Transatlantic Passagemaking, via Solar Power

When sun21 arrived in Martinique’s harbor on February 2, 2007, she became the first motorized vessel to cross the Atlantic under solar power exclusively; her 52-day, 3,500-NM trip began at Porto Sherry in Chipiona, Spain. sun21 is the brainchild of Mark Wüst, a Swiss shipbuilder whose goal was to prove that solar-powered technology was capable of providing sufficient energy for passagemaking. After extensive research a ship was built, and its maiden voyage was along the Rhine River from Basel, Switzerland, to Rotterdam, Netherlands.

The 45-foot sun21’s solar power is collected via 48, 2'x5' photovoltaic panels on her roof that power twin 8-kW Lemco lightweight, low-voltage D.C. motors. During the 52-day trip, sun21 harvested 2,000-kWh of solar energy; the crew estimated that a similar-size and powered diesel yacht would’ve burned more than $4,700 of fuel during the same trip.

The sun21 is scheduled to arrive in New York City’s North Cove Marina on May 8th; stay tuned as PMY will certainly cover her arrival. For more information on the sun21, or to read the captain's log documenting the journey, go to the sun21 Web site.

Miami International Boat Show Attendees Party with Power & Motoryacht

The 2007 Miami International Boat Show proved the perfect place to select a new yacht—and to relax with the staff of Power & Motoryacht magazine. On February 17, Power & Motoryacht, along with Viking Yachts, Galati Yacht Sales, HMY Yacht Sales Florida, and real estate brokerage firm The Bentley Sales Group, brought some much needed leisure time to 600 guests.

Embrace Your Inner James Bond

Searching for a modern-looking tender for your megayacht or a one-of-a-kind dayboat? The slick, modern lines of the Fearless 28 is the result of a partnership between industrial- and product-design gurus Porsche Design and emerging boatbuilder Fearless Yachts. Her deep-V hull is built utilizing fiberglass sandwich construction techniques reinforced with carbon fiber. The 28 purportedly reaches speeds of more than 80 mph with her standard twin 525-hp Mercury gasoline stern drives. Care for more giddy-up? Ilmor Marine’s marinized version of the 550-hp powerplant that’s under the hood of the Dodge Viper are also available. The builder plans on expanding the line of Fearless Yachts with 44-, 68-, 125-, and 150-foot models over the next three years, with the 68 slated to premiere in 2008. The 68 will reportedly be equipped with standard twin 1,550-hp MTU 10V 2000 diesels mated to Rolls-Royce KaMeWa waterjets.

Roman Abramovich: Yachtless?

Could it be true—could everyone's favorite Russian yacht owner soon have a smaller fleet? If a report from Reuters is true, then yes. Roman Abramovich is said to be giving up one of his precious floating palaces to his soon-to-be-ex-wife Irina. There's no official word on which yacht she's getting, though the rumor mill is wondering whether it's the eighth-largest yacht in the world, Pelorus. Don't shed too many tears for Abramovich, though; he's said to be the owner of the 500-odd-footer code-named Eclipse presently under construction at Blohm + Voss in Germany. (You can read all about the speculation over that project here.)

Marlow Yachts' New 86-footer

Scheduled to debut sometime later this year is the largest offering from Marlow Yachts’ Explorer line, the 86 Cockpit Motor Yacht. Marlow had previously delivered an 82-foot model that combined long-range capability—PMY's test on the 82 produced a 2,599-NM range at 10 knots—with an extended cockpit for sportfishing enthusiasts. Like all of its models, the 86CMY is being built at Marlow’s Norsemen Shipyard in Xiamen, China; the facility has earned a Green Environmental Award from the International Superyacht Society. The 86 will utilize the same cutting-edge methods as the rest of the Marlows, including: Nidacore honeycomb interior bulkheads, Kevlar- and carbon fiber-reinforced hulls, and Core-Cell foam coring. She will be powered by standard twin 835-mhp Caterpillar C15 diesel inboards. For more details, contact Marlow Yachts.

Hail Heesen

In January Netherlands-based Heesen Yachts launched its 133rd vessel to date: the 164-foot trideck Galactica. It's the second yacht built for the same owner, features an aluminum hull and superstructure, and an interior designed by Omega Architects.

Galactica's also said to be a solid performer: She reportedly tops out at around 26 knots.

Costa Rica

I had always known Costa Rica for its outstanding fishing, especially out of Los Suenos Resort and Marina. in Playa Herradura, but there is so much more to do here. During a lay day fishing in the Los Suenos Signature Series, I had the opportunity to fly across the rainforest's treetops on a canopy tour. If you like high-altitude, high-speed fun, you have to try it.

And yes, that's me in the picture.

In a Blue Mood

These beautiful (or should I say blue-tiful?) shots are of the 110-foot charter yacht Island Time, which was just fitted with underwater lights from OceanLED. To be specific, she features 33 of the company's Super Blue lights, which work to great effect. The owners of Island Time (who also happen to crew her) can now do what lots of other boaters do with underwater lights: marvel over the masses of fish that'll be attracted at night, or simply set a cool mood.

Crew in Cyberspace

It seems our friend over at the Superyacht Chef blog isn't the only crewmember who's typing away in cyberspace these days. A deckie onboard Polar Star (formerly Northern Star) has a great blog going as well. If you've ever wondered what a crewmember's workday is like, check out this post from today:

"A typical day for me on the boat would begin at 6am, when the 4 or 5 of us deckhands would have to chamois (read: "shammy") down the boat from front-to-back, top-to-bottom. Being a 63m/208ft boat with five levels, this can take at least an hour-and-a-half! Then there's all cushion covers that have to come off (there's 90,000-euros worth of outside cushions that are covered every night, and EVERY time it rains), the guests' food stains on the deck that have to be removed, and the glass that has to be spotless. Then it's a very welcome breakfast break. The rest of the day is taken up with runs to and from shore for the guests, and perhaps various water-sports activities like diving, wake-boarding, jet-skiing etc. Each one of these of course involves fresh water rinsing and cleaning afterwards. And, this being winter in the Caribbean, it's likely to rain once every couple hours, in which case there'll be a frantic "Covers! Covers!" call over our radios (our own personal 'ball-and-chain'), meaning we all drop what we're doing and try and cover up all the cushions. Then we'll have to chamois the boat again - that damned rain leaves water marks everywhere. Tsk tsk! (It's ironic that on an 80-million-dollar boat, water is our biggest enemy)."

We'll never view rain droplets the same way again.

Time for Us = Time for You?

We just got word this morning that Time for Us, the 153-footer under construction at Burger Boat Company, is available for sale. We've been chronicling the build process in the pages of PMY over the past few months (see here and here), so this is your chance to step into a custom yacht with only about a year to go before launch; that's about as short a wait as you can get.

To inspect Hull 503, as she's known at the yard, call your favorite broker or Burger at (920) 684-1600.

Bahamas Bound?

I just got back from a few days in the Bahamas where the wahoo bite was still going strong. Several boats saw some double-digit action. A few yellowfin tuna were also being picked up. I even met up with a crew that managed to raise a blue marlin. With temperatures in the area on the rise, the billfish bite should pick up over the next several weeks. If you're in the South Florida area, West End, Bahamas, is only a 56-mile hop across the Stream from West Palm Beach. It's time to rig up and go.

Azimut's S Range Flagship To Premiere at Dubai

This weekend at the XV International Dubai Boat Show, Italian builder Azimut Yachts will launch the newest and largest model in its Open S Range: the 103S. Like the 43-,62-,68-,and 86-foot models in the S Range, the 103S is a Stefano Righini design with an interior by Carlo Galeazzi. She is the first model in the S Range to be equipped with a flying bridge. Preliminary reports are incomplete, but power is said to be provided by twin 2,434-hp MAN V16 2000 M93 diesels coupled to Rolls Royce KaMeWa waterjets.


PMY European editor Alan Harper will be covering the 103S for an upcoming issue, so keep reading. Look for a review of the 43S in PMY's May 2007 issue by yours truly.

Express Cruiser

Adventure seekers, listen up: England-based XSMG Marine has released a 48-footer that reportedly gets speeds in excess of 90 mph, thanks to a pair of 800-bhp Isotta Fraschini engines. The prototype, dubbed No Boundaries, features a Fabio Buzzi hull design and will undergo a series of world-record attempts this year. How 'bout that for a tender?! Stay tuned for more info.

West Bay's Back

Despite rumors to the contrary when the yard emerged from bankruptcy protection last July, West Bay SonShip is still in business.

Last August, for example, the British Columbia yard opened a division for refit and repair work. Called West Bay Marine Services, it includes a 4,500-square-foot covered floating service bay and 250-ton marine ways, all for boats 40 to 100 feet. And in new-construction news, West Bay is beginning work on a 54-foot raised-pilothouse motoryacht with twin 715-hp Volvo Pentas and two staterooms; completion is expected this summer. West Bay also has a five-stateroom 110 cockpit motoryacht under construction, for completion next year. Both yachts are for sale; further details are available on West Bay's Web site.

Marine Techies Jam for a Cause

Navionics rocked the opening of the 2007 Miami Boat Show with its NAVAID charity concert. After the success of the 2006 concert, where proceeds went to the Red Cross and Hurricane Wilma victims, the electronic charting company decided to again gather together with other marine electronics companies to co-sponsor NAVAID 2. Musical performances were given by employees from Raymarine, Furuno, FW Murphy, and, of course, Navionics. The president of Navionics, Giuseppe Carnevali, even got up to sing. Other sponsors included Northstar, Fugawi, Lowrance, and Humminbird.

All in all the concert raised $8,200 for the American Cancer Society and the Ian McWilliam Saints Fund, an organization created to help the family of the Raymarine sales manager who passed away last year. Kudos to the marine electronics industry for working together to benefit a good cause.