Acert 1300hp

Propulsion - line shaft with ZF gearboxes

Speed - 14 knots max 

Hull Shape - displacement hull with round bilge and bulb bow

Project - Tommaso Spadolini exterior, Sergio Cutolo Hydrotec for hull shape 

www.cantieredellemarche.it

Project: AB Yachts AB 80

AB Yachts present the new AB 80 project, a 24 meter super sport yacht designed by Gruppo Fipa together with Acube Design from Tuscany, a rather new design firm founded by Alessio Benassini and Alessio Merciadri in 2014.  The AB 80 captures important stylistic theme of the Italian boat builder, see curved fins on top of the hard top, and sea water jets propulsion as all AB Yachts models from 50 up to 145 produced thus far.  The AB 80 will feature an accommodation layout of four double guest cabins, with space for two crew in a cabin.  As the choice of jet propulsion makes one understand, performance and power have been always very important themes to AB Yachts, and the AB 80 hull one which is under going final sea trials and delivery tests as this post is out, fits in line with the high standards the Viareggio sport yacht builder is known for. Powered by triple Man 2000hp with MJP water jets hull one of the AB 80 has reached top speeds up to 59 knots, which is five knots more then the estimated 55 knots from calculated simulations.  Impressive to say the least!

www.abyachts.com

Bertram Moppie Lost to Fire Outside Porto Rotondo

A Bertram 28 Moppie was lost to fire outside of Porto Rotondo, in the North East of Sardinia in the morning of sixth August 2020. The boat was reported going out of the famous Sardinia Esmeralda coast marina when the Bertram day cruiser started fuming white smoke, which in about two minutes turned into black and engulfed the whole boat.  No injuries where reported in the fire, but the boat as the picture above is totalled.

The 28 became Bertram's best seller over the years selling over 2200 boats, for a production which started in 1971 and lasted till 95.  The 28 was the Bertram's which changed designer duties, with David Napier taking over from Ray Hunt and designing all the range from there onward.  The Moppie was the day cruiser version of the 28 featured a large cockpit and a small cuddy cabin interior.  This particular 28 Moppie which was lost to fire was powered by twin Mercruiser carburettor petrol gas engines.

Hurricane Isaias Damage in Southport, North Carolina

Isaias is the second hurricane of the 2020 Atlantic season and caused damage to the North East Coast of the USA, most of which in the Carolina's.  Reaching a Category One rating occasionally of winds around eighty knots, Isaias first appeared in July 28 and on August three it reached the East Coast of the USA.  While for a Hurricane Category one is the weaker rating, Isaias side affects as accompanying tornado's and the storm surge caused more damaged then expected in some areas. Isaias has killed five people, and caused the above damage to the Southport marina, in North Carolina on fourth August.  More similar damage was also caused to the East, at the nearby located Southarbour marina.  The damage is huge in both the marinas with a lots of boats being squeezed to each other, while a nineteen meter motor yacht is reported sinking.  No persons where injured in both of the boats mash up.  Isaias is now weakened to a Tropical storm and on the morning of fifth August was in the South East coast of Canada.  Hurricanes tend to lose power and transform to a tropical storm the more they go up North as the sea gets colder, with warm seas being a a huge catalyst to increase its power.    

New Model: Grand Banks GB54

Grand Banks continues its bold foray into redefining the future of efficient long-range cruising with the release of the GB54, the second addition to the new Grand Banks family series. This beautifully designed luxury yacht comes in both flybridge and enclosed skylounge configurations, with either upper or lower galley layout options that accommodate four to five people overnight. The GB54 has a highly efficient cruise speed of 25 knots, making her a true performer.  The focus of the Grand Banks 54 was to produce a yacht that is incredibly practical, and easily handled by owner/operators even if caught short-handed. Making full use her beam, the cockpit and salon areas are wide open, airy and perfect for both relaxing and entertaining. Signature large electric windows side and aft of the salon open the spaces further to fresh breezes and near 360 degree sight lines throughout the boat. We have designed the layouts of the yacht to offer flexibility without compromising practicality or usability. Available in your choice of two or three stateroom layouts, the accommodations are only a few steps down from the single-level entertaining spaces, making maneuvering around the vessel effortless. he Grand Banks 54’s versatile design is a culmination of lessons learned from designing and building the GB60 along with the rest of the range over decades of production.  The Grand Banks 54 is constructed using the latest methods of vacuum infusion to achieve strength and weight control, and carbon fiber for reduced weight and stiffness.  Pairing seamlessly with her advanced construction is the remarkable craftsmanship and attention to detail found throughout the entire yacht. The Grand Banks marque is known for the fine timber joinery, and this is carried through every facet of the boat from the bulkheads and fixed furniture that is fused and bonded to both the deck and hull, to the highly engineered and finished engine room. Beauty and quality is not just skin deep. The most impressive feature of the new Grand Banks 54 is her soft quiet ride quality. Through the fused nature of the bulkheads a semi-monocoque torsion box is achieved result a stiff underway and free from any rattles or creaking. The rest of the ride is largely thanks to the combination of an efficient and high-performance hull shape, and the careful balancing both longitudinally and vertically, of the large-mass components. The engines are mounted amidships along with our full-beam baffled fuel tank to keep the weight low and centered. The deck and superstructure are all infused carbon fiber to minimize weight aloft, resulting in a naturally low center of gravity. The new hull form is an advanced warped semi-displacement shape that is a designed inspired by ocean taming sail racing yachts, where efficiency and performance is paramount. Having more in common with a naval destroyer than a full-displacement heavy deep-v, the fine entry of the stem splits the waves, while the soft shoulder of the midsection rolls the water away and eliminates hull slapping. The hull presents some gorgeous tumble-home above, then continues to warp beneath the waterline into a relatively flat aft section with 8 degrees of deadrise. This provides incredible form stability at all speeds and rest, and results in an astonishingly subtle wake that further demonstrates the efficiency of the design. Careful attention was paid to the lines of the new Grand Banks range, ensuring proportions were maintained and equal weights were given to both form and function. One of the areas this can be appreciated most is in the bridge design, where the profile appears low, but the space is both voluminous and expansive. The bridge is accessed via a teak stairway from the cockpit, which houses the 10′ outboard-mounted tender on a custom cradle, with a davit for easy launching and retrieval. The bridge helm further improves navigational sight lines from the already well-appointed lower helm and is complimented by twin Stidd captains chairs to your spec, and can be outfitted with your chosen navigational equipment.

Technical Data:

LOA - 18.1 m (59.5ft)

Hull Length - 16.4 m

Beam - 5.34 m

Draft - 1.22 m with shafts, 0.95 with IPS pod drives

Displacement - 21500 kg dry

Fuel Capacity - 3400 l

Water Capacity 1100 l

Accommodation - four berths in two cabins, five berths in three cabines

Engines - 2 x Volvo D11 725hp, D11 625hp *IPS pod drive

Propulsion - line shaft, or Volvo forward looking dual propeller IPS pod drives

Speed - 25 knots cruise, 10 knots long range cruise

Hull Shape - warped semi-displacement with flat Vee eight degrees deadrise aft

Construction - vacuum resin infusion with carbon fiber inserts and Vinilester Epoxy resins

www.grandbanks.com

Mochi On the Rocks in Porto Rotondo

On the morning of third August a Mochi 44 Dolphin ended on the rocks in the Marinella gulf, to the South of Porto Rotondo, in the popular North East Costa Smeralda cruising area of Sardinia.  This accident seems a strange one as rumours are reporting that this particular Mochi traditional cruiser is resident at Porto Rotondo and native of the area. No one was reported injured in the accident and salvage operations as the photo shows where in operation on the same morning.

The Mochi 44 Dolphin started production in 2005 and is at today still available by the popular Italian boat builder, which since 2001 is part of the Ferretti Group.  Designed by Zuccon with hull by Brunello Acampora of Victory design, the 44 Dolphin is inspired with a Mediterranean twist to the traditional Down East lobster boats of the Maine area, famous for the seaworthy hulls, flared bows, and low standing stern.  The Mochi 44 Dolphin offers two cabins with five berths, and is powered by Volvo 575hp engines which give speeds up to 32 knots.

Aicon Yacht Sinks in Isola di Cavallo

An Aicon 72 SL sport yacht titled motor yacht Regis with Italian flag sank outside of Isola di Cavallo, an island on the South East coast of Corsica, the late morning of third August,  The sport yacht hit one of the submerged unmarked reefs in the area close to Cala Zerri, while running a charter with eleven people a captain and a crew onboard. The area between Cavallo and Levezzi is famous for unmarked semi submerged reefs.  Regis hit a reef outside of Cala Zerri with the propeller and P-bracket which pierced a hole in the aft part in the hull of the 22 meter Aicon Sport Yacht which started to take on water and sink.  The sport yacht sank in eighteen meters though it was still partly floating, with the stern touching the bottom of the sea and tip of the bow showing as of late afternoon of the same day.  The eleven passengers crew and captain onboard are all reported safe with no injuries.

The Aicon 72 S was produced from 2005 till 2012 and was part of the expansion of the Sicilian, Messina region located boat builder, which had great success in the early first decade of the second millennium, up until the 2009 global recession.  In 2001 Aicon presented itself with the Fulvio de Simoni designed 56, a model it delivered in over one hundred units up until 2009, and was a catalyst for more models, expansion and growth.  The Aicon 72 S had a fully enclosed hard-top, with living on the main deck and three cabins, or optional SL four guest cabins layout version.  Power came from standard twin Cats 1320hp or optional 1550hp engines with line shaft propulsion, and top speeds of  35 knots and 38 knots respectively.  After going bankrupt in 2012 Aicon has in 2018 been bought by an American investor and has started production for a new 66 model set to launch late in 2020.

Project: Cranchi Sessantasette

After launching the much awaited new Settantotto flagship Cranchi pushes its development for further designs, enters the new Sessantasette, set to debut in the second part of 2021 boat show season.  As with many builders a new flagship brings fresh ideas and styles, which enrich the range further down, and the Sessantasette takes a lot from the early 2020 debuted 23 meter flagship with Christian Grande taking design duties co-assisted with Cranchi research and design team.  I have followed Cranchi since mid eighties and each flagship they launched represented an evolution; from the balanced 40 Mediterranee of the end eighties, the 48 Atlantique of end nineties, the 50 Mediterranee, and the 64 HT of 2009.  The 67 family feeling with the Cranchi Settantotto is very strong. Having the same design team as the 78, the Sessantasette lines are emblematic and complement each other, they refer to the different elements of the profile. For example, between the curve of the stern hatch and the projecting part of the fly or between the cut of the windows and the break in the center of the wall.  With the knowledge of the Cranchi Settantotto, the new Sessantasette also derives its extraordinary technological equipment with the adoption of hi-tech materials as well as an innovative construction technique. The Sessantasette will thus offer the highest safety standards and the best solutions for stabilization, containment of consumption and emissions, noise reduction and home automation and entertainment systems.  Cranchi has not passed much details of the interior layout of Sessantasette but expect a similar solutions to those of the new flagship, as many motor yachts in twenty meters expect to have a four or three double cabins interior.  The Cranchi Sessantasette will be powered by twin Volvo 1000hp with forward IPS-1350 pod drives.

www.cranchi.it

Vanquish Runs Into Breakwater

A Vanquish sport cruiser of fourteen meters in length ran into a breakwater in the North East of the USA, in New York area on the evening of first August.  The sport cruiser is reported as totalled and reports are saying the Vanquish was running on Autopilot at the time of the accident.  If this was a malfunction or unattended navigation is still not known, though some entertaining rumours are floating on social media.

The Vanquish in the accident is a VQ48 model, a custom sport cruiser build to order of alloy and powered by twin 600hp or optional 800hp engines with Volvo IPS pod propulsion.  The VQ48 offers an open layout two berth cabin interior. Vanquish yachts is a Dutch company which started operating in 2012, and has seen incredible growth in recent years thanks to its futuristic looks and unique alloy custom construction in this size.  The VQ48 is currently Vanquish most popular model.

Unexpected Boom

With all that 2020 has been so far, one would have expected the boating market to be in the worse situation ever.  But with the opening of lock downs in around May, the opposite started to happen, and boating sales have been very strong since then.  In some countries it looks like we are back in 2004 with sales being very strong.  

Brokerage used boats have not been so strong since many years, and new boat sales and orders are strong with many high profile international names saying 2021 is sold out in most models.  Many marinas are also reporting that they have not been so busy in years, and the same goes for the fuel docks in the major Mediterranean areas.   

This is an unexpected turn of events, especially if you see that in the media many see 2020 as the year of a global economic depression.  So what has made boating whether the 2020 Covid year storm so far in the positive.

I think the reply is Social Distancing and how a boat gives the freedom and independence few other leisure activities can offer.  Let's be fair that when you are free from the mooring lines and start cruising, even if it is for a swim couple miles away, or for a cruise around some nice new localities hundred miles away the sense of freedom and own control a boat gives has no comparison to anything else.  
Boating and yachting has many attractions but possibly the strongest one is that of total liberty and control that no other activity can give.