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Spirit Yachts stars in TV documentary

Friday, November 11th, 2022

Written by: Marine Industry News

British yacht design and build company Spirit Yachts will be the focus of a BBC television documentary titled Making Waves: Building Boats airing on BBC One East tonight (11th November) at 7.30pm (GMT). 

As part of the wider BBC series ‘We Are England’, the programme tells the story of Ipswich-based Spirit Yachts; from its beginnings in a humble cow shed to the award-winning modern classic yachts being launched by the company today.  

The series has a sustainability theme running throughout, highlighting companies lowering the carbon footprint of their products.  Spirit Yachts has won several awards for its environmental innovation and initiatives , which are explored in the documentary. 

“We are looking forward to watching the programme as a team this evening; this is a proud moment for all of us,” says Spirit Yachts ’ founder and CEO Sean McMillan.

“The creation of a Spirit yacht is down to an extremely talented group of individuals working together to design and build a person’s dream. The documentary will open our doors to the public to share an insight into how we create each one of our custom wooden yachts.”

Karen Underwood, Spirit Yachts’ managing director, comments: “With COP27 highlighting the need for global climate action, we are proud to be part of a series championing British companies lowering the carbon footprint of their products.”

The documentary will also feature another Suffolk-based firm, OneSails GBR (East).  Based on the River Orwell at Levington, OneSails has been Spirit Yachts’ sailmaker partner since Spirit Yachts was founded in 1993.

The programme will be available to watch on BBC iPlayer during and after it is aired.

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ON TEST: Spirit 44e – the sustainable future of sailing?

• Theo Stocker
• November 1, 2020

A wooden boat that blazes a trail for modern technology and sustainability sounds too good to be true. Theo Stocker went to see if the Spirit 44e is as good as promised

Product Overview

Spirit yacht 44cr electric.

• Most sustainable yacht available today
• Sails beautifully
• Stunning looks
• Limited accommodation for length
• Upkeep of wooden boat

Manufacturers:

Price as reviewed:.

Boats have been built out of wood since Noah first put axe to tree, but when it comes to cutting-edge yachts, timber is right back at the top.

Spirit Yachts have been building head-turningly pretty wooden yachts with stiff, lightweight laminated wooden hulls since 1993, including the largest wooden yacht built in the UK since the 1930s in the shape of the Spirit 111 , launched this year.

But away from all the fanfare, the Ipswich-based yard has also just launched Avvento , smaller sister to its 47 and 55 Cruising Range yachts.

Far from being a lesser vessel, however, the Spirit 44 Cruising Range Electric Boat (44e for short) hides advances in sustainable technology under its gleaming topsides that offer a glimpse into the future of boat building.

Unrecyclable fibreglass and sails, toxic antifoul, and fossil-fuel propulsion are replaced by sustainably sourced timber, self-sufficient electric propulsion and zero-carbon emissions.

The proud new owner is Vincent Argiro, a retired technology entrepreneur who lives and sails in British Columbia in Canada.

Explaining his motivation to go for such a radical concept, he said: ‘My first sailboat was also the first of its kind to be built all-electric. I have never owned anything else, nor will I.

‘To me, it is a terrible corruption of the beauty and simplicity of sailing to add internal-combustion propulsion to it.’

She is built, Spirit claims, to last a hundred years and to be largely recyclable when the time does come. In the intervening century, she will burn no hydro-carbons whatsoever with not even a backup generator on board, or, for that matter, any obvious renewable energy sources. I was curious to see how she worked.

THE TEST VERDICT

The Spirit 44e is a fabulously expensive boat given her limited accommodation and shorter than average waterline length, if you are going to judge her by volume.

As managing director Nigel Stuart says: ‘You need to think about her volume relative to her waterline rather than overall length.’ That’s a nice idea, if you have the luxury of not worrying about marina fees.

You can get a lot of boat for this kind of budget, so why would you buy the Spirit 44e? Firstly, she is drop dead gorgeous. From her sleek lines to her dovetail joints, there is no part of the boat that is not a pleasure to look at.

Then, she is utterly engaging to sail. Lightweight, powerful and responsive, helming her will put a smile on your face, while she should cope equally well with the rough stuff. Finally, she is light years ahead of most production yachts in terms of environmental impact.

I would opt for the smaller rig and higher boom, and I’d like narrower cockpit seats. Most owners would opt for a backup diesel generator for peace of mind, though with new battery tech on its way, unlimited range is within reach.

The Spirit 44e goes a very long way to prove that yachts can be built and run in a sustainable way.

Would the Spirit 44e suit you and your crew?

This boat isn’t about mass-market appeal, but who wouldn’t fall in love given half a chance? In reality, for the kind of cruising most sailors really do, weekends and a few weeks here and there, she is luxuriously comfortable for a cruising couple with occasional guests. Liveaboard cruising is more of a stretch, but entirely feasible, while she’ll also do well racing round the cans.

There’s plenty of entertaining space, particularly on deck once you’re in harbour, and if you don’t mind the stares, she turns heads wherever she goes.

Very few boats out there could hold a hydrocarbon-free candle to the Spirit 44e. Even Noah might have been tempted to leave his animals for this boat.

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On board the award-winning Spirit 111 flagship sailing yacht Geist

BOAT International steps on board Geist , the flagship of British shipyard Spirit Yachts that combines classic beauty and green technology with beguiling grace...

When Spirit Yachts’ flagship grew from 27 to 34 metres overall before she had even left the drawing board, she was already destined for the record books. At this size she would be the largest wooden sloop-rigged yacht to be built in the UK since the famous J Class yacht Shamrock V back in 1930. Given her long, elegant lines and low freeboard, so typical of the J Class , it was an interesting comparison from the off. And there was more to come.

The decision to head from Spirit Yachts’ yard in Ipswich on the east coast of the UK to Gosport in the south for the sea trials, was intended to make it easier to get into open water. But it was also a move that provided another connection with Sir Thomas Lipton’s famous America’s Cup challenger. The Gosport base for the Spirit 111’s sea trials was the famous Camper & Nicholsons yard (now Endeavour Quay), where Shamrock and the three other British J Class yachts had been built in the 1930s.

Unlike the competitive Js, the Spirit 111, named Geist , has been designed for a more relaxed life – a cruiser with the ability to take part in the occasional regatta. And while she’s been built in a traditional material, her wood epoxy composite construction on a steel space frame takes advantage of the very latest materials and techniques.

From her carbon mast with its non-metallic rigging, to her advanced sail- handling systems, her classic looks conceal a very advanced technical specification. For example, a bank of four BMW lithium batteries and a 100kW Torqeedo propulsion system capable of regenerating power once under way lie at the heart of her operational hardware.

Another significant difference is in the intended make-up of her crew. Here, the biggest clue as to how she has been designed to be operated can be found in her layout below decks.  Aside from being beautiful, it offers an owner’s cabin and three guest doubles – far fewer than you might expect of a boat this size. Furthermore, there is no skipper or crew accommodation: this is clearly an owner/driver superyacht.

Wherever you look, the Spirit 111 is a fascinating boat and when you talk to her creators, (“builders” seems so inappropriate for something so artful and innovative) it becomes clear that the project was a voyage of discovery for them at times too.

“In the early stages we built a model and presented it to the owner who said, ‘No, it looks a bit dumpy. Can’t we pull out the bow and stern?’” explains Spirit Yachts’ managing director Nigel Stuart.

“So the boat grew, but not the freeboard – but this was just the start. As you’d expect in the accommodation, the Sipo mahogany walls were drawn to sit vertically but they ended up raked, sweeping around the accommodation with a crease. There are no door handles and American walnut was used around corners in ways you simply wouldn’t expect and many believed couldn’t be done. The saloon table has 64 individually made legs, while the seating that wraps around it took a dedicated team 2,000 working hours to build. ‘Organic’ was a word that was used endlessly throughout the project.”

Designed by Rhoades Young and Spirit Yachts, her interior is extraordinary. “The client had recently visited Antelope Canyon in Arizona and this was the catalyst for the idea of the warm, soft flowing walls creating unique focal points within the room,” says Rhoades Young partner Jonathan Rhoades. Based on a set of linked circles which sweep around in an S-shape, the bulk of the accommodation is set amidships. The saloon, galley and navigation area is one open, circular area, lit from overhead by Spirit’s trademark fan windows in the deck.

From cooker to chart plotter, every item of equipment can be hidden behind slick fitted panels where the grain provides seamless continuity. Combined with vellum panels and an ingenious lighting system that not only switches on and off automatically but also balances itself against the ambient light, the overall appearance is striking.

Devoid of any decoration or soft furnishings, it looks a little stark at first, but this is an interior to savour. Like walking into a gallery at the Tate Modern, when you stop and look you start to get drawn into the light, the lines and the subtle range of colours that sweep through her interior. It’s an intoxicating experience.

It’s difficult to do the accommodation justice in a few words, other than to say that it has to be one of the most extraordinary yacht interiors I’ve ever seen. From the minute the electric motor propels you silently from the dock, through the effortless hoisting of the in-boom furling mainsail and the roller furling headsail, it is clear how much distance there is between the 111 and a J Class. The classic yachts of the 1930s require well in excess of 20 crew to race them – we cruise around the Solent with just five on board, and really only three are necessary to handle the boat.

On the helm she’s a very different boat to a J. She’s amazingly light, direct and beautifully balanced, steering herself upwind with ease. In 12 knots of true breeze we slice uphill at nine knots. Downwind she’s just as silky smooth and while she’s clearly a very large yacht, she’s also a proper sailing boat with all the feel you’d expect of something a third of her size.

I’m privileged to have taken the helm of both Shamrock V and Endeavour and while these were both very special moments, the fact remains that Geist has a much better feel on the wheel. And so she should.

Her fin and bulb keel along with the carbon spade rudder contrast starkly with the less- efficient rudder that was hung off the trailing edge of the keel on a J Class. At 65 tonnes fully laden she’s also less than half the weight of a J Class. While neither of these characteristics are that easy to see, they are good examples of 80 years of progress.

So, while the Spirit 111 was never envisaged as a modern-day J Class or engaging in the type of sailing that the Js became famous for, she does represent a similar approach: using modern materials and techniques to push the boundaries of design and technology, while at the same time delivering elegance that will turn heads, whatever the era.

The wood works

As a boat that glorifies wood – from her hull to her interior design – it was vital that the Spirit 111’s timber was ethically sourced to fit the yacht’s green ethos. For Douglas fir the yard went to Canada, which it knew had robust regulations. “Those forests have been commercially managed for over 100 years,” says Spirit Yachts’ managing director Nigel Stuart. “They plant two trees for one [felled] and they only harvest one per cent of the timber in Canada a year.”

Taking it a step further, the father of the yard’s timber dealer went to the forest to record “exactly where those trees were felled”. Sipo wood was sourced from Forest Stewardship Council-run forests in West Africa and the teak was also responsibly sourced – although since the project began four years ago, the yard’s view on teak in general has changed. 

“There have been certain cases highlighted [within yachting] where teak was bought with the best intentions, but was later found to have actually come from Burma – with all the implications that entails. So that’s why we said that we can’t trust the paperwork.” Instead, the yard now uses Lignia, an alternative from sustainably managed softwood plantations, treated to provide a durable timber that looks and feels just like teak.

But the careful sourcing of wood was only a fraction of the work. The timber is machined into planks before being air-dried for months (a low-energy method). At the yard it is sliced into the required thickness, mostly six millimetres for the interior, revealing the grain’s beautiful flames. “Then we store it on site to let it settle for two or three months,” says Stuart. “It has a tendency to relax when we treat it like this.”

Then the joiners get to work, using only hand tools. “I think we’ve probably got the finest joinery team in the world,” says Stuart. To give an idea of the skill required for this extraordinary interior, he points to the grain on a bathroom wall. It runs all the way from the ceiling, down the wall, undulating over the sink, and down to the floor – perpendicular all the way. This was installed in three separate sections with the grains perfectly matched. That means hundreds of pieces of wood, each referring to each other. Mess up one of the three sections and you start again from scratch.

So fine was the work, they spent eight months making eight doors with flared handholds. They even invented a new method of steam bending walnut wood, which is particularly rigid. The result, however, is one of the most impressive examples of woodwork afloat.

This feature is taken from the October 2020 issue of BOAT International. Get this magazine sent straight to your door, or subscribe and never miss an issue.

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Spirit Yachts in new ownership as founder Sean McMillan steps back

As the company marks its 30th anniversary this year, it now becomes majority-owned by a group of Spirit yacht owners, who have committed significant capital to strengthen future business growth.

The company continues to be run by its existing Managing Director Karen Underwood, who is supported by strong design, production, and sales teams.

Karen will be assisted by a newly appointed Production & Design Director and Spirit Yachts’ Marketing Director, Helen Porter, who has raised the profile of the company for the past eight years.

Sean McMillan will continue to be closely involved in the design of Spirit’s custom yachts working alongside Spirit’s award-winning designer Tom Smith, and the company’s in-house team of designers and naval architects,

Karen Underwood, Spirit Yachts’ Managing Director, commented, “Since Spirit Yachts was founded 30 years ago, Sean has instilled his creativity and vision into the DNA of the business.

“From humble beginnings in the Suffolk countryside to multiple award wins, yachts in two Bond films, and over 80 bespoke yachts located worldwide, Spirit Yachts is a unique success story that continues to push the boundaries.”

Karen continued, “Today, the challenges are greater with supply chain hurdles, staff shortages, and the need to remain agile in the face of global events, but our commitment to quality, beauty, and lowering the carbon footprint of our yachts remains at the heart of Spirit Yachts.

“With a full yard, a strong sales pipeline, and secure investment, the team and I are well-equipped to deliver a prosperous future.”

Spirit Yachts was founded by McMillan and Mick Newman in 1993. The pair set out to offer yacht owners a beautiful, unique, and sustainably sourced alternative to fibreglass production boats. Today the company is the leading Spirit of Tradition builder and has also led the marine industry on sustainable boat-building, winning numerous awards.

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Spirit 72DH review: latest modern classic stunner

• Toby Hodges
• November 2, 2023

A multipurpose design, a dual purpose yacht. Toby Hodges sails Spirit Yachts’ latest stunner, the Spirit 72DH and finds a new benchmark in modern classic quality

Product Overview

Price as reviewed:.

Clear the headland three miles south of Guernsey’s St Peter Port and the depth and conditions can change abruptly, as you transition from sailing around tidal banks into the English Channel proper and realise there’s suddenly nothing between you and 2,000 miles of North Atlantic swell. This became quickly apparent as we headed out on a reach, the Spirit 72DH Gwenyfar II in full stride at double figures, and I noted the rapidity with which the waves were building.

These soon became 3-4m ocean rollers, as thick as they were tall but with a goodly period between each crest. The Spirit took it effortlessly, the motion kind enough to become quite addictive. Heeled over at full waterline, her spoon bow cut through the swell and speed remained steady. When we then tacked and had the swell on our quarters she remained well behaved, just more sporty, the lightweight side of her modern spirit of tradition build coming into play.

It was a performance as graceful and intoxicating as her bewitching looks.

While it was the performance and handling which really transformed this yacht in my eyes, it’s no doubt the aesthetic attributes that will put the majority under a Spirit’s spell. A Spirit’s looks have long been their talking point – you don’t twice get to be a Bond yacht based merely on practical merits. The Ipswich yard has since found a sweet spot in this larger size range, in particular this Spirit 72DH design, for which it is currently building its third hull. While it still allows for plenty of flexibility with interiors, having the design and engineering in place creates a known base, a yacht which the yard knows it can reproduce to the highest standards.

The Spirit 72DH is also designed to appeal to a broad spectrum of experience and sailing preferences, with systems and layout options that allow for a paid hand. The deck layout is deliberately uncluttered, while intuitive push-button hydraulics and a tidy winch layout help make it manageable with a small number of crew.

The first example, Spirit of Anima , launched a year ago, is used for Med family cruising and charter and has a bright, modern interior with separate crew cabin. This second is more classic Spirit in style inside and lets the craftsmanship reign. It’s a dual-purpose boat, designed to be competitive with a full race rig and sails, yet be capable of both comfortable local cruising and an Atlantic circuit. And the third is a cross between the two layouts but reportedly with a starkly different interior finish.

The 72DH at full pace, upwind. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

All in the eye

Despite their different visions, the proud owners of both the first two Spirit 72DHs have talked of how their yachts share an inherent ability to relax them when on board.

In fact, as we made our way down to St Peter Port, it quickly became clear the owner of Gwenyfar II is infatuated with his yacht, despite having owned a Spirit before (a Spirit 63DH). He’d already moved the boat out to a neighbouring anchorage that morning, perhaps because we may have struggled with the depth over the marina sill. But maybe, I wondered, because first impressions and the ability to see a yacht’s lines really count, particularly when the sheer – the line it all started with for this owner – is so important.

I have rarely met someone so passionate about his yacht. We sat together in the whisky drinking armchairs in the saloon, as he pointed out the details and features, the fixtures and finishes, even the movement, smell and noise which brings this timber creation to life. It appeals to all the senses.

In particular, he wanted the finish to be kept minimal to expose and highlight the woodwork artistry. The hull’s sipo ringframes and yellow cedar planking are displayed wherever possible. So this yacht is very much in line with the original Spirit ethos, with an oyster white hull, gleaming mahogany brightwork and this uncluttered architectural interior. Or is it? While the majority of Spirit owners have raced as well as cruised over the yard’s past 30 years, Gwenyfar II ’s owner wanted to turn the dial up on the yacht’s competitive ability.

Under spinnaker the Spirit 72DH proved engaging to sail at a variety of angles and sea conditions. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

Five years ago his Spirit 63DH stole the show at its Southampton debut, a yawl which was commissioned purely for cruising. Having owned a handful of thoroughbred cruising yachts until that point, he the got the taste for racing. The first Gwenyfar (meaning ‘white spirit’ in Welsh) was not set up for that nor easily modified, so a longer, comparatively lighter and faster Spirit beckoned.

‘ GII ’, as she became affectionately dubbed, needed to be a dual purpose boat. “She is built around the capacity to race, look good and go fast, and then transform to cruising,” the owner explains.

The rig is pivotal to achieving this. The high modulus carbon Hall Spars mast is super clean, with just one VHF antenna and the mast wand permitted, and sports a Park Avenue boom and EC Six carbon rigging. And then there are the sails – stacks of them – all built by OneSails. She carries a set of white heavy duty radial cut HydraNet sails for cruising (which we sailed with) or a full wardrobe of black 4T Forte composite race sails. In the words of skipper Simon Hughes, “we were allowed to go to town with the rig and sails”.

A carbon spinnaker pole helps allow for a range of symmetric spinnakers, plus there’s a remotely controlled high speed padeye for a Code 0. A removable inner forestay rigs to a padeye on the forward watertight bulkhead, and provides the option for a soft hanked staysail to help reduce the sailplan centrally in the most efficient manner. “The staysail makes a big difference,” says the owner, adding: “We had a storm jib up for 10 days on our return trip across the north Atlantic on GI.” Another neat feature is the extra track which extends into the mainsail track to allow a storm trysail to be rigged.

Hughes helped skipper the previous 63DH, particularly on long passages, and was instrumental in the commission of the Spirit 72DH with regards to the rig, systems and electronics. He also helped put together a friendly race crew, some of whom joined us for our sail.

Signature styling: low, curved deckhouse with integrated fan windows on top helps provide light and space inside. Douglas fir decks and gleaming brightwork make for an elegant deck. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

With full main set and genoa unfurled in 15-19 knots north-westerly we set out at pace in the flat water between Guernsey and Herm. Reaching off to the south we were soon into that impressive ocean swell, making 9.5-10 knots at 110º to the apparent wind, with waves heading across our starboard bows.

Pleasure sailing the Spirit 72DH

There were nine of us in the cockpit and I wondered why so many were aboard. But it was during that first leg as we hit open water and I caught their collective expressions of unmasked joy that it dawned on me – they were coming out for the sheer pleasure of sailing this yacht (granted, it also gave us the option of flying a spinnaker).

This deep cockpit provides security. The Spirit has the length and shape to handle those conditions with ease and carries her way through the waves, putting you at ease. I imagine it would have felt distinctly different out there on a smaller, flightier yacht with modern full bow sections.

While the Spirit 72DH’s cockpit benches are really wide and may be better suited for sun lounging than sitting comfortably, the vertical coamings allow you to sit up high and from here or the helm there is good visibility forward over the low deckhouse.

To be as rewarding to sail in both directions is rare. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

As we tacked to reach off back towards Sark, I appreciated the ability to control the main easily from the wheel. The speedo, which had varied between 8.5-9.5 knots depending on the tide when fetching, rose to double figures when broad reaching and hit 11.5 knots with wave assistance.

The Spirit 72DH boasts good balance and communication. While I’ve enjoyed sailing many Spirits on the breeze, it’s rare to find a design that’s as rewarding to sail in both directions. The large mahogany wheel, sunken into a well in the cockpit sole, is directly linked to the carbon blade and stock via chain and wire. I preferred to sit to windward at heel, straddling the wheel with a foot braced on the pedestal, as it’s a bit of a stretch to see the telltales from within the cockpit to leeward.

The aft winches are dedicated to the mainsheet, the central winches for the spinnaker and the forward ones for the jib or guys, with the latter kept manual to avoid over tensioning. The hydraulic Cunningham, vang, backstay and outhaul are all controlled on a pushbutton panel by the mainsheet trimmer/winch or on a remote control. A hydraulic cylinder under the cockpit bench moves the traveller, and the helmsman can easily reach the controls for this and the mainsheet winch. The central winches also have foot switches so the kite trimmer can stand and trim. Halyards, meanwhile, all exit at the mast base on to two powered winches each side on GII, including a high speed three-speed model.

We plugged in the masthead spinnaker in the Little Russel channel and squared the pole back so the big white kite could pull us along at graceful 9 knots (up to 11 knots SOG) in 16 knots, running at 160°apparent. It felt like a timeless classic yacht scene, yet it was also clear to see how such a sail could be handy when racing in these notoriously tidal waters, as it allows you to run so much deeper. But it does need many hands to get it up and down!

The wheel is crafted from sipo, as is the binnacle, which has instruments flush mounted. Note the traveller track and mainsheet controls each side, plus the displays set into the deckhouse windows. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

We dropped the kite through the companionway as it started to get lumpy in the larger swell, with Hughes proving an expert influence, calmly directing proceedings.

Decks are kept particularly clean with the aid of removable padeyes. In its continued search for a teak replacement, Spirit has tried Lignia decks and is currently using Douglas fir, traditionally favoured for its straight grain, which looked like a commendable alternative on GII.

The guardrails are also removable for classic style racing. Handrails had yet to be fitted on the coachroof but were due to be added before the Southampton Boat Show debut. Even so, the side decks are narrow by the deckhouse and have a camber to them which makes it a little unnerving moving forward.

A retractable bow thruster is offset to port and uses a neat 48V pancake motor Lewmar adapted to fit the boat’s sail locker. The starboard side of this locker is large enough for the trysail, staysail and spinnaker. Meanwhile, two lazarette lockers under the aft decks form the bulk of the deck stowage. There’s enough space for a couple of spinnakers on one side and a F-Rib tender to the other, while both feature useful outboard trays for spare lines.

Huge, deeply fiddled central work surface of the galley forms a social heart. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

Tranquil experience

The fun of sailing this yacht is arguably matched by the pleasure of just being aboard. Whether gathering for drinks in the cockpit, socialising around the galley or soaking up the peace in the saloon, it is a boat you are happy to linger on. ‘Tranquil and simple’ was the brief for the interior. Gwenyfar II is designed to be at anchor in this part of the world. The owner has no interest in Med sailing – he might do a Baltic and Caribbean season, but otherwise it’s for local cruising and racing.

Other than the aesthetics, it’s the layout, particularly in the deckhouse, and the attention to detail that stand out. Typically a deckhouse may accommodate a pilot berth or raised navstation. Here it forms the social heart of the boat, a galley area around which people can congregate as they would in a modern home, and still provides a proper chart table with views.

The signature fan windows built into the deckhouse pour natural light over the galley, the traditional butterfly deck hatch does the same for the saloon, adding ventilation at anchor too. And the lighting, including indirect and subtle uplighting, helps celebrate the planking.

Obviously there are compensations that need to be made with a classic shape with long overhangs. So they haven’t tried to pack in the accommodation; instead, the three cabins are inviting and well appointed. The question for prospective owners concerns how much they want to sail with a paid hand and whether to accommodate them in these cabins or in a separate crew cabin and thereby lose some valuable deck stowage.

A practical chart table to starboard. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

The overhangs also restrict mechanical space. So the engine is contained under the galley unit as its shaft exits the hull in front of the companionway steps. This helps centralise weight, while the layout around this engine bay and the tanks each side of it has been done intelligently. A day tank gravity feeds the engine, while the fuel filter and manifolds are easy to access quickly.

Smart details are numerous, while behind the scenes and in the bilges everything is sealed and finished properly, down to wooden trays below the fuel filters to prevent any diesel drips fouling the locker. A surprising niggle then is the lack of soft closing mechanisms on drawers and lockers.

The items that can be removed, such as crockery and cutlery, have all been designed to lift out easily in one unit. When racing, the companionway doors fold away flush, the galley taps are removable and the whole area is protected by custom covers, allowing the crew to pull spinnakers down through the companionway without fear of damaging the woodwork.

GII has the larger galley option. To stand looking out at a horizon view through the deckhouse windows while making a brew or preparing food is special. Watch our full video to see all the details and features such as the customised knife drawer, the marinised Miele induction cooker and a bespoke tea tray for kettle and mugs which fits neatly into a locker.

Directors’ chairs can join the saloon table to help seat 10, with stowage for them in a locker below the bulkhead cabinet. The two comfortable leather armchairs, separated by a lift-top cabinet for the single malts, are the choice place to sit and admire the structures. Spirit used carbon fibre to help support the highly loaded areas, which helped shave 1,200kg in stainless steel around the ringframes.

The spectacular forward master. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

Another two reading chairs in the forward master cabin offer privacy, and there is also a writing desk with fold out mirror to help it double as a vanity table. The owner points out the marquetry and neat pen stowage built within: “I didn’t ask for it but Spirit takes it upon themselves to go the extra mile.”

At 6ft 3in he has full standing headroom up to a double berth, which can be separated by lee cloths when cohabiting with other crew. Otherwise furniture was deliberately kept to a minimum. No full wardrobes for example, just half height lockers and deep drawers. The ensuite is a good size, with rainfall shower, low wattage towel rail, and a bevel-edged mirror neatly set into the front face of the locker.

The excellent navstation has good visibility of the sails and a nice mix of modern and traditional systems. There is touchscreen control for the C-Zone digital switching plus a manual switch panel for primary systems. GII also has a full B&G H5000 racing system, the 12in Zeus touchscreen for which can double as the house computer.

Power management is based around Victron’s Quatro smart inverter charger, which specialises in distributing power when and where needed, says Hughes, in this case from the 1,000Ah lithium battery bank (below the forward saloon berth). It also helped enable the choice of a more compact genset below the companionway.

The identical aft cabins both have generous ensuites with separate showers. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

GII’s traditional fossil fuel based system seems noticeably at odds with Spirit’s recent launches and drive for renewable power. The yard has recently produced a foiling electric motorboat, the extraordinary 111 Geist with electric drive, and a 65 and 68 with hybrid drives.

“We probably wouldn’t even do a 44 or 52 now with a diesel drive,” says marketing director Helen Porter. However, those doing ocean cruising still tend to choose more traditional power systems.

The ‘row away factor’ of the Spirit 72DH is significant. Photo: Waterline Media/Spirit Yachts

Spiritual world

The Spirit 72DH is the definitive modern classic. It has gorgeous traditional lines mixed with modern materials and appendages to make it relevant, fun and practical today, and crucially the layout and systems to make it repeatable. GII is also used just as the classic gentleman’s cruiser once was, when owners raced with friends or crew who valued the experience of sailing such a yacht, then cruised with family or friends.

The true spirit of this Spirit design is all about how it affects you personally. For me the 72DH shone from behind the wheel at sea. From past experience a Spirit revels in flat water, but going through, across and with an Atlantic swell showed this yacht has special qualities. For Gwenyfar II ’s owner it’s all about how it made him feel.

That’s what the beauty of wood and Spirit’s master craftsmen and women bring: lines you’ll never tire of, joinery that calms you and that added quality that gives the yacht a soul.

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Spirit yachts.

8th September 2021

James Bond's recent boatmaker of choice returns for No Time To Die

  By MI6 Staff

English boatmaker Spirit Yachts has announced a partnership for 'No Time To Die' sees a Spirit 46 sailing yacht feature in the upcoming film.  The Suffolk-based company’s relationship with James Bond began when a Spirit 54 yacht was chosen to feature in the 2006 film Casino Royale, in which James Bond and Vesper Lynd can be seen cruising into Venice.

Spirit Yachts CEO and Head of Design Sean McMillan commented, “The James Bond films are a mainstay of British culture and we are honoured to be continuing our partnership with such an iconic brand.” In the forthcoming film, Bond has left active service and is enjoying a tranquil life in Jamaica, where a Spirit 46 sailing yacht is featured.

Sean McMillan continued, “The Spirit 46 is one of the original Spirit Yachts designs and is an example of the level of craftsmanship and attention to detail that goes into every Spirit yacht.  I think the yacht suits the Bond character very well because of the combination of beauty and practicality.”

A true modern classic yacht, the Spirit 46 showcases long overhangs, flush decks, and an elegant profile.  A day sailing yacht capable of up to 18knots sailing speed, the Spirit 46 looks beautiful on the water and has the sailing performance of a regatta racing yacht.

Inspired by the classic, elegant sailing yachts from the 1930s, all Spirit yachts are custom-designed and built to order by a team of world-class craftsmen and women in Spirit’s waterside headquarters in Suffolk on the east coast of the UK. Whilst Spirit Yachts has a portfolio of existing designs from day sailors to superyachts, each yacht is tailored to suit an owner’s criteria meaning every Spirit yacht is completely unique.

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SPIRIT FOUNDER HONOURED WITH LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD

Spirit Yachts’ founder and designer Sean McMillan was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2024 Classic Boat Awards.

Sean McMillan co-founded Spirit Yachts in 1993 with his friend Mick Newman (who sadly later died in 2007), and he went on to become renowned for Spirit’s acclaimed modern classic sail and power yachts.

When they began Spirit Yachts, Sean and Mick set out to design and build beautiful yachts in wooden from responsibly-managed sources. That goal remains at the heart of Spirit’s ethos today.

From award-winning yachts to Bond films, royalty, and sailing successes in his own Spirit R52, Sean has a raft of accomplishments to his name. Along with Mick, he took Spirit from its early days in an old farm building in rural Suffolk to a world leader in modern classic yacht design and build.

Sean commented, “I have been lucky throughout my career to work with some of the most talented craftsmen and women, passionate owners, and experts in their fields. I have stood on the shoulders of giants and I share this award with all of them.”

Hosted by Classic Boat magazine at the historic Royal Thames Yacht Club in London, the annual awards celebrate the best new yachts, restorations, and people in the classic boat world.

Classic Boat described it as the founding of ‘a company that left an indelible imprint on sailing.’ And that Spirit ‘continues to remind the world that Britain was once a great boatbuilding nation…. (and) she still is.’

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Spirit c72 wins prestigious classic boat award.

The Spirit C72 ‘Gwenhyfar II’ was crowned Spirit of Tradition yacht of the year at the 2024 Classic Boat Awards.

SPIRIT C72 ON DISPLAY PALMA BOAT SHOW

The Spirit C72 charter yacht Anima II will be on show at this year’s Palma Boat Show from 25th – 28th April

ENTRY OPEN FOR SPIRIT YACHTS REGATTA 2024

Entry for the 2024 Spirit Yachts Regatta in partnership with Locate Guernsey is now open. Taking place from 15th – 22nd June, the regatta will see a fleet of Spirit yachts take on a competitive six race series in the Channel Islands.

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