TOBY HODGES ON A NEW DAWN OF SEMI-CUSTOM SUPERCATS
Gunboat 70 and 80
In the seven years since Grand Large Yachting purchased cult catamaran brand Gunboat and brought it to a new headquarters in the south of France, it has steadily increased its market stature. Today we see a yard at full capacity, specialising in a real niche of top end quality and high performance, at a big size (and cost).
It has two GB72Vs in build (its first flybridge model), two GB80s, and numbers six and seven of its GB68 – which is now redesigned as the GB70 (featured here). When you consider theGB80 is equivalent to a 100ft superyacht in size and price, you start to understand quite how far this brand has progressed.
I have toured the La Grande-Motte yard a couple of times, the most recent being last year, and have been highly impressed with the quality of engineering and attention to detail.
When I spoke with Gunboat’s managing partner, Benoit Lebizay, both then and at the Düsseldorf boat show in January, he explained that they see little point in going below this current size range. Its client base now is a high profile one, with owners typically coming from maxi racing yachts and looking to reduce crew numbers. He also reasons that 55ft is the maximum size before you need a crew, and that once you have a crew you then need privacy.
GB80
A supercat capable of matching low single figure windspeeds yet topping 30 knots, the GB80 has a pretty unique brief: a Grand Prix maxi-sized cat, that can be handled by a small crew, is capable of luxurious world cruising and is a semicustom repeatable build!
The first GB80 is the latest in serial boat owner Irvine Laidlaw’s Highland Fling series, due to launch this summer, while the second is for Team Argo. Hence you get the idea these are for serious, competitive and experienced racing sailors who want a turbo cat they can also cruise, with the equivalent accommodation of a maxi yacht. “The cult is coming back – but at a higher end,” thinks Lebizay.
To see these beasts in construction phase is eye-opening. These are full prepreg carbon builds with much of the construction done by industry leaders Fibre Mechanics in Lymington and Multiplast in France. Pick up a panel and it’s featherlight yet super strong.
An aircraft company builds the furniture in Nomex (including 6mm Corian veneer) – it’s incredibly expensive but the most valuable place to save weight, says Lebizay.
Gunboat is now updating its GB68s with the learnings and technology from the GB80.
GB70
The GB68, the first new VPLP designed model under Grand Large Yachting’s ownership, has already pro
