Patrick Parker begins a new chapter with a brand-new Super Lauwersmeer Discovery 46 OC Longroof
Boating has always been part of my life. My father was a sailor and my wife, Dominique, has always had a passion for boating, so it makes sense that our love for the water runs deep. We’ve expressed this over the last decade by spending lots of holidays on charter yachts – and we’ve enjoyed it so much that this summer, we took the next step and became proud owners of Cuba Libre, our very own custom-built Super Lauwersmeer Discovery 46.
Making the change
After a long career in charge of successful transport companies in Antwerp, it was time to make our dreams come true. Our three children had grown up and we had become proud grandparents to two grandchildren. We also had a great circle of friends around us, so after a lifetime of hard work, we decided the time was right to focus on the finer things in life. Naturally, our passion for the water was front and centre…
The primary port where both we and our friends tend to stay when we go boating is Tholen, about 40 minutes north of Antwerp. It’s a nice gathering place for the family in its own right but it’s also a fine starting point for day, weekend or week-long trips further afield.
It makes a great staging post for longer holidays towards Scandinavia, Germany and France too, so while our focus was initially on a planing motor yacht, our ambitions quickly changed. We started thinking about our travel goals, about fuel consumption and about stability and in the end, we decided to look for a relatively sedate displacement or semi-displacement model instead.
Visiting the yard was a key part of the process
A search at various boat shows followed, looking for the right yard to build our dream boat. From HISWA to Boot Düsseldorf, we put in a lot of time and a lot of miles; and we also visited plenty of shipyards. But when we came across a pair of boats – Pursuit of Happiness and Yanos from the Dutch yard, Super Lauwersmeer, on YouTube – we got a really good feeling about it.
What we had here were two Discovery 47 OCs – the same model of boat, yet totally different from one another. We loved the Porsche chalk-white exterior colours of Pursuit of Happiness, and in the case of bright orange Yanos, the relaxed lounge-style arrangement of the interior saloon really appealed to us. So we made an appointment to meet up with Bastiaan Jousma, the co-owner of Super Lauwersmeer, in Noardburgum in the Friesland province of the Netherlands.
Every request was carried out to the letter
Design dilemmas
Once we had decided on a Super Lauwersmeer, the various options were then explored in more detail. And after working with the guys at the yard, we quickly arrived at a model that combined the exterior colour scheme of Pursuit of Happiness with the interior layout of Yanos.
Plenty of additional wishes could also be incorporated, so that it would really feel like a custom-built boat. From an enlarged bathroom to a long roof and from a shortened swim platform to lockable gates for the dog towards the gangways and the aft deck, Super Lauwersmeer incorporated every single element of our wishlist.
They were even happy to include all the finer details, like black taps and dark windows and so, buoyed by the prospect of beginning the build, we signed the contract in September 2022. Bastiaan came to Antwerp especially for the signing of the contract so it was no surprise to us that the schedule was faithfully followed. Construction started in early 2023 and our finished boat was launched in July 2024.
Cuba Libre will now cruise home to Tholen
Super Lauwersmeer kept us intimately involved throughout the entire process, with photo and video updates on a weekly basis. We were always welcome at the yard too and, while our initial brief was pretty detailed, it’s amazing how many extra features began to make sense later on in the process.
For us, they included a remote control for docking the yacht from the gangway, as well as air conditioning to keep us comfy. We even specced a spud pole (a telescopic steel pole that projects through the hull into the river bed) for secure, fuss-free anchoring at the touch of a button. And to the credit of the guys at the yard, every requested upgrade was implemented.
The Porsche-inspired colours look superb
Cool times on Cuba Libre
We’ve already got our first few hours of cruising under our belts and they have been extremely happy in all respects. Our dream yacht has been given the name Cuba Libre – and while that obviously references the dark rum cocktail Dominique and I so enjoy, the name also stands for freedom.
We intend to use our boat a lot, and whether we go cruising in Norway, France or Germany (or anywhere else in the world) we know they will be able to pronounce it correctly. It might sound trivial but believe it or not, that was genuinely important to us when choosing the name.
For the time being, Cuba Libre has a short itinerary to carry out. It will be used by Super Lauwersmeer as a calling card at the HISWA boat show in Lelystad from 28 August to 1 September. But once that’s done, the much anticipated trip to my home port of Tholen via Amsterdam and Dordrecht will begin. And from then, on to wonderful voyages, great memories and unforgettable experiences…
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