Ben Ainslie among the heroes to open the summer boat show
The official opening of the PSP Southampton Boat Show saw 15
members of Great Britain’s triumphant Olympic and Paralympics squad being
driven around the show in electric carts. They disembarked the carts and walked
through an applauding audience before taking to the stage. Ben Ainsle
officially declared the show open and cut the ribbon.
Minutes later, F1 starts, Jensen Button and Eddie Jordan,
launched Sunseeker’s new boats, the Predator 80 and Portofino 40.
Chairman Robert Braithwaite described the Portofino as the
beginning of a new era for Sunseeker, saything that they have gone back to
their roots with the long bow, slanted screen and deep-v performance hull.
Arguably the most successful builder in the world right now,
Princess Yachts gave a very positive business overview during the launch of its
new 56 flybridge. Sales Director, Will Green, said that developments in
production methods, including advanced vacuum infusion lay ups, had helped the
Plymouth yard to create craft that were both more efficient to build and run
whilst delivering more internal volume.
The new 56 is significantly larger than the old 54 but
weighs the same, runs on smaller 800hp engines but still hits the same 33 knot
top speed, and, importantly, costs the same as the old model.
Princess is also unveiling the new 62S hardtop at
Southampton.
