Our June/July issue is exciting for a number of reasons. The exclusive cover feature is
about octogenarian Jim Moran’s newly delivered Gallant Lady yacht. It is
fitting that we have Moran’s latest yacht in this edition of ShowBoats
since this is the issue in which we reveal the winners of our 17th
Annual ShowBoats International Awards.
Last year, Moran had the distinction of winning our ShowBoats
International Flagship Award. Having built yachts with the world’s top builders,
he progressively pushed the envelope on technology and innovation. He generously
shared his yachting experience with his employees and charitable organizations.
All this, plus his life-time commitment to stewardship of the environment,
earned him our Flagship Award. This year’s equally deserving Flagship winner
will be announced June 21 at our awards ceremony in Monaco.
 Giving yacht awards is a tricky business. Criteria are key
depending on the award category. Highest Technical Achievement has one set
of parameters and Best Interior Design has another. As we all know, taste is
certainly subjective. While dark mahogany is one person’s cup of tea, another’s
might tend toward limed oak. (Click image to enlarge)
In a way, our awards presentation is the sum of our editorial
content. Over a given calendar year, our expert team of editors scours the major international boat shows, flying to various launchings from Seattle to
Southampton to Sydney. We tour yacht yards in Italy, Holland and Germany. Since
we are invited to most of the significant christenings, sea trials and sailing
adventures in ports around the world, we have the opportunity to interview
owners, builders, naval architects, interior designers and project managers.
This is what we do for a living, and we love it.
Most members of our editorial team have been in the yachting
business at least 20 years. We have raced in regattas, made offshore passages, worked in shipyards, covered the major events in the sport, and participated in
numerous panels and yachting seminars. We have seen thousands of boats and are
bona fide experts in the field.
Several other yachting magazines have boarded the bandwagon in
recent years, but the ShowBoats International Awards are the
longest-standing awards of any yachting publication. Our methodology is a key
factor in the success of our awards. Some of the other yachting awards are
judged in part by people in the marine industry who are given packets of
information regarding certain builds. A jury then makes its decisions based
largely on this printed information.
It is our policy at ShowBoats that at least one, and
preferably more, of our editors physically see a given yacht before it can win
an award. We all then get together for a roundtable discussion where we lobby
for our favorites and make a collective decision. We do not believe we can judge
a boat merely on the basis of a brochure, or specs or photographs. The choices
we make are based on first-hand experience. Our transcontinental and
transoceanic debates often become quite animated and passionate.
Witness our current award winners detailed in this issue. Some
of the builders and designers of the award-winning yachts do advertise in the
magazine, but that does not come into play in our decision-making process. Nor
do we attempt to spread the wealth among builders. This year, one of our winners
won in all four categories for which she was eligible because the yacht deserved
it. I recently queried a high-profile yacht owner, who was a jury member for
another publication, about his opinion on award selection. His written comment
to me was loud and clear: "If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it."
In keeping with the ever-changing world of yacht design, we
decided it was time to look at the design of our magazine. You will notice we
have a new look. Like the megayachts that fill our pages, ShowBoats
International, too, is always evolving. We won’t fix what ain’t broke, but
we will continue to refresh and update.
 The 17th Annual ShowBoats Awards
Underway: Creatures of Habit
Underway: Going to Great Lengths with Our Awards
Underway: Endless Summer
Underway: Change is Good
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