Yacht Spotting & New Launches

A GRAND IDEA

If you haven’t caught sight of one of the latest offerings from Jarrett Bay Boatworks, keep looking. You’ll know it when you see it. Guaranteed.

Time and time again, Jarrett Bay has shown it has the depth, vision, and ability to create works of design and engineering art when it comes to its custom builds. One look at its extensive portfolio of truly beautiful boats is testament enough to solidify Randy Ramsey and his crew as occupying a very special place in this sector.

Demonstrating yet again what “truly custom” boat building is all about, custom hull #61 and now known as GRANDER, features some outright bold design choices, including the dark paint and black tower hardware. The result is an aggressively beautiful tactical vehicle that attacks offshore fishing’s status quo.

GRANDER is an exceptional, truly one-of-a-kind, custom build.

The cockpit is arranged with a central mezzanine seat that doubles as a large ice maker and cooler, with two freezers accessible in the steps below. Two huge in-deck fish boxes straddle the Release fighting chair and transom livewell with tuna tubes. No space is wasted throughout, with the mezzanine steps and seating hosting multiple flush-face tackle drawers and dry storage.

The clean and modern design flows below as the sliding companionway door reveals another striking mix of metallic and wood veneered surfaces. A compact, but capable galley occupies the starboard side which includes a wash basin, microwave convection oven, over/under refrigerator/freezer and recessed storage. A two person v-berth wraps around the forward cabin underneath a central overhead hatch. To port is an extensive tackle storage station, a combination rod and wet hanging locker, and a well-appointed head finished in Stardust Silver throughout.

The primary helm features pilot and co-pilot chairs with an artfully designed electronics suite with the latest from Cat, Garmin, FLIR, iCom and Fusion. To starboard is convertible bench seating concealing rod storage, while additional seating, dry storage and an in-deck engine room hatch occupy the space to port forward of the helm.

Accessed by teak-covered steps on both sides of the tower, the upper helm area is defined by another teak sole contrasting the dark metallic painted surfaces. Featuring a single pilot chair behind a full pop-up electronics display, the bridge boasts an aft-facing seat as well as larger bench seating and storage forward of the helm.

Powered by twin Caterpillar C18 engines with ACERT technology, the boat is every bit as fast as she looks, and economic to boot. Booking along at 40 knots while using around 47 gph, the Grander tops out at 45 knots with a fuel burn of just 59 gph. The boat’s mechanical systems also include a 21.5 kW Cat generator, a generous water maker capacity and a Seakeeper gyro stabilizer.

Topped off with a custom satellite and radar dome and her all-black fittings and rigging, GRANDER’s dark demeanor is lit in an impressive spectrum of color at night thanks to an extensive Lumishore LED lighting installation throughout the hardtop, gunwales and transom. Another innovative Jarrett Bay calling card from her larger sisterships made its way onto the 46′ – the Jarrett Bay signature bucket chairs integrated into the forward cabin house.

SPECS

Length 46′; Beam 15′ 4″; Draft 4′ 6″; Water Line 41′ 5″; Cockpit Area (sq. ft.) 122′

Dry Weight (lbs.) 36,500; Fuel Capacity (gal.) 800g;  Water Capacity (gal.) 100g

Holding Tanks (gal.) 30g; 

POWER

Engine(s): Twin Cat Model C-18 Horsepower 1,136 x2

Propulsion: Conventional

Genset: Cat Model C2.2 Kilowatts: 21.5 kw

PERFORMANCE

Cruise Speed (kts.) 39kt; Cruise RPM: 2000; Cruise Fuel Burn 90gph

WOT Speed (kts.): 45 kt; WOT RPM 2350; WOT Fuel Burn 118gph

For more information on GRANDER, or any of the other fine boats built by Jarrett Bay, visit the company Website at http://www.jarrettbay.com

 

Sea Trials

A Personal Matter

Always taking its custom work seriously, Jarrett Bay brings it to a new level with this 64-foot Carolina beauty.

By Capt. Ken Kreisler

Photos courtesy of Jarrett Bay

This Jarrett Bay 64, Builder’s Choice, is the fourth personal statement from this builder for the owner and delivered by company president Randy Ramsey and his crew of fine craftsmen.

“If I felt any better about this boat, I’d be triplets,” remarked Jarrett Bay president Randy Ramsey, his words flavored and seasoned with that most appealing and special North Carolinian cadence. “You see, this is the fourth boat we built for the Huddle family and well, when you have established that kind of relationship, it not just about the job.”

Indeed, Builder’s Choice, one of the latest to splash at the company’s sprawling 175-acre marine park right off the Intracoastal Waterway in Beaufort, North Carolina, is more than another beautiful custom build from Mr. Ramsey and his veteran crew of designers, fabricators, technicians, workers, support staff and all the others that have helped put Jarrett Bay in the rarified air of this particular sector of the industry.

With this particular boat, and given the Huddle’s involvement as their exclusive contractor in the early days of Jarrett Bay’s growth, the project was all very personal. “This was about family,” said Ramsey. “And we set out to deliver a beautiful and functional boat.”

INTERIOR

That personal touch is quite evident inside Builder’s Choice and the attention to detail and excellent fit and finish shown by Jarrett Bay’s on-site Crystal Coast Interiors that was provided here is exceptional.

The main salon aboard Builder’s Choice is exactly what the owners were looking for.

No matter where one looks, the hand picked black walnut motif stands out and is in beautiful contrast with the light colored couches, each with plenty of storage space beneath, found to either side. And a beautifully crafted Release table, not only expands for additional surface area, but also opens up for extra storage below. With the Huddles, that most likely will be used for fishing related items.

The island galley is forward and to port with a dinette just opposite. The veneer work found throughout and well, the eyes don’t lie; everything matches perfectly. For weight saving, honeycombed Nomex is used with all the doors and cabinets.

Given her profile as a no-nonsense, tournament boat, she has abundant rod, reel, and fish equipment storage. Here, a hallway closet shows off some of her wares.

In the living accommodations, reached via a centerline stairs from the salon and galley area, there is a three stateroom, three head layout. Surrounding both the Huddles and their guests in elegant and comfortable quarters, the staterooms also provide plenty of storage space for those times Builder’s Choice will be traveling to far-flung ports in search of the boat’s prime directive. In addition, there are full-length tackle closets on both sides of the hallway with dedicated space allotted to rods and reels and makes for a very impressive showing.

CONSTRUCTION

“While we always look to make our boats lighter and more efficient, we never sacrifice quality, safety, and the kind of outstanding build we have become known for,” said Ramsey. To that end and instead of a molded house, Builder’s Choice features closed cell foam throughout the entire topsides.

Like all of Jarrett Bay cold-molded boats, Builder’s Choice starts out with a perfectly shaped wood frame over which her fiberglass exterior will be fashioned.

As far as Jarrett Bay’s cold mold process, the boat is triple planked with significant amounts of fiberglass and extra planking in high impact areas. This same beefy technique is used in sections like the struts and rudders.

“Unlike some builders we not only glass the exterior of the hull but instead, encase its entire interior as well including the stinger system, grid, bottom and side planking,” continued Ramsey on this topic. “The end product is an encapsulated wooden hull that should last indefinitely.” And finally, to get that beautiful Atlantic Blue paint job on Builder’s Choice, Jarrett Bay uses Alexseal coatings on all its boats.

COCKPIT

For all her beauty and obvious boat builder’s artistic quality, this is a hard-core fishing boat and one that fulfills all the needs of the Huddle family’s legacy of claiming their place in this particular, and highly competitive arena.

Ready for action of any kind, the cockpit offers captain, crew, and anglers all they would need for serious fishing.

As they usually fish with a large group of anglers, she offers 140 square feet of effective space. The teak work underfoot, and that on both upper and lower mezzanine areas, including the coamings, is exceptional. One would be hard pressed to find a line in the sole that does not demonstrate the definition of straight.

As expected, there are the requisite ice and chill boxes, storage areas, transom door and baitwell, stunning Release chair, and easy access to the engine room.

ENGINE ROOM

For any hands-on owner or skipper, the engine room aboard Builder’s Choice is as functional as it is a spacious. With a pair of big CAT C32’s at 1,925-hp each sharing the space with a duo of 29.5-kW CAT gensets, I found getting to all critical maintenance areas as well as all pumps, switches, hoses, systems, and just about anything else that needs tending to, to be not only easy but provides all the working space in which to swing any tool without getting a knuckle busted or an elbow bruised.

A great engine room makes a great boat and aboard Builder’s Choice, hers is as good as it gets.

Also of note was finding the pump room aft, this to alleviate any noise, whether it is harmonic vibration or the actual sound of the various pumps and systems cycling off and on, enabling the owner and guests to not be disturbed when settling in for the evening. And as with the engine room space, with many of these systems under cover and in cabinets, I found everything also had easy access for not only checking but for any necessary maintenance work or clean up.

BRIDGE

The bridge totally reflects the boat’s fishing profile and is truly worthy of admiration. With its Bausch American hardtop, this deck presents a thoughtfully planned layout and easily places the captain and any guests watching the action from up on high, right in the bite. For the skipper and co-pilot there is a pair of Release pedestal helm seats with additional seating along the starboard side. A comfortable L-shape couch is forward and to port of the helm. Freezer and refrigerated storage areas are also found here as well there being further cargo space beneath the seating.

Well laid out with all controls and electronics within easy reach, the bridge affords maximum efficiency while Builder’s Choice is under operation.

Using the expertise of Offshore Marine Electronics, Builder’s Choice has an extensive array of Icom, Northstar, SiTex, Garmin, FLIR, Simrad, and JL Audio systems resulting in a helm design affording maximum control with ease of use.

PERFORMANCE

The analogy of driving Builder’s Choice across the waters off of Palm Beach, Florida, as being like taking the wheel of a finely tuned sports car is spot on.

This boat is power personified and due to the balance between those high horsepower, twin CAT diesels and that spectacular fine entry with its sharp attack angle that transitions to abundant planning surfaces, she easily jumped out of the hole, spooled up to 2000 rpm and reached a cruise speed of 35.6 knots. When hooked up, we flirted with 41 knots. I found her to bank easily into turns at speed, track straight and true, back down with all the expected nimbleness she was designed for, and was as compliant and responsive to the most finite of helm commands during the close quarters docking maneuvers at the Sailfish Marina.

With her Carolina flare showing off her perfectly balanced profile, this Jarrett Bay 64 is an awesome performer.

How do you balance the art of custom boat building with power and performance and the right amount of Carolina Flare? As with Builder’s Choice, you get Jarrett Bay to put it all together for you. It will be very personal. Just ask Randy Ramsey.

SPECIFICATIONS

Length Overall: 64’

Beam: 18’ 6”

Draft: 5’ 10”

Waterline: 58′

Cockpit: 140 sq. ft.

Mezzanine: 65 sq. ft.

Freshwater Capacity: 275 gal.

Holding Tank Capacity: 125 gal.

Fuel Capacity: 1800 gal. plus 425 gal. auxiliary tank

Power: Twin Cat C32s @ 1925 hp each

Generators: Twin Cat 2.2t @ 29.5 kW each

RPM                             GPH                   SPEED(kt)

1000                              36                         11.9

1250                              66                         20.0

1500                              88                         24.4

1750                             124                        31.9

2000                             152                        35.6

2325                             200                        40.8

http://www.jarrettbay.com

 

 

 

Sea Trials

A Splendid Way To Get Anywhere

The HORIZON EP69 may very well be a ‘vessel of interest’ for those desiring an efficient, full displacement expedition yacht with a bit more speed and luxury.

By Capt. Ken Kreisler

With a strong and robust profile, the Horizon EP69 is a stable, safe, and elegant traveling platform.

One of the great things about what I do is having the ability to travel. And one of the truly great perks of the job is that I get to do it on boats; boats of all sizes, profiles, amenities and functions and ones designed and built in shipyards all around the world. This time out, it’s aboard a Horizon EP69.

A mere six years after its founding in 1987 by CEO John Lu, himself a product of the National Taiwan Ocean University with a degree in naval architecture, Horizon, already a business in the throes of its own country’s nasty recession, saw its forward thinking leader adjusting his company’s target markets. With Europe, Asia, and Australia showing up on Lu’s radar screen, he also decided to enter the large yacht arena by launching an 80-footer. That was in 1995.

Horizon Yachts’ John Lu

What followed over the next few years and continuing into the 21^st century, would be a series of high points including, among many others, applying the patented SCRIMP resin infusion technology to the building process, establishing subsidiary companies consisting of Altech Composite to manufacture hulls and superstructures as well as megayacht-dedicated Premier Yachts, and launching the 130+ foot Miss Rose, billed by Horizon as the then-largest, one-shot, SCRIMP-hulled vessel in the world. And it is with that same progressive attitude the company now offers its EP69, an expedition yacht with a lot more than a rugged exterior.

I have to say that right from my first sighting of her big red hull and salty, ship-like exterior including a Portuguese bridge and bulbous bow, at the end of the dock at the Lake Union, Seattle-based facility of Emerald Yacht Sales, the EP69 does offer a fairly tempting nudge in the right direction for fulfilling nautically-powered dreams of those who suffer from what I term as terminal wanderlust.

“The EP69 began life as the company’s Bandido 66 but as the design team tuned it up, they added more space so that now she serves as the entry level vessel to our line up of expedition yachts, that being the 77, 110, and 148,” said Lex Mitchell, Emerald’s west coast distributor for Horizon, as he led me onto her teak-decked swim platform. There is amidships boarding on either side as well but with her stern-to docking here, the ladders were still stowed in the engine room. Not that it’s a negative; in fact, I found getting aboard to be simple, safe, and easy via this large, solid area. And once there, surrounded by all that beefy safety railing, there’s convenient access up to the main deck using the wide stairways to either side or right through the big, dog-latching door smack on the boat’s midline leading to the crew quarters.

“One of the many aspects we really like about what we are able to offer is the yacht finish, both inside and out,” Mitchell remarked as he swung the door open and ushered me inside.

Horizon offers its owners the ability to fully customize the interior to suit their individual tastes and functionality.

If this was the start of being impressed with Horizon’s ability to finish off the EP69’s interior to yacht standards, the Taiwan-based builder had my attention. Even with the space’s functional profile, its décor still favored the elegant. The fully found galley, seating area with dining table, and plenty of storage space lies to port, and the head, shower, and two-berth stateroom are to starboard, all surrounded by beautiful cabinetry featuring outstanding joiner work with the area taking full advantage of the boat’s 21’8” beam. And yes, the fit and finish was excellent and a foretaste of what to expect topsides.

A duck into the engine room just forward, via yet another sturdy dogging door, also confirmed Horizon’s ability to provide a working space paralleling the vessel’s mission; that being open ocean cruising where the need to get things done in the most practical and time sensitive way demands quick and easy access to all critical maintenance and machinery areas. I could not find any knuckle crunching, elbow smashing, or forehead denting spaces that would prevent me from getting the job done. With two engines, and lots of space for spare parts and proper tools, the chances of being dead in the water or underway during a crossing or extended voyage, favor the latter.

With its wide open spaces and excellent access to all critical maintenance and service areas, the engine room aboard the EP69 is sure to please the hands-on owner/operator or the vessel’s skipper.

Topsides, the mood definitely changes from the practical elegance I just visited to classy sophistication, and on this particular EP69, to one with a trace of contemporary touches to the décor and furnishings.

Entering from the sizable aft deck area, itself outfitted with a proper transom seat, finely finished table, and teak sole, the salon offers wide-open spaces for creative decorating. “We’re a completely custom builder and owners can furnish the boat out to individual tastes and needs,” said Mitchell as we toured the main deck, galley, lower pilothouse, and living accommodations.

With a galley laid out like this one, the dining possibilities aboard the EP69 are endless.

The wide-open spaces of the salon allow for creative seating and entertaining areas, and choices of woods and finishes. The galley offers an area for the kind of culinary equipment and facilities to make food prep as laid back or tasteful as the situation demands. And the pilothouse is as professional and well resourced as any with fine woodwork all around, large windows forward and to the sides, and a comfortable seating area to port. Down below, the three stateroom, three head layout allows for spacious forepeak,  starboard side, and full beam master accommodations, all with ample storage space, superb cabinetry work, and the kind of room found on larger vessels.

Access to the bridge deck is via a stairway from the aft deck or in the pilothouse and once up here, it’s a hard place to give up. Seating areas abound with cooking and serving facilities, a bar to port, C-shape couch with a table to starboard, and port side helm. Aft and to starboard, there’s room for a 12-foot tender with the davit mounted on the outboard side.

There were no surprises when out for a ride on the placid waters of Lake Washington, unless it’s the stingy 12gph rate at just over eight knots or the hush quiet 59 dB(A) reading at the lower helm. And even at 11.2 knots, I registered a still-respectable 30gph burn. “We feel it’s the kind of vessel the ‘trawl crawl’ crowd is looking for. She slips easily into that six-plus to eight-knot speed with very efficient fuel consumption for a boat displacing some 72 tons when light,” Mitchell remarked.

While designing the EP69 to be a world traveller, the builder also took care to provide elegant accommodations for the owners and their guests, as typified here in the master suite.

Oh, and if you’re wondering what EP means, hang on we’re almost there. You see, while I don’t mind leaning on the throttles now and then, and feeling the adrenalin rush of big iron coming to life and pushing a massive planning hull up out of the hole, I do have a very special place in my nautical heart for just taking it easy and having a strong, well-built vessel at my command. And that’s where the ocean-going Horizon EP69 may come into play for those like-minded mariners. EP stands for Economical Pilothouse, and in these days of fiscal stress and strife—and even though they will come to pass—getting away from the dock, and staying away for as long as is necessary, just got a lot easier. Horizon Yachts, 886-7-860-7770, info@horizonyacht.com

RPM                   KNOTS     GPH          dB(A)

650                    4.7              2.3              56
900                    6.5              6.0              57
1200                  8.2              12.0            59
1500                10.1              19.0            60
1800                11.2              30.0            65
2100                12.1              48.0            65

Test Conditions

Speeds were measured by GPS in 200 feet of fresh water on Seattle’s Lake Washington, with calm seas and 10-knot winds, with 1,000 gal. fuel, 520 gal. fresh water, and four people on board. Fuel consumption was calculated by the electronic engine-monitoring system. Sound levels were measured at the helm.

LOA: 77’8”
LWL: 66’6”
BEAM: 21’8”
DISPL.: 191,400 lbs.
FUEL: 4,760 gal.
WATER: 800 gal.
STANDARD POWER: 2 x 560hp MAN D2876LE diesels
TEST POWER: 2 x 560hp MAN D2876LE diesels