| De Vries 203 |  |
The name of this 62-meter (203-foot) De Vries–built Feadship
comes from the title of a 1759 novella penned by Samuel Johnson, which on the
surface is a morality tale with a rather pessimistic view of human life. The
fictional Prince Rasselas of Abyssinia contrives to escape his pleasant but
boring home in Happy Valley in search of personal happiness. The loosely woven
recount of travels and meetings by the prince with unusual people and exotic
beasts delighted English literati with its many morals and ironies, not the
least of which was that, although it was written by a great essayist, its hero
arrives at the conclusion that people learn not from books but from experience.
It is a lesson that the American owner of Rasselas has taken to heart—in more ways than one.
| Click on the Spec and Design tab at top to see complete list of resources. |
Rasselas’ owner lives in a kind of Happy Valley of his own—one of the hippest
high-tech regions in America. And while Rasselas the prince seems to look upon
learning and experience as work, Rasselas the yachtsman gathers knowledge and
experience with joy.
In 1994, De Vries launched the first Rasselas. A 52-meter yacht of traditional appearance,
she was nevertheless technologically advanced and only the second Feadship to
store her tenders behind fold-down bulwarks on the bridge deck. Her period-style
mahogany interior drew praise as far and wide as the mythical prince’s travels.
Since her launch, the yacht has been under the direction of one captain—A.J.
Anderson, who also directed a mechanical refit of the boat several years ago at
De Vries. About the same time, Anderson, De Voogt Naval Architects, De Vries and
the owner began planning the next boat at a measured pace, joining 19 other
owners who have built two Feadships.
 The sky deck offers a casual spot
for refreshments under the hardtop. (Click image to enlarge)
Anderson’s goal was not to reinvent the wheel, but to improve
it aesthetically and technically and build it to perhaps exceed the latest
certification standards. "The owner knew that Feadship had put considerable
effort into studies about improving hull stability and efficiency," says
Anderson. "He was happy with the current boat, but if he could be happier
still…."
The baseline of discussion was the yacht’s profile. Her long, continuous
sweeping sheerline and open decks make this the longest Feadship ever
built with walkaround decks on both the main and bridge decks. While the full-beam-forward superstructure treatment has
become popular in the last decade—overcoming initial objections by crews who had
to invent ways of rappelling over the sides to clean windows—Rasselas’ owner
preferred to trade space in his suite for a profile matching his romantic notion
of how a yacht should look. "We increased the ceiling height on every deck, partially
enclosed the sky deck and still kept the profile low. A lot of work went into
that alone," says Anderson of engineering more compact ’tween-deck spaces where
ducts, plumbing and wiring compete for space amid structural supports, machinery
and insulation. The aft main-deck overhead soars eight feet above the floor to
establish proper proportion with the beam and length of the entertainment
area. "We made a short list of designers we thought could follow the
classic design of the first Rasselas, but with updates and refinements,"
recalls Anderson. "Everyone we talked to had other ideas. One day the owner
said, ‘OK, A.J., you’ll do it.’"
|
; function voidFunc() { } voidFunc();)
Email This
Printer Friendly Version
Reprints & Permissions
Most Popular Searches