Davie Norris Boatbuilders
Christchurch, New Zealand
Blackjack - Page 3
Boating New Zealand Article
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Pioneer speakers
for the stereo are painted to match their surrounds and are set
in the inner sides of the arch.
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The arch and the
backs of the helm seats subtly divide the helmstations from what
I thought of as the back seats. This area is lovely: comfortable
squabs line either side — only a Japanese could keep them
so white and pristine. The squabs are quite firm to sit on and float
for use as Lylos. They feed in bolt-rope style to moulded grooves
in the seats: a great idea in theory; in principle they are a bit
fiddly to slide in.
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What really makes the area al
fresco-friendly is the table with fold-up sides in the centre with
ice box, a concealed handbasin and hot-cold shower. The open transom
has a concealed swim ladder and the Navtec hydraulic backstays each
side.
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I joined Black Jack
for a sail as part of quite a large crowd, possibly the most number
of people who will ever sail on her: members of the design team,
representatives from North Sails, Kiwi Yachting and owner’s
representatives, Kazuhiro Nishimura and Hitoshi Sato of Ocean Create,
a project management company in Japan. Everyone fit onboard, although
I noticed it was tricky making the transition from within the cockpit
to the sidedecks to take photos. The best route was to step up on
the white squabs but this I was reluctant to do. Unless flying the
gennaker, there would be little need to go on deck anyway, so it’s
not really an issue.
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For racing, the
crew will trim the gennakers using the manual Lewmar 48 winches
aft of the arch and the table may get in the way slightly when moving
across the cockpit in a hurry — as we say, a slight compromise.
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boat’s motion under sail is quite distinctive: a small boat
feel, a bit flicky in the bumpy bits but certainly a lightweight,
easily-driven performer for its sail area. The gennaker ride was
cruisey but in a decent breeze it would be a blast.
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drew the hull fine in the bow but fairly firm in the bilges to provide
form stability; that is, stability through the hull form, although
ballast is provided by a large bulb on the inversely-tapered keel.
The topsides didn’t require significant flare as there will
be no crew on the rail.
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The construction,
immaculately done by Davie Norris Boatbuilders of Christchurch,
is E-glass epoxy with PVC foam core, vacuum consolidated and heat
cured. There is a lot of carbon in the internal structure; the bulkheads
are glass and foam.
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As we doused the
gennaker in its sock, big black clouds that had been threatening
to bully us finally made their move and all non-owner’s representatives
scuttled below decks. The top cover of the companionway is a roller
top slide which appears from under the coachroof — yachts
are experimenting with different ways to avoid cumbersome washboards
and this solution will probably be seen more often. For the vertical
closure of the companionway, a perspex sheet slides out from the
port side.
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