Revue de presse

extended as a result, but since the hulls have no fixed keels the
yacht’s harbour draft can be reduced to 1.4 metres by lifting both her
dagger boards, leaving the rudder skegs and propellers as the lowest
fixed points. Her captain, Pierre Colin, prefers to leave the boards
down at 1.8 metres to avoid damage.
Other weight-saving ideas incorporated into the design of the yacht
include stairways constructed out of carbon, kevlar and teak, the use
of bamboo as interior decking, the use of modular beds that do not
include storage underneath, and hanging wardrobes made of leather
instead of wood. The themes of bamboo and leather have been
continued throughout the design of the interior spaces. This gives a
modern, light and airy feel to the yacht where passenger comfort has
not been compromised in an effort to save weight.
Her enclosed wheelhouse bridge is massive at 10 metres wide and is
so huge that large areas of its forward bulkhead remain unused, giving
it a somewhat spartan appearance. Two command chairs dominate
the amidship’s conning position and instrumentation is confined to just
two flat screens in front of the captain. There is no wheel and all
controls are minimalist. The bridge is designed so that from the
central position the captain can see both anchors through glass
hatches set into the deck and can also, from this position at the helm,
let both go and set the cordage mooring yoke which runs between
both bows and is permanently attached to the anchor chain.
Accommodated on the bridge, to port, is a full GMDSS
communications centre come ship’s office, whilst to starboard, the
owner has an open-plan office also built into the bridge and linked to
his suite immediately behind it.
One deck above, the vast expanse of deck is dominated by twin helm
stations, with traditional hands-on steering, aided by computerised
sail-handling controls. Her sailing qualities seem well optimised, with
dagger boards that can be independently left at any designated
height. Her huge wing mast rotates 65 degrees either side of
midships, mimicking the designs of large multi-hull racing craft. Her
fully battened mainsail drops onto an ultra-wide boom that feels more
like a roof when standing underneath it. Her twin head sails offer the
flexibility achieved with the roller furling. Seven hydraulic winches for
sail handling leave the area uncluttered. Huge tidy bins beside them
provide storage for sheets and halyards, and it is clear that in fine
weather this control deck will be the focal point of passengers and
crew alike. Clever teak-slatted seats fold flat to accommodate
sunbathers, yet her full complement of eight passengers can all sit in
comfort and watch the captain at the helm. Her mast features just one
set of spreaders, well swept back; these are ball- and socket-jointed
into the trailing edge of the mast to accommodate its rotation without
the need of additional stays or runners. Needless to say, this lack of
encumbrance allows her high-efficiency mainsail to carry a significant
roach. A flying, fore-guy boom down-haul is served by a hydraulic ram
and this unusual feature will certainly allow her captain easily to fine
tune his 300-square-metre mainsail when he comes off the wind.
Aft of this area, and down one deck, are two pods, one on either side
garaging the yacht’s tenders, which are loaded and discharged using
the boom as a crane. A third garage in the after-end of the port hull
houses a jet ski, whilst the same area on the starboard side unfolds to
produce a teak swim platform.
Her gleaming white deckhouse features distinctive louvres on the
portholes, which are both decorative and highly functional. To save
weight the yacht is only partially air-conditioned and these clever
louvres are part of the sophisticated system of shading and cooling,
activated by computers to ensure the heat of the sun is not
transmitted through the glass into the interior.
LADY BARBARETTA
THE YACHT REPORT
74
The words "huge" and "vast" have been used several times in writing
this report, but neither word can be used to describe the working
areas of the yacht. These have all been cleverly shoehorned into the
hulls and become the domain of her small crew of five. By "small", I
also mean that the crew cannot be tall or plump. At six feet tall, I
could not see out of the bridge windows without stooping, nor could I
fit into the double bed in the captain’s cabin. I would not get much
sleep there anyway, because the same space has no doors, and
behind the steps leading into it is one of the yacht’s two watermakers.
The other three crew share the two remaining intercommunicating
cabins and single bathroom in the other hull. All crew
accommodation is interlinked to accommodate the need to traverse
one end of the hull to the other. It is clear from looking at the crew
accommodation, with its lack of privacy, coupled with small galley,
tiny laundry and minute mess area, that the designers belong to that
school of thought which suggests that professional crew working on
sailing yachts do so for the excitement of the life rather than for the
comforts of home.
The twin engine rooms each house a Caterpillar 3126B six-cylinder
engine, each 425 hp. Power is transferred to twin 800-mm three-blade,
furling Max Props through the ZF gearboxes. In each same tiny space a
17.5 kW Onan generator delivers power from a space so small that it
left me wondering how an engineer could ever gain access to any
machine for routine maintenance. Elsewhere, a 7 kW Onan generator
serves as an emergency generator.
A month or so after our initial viewing in Cherbourg we met up with
Lady Barbaretta again at the Genoa Charter Show. In boatshow mode
she looked more suited to the charter market and her cheerful French
crew were enthusiastic about their trip to the Mediterranean. Pierre
described the yacht under sail as light and flighty, with a sensational
feeling of speed which at times topped 18 knots. Other crew told me
that they were sad that they only managed to sail for four days out of
the ten-day trip, which included a refuelling stop in Ibiza
Lady Barbaretta will provide thrilling charter opportunities through the
offices of Nigel Burgess from US$45,500 per week and will, I am sure,
provide a great deal of fun in the sun and excitement on the wind. She
flies the flag of Luxembourg and is built to be classed by Bureau Veritas.
Captain Michael Howorth
Lady Barbaretta
General Characteristics
• Type: Sailing Catamaran
• Construction: hulls and superstructures Pre Pregged
Carbon Fibre Nomex,
• Length overall: 32 m (105 ft)
• Beam overall: 14 m (46 ft)
• Displacement (net): 67,000 kgs (147,400 lbs)
• Sail area: 489 m2 (5263 ft2)
• Engines: Caterpillar 2 x 309 kW (2 x 429 HP)
• Gensets: Onan 3 totalling 42 kW (57 HP)
• Water makers: x 2, creating 200 litres per hour
• Fresh water capacity: 1,800 L (475 U.S. gal.)
• Waste water capacity: 1,800 L (475 U.S. gal.)
• Fuel capacity: 7,200 L (1,900 U.S. gal.)
• Crew: five
• Passengers: eight