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Guest accommodations are amidships on the lower deck. The guest
staterooms radiate from a lobby, which is equipped with a fridge and drinks
station, so that guests can help themselves to refreshments. Side by
side,
two identical double state-rooms extend across the full beam of the
hull. A third stateroom has twin single beds, plus a well-concealed
Pullman
berth. All the suites have ensuite bathrooms with distinctive
marble, TVs and entertainment systems, phones and yard-built lever-operated
venetian blinds for the portlights.A fourth stateroom is equipped as a gymnasium, with the
bathroom area used as a wine and general storage area. However, all the plumbing
is fitted, so the area can be converted for accommodation, if later
required. Forward of the accommodations is the galley, laundry and crew quarters. The
captain’s double cabin with ensuite bathroom is opposite the highly functional galley on the starboard side.
Forward is a crew mess to port and commercial-style laundry to starboard. Two
crew cabins are situated farther forward, one with two single berths and the
other with three. Both have ensuite facilities. The wheelhouse, with its raked-back windscreen, is situated
above the main-deck lobby with internal stairs from the port and starboard
sides. Access to both side decks is through yard-built pantograph watertight
doors. The wheelhouse furnishings are finished in blue and grey
leather with polished aluminum inlays and fascias. A five-spoke stainless steel
and wood-rim steering wheel is flanked by an extensive array of state-of-the-art
navigation, communication and performance electronics with five large-screen
monitors. Powered by twin 1,450-hp Caterpillar diesels, Ad Lib cruises at 13
knots and has a top speed of about 16.5 knots. Fuel tankage allows for extensive
transoceanic passages with a range of approximately 4,500 nautical miles at 10
knots. "We did briefly discuss going to a planing boat," comments
Lane. "There was some thought that such a sleek-looking boat should be really
fast. But when you contemplate pushing a 220-ton vessel up and on top of the
water, it is a hell of an exercise in terms of power and fuel. Then we briefly
discussed a semi-displacement boat, but in the end a displacement option was
overwhelmingly the practical answer." Practical, elegant, perfectly sized for Lane’s requirements, Ad Lib looks well set to
live up to all the promise implied in its name and, barring some new Latin
inspiration or circumstance, is definitely well qualified to be a
"keeper."
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