On Watch with Peter Janssen

Outer Reef Introduces New 540 Adventure

By George Day on February 20, 2025 Cruising Life, On Watch With Peter Janssen, On Watch with Peter Janssen

This week Outer Reef Yachts announced the introduction of the new 540 Adventure. The new boat follows in the wake of the 780 Adventure that was introduced last summer. Like the bigger model, the new 54-footer will be built in The Netherlands. The new 540 was designed by the Dutch firm Bern Weel Design and carries the same purposeful, expedition styling as the 780. It will be built in fiberglass, with Divinicell coring above the waterline and in the deck and super structure. Powered by twin Volvo D8-600 engines with conventional straight shafts, the new boat will have a range…

La Dolce Vita Inspires the New Pardo Endurance 72

By George Day on February 13, 2025 On Watch with Peter Janssen

The Italian builder of futuristic day and cruising boats has launched the new Pardo Endurance 72 and it seems the concept from the start was to emphasize the good life, la dolce vita. Designed by BURDISSOCAPPONI Yachts & Design, the new Pardo exudes Italian styling just as does a Lamborghini or an Armani suit. It will premiere in the United States at the Palm Breach Boat show in March. For Americans, we either love this kind of modern styling or not. But there is little question that Pardo Yachts are distinctive, and their look is sexy, modern and, in a…

Hull Number One of New Helmsman 46 Trawler Hits the Water

By George Day on February 13, 2025 On Watch With Peter Janssen, On Watch with Peter Janssen

Helmsman Trawlers, based in Seattle, Washington, has built a reputation for designing and building true American-style trawlers for adventurous cruisers, cruisers who want the range to go far and wide and the seakeeping comfort of a semi-displacement trawler hull. Recently, Helmsman launched hull number one of their all new 46 and the new design, while very much bearing the builder’s family resemblance, is strikingly handsome, with a trim flying bridge and hard top, reversed raked windshields in the pilothouse and a sheer that really evokes a trawler heritage. Helmsman’s founder and CEO Scott Helker commented to me during a recent…

Locking Our Way through the French Canals

By George Day on February 13, 2025 On Watch with Peter Janssen

Donald and Marjorie Walker are the proud owners of a Broom 33, a Dutch-built cruise that is popular with those who enjoy exploring the canals of Europe. Planning to attend the annual Broom owner’s rendezvous in Naarden, The Netherlands, they chose to get there via the French canal network. Their journey, which involved passing through numerous locks every day, took them first through familiar canals and rivers where they had spent time in earlier cruises. Then, they ventured into routes that were new to them and often had fairly long distances between marinas. The canal and river system is comprised…

Discover Boating Miami International Boat Show Kicks Off Next Week

By George Day on February 6, 2025 On Watch With Peter Janssen, On Watch with Peter Janssen

From February 12 through the 16th, the Discover Boating Miami International Boat Show takes over the city of Miami and Miami Beach to create one of the world’s largest in-the-water boat shows. The show is produced by Informa Markets and owned by the National Marine Manufacturer’s Association and the International Yacht Broker’s Association. The show expects more than 100,000 people to attend over the course of four days. More than a thousand brands will be on display and attendees will have a chance to climb aboard and ogle over a thousand boats, both in the water and on dry land.…

Six New Launches of Note at BOOT Dusseldorf

By George Day on January 23, 2025 On Watch With Peter Janssen, On Watch with Peter Janssen

The world’s largest indoor boat and watersports show is running this week in Dusseldorf, Germany. The show occupies 16 large halls and there are more than 1,500 exhibitors displaying everything to do with boating and watersports. The show runs through January 26. One of the fun things about the show is you get to see some models and brands that aren’t often seen in U.S. shows. While there are dozens of new boats being introduced this week, here’s a quick look at six that caught our eye. Aquador 400HT The Swedish builder Nimbus has their new Aquador 40 hard top…

The Comms Revolution Continues: T-Mobile Links Phones to Starlink Satellites

By George Day on January 16, 2025 Cruising Life, On Watch With Peter Janssen, On Watch with Peter Janssen

On Tuesday of this week, cell-phone provider T-Mobile started beta testing its new satellite phone service in partnership with Starlink. At present the satellite phone service is only available through T-Moible and on certain Samsung smart phones. By providing a high-speed internet connection anywhere in the world at a reasonable cost, Starlink has already revolutionized communications from our boats. Being able to handle all internet chores while crossing large bodies of water, even oceans, or while swinging on the anchor is some remote paradise, we now can now take our shoreside life with us while cruising. This is both a…

Is 2025 the Year Electric Powerboats Go Mainstream?

By George Day on January 9, 2025 Boat Reviews, Cruising Life, On Watch With Peter Janssen, On Watch with Peter Janssen

Last fall, when the successful Finnish builder Axopar celebrated its 10th Anniversary at the Cannes boat show, it did so by introducing two new electric-powered runabouts. This is no small statement for a company that made its bones building incredibly fast and muscular outboard boats with an attitude. Now, they’re building boats that purr. The electronic wave is definitely upon us. Battery technology and thus range improves every year to the point that new brand Sialia boasts their new day-cruiser can run at 25 knots for up to 70 miles. That was unthinkable five years ago. Advanced batteries in combination…

Introducing the Innovative, New Makai 37 Power Cat

By George Day on December 19, 2024 Advertise, Annapolis Boat Show, Cruising Life, Ft Lauderdale Boat Show, Maintenance, Miami Boat Show, Newport Boat Show, On Watch With Peter Janssen, On Watch with Peter Janssen, Palm Beach Boat Show, Video of the Week

Power cats are intriguing for many reasons. They offer excellent stability, fine bow entries for a smooth ride, plenty of living space for a given length and high average cruising speeds with efficient fuel consumption. If that sound like a winning formula, the designers behind the new Makai 37, the ERYD Design Group, heard you. The 37, designed in Italy and built in Croatia, has the look of a modern sports car and the handling of a thoroughbred performance cruiser with all the benefits of catamaran design. The hulls developed for the 37 have what the designers call the Air-Glide…

Hinckley Yachts Adds Mercury Outboard Dealership to Stuart, Florida

By George Day on December 12, 2024 On Watch with Peter Janssen, On Watch With Peter Janssen

Hinckley Yachts, builders of the classic Downeast-style picnic boats, sport boats and Talaria Yachts, announced last week that the company had become a certified Mercury Marine outboard dealer. The dealership will be based in Hinckley’s large boatyard and marine facility in Stuart, Florida. The move to become a Mercury dealer underscore Hinckley’s commitment to providing top service to their outboard owners as well as to the wider market of discerning boat owners who make the Stuart facility their homebase for all marine sales, service and repairs. “As a company known for meticulous attention to detail and world-class service, becoming a…

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