3

Click here to load reader

Lakeland Boating Posh Article

Embed Size (px)

DESCRIPTION

Posh: A Work of Art By: Chris Caswell

Citation preview

Page 1: Lakeland Boating Posh Article

33L A K E L A N D B O A T I N G . C O M

may 2012

32L A K E L A N D B O A T I N G . C O Mmay 2012

P H O T O B Y X X X X X X X X / P H O T O C O U R T E S Y O F X X X X X X X X X

workof artposh is amodern-dayclassic.by chris caswell

Page 2: Lakeland Boating Posh Article

34L A K E L A N D B O A T I N G . C O Mmay 2012

35L A K E L A N D B O A T I N G . C O M

may 2012

side of the ship. Whether this story is apocryphal or

not, posh has entered the modern lexicon as meaning

smart, elegant and fashionable. All words that perfectly

describe the POSH yacht.

Ideas and InspIratIonThe idea for POSH began percolating for Warner when

he acquired a 1937 54-foot commuter yacht designed

by John Hacker, acclaimed as the greatest powerboat

designer of the 20th century, and built by Huskins Boat

Works in Michigan. He renamed her Posh and soon

added another Hacker/Huskins yacht to his fleet: Tempo

is a 1936 44-foot commuter built for the president of

MCA records, but best known as Guy Lombardo’s yacht.

A third yacht comprises the “Triple Crown” of classic

commuter yachts, Thunderbird, which has lived on

Lake Tahoe since she was owned by casino magnate

Bill Harrah, who installed PT-boat engines in her and

sped around the lake carrying celebrities on joy rides.

Each of these yachts has several qualities in common

that appealed to Warner. First, they are absolutely

stunning, with all-varnished hulls and styling from a

gentler era when we didn’t know enough to number

our wars. Second, they are incredibly rare. And, last,

they attract attention wherever they go. Warner tells of

passing other boats with Posh or Tempo and watching

as their mouths drop open in awe.

And so Warner decided to create modern versions,

using all the knowledge and advancements that arrived

in the past 70 years. As a starting point, he decided to

use his 1937 POSH, but no drawings of the hull existed.

Enter naval architect Bill Prince, a young man with an

old soul. Winning the National Marine Manufacturer’s

Yacht Design competition while in his junior year at

Milwaukee School of Engineering was just the start of

a successful career, which included stints as a designer

with Michael Peters Design, Ted Hood Yachts and Island

Packet Yachts. Hanging out his own shingle, he has

created yachts for production builders from Chris-Craft

to Hyundai, designs for custom megayachts, and boats

for the U.S. Coast Guard.

As important as his design talent is Prince’s passion

for antique and classic boats, so when Warner discussed

his concepts for the new POSH, Prince “got it.” The

renderings on these pages by Prince are clearly those

of someone who loves oldies.

BuIldIng a BeautyWarner and Prince wanted to use the lines of the existing

POSH, but no plans existed; so a sophisticated laser

measuring system was used to create a set of 3-D lines

accurate to a fraction of an inch. With that in hand,

Prince applied the computer tools of modern naval

architecture to understand how the shape worked. As

it turned out, most of her proportions were consistent

with speed on the water, but there were areas where she

Some men collect postage stamps. Some men save

old coins or baseball cards. Other men, like F.

Todd Warner, live large.

Todd Warner both collects and saves classic and

antique boats. Boats, specifically old woodies, have

been a passion for Warner since he was four years old,

riding on the Minnesota lakes in the wooden boats that

his father and grandfather owned.

Antique boats are clearly in Todd Warner’s DNA

and, as an old boatbuilder once said, “If you sawed off

the top of that boy’s head, you’d find a boat inside.”

In the process of his passion, Warner amassed the

foremost private collection of antique and classic boats

in the world. He has personally owned more than 1,000

boats, and his reference library is filled with 6,000

items, ranging from rare books to hundred-year-old

catalogs and manuals.

He describes his Minnesota-based company, Mahogany

Bay, with a simple phrase: “We buy, sell, service and

restore fine vintage watercraft.” That says it all.

When he decided to part with some of his fleet in 2010,

the sale was handled by Mecum Auctioneers, best known

for classic cars, and it has been called “the most important

event... for the advancement of antique and collectible

boats.” At the end of the day, 126 boats (including 10

that brought more than $100,000 each) were sold, along

with 125 rare marine engines and 125 pallets of parts

and accessories. The final tally: nearly 4 million dollars.

CreatIng a legend“I have to tell people that this was a ‘staying in business’

sale and not a ‘going out of business’ sale,” Warner says

with his booming laugh. Which brings us to why he

was cleaning house.

Todd Warner is going to create a modern classic:

A yacht that brings the style and iconic memories

of 1930s yachts to life with modern boatbuilding

construction and systems. Todd Warner is going to

create an instant collectible.

To do so, he has created what he calls “the Dream

Team” of experts, a trio that includes Warner as the

driving force and visionary, well-known yacht designer

Bill Prince, and acclaimed boatbuilder Steve White of

Brooklin Boat Yard. They are not, however, going to

build runabouts, but exquisite 54-foot yachts unlike

anything the world has seen in more than seven decades.

This might be dismissed as a pipe dream, especially in

this economy and with a projected price of 4.5 million

dollars for each yacht. But the first yacht is already

spoken for and, by the time you read these words, the

keels for yachts #2 and #3 will be laid. Calls are coming

in to their exclusive agents, the respected Bartram and

Brakenhoff brokerage firm, from such jet-set watering

holes as Monaco, Palm Beach and the Costa Smeralda.

When a Riva Aquarama speedboat sells for a million

dollars, a classic Ferrari for several million, and a

Patek Phillipe watch for a million, well, it’s clear

there are folks who want the very best. And that’s

the target audience for POSH.

A word about the name. POSH supposedly was stamped

on the tickets of first-class passengers heading from

England to India, meaning “Port Out, Starboard Home,”

which would place them on the shaded and cooler

Bill Prince Todd Warner Steve White

Posh has entered the

modern lexicon as meaning

smart, elegant and fashionable.

All words that perfectly describe the POSH yacht.

Page 3: Lakeland Boating Posh Article

36L A K E L A N D B O A T I N G . C O Mmay 2012

37L A K E L A N D B O A T I N G . C O M

may 2012

this into an alfresco media room or, with the addition of

a partition, the entire area becomes a multi-person spa.

The interior is all you’d expect, with the finest leathers,

marble and woods combining as a celebration of classic

elegance. Entry is through air-powered doors that open

with a soft “whoosh.” A 6’10” sofa is to one side, facing

a pair of comfortable club chairs. The galley is compact,

more a “butler’s pantry,” but still fully outfitted with

the finest appliances.

On the opposite side is the head, which seems to be

surrounded by clear glass and keeps the compartment

from imposing on the visual space of the cabin. But,

when privacy is needed, a touch of a button electrically

turns the bulkheads opaque. The electric toilet is out of

sight, and a shower completes the area.

Forward doors lead to one of the delights of POSH: The

“Flying Cloud” cockpit. This private area is surrounded

by windscreens and comfortably upholstered, but the

real fun comes when POSH is running fast and free.

The bow rises naturally, cantilevering the Flying Cloud

cockpit over the water to give the sensation of flying

low, with no pounding or even water noise.

And here’s another remarkable touch: The sunshade

for the Flying Cloud cockpit is designed to respond to

the sun, moving to perfectly cover occupants. Finishing

the yacht is a cabin in the bow with V-berths and another

head, allowing a nap after finishing that bottle of Cristal.

Construction is tripled-planked African mahogany,

and the POSH team are working on a proprietary finish

that will give the look of varnish, but have extremely

long life. Besides, the POSH team will also offer their

Concierge Service, which not only provides ongoing

service, but maintains and even stores the yacht in the

off-season.

Power is another client choice, with options including

Cummins and Yanmar diesels that should give POSH a

speed of up to 60 mph. The first POSH may have V-10

Ilmor racing engines, which should push the speed

up considerably. Another choice being considered is

Rolls-Royce power, which might include the W-12

twin-turbocharged engine found in the Bentley

Continental GT.

“We are,” says Warner, “calling POSH a ‘retro-

modern’ yacht because she combines the best of the

past with modern technology. We take pride that it is

American built, because classic wooden boats are a part

of American DNA.”

“We believe POSH will fill a niche,” he adds, “for those

who love classic looks but who want to be able to enjoy

them and entertain aboard as well. POSH is an instant

collectible as well suited to a discerning private owner

as she is being the tender for a megayacht or an amenity

at a boutique luxury resort on the water.”

Warner and his team are believers not just in the

beauty of classic design, but in creating something ageless

for the future. “It’s time for boats to become what they

were 75 years ago,” he says.

“What we’re selling are works of art.” r

could be improved. Modifications to the shape of the

original hull included some smoothing and straightening

of the waterlines; some added bow flare and some extra

freeboard.

With the lines and renderings in hand, Warner

and Prince needed a builder, and they had to look no

further than Brooklin Boat Yard in Brooklin, Maine.

The half-century-old yard has long been called “a

Mecca for wooden boats,” and the company built a

reputation both for new yacht construction as well as

the toughest of restorations.

One notable restoration was Aphrodite, a once-proud

74-foot commuter yacht that carried everyone from Fred

Astaire and Spencer Tracy to Henry Ford II and Nelson

Rockefeller. Over the years she had been neglected,

winding up ashore surrounded by weeds; but in 2003,

Brooklin began a total restoration that took two years

and returned her to better-than-new condition.

Other projects of Brooklin Boat Yard have ranged

from classic Trumpys refits to new yachts by Sparkman

& Stephens.

And so, drawing on the Triple Crown of commuter

yachts, this trio of passionate classic yacht enthusiasts

are creating POSH, a 54’5” collectible yacht that is

“bespoke” in the same way a pair of shoes from John

Lobb or a classic shotgun from Purdy are created

specifically for each client.

The starting point is the slim (10’9”) hull that can

now reach speeds never imagined 70 years ago. As you

can see from the renderings, this is a sophisticated and

luxuriously fitted day-boat, with only a nod toward

overnight accommodations. But, oh; what a day it will be!

the vIew from InsIdeThe cockpit seems to stretch endlessly from the

midpoint, where the helm embodies the POSH approach.

What appear to be classic round analog gauges on the

dashboard are, in fact, exact images on a sophisticated

touch-screen panel that is so realistic the tachometer

needles actually quiver.

And, while nearly every yacht has a companion seat

opposite the helm, only POSH provides it with direct

access to the chilled wine locker that also opens into the

galley below. Just aft is a table that wraps around the

midship flagstaff, with seating for six. A sumptuously

upholstered private cockpit fills the stern, behind curved

art-deco rails that separate the area. And, once again, the

bespoke concept surfaces. A pop-up television can turn

“We calling POSH a ‘retro-modern’ yacht because she combines the best of the past with modern technology.”— F. Todd Warner