Grand Soleil family brings us the GS 43 and LC 46 at VELAFestival

Italian pride at the European Yacht of The Year where it won in the Luxury Cruiser category, LC 46, the boat that revolutionized and renewed Cantiere del Pardo’s idea of a cruising boat, will be on dock in Santa Margherita, where you can admire it up close. Marco Lostuzzi ‘s design (and Nauta’s design) hit the mark: a high-performance hull combined with top-notch amenities make it an atypical blue water that is appealing in Europe as well as overseas.

GRAND SOLEIL 46 LC: THE NEW CRUISING IDEA FROM THE PARDO SHIPYARD
The first impression of seeing a roll bar aboard a Grand Soleil is disorienting for everyone. And it is around this element, built as standard in carbon fiber, that the center of innovation of this fourteen-footer is developed. The mainsail track fixed on the rollbar allows the cockpit to be freed from the sheet, the entire cockpit to be sheltered from sun, waves and wind with sprayhood and bimini, and thus make the outdoor space more livable and sheltered. Staying on deck another feature that is immediately noticeable is the “radical cleanliness”: a “wireless boat” that is, with no free sheets and halyards on deck but all recessed and sent back to the wheelhouse area. Here there is room for a double wheel to which all maneuvering on four optionally available dual-speed electric winches (two on each side positioned a little too close together) is deferred. A single person, with no need to move from the helm, is able to control all solo maneuvers, even the gennaker (attached at the bow on the carbon-fiber delphiniera and equipped with a “Go Furling” system) and the jib equipped with Facnor furler and self-tacking system as standard (a double rail in the deckhouse can be rigged on request to also have a 106% genoa). Another star aspect of this project was the comfort on board: the cockpit and benches are no match for those of a fifty-footer, and a relaxation area has also been designed in the bow, where a double cushioning protected from the sun by a recessed pantograph awning can be placed. There is, of course, no shortage of ample storage space, both on deck and in the interior: although there are no lockers under the cockpit benches to make room for the aft cabins, there is a large aft locker and two additional storage spaces available below the helmsman’s seats. Finally, a stern opens to a small beach with large volumes that is easily accessed by a folding step.

GRAND SOLEIL 43: THE OTHER STAR ON THE DOCK IN SANTA MARGHERITA

Grand Soleil 43 is the brainchild of Claudio Maletto. Equipped with a generous sail area, it was born to grind out good racing performance (sail area is 96 square meters). U boat that well displays that understated and unmistakably Italian elegance that makes it something to look at. Its characteristics are speed, comfort, maneuverability and beauty. A hull with little wetted surface area, powerful stern sections, square and angular styling softened by beveled corners and curved surfaces. The hull and deck are made of sandwich, while the inner spider is made of carbon fiber composite to achieve a lightweight yet rigid and torsion-resistant hull.