Sunsail 444 awarded Boat of the Year by Cruising World
by Simon Conder, Sunsail 17 Dec 2011 07:17 GMT
The revolutionary Sunsail 444 Catamaran © Sunsail
The latest revolutionary catamaran to join the Sunsail fleet, the Sunsail 444 (Leopard 44) has received Cruising World Magazine's coveted title of Boat of the Year 2012 in the Cruising Multihull under 50 feet category, as well as Import Boat of the Year.
The Cruising World BOTY awards recognise the top new sailboats making their debut in the North American market. This year, the competition consisted of 22 nominated sail boats in 5 different categories.
The Sunsail 444 (Leopard 44) represents Robertson and Caine's latest innovative developments with modern features not yet seen on production catamarans. It was not one part of the boat that the judges fell in love with, but rather the parts of the whole that "far exceed the sum," said Herb McCormick of Cruising World magazine (McCormick, 2012).
The most significant modification on the Sunsail 444 (Leopard 44) is the addition of the open forward cockpit with direct access from the saloon. This offers increased visibility, ventilation and a significant new approach on adding increased living space in an ergonomic and safe design. However, Beth Leonard, one of the judges for the BOTY awards, was most impressed with the "raised steering section, from which the winches and sheets were readily at hand and the sight lines forward clear and unobstructed" (McCormick, 2012). "That pod was great. Everything was right there and intuitive. You could reef the boat standing in one place," Beth went on to say (McCormick, 2012).
For judge Ed Sherman, the boats interior had the most allure. "I loved the owner's cabin. The nice couch, the spacious head and office -- you could slip into you own little world," he commented (McCormick, 2012). While the interior is extraordinarily pleasing, it was the layout that sold judge Alvah Simon. "The overall ergonomics were very clean," he explained (McCormick, 2012).
In addition to private ownership through Leopard Catamarans the Leopard 44 is also available for ownership through the Sunsail Yacht Partnership Program as a Sunsail 444 (4 cabin charter layout). Through the Sunsail Yacht Partnership Program, Sunsail pays the owner's monthly boat payment, all operating expenses and allows access to over 30 destinations worldwide providing up to 12 weeks of owner use per year.
www.sunsail.co.uk