Sunday, December 22

Browsing: Cruising Life

The Outback 50, designed by Michael Peters, has been on the scene for five years and still, in our estimation, occupies a unique niche among performance cruisers. It is a truly a boat that embraces the outdoor lifestyle. The concept begins with what Outback calls the “Infinity deck” or the expansive after deck that is open on the sides but covered with a hard-top extension of the salon’s cabin top. The sheer line has a step down as it runs aft and the cabin top, enclosing the flybridge and upper lounge, has a pleasant curve, so the straight hardtop aft…

This is a story with a happy ending, but it certainly could have gone the other way had it not been for the bravery of 17-year-old Brady Procon. Procon was sitting on the porch of a rented cottage on the shore of New Hampshire’s Lake Winnipesauke when he heard his father yell out that there was a driverless, out-of-control motorboat speeding in circles in the no wake zone where children were swimming. The motorboat belonged to a local sailing club and in a freak accident one of the sailing dinghies tipped over next to the instructor’s motorboat. Its mast hit…

The capsized 121-foot mega yacht Love Bug was intentionally run into shallow waters near the Chesapeake Bay’s West River last week after it began taking on water. A witness on hand, Tim Hardman, who owns Tour Boat Annapolis, reported that he saw the yacht listing and as he got closer he could hear the high water alarms ringing. “As we tried to figure out what part of the boat we were looking at, we realized it slowly started to list and lean over to one side,” Hardman said. “I would say within four to five minutes the boat was consumed…

And now for something a little different, a family cruiser that intentionally goes slow. The Polish builder, Delphia, now owned by Groupe Beneteau, has been building lake and coastal cruisers for 30 years and they continue to embrace the notion that cruising should be serene, quiet and, yes, slow. Their 32-foot Delphia 10 has a displacement trawler-style hull that provides a lot of interior volume for living and sleeping spaces. The boat comes with a number of power packages, including an all-electric system, and with the beefiest diesel, a 110-horesepower Yanmar, it tops out a nine knots.  It’s most efficient…

This summer, Greenline Yachts announced the introduction of the new design for a 58 Coupe, based on the hull and accommodations of the successful 58 Fly.  The new boat has an air draft of 12 feet so it is ideal for inland cruising and exploring America’s Great Loop. Like all Greenline models, the 58 Coupe has three power options: twin diesels, twin electric hybrid engines and twin electric only motors. The boats are all equipped with large solar arrays and huge lithium battery banks. The new 58 Coupe takes the solar component to a new level by providing 120 kW/hs…

The Turkish builder Numarine, which is celebrating its 22nd year in business, will mark the occasion this summer with the launch of the new 30XP Expedition Yacht.  In keeping with the times, the 30XP is the first boat made by the builder with optional diesel-electric hybrid propulsion. Known for their angular and voluminous yachts, Numarine has carved out a nice as a leader in long range cruising in self-sufficient boats. The 30XP, designed by Can Yalman, may be the most exotically angular of all his designs. Note the almost vertical bow that is high enough to meet the top of…

Wider Yachts, based near Venice, Italy, builds super yachts for owners who can and do drive super cars like Ferraris and Lamborghinis. So, when an owner asked them to build a 60-foot motorboat along the lines of a super car, Wider knew what to do. The WiLder 60 is the result, with the capital L added for emphasis. This all aluminum, sleek and distinctive yacht evokes the futuristic designs of super cars and combines that with the luxurious accommodation and appointments of  Wider’s super yachts. To be used primarily as a sporty day boat, the 60 has large lounging planforms…

The America’s Cup, the oldest continuous sporting event in the world, has always fostered development-class yacht design and racing. This year the teams from six nations will be competing in 75-foot foiling catamarans that regularly sail at 50 knots or more. So, what kind of support boat could keep up with the sailing monsters and do so with zero-carbon emissions? For the answer the team American Magic, representing the New York Yacht Club, turned to the Italian boat builder Bluegame who came up with an innovative design for a foiling power cat driven by a hydrogen fueled engine. The foiling…

Certain adventures seems to rise above the rest to take on iconic roles on American life. There is walking the Appalachian Trail or climbing Mt. Denali or biking across the country. All have been accomplished by a relatively few hearty souls yet many hanker to do something special like that in their lifetime. Cruising America’s Great loop is certainly one of those serious bucket list achievements. The 6,000 mile loop circles the eastern portion of the country via an interconnected series of waterways, rivers  and lakes that include the Intracoastal Waterway, the Erie Canal, the Great Lakes, the Mississippi River…

Here’s some good news. Hunt Yachts of Portsmouth, RI, has introduced the design for a new 56-footer in their Ocean series. The Hunt Associates design, with its patented Deep-V hull, includes all of the classic qualities that have made Hunt Yachts renown for their superb seakeeping abilities in all weather, high cruising speeds and elegant fit and finish. The 56 joins the Ocean 63, 68 and 76. The 56, which is in the final stages of the design process, will be offered with either a flybridge or as a coupe. The flybridge model will have a hard top for protection…

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