Wednesday - August 18, 2010

What Recession?

Please be advised to get your information correct.  The Yacht Cakewalk was never owned by Greg Norman.

The only yacht he owned was Aussie Rules.  The older Cakewalk and the new one just launched is owned by an American from Denver, Col.

Get your facts straight.

Gosh.
So, like at least one of the Cakewalk yachts, it looks like I’d better give this post a total refit.

Well, it turns out he was correct. I think. I’m not going to bother to do a huge bit of web investigation, but at least TWO of these Cakewalk yachts was owned by Charlie and Diane Gallagher. Of Denver.

Timelessness, technology and tradition – along with a no-compromise approach to quality – were the guiding principles behind building Charlie and Diane Gallagher’s 205-foot Cakewalk at Van Lent Shipyards.

Flanking the chart table in Cakewalk’s large wheelhouse are a ship’s clock and barometer, a simple matching brass set that Charlie Gallagher considers the most valuable pieces of equipment in his extraordinary new Feadship.

Pity the yachtsmen and yard management teams that don’t communicate clearly. Some owners tell custom yards they want a magnificent stateroom soundproofed to the hilt to lull them into dreamland, when in reality they want every room to be whisper-quiet. Others fail to get as involved as they should in the layout of behind-the-scenes areas like the engine room. While those owners still end up with workable yachts, the vessels aren’t as exceptional as they could—and should—be, given their custom nature.

Not so with the 204-foot Cakewalk commissioned by the American couple that Capt. Bill Zinser works for. In fact, they made it very simple when they approached Feadship’s Van Lent en Zonen yard about building the yacht: “We wanted the best of everything,” Zinser says matter-of-factly, adding, “We told Feadship we wanted them to build its best yacht ever.”

Having bought the Van Lent-built Fiffanella in the late 1990s, extensively refitting her and stretching her to 142 feet (she launched in 1987 at 132’7"), the owners were familiar with the yard’s craftsmanship. Three years of “trouble-free cruising under every conceivable condition,” in the words of the husband, convinced them to return to Van Lent to commission a new, larger project when the yacht, which they had renamed Cakewalk, couldn’t accommodate their growing family—18 members strong. The project started out on paper at 187 feet, gradually increasing to 204’5” to make her profile even sleeker.

So Cakewalk (II) is the 2001 Feadship built Cakewalk, and would be mega-yacht #2 for the owners. Mega-yacht #1 would be the rebuilt Fiffanella, rechristened as Cakewalk(I).

Cakewalk (III) may have been the 2003 yacht built by Trinity Yachts in New Orleans built and originally called the Mia Elise. Changed owners soon thereafter, refitted, became a Cakewalk, sold, refitted, and is now called the Vita.

Notice how much this one looks like the first white yacht below, which IS/WAS Norman’s yacht Aussie Rules.  Don’t be fooled by little things like radar masts and shark gill windows - this is what refitting can do. And this is where my error may have crept in. Who owned it when it was Cakewalk? I have no idea. Could be the Gallaghers, could be someone else. But with the infinite number of names out there, it is a little odd that several mega-yachts keep bearing the same name. And the world of mega-yachts is really not all that big.

Cakewalk IV MAY BE the yacht now called Fortunato. But since it’s a little older than the formerly Cakewalk Vita, it may have been Cakewalk III and Vita was Cakewalk IV. Who can tell? Why would anyone spend such huge amounts of money on a fricking boat to begin with, much less buy and sell them as soon as the “new” smell was only half worn off. Then again, I could be wrong about that too. What’s to stop someone of unimaginable wealth from owning a whole bloody FLEET of luxury yachts named Cakewalk all at the same time? Nothing. However, Wikipedia lists Cakewalk/Fortunato as belonging to the Gallaghers.

But I was able to find out that the latest Cakewalk, the 3000 ton behemoth I originally wrote this post about, was called Cakewalk V during it’s building. (It was also called the Dancer Project, so go figure.) And, somewhere in the process, there were financial difficulties, even though that project should have brought the shipyard $82 million.

When a self-made American millionaire was looking to commission his 281-foot yacht, he rebuffed the international boat making scene, instead vowing to stay local by enlisting Derecktor Shipyards Connecticut for the job, according to a recent article in the Hartford Courant.

“We just wanted to do it here to prove to the elite northern Europeans that we could do it here,” the yacht’s would-be captain told the newspaper on behalf of the mystery owner. “The U.S. takes a hammering worldwide over the [poor] quality of its products – and it’s not true, and we’re proving it’s not true…We thought we could do it here, and we are.”

Well, kind of.  The millionaire’s campaign to showcase America’s yachting prowess is off to a rocky start after Derecktor’s July Chapter 11 filing. Plans for the on-board spa, gymnasium and theater are still in tact, but the Bridgeport, Conn., company’s balance sheet is on shakier footing. And the multimillion dollar “Cakewalk,” which experts say could be the biggest yacht ever made, has been caught in the crosshairs of the courtroom drama.

Paul Derecktor, president, of the Bridport yacht building yard, Derector Shipyards has said that the building of Cakewalk V, the largest yacht to be built in the USA in 75 years, was the most important job in the company’s 60-year history. Now, through court records we learn just how valuable that contract is to the firm.

The price of the 85.6 metre yacht has been revealed as US$82 million and comes at a time. Local newspaper reports say that these days, Derecktor has been very tight-lipped about the project and the only reason the price tag is known is through court records from Derecktor’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing. This stems from a disagreement with one particular client over the building of the world’s largest catamaran called Gemini II.

So the owner finally got his big boat built, and just like Cakewalk I, Cakewalk V - whoever actually owns it!!!!! - is built to have the very best of everything

The price tag for the vessel has not been disclosed, but one expert estimates more than $100 million.

Although not the longest motor yacht constructed, Derecktor noted it is the largest yacht by volume built in the United States. The steel-hulled vessel with aluminum superstructure is six decks tall and 281 feet long. More than a mansion on water, the Cakewalk V is a floating country manor with millwork carried out by Ohio and North Carolina craftsmen.

It can accommodate 12 guests in six large cabins. The owner’s deck includes a master stateroom with his and her’s heads, a theater system, study and lounge area, spa, gymnasium, bar and dining table with seating for 14. There are multiple lounge areas and a library, and the lower deck will carry waverunners, outdoor equipment and three tenders, which are the boats that can be used to run ashore. The smallest of the tenders is 32.8 feet.

Well, fair wind and following seas, and may they have the best of luck with their latest yacht.

PS - Who are the Gallaghers? Yes, they are from Denver. And yes, they are very rich. He’s into a bit of corporate Engulf & Devour, but also runs another company that focuses on moving raw materials around and supplying the things you need for building large things.

In 2005, Gallagher Enterprises formed and internally funded Gallagher Industries to commit additional resources and focus to future investments in manufacturing and value-added distribution businesses. Gallagher Industries continues to build upon the Gallagher legacy, forming long-term partnerships with excellent operating partners who have turned their vision into profitable enterprises. Our current team has led six highly successful leveraged buyouts and has positioned current platform holdings for significant future growth.

To date, the Gallagher Industries’ investment model has driven significant, repeated successes across manufacturing, marketing, and value-added distribution businesses including: mining, minerals, ferroalloys, refinery outsourcing, bulk shipping terminals, petroleum coke, metal building products, high density and PET blow-molded containers, clay-based soil amendments, leading-edge erosion control products and synthetic stone veneer.

They have a very well funded ($20m) philanthopic foundation giving educational scholarships, are involved in any number of community, cultural, and artistic associations, supporting hospitals and so forth. And they look to be significant contributors to the Republican Party. Sounds like good people to me; they got rich helping America grow, and they give back where they can.

Unlike others who make a fortune hitting a little ball with a stick.

The new Cakewalk V yacht under construction. Steel below, aluminum above, utter luxury inside. Note the foredeck similarity to the ship now called Fortunato.  And now, here’s the latest and greatest Cakewalk, launched but perhaps not yet fully finished inside.

Isn’t that pretty? What a nice sense of proportion it has. You’d hardly notice that this water bauble is 281 feet long (85.6m) and displaces 3000 tons. You can’t see its two custom designed elevators, but it needs them, since the boat is more than 6 stories tall.

As many of us in the media have been reporting since the contract was signed in 2006, the 281-foot (85.6-meter), 2,995-gross-ton Cakewalk is the largest yacht by volume to be built on U.S. soil since the 1930s. An American couple who previously owned two European-built megayachts commissioned her. They firmly believed that they could get a well-engineered yacht stateside.

The yacht will remain at Derecktor for the next few weeks undergoing final outfitting and sea trials. She is scheduled to make her much-awaited debut at the Ft. Lauderdale International Boat Show in October.

The latest Cakewalk only carries 3 little runabouts, including a 10m Vikal limousine. Nice. I think everyone should own a little boat like this, nearly as big as a destroyer.

Specifications:
Length, o.a.  281 ft
Length, w.l.  248 ft
Beam 46.9 ft
Draught 13.1 ft
Gross tonnage 2995
Propulsion 2x 16V400M71 @ 2465BKW (3306HP)@200 RPM MTU
Propeller 2x 5 Blade Rolls Royce Single Pitch
Speed 17 knots / 15 knots
Fuel capacity 97,000 gal
Range 5000NM @15 Knots

Posted by Drew458     on 08/18/2010 at 08:01 PM   
Filed Under: • Fun-Stuff • planes, trains, tanks, ships, machines, automobiles •  
• Comments (5) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

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