The View from the Helm

An excellent view forward.

Just look at the quality of work available from this small Maine boatbuilder.

A truly classic small boat.

The West family launched their Mark Fitzgerald designed Buzzards Bay cruiser in July.

Adagio was launched on July 18 in New Zealand.  She looks wonderful and floats perfectly on her lines.

New Morning leaving her mother’s womb.  She looks wonderful and we all- builder, designer and owners, are proud of our new creation.

Here’s New Morning all shined up and ready to sit in her new element.

When you build a custom boat as owner you get to choose everything, including the colors. Tim and Chris West got into it in a serious way as their York 32 neared completion. A month ago the starboard side looked like a checkerboard with vertical stripes of topside, boottop and bottom paint colors stretching from transom to amidships. Then when the decision was nearly made the idea came up- can’t we have a custom color for our bottom paint too? Nobody could think of a reason why not so the color you see here- sort of a muted aquamarine green- was chosen. I love it myself but this is a blog- let’s see some emotion out there in the blogosphere!

One of the great things about being a yacht designer is the vicarious pleasure you get from watching other folks’ dreams become reality.  It’s always a big day when the first coat of paint goes on.  Here’s NEW MORNING the day after her deck was sprayed.  We think she is the ultimate expression of the fast offshore cruiser.  Her owners have spared no effort to make her the best mid fifty- foot shorthanded cruiser ever developed.  I visited the boatyard this morning and a swarm of workers were putting the pre-finished interior components into place.  We hope that she will be launched by late May for her owners to spend the summer trying her out in Maine waters before setting off to see the world.

New Zealand is a special place to build yachts. In many ways it’s similar to another small island nation whose maritime history gives its citizens a special affinity for ships and the sea. It’s just located halfway around the world from that tiny rock whence Captain Cook sailed in 1768 to search for the legendary Great Southern Continent, but rediscovered New Zealand instead. The kiwis combine a “can do” attitude with a first world infrastructure and love of sport- especially sailing, and their best boatbuilders are the equal of anything Holland or Italy or England or the good ole USA has to offer.

I first travelled to Kiwiland in 1983 for that year’s “Yacht Vision” world design conference. It was an eye- opener. Since then we have built four yachts there- two sail and two power ranging from 63 to 80 feet in length, all in welded aluminium construction. Oh, and let’s not forget my little gem in cold molded wood, the “Redwing 10 1/2”, a scaled down Herreshoff 12 1/2 that will grace the boat deck of Adagio. I’ll be in N.Z. in early June to sea trial Adagio and Redwing, if you’d like to join me.