R70 Retrostyled Performance Cruiser

In March of 2017 we were asked to join an experienced Italian owner for lunch in Milan with his friends and advisors to explore the possibilities for a new 70′ performance yacht.  During a long and very enjoyable meal he described his passion and experience and we ended up discussing the positives of the clean simple styling of the sixties and seventies.  This is not the ‘Classic’ styling of earlier design periods, but the result of decades of racing yacht development at the time by offices like S&S focused on producing a seakindly offshore yacht.

It aroused a very personal curiosity as to where this idea might lead, so even after the client decided to refit an existing yacht instead of a new build, we continued to sketch and dream.   Three years later we received fresh interest in this type of design and started to develop it properly.

The twin foundations of the R70 are the restrained, even austere, styling matched with a modern hullshape adjusted to suit the overall aesthetic.  I am not a fan of the trend towards pastiche styling, with exaggerated overhangs that wave around but cannot contribute to performance.  Instead this hull shape takes as much from our latest high performance designs like the 74’ racer its compared with above as possible, relying on a plumb bow, light displacement, and powerful shoulders to maximise heeled righting moment, but modulated to produce the firm sheerline, gracefully tapering sheer in plan, and counter transom that are hallmarks of the era.

Within the timeless exterior all the requirements of a modern owner are met, with a raised saloon above the battery bank for quiet running, tender stowage opening up to become a terrace, and integral side boarding ladders.  This is a yacht able to match the performance of many raceboats with the good manners and seakindliness to travel the globe.  When I daydream of world cruising, this is the yacht in my vision, swinging to anchor off the rocky side of a pine-scented inlet… but under the skin it’s pure performance.