GUNBOAT NEWS JANUARY 2013

ELVIS WINS KEY WEST RACE!

Fresh from a gorgeous refit, the GUNBOAT 62 ELVIS trounced the multihull division in the classic Ft Lauderdale to Key West Race.  She won her division by nearly three hours on corrected time, and was third across the finish line, led by only a grand prix maxi racing boat, and a stripped out carbon racing trimaran.  Congrats to ELVIS owner Jason Carroll and his crew that included US Moth Champ Anthony Kotoun.  ELVIS switches duties for Key West Race Week, and will serve as mother-ship and home to Jason's winning ARGO Melges 32 team.  Race winner... best mother-ship... world cruiser.  Gunboat versatility.  

 PIRATES, GALES, OH MY!  Moonwave's maiden offshore romp  

The gorgeous new Gunboat 60 MOONWAVE departed the yard on Christmas eve with her crew Stephane Fumat and Sophie Brehovsky and Gunboat founder Peter Johnstone and Francesca Grum aboard. The two couples enjoyed the 2000 mile passage from Xiamen to Singapore immensely. MOONWAVE was put through quite a test. "We had large, confused seas along the coast of China to Hong Kong. In some of the flatter waters near Hong Kong, we unleashed her a bit and saw 30.2 knots of boat-speed," enthused Captain Fumat. The new Nigel Irens' shapes effortlessly climb through the speed range with excellent manners. Further South, the winds and seas built to gale conditions. "We kept the small asymmetric flying until winds reached the mid 30's, then went to just a deeply reefed main when waves reached 20'+, started to break, and winds topped 45 knots. The centerboard system is brilliant because you can always adjust the balance of the boat with the boards. You simply cannot do that with a cat equipped with daggerboards. The deeply reefed main allowed us to go straight downwind with the wave train and perfectly balanced helm. Through much of the gale, we sailed at 12-18 knots in perfect comfort, enjoying gourmet sit-down meals. It is quite a contrast to my keelboat years, and the sail handling is so much easier than our earlier series. There is no need for staysails or cutter stays," revelled Johnstone, who saw a top daily mileage at close to 340 miles. He continued, "The new hull shape makes for a very dry ride. The forward doors were open the entire trip, and we only saw spray on deck twice." The rough weather contrasted to the near calms as MOONWAVE glided through the pirate infested Anambas Islands of Indonesia on the approach to Singapore. The all black sails are pretty intimidating. The Pirates either steered clear or could not keep up. "We sailed MOONWAVE right up to the final channel markers off of the Raffles Marina on the Western shore of Singapore," Johnstone concluded. For full details of the new GUNBOAT 60, contact meg@gunboat.com.
 

PAUL HAKES, RENOWNED BOAT BUILDER 

Paul Hakes, and his core team, have joined Hudson Yachts, the builder of the GUNBOAT 60 series. Paul has been named President of Hudson and overseas the GUNBOAT 60 series with project manager William Jelbert. Paul earned his enviable reputation building several of the top TP52's in his former Wellington NZ yard. He has brought along the SL33 catamaran series to be produced at Hudson. TEAM NZ has utilized these speedy carbon 33' cats for two-boat testing and to assist their AC72 design process. Paul's earliest multihull experience was aboard Steve Fossett's record setting PLAYSTATION, which he helped build. Paul and Mr. Hudson will visit the GUNBOAT USA yard in late January for a GUNBOAT world summit on continued development of best practices between the two GUNBOAT yards. GUNBOAT is very fortunate to have Paul and Mr. Hudson on its team. Welcome Paul! 

 

FIND YOUR HEART IN MIAMI 

GUNBOAT will be at the Miami International Boat Show from February 14-17. How about a steamy midwinter Valentine weekend in Miami? Restoke the fire with your someone special, and fall in love with the GUNBOAT that will be at the end of C dock at the Bayside Marina location of the show. PLEASE schedule your VIP time slot to avoid the 45 minute boarding lines! Contact meg@gunboat.com.

GUNBOAT 55....... One Design/World Cruiser!    

The GUNBOAT 55 series is going from strength to strength. Eight GUNBOAT 55's are now on order. The GUNBOAT USA yard is a bee-hive of activity. The first three GUNBOAT 55's are now molded and a new GUNBOAT 55 starts every month. The clean, simple, and versatile design is aimed at owner-operators who do not want crew and desire maximum world cruising comfort and performance from an easy to sail and maintain platform. Several owners have one design racing backgrounds and talk has begun of racing the GUNBOAT 55's one design in Caribbean regattas. Contact meg@gunboat.com for the latest on the Gunboat 55 series.
   

78 MOCKED UP! 

The gorgeously built, all carbon GUNBOAT 78 platform now has a nice interior mock up constructed for potential customers to come view her spaces. She was successfully hauled up our new ramp and is located in our special 78 project shed. Prospective customers are lining up their visits. The world's fastest world cruising cat is available for completion in early 2014. If purchased during the project preparation period, we can customize to suit your needs. Contact meg@gunboat.com to schedule your visit or to make inquiries about our 78 Series. 

 FAVORITES AT HEINEKEN    

Captain Harvey Jenkinson from the GUNBOAT 66 TIGER LILY reports that six GUNBOATs will sail as a GUNBOAT Class at the Heineken St Maarten Regatta this March. Each GUNBOAT will be weighed on digital load cells at Bobby's Superyacht Marina prior to racing. Pre-regatta favorite is ELVIS, the Gunboat 62 being owner-driven by Melges 32 ace Jason Carroll. ELVIS Captain Scott Bradford has lightened ship, added some new sails, and has ELVIS in the best condition in years. The brand new GUNBOAT 66 SLIM will be led by former ELVIS captain, Travis McGarry. Expect close racing, and a fun filled week. We love seeing our all-carbon world cruising cats demonstrate their versatility. The Heineken, as it is known, is one of the world's most fun regattas. Beautiful point to point races, gorgeous setting, huge beach parties, and a proven atmosphere of relaxed fun. Add a GUNBOAT class, and it is magical.

 NEW GUNBOAT BELTS & FACEBOOK  

 Meg Minetree reports that the new, extra wide GUNBOAT belts are in the store. These hot commodities are typically reserved for GUNBOAT owners, special crew, and VIPs. As keeper of the swag, Meg has generously offered belts to the next 10 Gunboat eNews readers who "Like" GUNBOAT on Facebook!  Use this link and follow our News Feed to learn if you're a winner of our coveted gear!



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