ShowBoatS InternatIonal awardS 2007 - Northern Marine

Jeff Clarke 

17 th 

Annual 

Sh o w Bo a t S 

aw a r dS 

International 

2007 

The creation of a yacht is an ensemble performance, the 

culmination of efforts by many, from welders and electricians 

to stylists and designers and the numerous others whose skills 

bring to life an owner’s vision. The sophistication of the yachtbuilding 

industry has evolved to a point where in any given year we can 

see delivery of dozens of exceptional vessels, any of which can create 

genuine excitement among those of us who love the breed. 

For the editors of ShowBoats International, the task of selecting the 

best of the best for our annual awards becomes more arduous every 

year. This year was the toughest yet since we first presented these 

coveted honors 17 years ago. Debates raged at all hours by phone, by 

e-mail and face-to-face. In the end, we had to decide often on the best 

among peers. As always, a ShowBoats editor personally inspected each 

yacht that made the grade this year. 

The winners of this year’s ShowBoats International Awards are detailed 

in the pages that follow. Trophies will be presented to owners and builders 

June 21 at a gala ceremony during our annual rendezvous in Monaco. 

Please join us in congratulating the best of 2007. —the editors 

SHOWBOATS.COM | MOnTH/MOnTH | June/July 2007 71

Helios 2 

Best refit/ 

reConfiguration 

Sh o wBo a t S In t e r n at I o n a l aw a r d S 2007 

There are several ways to view a yacht refit, 

depending on the level of work done. It can be as simple 

as an update or upgrade, as extensive and complicated as a 

rebuild or as intimate and personal as a re-customization. 

Helios 2 fits more in the first category, but in such a way 

that the outcome is transformative. Launched 

in 2002 by Palmer Johnson as Anson Bell, the 

original was built by an owner who wanted the 

safest family yacht available. Her new owner, appreciating 

the comfort, safety and volume of the original, reshaped 

her into a yacht that better suits the charter market and his 

young family’s play needs. Toward that end, he added five 

feet to the transom and installed a new swim platform; he took out the stairwell in 

the transom to create toy space underneath; he raised the bow three feet and extended 

it by two feet; he replaced the teak decking; he gutted and replaced the skylounge; 

and he made numerous mechanical and amenities upgrades. The work was completed 

at Global Ship Systems in Savannah, Georgia. In a refit mission accomplished, the 

outcome is more spectacular than the original. 

SIZE: 51.2 m/167'11"; REFIT YARD: Global Ship Systems; ORIGINAL BUILDER: Palmer Johnson; 

NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: vripack; DESIGNERS: Sparkman & Stephens/Ramsey Engler 

72 June/July 2007 | SHOWBOATS.COM 

The Maltese Falcon 

There was liTTle debaTe among our editors about which yacht should receive 

this year’s award for Most Innovative Sailing Yacht. Tom Perkins’ 88-meter Perini Navi, 

The Maltese Falcon, spent the second half of 2006 blowing minds from the Med to the 

Caribbean. Our Justin Ratcliffe wrote of The Falcon’s official unveiling in Italy, “A glance 

at her freestanding, rotating, 58-meter carbon fiber masts convinced us we were looking at 

something utterly new.” Perkins, a self-described “tech nerd,” participated in his 

yacht’s design and execution in an intimate way, from modifying her existing 

Perini hull and designing her appendages to setting up a facility in Turkey to 

fabricate her unique spars. The bulk of her construction was accomplished at 

Most 

innovative 

sailing yaCht 

the Yildiz Gemi shipyard under the watchful eye of general 

manager Baki Gökbayrak. Her one-of-a-kind sails 

are by Doyle. The technical and aesthetic innovations 

on this yacht are too numerous to detail. They extend 

to modifications of pieces from Perkins’ art collection to 

fit The Falcon’s many curved bulkheads. Joining Perkins 

in the creation of this unique yacht were Fabio Perini, 

owner of Perini Navi, naval architect Gerard Dijkstra 

and designer Ken Freivokh. 

SIZE: 88 m/289'; BUILDER: Perini Navi/Yildiz Gemi; NAvAL 

ARchITEcT: Gerard Dijkstra; DESIGNER: Ken Freivokh 

dana Jinkins (top, 2); Carlo Borlenghi (bottom left, lower)

Bill Muncke and ingo (top, 2); franco Page (bottom left); 

ed holt (bottom middle); alfons Weber (bottom right) 

Most 

innovative 

Motor yaCht 

Ambrosia 

The Term “innovaTive” is admittedly vague and 

subjective, but you know it when you see it. Writer Justin 

Ratcliffe knew it when he saw Benetti’s Ambrosia, calling 

the 65-meter yacht “a masterpiece of technology.” Built 

for Ambrous Young, a long-standing client 

and Azimut-Benetti Group business partner, 

Ambrosia is one of the largest yachts Benetti 

has launched and only the third private 

yacht to be fitted with diesel-electric propulsion pods. 

Called Azipods, these units provide Ambrosia increased 

maneuverability, improved fuel economy and near-silent 

operation. A sophisticated dynamic positioning system 

works with the pods to take full advantage of their remarkable versatility. It provides 

automatic control of the vessel’s position and heading by means of active thrust. The 

system, which interfaces with the bow thruster and stabilizer fins, can keep the yacht on 

a fixed location without anchoring and help her maneuver precisely in extremely tight 

quarters. The yacht also features a gyro-stabilized night vision camera as a navigational 

aid and security device. 

SIZE: 65 m/213'3"; BUILDER: Benetti; NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: Benetti; DESIGN: Zuretti Interior 

Design/Stefano Natucci 

Gliss 

shorTly afTer The introduction of the 32-meter sloop Gliss last 

summer, Royal Huisman’s Michael Koppstein expressed concern that the 

Dutch yard had been pigeonholed after building the magnificent 90meter 

Athena. He said in the yard’s defense: “Athena showed that we could 

live up to the engineering demands of building a 90-meter 

schooner. Gliss is proof that we can also backtrack in terms 

of size, but apply the same expertise to a 32-meter sloop.” 

Gliss is fetching in every regard. Our Justin Ratcliffe wrote, 

“Not only is Gliss superbly engineered, but she is also a breath of fresh air 

in terms of styling.” Designed by Philippe Briand, her owner wanted a 

yacht that offered long-distance, high-performance racing and touring in 

comfort. She offers all that in a turquoise-wrapped package. 

Best sailing 

yaCht under 

40 Meters 

SIZE: 32 m/104'11"; BUILDER: Royal huisman; NAvAL ARchITEcT: Philippe 

Briand; DESIGNER: Peter Beeldsnijder 

SHOWBOATS.COM | June/July 2007 73

Best seMi- 

disPlaCeMent 

Motor yaCht 

under 40 Meters 

Be Cool 

admiral’s aluminum, 35-meter Be Cool is way cool. On the exterior, 

she is sleek and sexy with several unusual features such as a covered 

outdoor gym on the foredeck. Inside, though, she really heats up. Her 

interior, by Studio Magazzini Associati of Rome, is a riot of creative 

ideas that, despite their individual edginess, hold together 

as a stunning, unified work of the designer’s art. From the 

century-old, untreated, wide-board oak sole throughout to 

the furniture that appears to float on air to the classic image 

of Che Guevara outlined in LEDs in 

the VIP, Be Cool steps way out of the mainstream. 

Nearly every aspect of this product of the 40year-old 

Italian shipyard telegraphs high style. It 

challenges our preconceived notions of what the 

interior of a boat should look like, but it does so in 

a way that pleases the senses. 

SIZE: 34.98 m/115'; BUILDER: Admiral Mariotti Yachts/ 

cantieri Navali Lavagna; NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: Studio 

Bacigalupo (hull)/cNL technical department; DESIGN: 

Studio Magazzini Associati/Luca Dini Design 




“besT” is a vague and highly subjective adjective, but as with “innovative,” 

one knows it when one sees it. There were a number of outstanding large sailing 

yachts launched in 2006, but few people who’ve had the pleasure of seeing The 

Maltese Falcon up close would argue that this isn’t the most significant—and yes, 

the best—sailing yacht to hit the waves in several years. From 

her high-tech take on the square rigs of old to her starship-like 

bridge to her exquisite, innovative interior, The Falcon, as owner 

Tom Perkins is wont to call her, is in a 

class unto herself. Perini Navi owner Fabio Perini told 

ShowBoats he views the yacht as a barca che fa epoca—a 

new class of yacht. He credits Perkins and his vision for 

making the project what it is. “If it weren’t for him, The 

Maltese Falcon would still be an experimental concept 

from the sixties, rather than a new benchmark for the 

marine industry into the next decade and beyond,” said 

Perini. ShowBoats Editor-in-Chief Jill Bobrow, who has 

spent three decades in marine publishing and has been 

aboard countless large yachts, said, “The Maltese Falcon is 

simply the most extraordinary yacht I’ve ever seen.” 

Best sailing 

yaCht over 

40 Meters 

SIZE: 88 m/289'; BUILDER: Perini Navi/Yildiz Gemi; NAvAL 

ARchITEcT: Gerard Dijkstra; DESIGNER: Ken Freivokh 

giuliano sargentini and emilio Bianchi (top left, upper); 

Carlo Borlenghi (top left, lower)

Best sailing 

yaCht interior 

Matthieu Carlin (top left, upper); dana Jinkins (top left, lower); 

Carlo Borlenghi (lower right, upper); giuliano sargentini and 

emilio Bianchi (bottom right, lower) 


Tom Perkins’ The Maltese Falcon resets the bar on several fronts in sailing 

yacht design. While she is a Perini Navi at heart with a recognizable Perini 

hull and superstructure, what sets her apart from all other supersailers are her 

rig and her interior. The rig is a high-tech re-think of the clippers of old, but 

her interior is straight from another planet—or at least the vehicle 

that might take you there. Perkins had Ken Freivokh, who did the 

interior on Perkins’ spectacular motor 

yacht Atlantide, create a space below that is both 

industrial and utterly elegant. The industrial elements 

include the integration of the yacht’s massive 

masts through multiple levels of the interior. 

Perkins hates corridors on boats, and Freivokh 

designed an open plan with sliding doors as 

partitions. Freivokh also had to design around 

Perkins’ art collection. Some of the pieces had to 

be modified to hang on curved bulkheads. 

SIZE: 88 m/289'; BUILDER: Perini Navi/Yildiz Gemi; 

NAvAL ARchITEcT: Gerard Dijkstra; DESIGNER: Ken 

Freivokh 

Mirgab V 

when TesTed by the largest yacht ever to 

carry the Burger name, the 144-foot Mirgab V, 

Burger Boat Company’s rapidly modernizing shipyard 

on Lake Michigan rose to the occasion. 

“The debut of Mirgab V at the 

Monaco Yacht Show is a historical 

moment for the company,” said 

Burger owner David Ross. “It represents 

a quantum leap in terms 

of our capabilities and opens up a new frontier 

in the world market.” Marilyn Mower wrote of 

Mirgab V, “Her fit and finish showcase the craft ethos of Burger’s Wisconsin 

workforce, which is largely of Dutch, German and Scandinavian 

ancestry and mostly second- and third-generation boatbuilders.” The 

execution of the yacht’s interior is nothing short of spectacular with joinery 

and stonework on par with the finest in the world. Mirgab V’s sound 

engineering is another of Burger’s crowning achievements. 

SIZE: 43.9 m/144'; BUILDER: Burger Boat company; NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: 

Burger Boat company; DESIGN: Burger Boat company 

Best seMi- 

disPlaCeMent 

Motor yaCht 

over 40 Meters 


Best seMi- 

CustoM Motor 

yaCht interior 

Canados 90 

iTalian shiPyard Canados gave designer Luiz 

de Basto carte blanche to develop the exterior 

and interior styling of its first open model, the 

Canados 90. The U.S.-based de Basto, who grew 

up in Africa and has lived in Brazil, 

appreciates sunshine and being close to 

nature—the same qualities that define 

an open powerboat. With many of the 

newer, larger open yachts incorporating semi-rigid 

or sliding sunroofs, de Basto was keen to come up 

with something new. His solution was to use glass 

in abundance throughout the yacht. “Only glass 

can give you the kind of contact with the marine 

environment that lies at the heart of the open concept,” said de Basto. One of 

the most striking features of the Canados 90’s interior are two longitudinal glass 

beams in the coachroof supported by arched pillars anchored to the engine room 

bulkhead. The yacht also has a tempered-glass swim platform. 

SIZE: 28 m/90'8"; BUILDER: canados Group; NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: canados; DESIGN: 

Luiz de Basto Design 



Linda Lou 

The 60-meTer lürssen Linda Lou is one of a pair of motor yachts delivered 

to a Florida couple at about the same time last year. The interiors of both are 

outstanding, but the interior of the larger Linda Lou is a masterpiece that simply 

blew our editors away. The owners chose François Zuretti to style the yacht. They 

explored with Zuretti a timeless style that borrows elements of modern and art 

deco, with a bit of beach house thrown in for spice. Whereas the 

couple chose dark mahogany with a satin finish for the other half 

of the pair, a Trinity named Lady 

Linda, Zuretti encouraged them 

to explore more unique woods and a mix of gloss 

and satin finishes for the German build. The 

design teams of both yachts were given the same 

general orders: Make the windows big, the spaces 

flow and the decks open; eliminate hallways 

where possible and tighten up sprawling staircases. 

Missions accomplished with style. Linda 

Lou’s interior is a stunner of the first order. 

Best CustoM 

Motor yaCht 

interior 

SIZE: 60 m; 196'10"; BUILDER: Lürssen Yachts; 

NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: Lürssen; DESIGN: Espen 

Øino/François Zuretti 

Pamela Jones (bottom left, upper); Jim raycroft (bottom left, lower)

highest 

teChniCal 

aChieveMent in 

a sailing yaCht 

Carlo Borlenghi (top right, upper); 

Justin ratcliffe (top right, inset); Bob Marchant (bottom left, lower) 


sails have Powered boats and ships for thousands 

of years. With the dawn of the steam engine, though, sails 

have receded to the near-exclusive domain of recreational 

vessels. That has not meant, however, that sails and sail- 

ing yacht technology have not continued to 

evolve. Tom Perkins and the Gerard Dijkstraled 

design team he assembled to create The 

Maltese Falcon adapted an unusual existing 

rig design, the DynaRig, to power the yacht. 

The team, which included Perini Navi’s engineers, had to 

overcome many obstacles to make the concept suitable 

for the loads and performance needs The Falcon would 

generate. The result is a rig that visually resembles those 

found on nineteenth century clipper ships, but can propel the yacht to windward efficiently 

and can be trimmed and managed by a single person. The rig is but one of numerous technical 

achievements The Maltese Falcon embodies. 

SIZE: 88 m/289'; BUILDER: Perini Navi/Yildiz Gemi; NAvAL ARchITEcT: Gerard Dijkstra; DESIGNER: 

Ken Freivokh 

Laurel 

delTa marine’s Laurel, at 240 feet, is the largest custom yacht built in the United States in more than 75 years. 

She represents a complete collaboration between a progressive-minded owner and a builder willing to take a fresh 

approach to several challenges. The steel hull and composite superstructure are a case in point. While the combination 

of these materials has been used to a limited 

degree before, Laurel is the first yacht to 

have an entirely composite superstructure 

from the main deck up. The high- 

efficiency hullform is carefully optimized 

for low fuel consumption at cruise and 

precluded the need for a bulb to meet her speed and 

range requirements. The lightweight superstructure 

constructed primarily of carbon fiber accomplished 

a reduction in deck-to-deck heights and lowered the 

profile a full two meters below similar-size contemporaries. 

The result is a silhouette that is classically low 

and sleek. Additionally, cutting-edge sound abatement 

and ship motion control were installed. Also in keeping 

with the client’s commitment to green operations, 

special attention was given to gray water treatment and 

trash management. 

SIZE: 73.2 m/240'; BUILDER: Delta Marine; NAvAL ARchITEc- 

TURE: Delta Marine; DESIGNER: Donald Starkey 

highest 

teChniCal 


a Motor yaCht 


Best full- 

disPlaCeMent 

Motor yaCht 

under 45 Meters 

Julianne 


according To owners Larry and Joan Castellani, their 

24-meter Northern Marine expedition yacht Julianne was supposed 

to be a 72-footer, got stretched to 84 feet and ended 

up at the price of a 115-footer. Cost was never the primary 

Vango 

in 1999, washingTon State’s Westport 

Shipyard boldly announced it would build 

four 130-foot production yachts per year on 

spec. While some greeted the news with skep- 

ticism, the project has proven 

a success. Three years ago, the 

company announced a similar 

program for 164-foot boats, an 

announcement that generated similar initial 

sentiments. But with the launch last year of the 

first product of that series, Vango (pronounced 

van-GOH), the naysayers have again been proven wrong. The yard hired 

Donald Starkey to design and decorate the interiors of the 164s. For Vango he 

chose a combination of mahogany and pomele mahogany. Mark Masciarotte 

wrote, “Starkey’s design details are complex and manifold and, as is certainly 

most important from the customer’s point of view, they are executed with 

precision and finished to perfection.” 

SIZE: 49.94 m/163'10"; BUILDER: Westport Shipyard; NAvAL ARchITEcTS: William 

Garden/Taylor Olson; DESIGNER: Donald Starkey 

consideration; they simply did not want big. They 

wanted perfection and proportion in a small package. 

Because they enjoy driving their own yacht, the 

pair only specified accommodations for a captain 

and wife team as the sole crew. This single-screw, 

FRP world-beater was designed for maximum ruggedness and 

ergonomic efficiency without sacrificing aesthetics. Her interior 

is a pleasing amalgam of traditional yacht details and cozy residential 

furnishings. Her systems and construction are offshoretough. 

In his review of the yacht, Mark Masciarotte wrote, 

“A masterwork in traditional design, Julianne’s joinery employs rich, satin-finished 

makoré for paneling and cabinetry in the boat’s public spaces and for wainscoting 

in the staterooms, where the upper cladding is executed in off-white, satin-finished 

bead-board.” Owner Larry Castellani said of the design, “Everything we did on the 

boat was for safety first, reliability and convenience second, and comfort third.” 

SIZE: 24.38 m/80'; BUILDER: Northern Marine; NAvAL ARchITEcT: Stuart Archer; DESIGN: 

Ardeo Design/Scott cole 


Best neW 

seMi-CustoM 

yaCht 

neil rabinowitz (4)

Best full- 

disPlaCeMent 

Motor yaCht 

45–56 Meters 

Happy Days 

The 50-meTer delTa Happy Days holds the 

distinction of being not only the largest-volume 

composite yacht the company has delivered, but she 

is also the largest FRP yacht ever built in the United 

States. One factor that contributes to the 

yacht’s volume was the owner’s requirement 

that he have an enclosed aft-deck 

lounge abaft his suite. The suite and the 

lounge are full-beam, which not only 

add a tremendous amount of climate-controlled 

space, but provide spectacular views as well. Instead 

of being yachty, the décor on Happy Days is what 

interior designer Adriel Rollins calls “‘mid-century modern’—a residential representation that 

is reminiscent of the 1950s and sixties, albeit one of higher quality than might be found in 

any house of that period.” The effort was a collaboration between the Delta Design Group 

and the owner’s interior designer, Walter Nelson. 

SIZE: 50 m/164'; BUILDER: Delta Marine; NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: Delta Marine; DESIGNER: Walter 

Nelson/Adriel Rollins 



Amevi 

when oceanco launched the 80-meter Amevi 

in October last year, it marked a new phase in the Dutch 

builder’s drive to become a world leader in the 70- to 110meter 

range of displacement motor yachts. With in-house 

naval architecture, exterior styling by Nuvolari-Lenard and 

interior design by Alberto Pinto, Amevi’s sleek 

steel hull is capable of a top speed in excess 

of 19 knots with a range of 5,500 nautical 

miles cruising at 14 knots. She was the last 

yacht to be reviewed by ShowBoats during 

our award selection process and immediately 

stood out from the crowd, not just because of her sheer size 

but also thanks to the superb construction and attention to 

detail. Classified to Lloyd’s Register and MCA, every one of 

her systems, from the LCD gym windows to the Rolls-Royce 

zero-speed retractable stabilizers, was thoroughly tested under 

oceAnco’s strict trial procedures. Even her technical spaces are 

painted with the same Awlgrip high-gloss topcoat as the hull. 

To the best of our knowledge, she is the only superyacht to 

feature a gyro-stabilized pool table in the skylounge. 

SIZE: 80 m/262'5"; BUILDER: oceAnco; NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: 

oceAnco; DESIGN: Nuvolari-Lenard/Alberto Pinto 

Best full- 

disPlaCeMent 

Motor yaCht 

over 56 Meters 

Martin fine (top left, 2); r. van Kloet (bottom left, upper); 

alberto Pinto (bottom left, lower)

outstanding 


a Motor yaCht 

Lady Anne 


The 68.5-meTer amels build Lady Anne was produced with heavy involvement 

from her owners, beginning to end. The owners, a fashion industry 

executive and an architect, were uniquely qualified to participate in a material 

way in the creation of the yacht. They described the yacht’s interior 

background décor as “forever,” meaning modern, stylish and elegant, 

but not trendy. For interior inspiration they looked to the grand 

salons of the transatlantic liners of the 1920s and thirties, such as 

Ile de France and Normandie. They began collecting their 

furnishings with several original pieces by Jacques-Emile 

Ruhlmann, one of the greatest Parisian cabinetmakers 

of the twentieth century. The Parisian firm of Ludwig 

& Dominique continues Ruhlmann’s work. Nine of the 

company’s craftsmen took two-and-a-half years to complete 

the yacht’s additional furnishings. She is a superb example 

of what a committed owner and an experienced shipyard 

can accomplish together. 

SIZE: 68.5 m/224'9"; BUILDER: Amels; NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: 

Amels; INTERIOR DESIGNERS: Walter Franchini/Anne Fisher 


Esense 

some mighT argue that nearly every yacht, sail or power, bearing 

the Wally nameplate is an outstanding achievement in some way. It’s nearly 

impossible to go aboard a Wally and not shake your head in wondrous 

admiration of what springs from the fertile mind of company owner and 

design guru Luca Bassani. Our Justin Ratcliffe had a typical 

reaction to our winner in this category, the largest launch 

yet by the Monaco-based builder. “I defy anyone,” he said, 

“not to be blown away by the stunning lines of the new 

143-foot Wally, Esense. True to her name, the yacht is both 

outstanding 

aChieveMent 

in a sailing 

yaCht 

essential and sensual.” Among her many outstanding attributes, the allcarbon-fiber 

Esense, which features naval architecture by Bill Tripp, has a 

stunningly sparse deck design that makes her feel as if her cockpit runs the 

entire length of the boat. 

Her exquisitely styled minimalist 

interior by Odile 

Decq is typical of Wally’s 

forward thinking. 

SIZE: 43.7 m/143'4"; BUILDER: 

Wally; NAvAL ARchITEcTURE: 

Tripp Design; DESIGN: Wally/ 

Odile Decq 

gilles Martin-raget (top left, 2); © Qldg (bottom right, 2)

ShowBoatS InternatIonal awardS 2007 - Northern Marine

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