Stylish, comfortable and fast: the Ice 54 is already a star. PHOTOS

Ice Yachts has launched the first Ice 54, the newest boat to enter the Salvirola (Cremona) shipyard’s range. A project signed once again by Umberto Felci, the designer who conceived all the yard’s boats, connoting them with an unmistakable style. The boat has been undergoing its first sea trials, and while we are waiting to be able to do the sea trial for the Sailing Newspaper soon, we got our first impressions from the man who we could define as the “daddy” of the Ice,i.e., the owner of the shipyard Marco Malgara who told us about the genesis of the project, construction features and more. With a “special contribution,” that of Marco’s daughter, coxswain for the occasion.

THE GENESIS OF THE PROJECT

“This boat was born from the Ice 52,” Malgara begins, “which is our most commercially successful boat, highly appreciated throughout the sailing world, in fact we are on hull number 15 of the 52, which for a yard like ours is a remarkable achievement,” he explains.

“Our owners had a need for something a little more refined than the 52 and more spacious inside. Compared with the 52, the freeboard is 6 cm higher, and the engine room has been reduced, while remaining functional and spacious, in favor of the aft cabin. Compared to the 52 it retains that sporty DNA but moves a little more toward the cruise world. The transom has been lengthened a bit compared to the 52′ to give more stability to the carriers and to anticipate the glide a bit” Malgara tells us about the features of Ice 54.

THE CONSTRUCTION.

Ice construction has always been one of the yard’s flagships. For the 54 the hull laminate was made of Carbon Glass Hybrid, a very high performance, lightweight, quadriaxial fabric, lamination as always was by vacuum infusion with epoxy resin which has vastly superior mechanical qualities to vinylester. About 580 kg of resin was used, the hull weighs 1810 kg without the deck, deck weighing 730 kg.

INTERIOR

As Malgara told us, the goal of the 54 is to make a leap in terms of luxury and comfort on board. “One of the owner’s requirements was space and having one of the two cabins with the two separate beds, as well as a very important aft bathroom, even 1.86 m long. The extra space, in addition to reducing the engine room and increasing the freeboard, was obtained by moving the bulkheads 6 cm aft, taking advantage of an area of the garage that was under-exploited” Malgara explains. “There is alot of technology inside,” Ice’s owner continues, “we have saved only 45 kilograms on the electrical system, we have put as optional extras such as a garbage disposal that allows you to dispose of wet waste effectively and other decidedly ‘smart’ solutions. Bleached oak is the wood for the furniture, with faux leather for the seats. A lithium battery system with a 3-kilowat inverter, on the other hand, allows the boat to have no need for a generator and can also support air conditioning on its own.

COVER

Three electric winches (one for ledrays plus the two for the mainsail), electrically operated mainsail traveller that is operated from the helmsman’s console, this is the rigging organization of the Ice 54, a scheme that had already been successfully proposed on the other Ice models. Remaining at the helm, one can thus from the console halyard the mainsail, open the jib, and manage the trolley and mainsheet. Only the jib sheet runs on deck; the rest is all concealed. The dolphin bowl is 50 cm longer than that of the 52.

IMPRESSIONS OF AN EXCEPTIONAL HELMSWOMAN

Alice Malgara is 19 years old and has not been in the sailing world for very long. Here is what he told us about the latest Ice creature: “The feeling I have is one of great ease of maneuvering even for me who is certainly not an experienced helmswoman, the boat is stable even under gusts if the wind rises above 20 knots. When the wind drops instead, it seems to take little, even an extra gust, to feel it accelerate. I was definitely comfortable with all the controls at my fingertips, the ability to be able to adjust the trim of the boat with the electric trolley is something that gives a lot of peace of mind when the wind picks up a bit. The rudder (2.37 m long and narrow n.d.r.) even if the boat is lurching you always feel it under control, it seems impossible to oversteer.” stated the young helmswoman.

CONDITIONS OF THE FIRST SEA TEST

Wind 4 to 15 knots. At 40 degrees apparent with 9 knots of true, the boat cruises at 9.6 knots, 9.6 knots engine speed, 10.4 peak at 3100 rpm, flexofold three-blade steerable propeller. Downwind with 12 knots under Code Zero the top speed was 11.4 knots. With 5 knots upwind, you will not struggle to match the wind speed or slightly exceed it.

TECHNICAL DATA.

Overall length 15.80 m

Length at waterline 14.84 m

Maximum beam 4.65 m

Draft 2.50/2.80 m

Displacement 13.00 t

Ballast 5.00 t

Volvo CV 75 Saildrive engine

Water tank 520 lt

Fuel tank 350L

Interior solutions 3 cabins – 2 bathrooms

www.iceyachts.it

DISCOVER ICE 54 AT MILAN YACHTING WEEK

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