Yachting November 2018

FRIENDS AND Yachting READERS OFTEN ASK ME, “What boat should I get?” I always answer, but I never answer that question. (Not even for family.) Instead, I suggest that people make a list of how they will use their boat and what features they’d like to have on board. A boat is a personal choice. It’s an emotional choice. It’s your choice, not mine. ¶ I was reminded of this while walking the quay at the Cannes Yachting Festival, where I saw two commercial fishermen mending a net behind their modest, mid-20-foot fish boat. They were oblivious to the billion-plus-dollar spectacle surrounding their home port. They talked, they hummed, they worked. All with a smile while they prepared for their next day on the water. They had their perfect boat.…

IN 1920, U.S. LAWMAKERS DECIDED a yacht was a vessel with a volume no greater than 300 gross tons. Anything more, and the vessel had to register commercially — and adhere to standards more befitting a tugboat than a pleasure craft. ¶ Ever since, precious few superyacht owners have flown “Old Glory.” A handful pursued Acts of Congress to get the flag for their yachts, but the general rule remained. ¶ That changed in August, with a new law designed to bring U.S. code in line with modern yacht construction and use, much as Britain’s LY3 code does there. ¶ “It’s really exciting,” U.S. Superyacht Association President Kitty McGowan said in September, adding that she’d received five calls in a single week from owners wanting to fly the U.S. flag.…

01. LITHE LADIES’ LEGS That’s how the designer describes the background of this backgammon set (about $7,500), with the legs amid palm fronds and bougainvillea. 02. SEMIPRECIOUS PLAYING PIECES Turquoise, carnelian and brass are used to create the playing pieces. Calf leather and suede are the materials used in the dice shakers. 03. SANTOS ROSEWOOD BOX Sometimes called Bolivian rosewood, Santos rosewood gained in worldwide popularity after traditional rosewood became endangered.…

01. ZEELANDER Z55 Zeelander says this is its fastest build yet, with twin 1,000 hp Volvo Penta IPS350 engines that push her to a top speed of more than 42 knots. 02. VAN DER VALK 85 Christened Nicostasia, this is the fourth yacht in Van Der Valk’s raised pilothouse semicustom line. Guido de Groot did the design inside and out. 03. BAGLIETTO 48M T-LINE Built in steel and aluminum, this yacht has a Francesco Paszkowski exterior. She reportedly cruises at 12 knots and has a top-end of 16.…

DANIEL GOHSTAND got the idea in Guatemala. A documentary photographer, he’d been shooting images in what he calls a little town on the side of a volcano. To give back to the community, he strung up a 30-foot projection screen and put on a show. ¶ It was a windy night, and the screen billowed. The San Francisco native thought of boats. ¶ “The images took on this spiritual light,” he says. “It had a life of its own. And I thought that would be an amazing artistic accomplishment, if you could do this on sails.” ¶ In 2011, ImageSails was born. Today, the company prints high-resolution raster photographic art. It’s composed of individual pixels of color for a surprising level of image sharpness. ¶ Owners can send in their…

04. BURGER 48 CRUISER She’s built in aluminum and was developed in partnership with Vripack, a Dutch firm known for superyachts. Top speed is reportedly 35 knots. 05. PRESTIGE 590 Owners can choose a crew cabin or a tender garage on this flybridge yacht. Her range, according to the builder, is 260 nautical miles at a 23-knot cruise. 06. SILENT 55 Silent-Yachts says this solar-powered catamaran can run air conditioning and galley appliances at anchor without needing a generator.…