Evolution 110

In addition to 25-knot speed and a profile that’s several notches past "sleek," the yacht sneaks in accommodations expected of a boat at least 10 feet longer, and does so without resorting to scaling down the furniture and door dimensions. The trade-off is, instead, reduced outdoor living area on the main deck. But that may not be perceived as a negative to many UV-conscious consumers, and the spacious and well-thought-out crew quarters will get many votes.

Evolution Yachts’ Peter King, who is also a director of Superyacht Interiors (SYI), likes to call Salacia "a 25-year overnight success story" because so many people involved with the project have been toiling away with other marine companies in Western Australia that long, and they are just now getting to put their names on a build they feel is their own. "We were just finishing up a project for an owner who recognized the tremendous labor pool that had been built up in Perth since Australia II won the America’s Cup and asked me, ‘What should we do now?’" says King. "I suggested he set up a company, build a boat and let the company prove itself by the product." (Click image to enlarge)

The product, €10.5 million Salacia, made her debut at the Cannes and Monaco yacht shows in September as a surprising blue departure amid a sea of white boats. Salacia’s lines are also a departure for sport cruisers. While there is hardly a straight line on the boat, there isn’t a single Italian-esque bubble shape in sight. It’s more like the offspring of a yachtfisherman and German sports car with a bit of ’57 Chevy tail fins thrown in just for fun.

If you go down the checklist—aft toy stowage, watersports access, spectacular dining venue, dayhead, office, hot tub, convertible cabins—Salacia has it all. But it’s how Sorgiovanni arranged it and how Evolution and SYI delivered on the promise that’s noteworthy. Sorgiovanni flopped the typical main-deck arrangement and put the circular dining area aft behind a floor-to-ceiling, curved-glass sliding wall, reminiscent of Oceanfast’s Opal C. Plenums, which would have been unfortunate view-blockers were the salon aft, now form art backdrops for those diners not facing the view, as well as create a bit of privacy from the boat next door. Pale woods, white lacquer and taupe tones create a look that is simple and youthful, and at the same time big-city chic, making for an interior totally in keeping with the profile. For a boat built on spec, it has a surprising amount of detail and complex built-in joinery.

One of the best surprises is the office/media room located between the raised pilothouse and galley. Not only does it enhance lifestyle flexibility for the owner and guests, it improves traffic flow. Its primary entrance is from the starboard passageway, but it also opens to the pilothouse via a short flight of steps and then onto the flying bridge. The open access from the compact interior helm station to this office will no doubt come in handy for the crew while passagemaking.

The galley door signals entry into a well-planned crew and storage area, including the galley, mess, laundry and three separate cabins below. All the things the crew are likely to need to serve guests are concentrated here, and the crew cabins are more conducive to harmonious living than those typically found on European boats of this size. "This boat can actually carry a lot of guests, so we designed certain things to be easy on the crew," says King.