30 May 2016

For the first time the master Argentine designer Germán Frers has put his pencil to work for the Dutch Vitters Shipyard, creating Unfurled, a 46-meter yacht with an aluminum hull that was recently declared the best sailing boat at the World Superyacht Awards 2016. The jury, meeting in Italy for the first time in the Sala dei Cinquecento of Palazzo Vecchio in Florence, was undoubtedly seduced by her essential and elegant lines, but also by the high level of technology attained by this champion of the sea, powered by two rear engines housed in retractable pods, leaving the hull perfectly smooth and increasing its hydrodynamic efficiency when driven solely by the power of the wind. The propeller is retractable too, while the headsails are stowed in a highly innovative manner, thanks to a custom-made system that has never seen before: two drums mounted under the deck onto which spinnaker and gennaker are wound, making handling easier, especially with a small crew. Sloop-rigged, Unfurled has a square-top mainsail, twin rudders, lifting keel and carbon-fiber mast. The interiors are designed by Oliver Stirling. A genuine world cruiser but one that is also capable of producing a stunning performance in races: in fact she recently won, on her debut at Saint Barth, the 2016 Bucket Regatta.