At Home Cruising the Globe or On the Start Line
It is a fact that smooth seas do not make skillful sailors. Just about anyone with a little time on board can sail a boat in a light breeze. But when the wind blows hard, and the waves build large, even expert sailors prefer a responsive boat that is built to endure.
The experienced owner of the Baltic Yachts 2021 launch Path described such a vessel in his brief, asking Baltic to build him a powerful, reliable, uncomplicated, comfortable home, with a go-anywhere office. The design also needed to be easy to sail and maintain, exhibiting all the qualities of a high-performance family sailing yacht. Baltic and the team did it. And they did it beautifully, delivering a yacht that exceeded expectations, ahead of schedule.
The Right Stuff
From the very first vision of his new yacht, the owner began a selection process, putting together a team with the expertise critical to the successful execution of his wishes. In addition to choosing Baltic for the build, he chose Tatiana Kurbatova as his personal representative, judel/vrolijk for the naval architecture, exterior, and interior design, North Sails and superyacht sail designer Heine Sorensen for the sail plan, and A2B Marine Projects’ Sebastian Allebrodt for project management. Baltic’s project management team embraced Patric Brännbacka and Mikael Nyberg for the build.
Baltic EVP Henry Hawkins acknowledged the owner’s choices, commenting, “The owner’s achievement in getting the right team around him has been essential to the success of this project and has culminated in very productive trials involving all the key personnel. It’s a process which has benefitted the crew enormously and is a blueprint for how a project like this should be managed.”
Rolf Vrolijk of judel/vrolijk commenting on the importance of reliability and communication, noted, “The owner was very clear in guiding us in the right direction – after our initial meeting we were invited to dinner at his home and then aboard his previous yacht so that we could accurately translate his thoughts into what he wanted Path to be, including styling and décor.” The owner’s previous yacht was also designed by Rolf, so there was already an established connection that was helpful in designing the layout.
Margo Vrolijk proved instrumental in developing the interior style of the yacht, keeping to the owner’s requests, paralleling taste and decor from his home in a way that would welcome his family on board.
The end result? According to the Baltic Yachts website, very good: “Following 6000 miles of shakedown sailing culminating in successful trials in Palma de Mallorca, the Baltic 146 Path, launched earlier this year, went on to play a central role at the recent Monaco Yacht Show, where she received plaudits from guests and media alike.”
Path commanded the attention of Monaco Yacht Show attendees for her large, seamlessly connected deck saloon, covered cockpit boasting a solar array, and chic grey hull trimmed in tangerine.
When Path flies her kite, she is unmistakable, with a matching tangerine sail emblazoned with the path ID: a collection of small circles suggesting the globe, with a line and arrow pointing the way.
What Makes Path Perfect
Creating something simple, with elegant solutions, is hard work. Path became the third largest yacht in terms of internal volume ever built by Baltic throughout its 48-year history. Baltic built full-size mockups of important areas, inclining them 20°, to make sure they got it right.
Testing out areas of the boat in the shed can reveal and correct issues before they become problems. The handholds and foot rests at a 20° heel may not seem important, but when they get tested in a real sailing situation, the life-sized trial run is much appreciated, ensuring things are well-designed and properly placed for access and use. Similarly, the bimini covers for the cockpit and the twin steering stations required intense design studies to achieve comfortable ergonomics with an eye on safety.
