{"id":8757,"date":"2018-04-28T08:58:14","date_gmt":"2018-04-28T13:58:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/?p=8757"},"modified":"2018-04-28T09:04:22","modified_gmt":"2018-04-28T14:04:22","slug":"atalante-and-the-spirit-of-tradition","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sailpandora.com\/?p=8757","title":{"rendered":"Atalante and the spirit of tradition."},"content":{"rendered":"

It’s been a real treat being here in Antigua during the Classic Yacht Regatta as there are so many magnificent yachts.\u00a0 In my last post I mentioned that the Tot Club met aboard a classic schooner, the beautiful Ashanti.<\/p>\n

That evening I also met the owner of a much more modern yacht, the recently launched Atalante.\u00a0 \u00a0The next day I was fortunate to get a personal tour of the boat by here owner.\u00a0 \u00a0Atalante was built in the Netherlands at the Classen shipyard<\/a>.\u00a0 This yard is known for a remarkable level of craftsmanship and even though the local waters are very shallow, they still find a way to turn out really massive superyachts.<\/p>\n

Atalante, draws her name from Greek mythology.<\/a>\u00a0Legend has it that she was abandoned and left to die by her mother, who wanted a son, and was raised by a she-bear.\u00a0 \u00a0I am always interested in how an owner chooses a name for their boat and am particularly interested in names with a mythological origin as my wife and sailing partner was a classics major so we tend to be drawn to such things.\u00a0 Our own boat Pandora’s name, and her dink Hope, are steeped in mythology.\u00a0 \u00a0 Aboard Atalante is a lovely stylized sculpture of her namesake and her “mother”.\u00a0\"\"She has a graceful and classic sheer to her deck. \"\"A fore-deck that goes on and on. \"\"Her aft deck house is immaculate varnished teak.\u00a0 \u00a0Notice the fitting that controls the main sheet on the house.\u00a0 I should have taken a close up of that.\u00a0 It’s a remarkable piece of stainless work.\u00a0\"\"Extraordinary attention to detail in the deck hardware.\u00a0 Need to check your lipstick?\u00a0 “Mirrors” everywhere.\u00a0 \"\"We should all have a nav station like this.\u00a0 \u00a0As an interesting note, the crew quarters are as opulently appointed as the owner’s areas, not that common on many yachts where most crew live in fairly spartan cabins.
\n\"\"The binnacle is a work of art.\u00a0 I understand that the compass base, engraved with her name was formed from flat stock with the name and logo carved into the surface and then formed into a cylinder to fabricate the helm framework.\u00a0 It’s a spectacular bespoke piece of work.\u00a0 \"\"This bar makes me want a nice gin and tonic.
\n\"\"And, speaking of food and drink.\u00a0 A beautiful galley.\u00a0 \u00a0I’ll bet that some great meals come out of here.\u00a0 \u00a0Interestingly, the chef and captain are a husband and wife team.\u00a0 That’s nice.\u00a0\"\"A soothing traditional lounge.\u00a0 No salty swim trunks here.
\n\"\"Love the linens in the owner’s suite.\u00a0 Brenda and I are going to order new bed linens this summer.\u00a0 Stripes like this would be lovely.
\n\"\"I mentioned earlier that she was built in the Neatherlands, not a spot known for deep water.\u00a0 \u00a0This video is a great look at what’s involved in constructing a yacht like Atalante.\u00a0 It goes into some detail to show the level of detail that goes into building up an aluminum hull as well as getting the finished hull to an area with deep enough water to float her when the keel is in place.\u00a0 The short video is worth looking at.