Double success for Lightwave
Catamaran builder, Lightwave Yachts, is celebrating a double – with the launching of its new Lightwave 45 Grande at the 2009 Sanctuary Cove (May 21-24, 2009) International Boat Show and success on the race track. The Lightwave 45 Grande incorporates a “super size” deck design, providing “big boat” comforts on sleek, ocean going hulls. The model to be displayed features the charter layout with four cabins/four bathrooms and Galley Up. Other features include an optional spa on deck, 360-degree views from the saloon seating and enhanced vision through large forward opening hatches, protected cockpit seating for 12, and Lightwave's signature Raised Helm Station with all controls coming back to the cockpit. Optional layouts include a three-cabin/two bathroom layout where the entire port hull is dedicated as an owner's private retreat. The Lightwave Grande' model is offered as a Sail, Power or Motor- Sailor Catamaran.
“Our own sales are indicating its popularity, with two sold pre-release,” said company spokesman Roger Overell.
The new Lightwave 45 Grande
Another Lightwave making the news is the 45-foot Innforapenny II in the ARC Atlantic Rally. Owner Peter and Penny Faulkner and crew (pictured) won the Multihull Division, securing 34th over the line out of the 211 strong fleet. The crew of Innforapenny II and their Aussie built Lightwave 45 SP, took 17 days to complete the 2850 nautical mile passage across the Atlantic, from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain, to Rodney Bay, St Lucia, in the Caribbean. An annual transatlantic rally, is the largest transocean sailing event in the world, with the biggest names in the industry competing, monohulls and multihulls ranging in size from 30-80 foot.
Winners were announced on the December 20, 2008, at the gala presentation dinner at the St Lucia Yacht Club, where a dedicated ARC village was set up for participants and Faulkner and crew had a well earned party. “Our average speed was 6.8 knots. The highest wind speed we experienced was a gust of 30 knots which lasted all of 30 seconds. The average wind speed was 9-10 knots for the whole trip, with no head winds and the sea was mostly calm with little swell. There were a few squalls around, but with the radar as our early warning device we managed to dodge most of them,” said Faulkner.
The crew of Innforapenny II toasting their ARC Rally success.
A happy skipper said his crew had been great and used their expertise in different ways, including even yoga lessons and mid-Atlantic swims. Others with fishing skills snared Mahi Mahi and made tasty Thai fish cakes.
Owners Peter and Penny Faulkner are currently completing their second leg of their circumnavigation. After leaving the Lightwave Yachts factory on the Gold Coast in June 2006, they joined the Oz-Med part of the Blue Water Rally taking ten months to get to Crete for the finale of the rally. Here their plans changed, enticed by the extensive cruising grounds of the beautiful Mediterranean, they decided to spend eighteen months cruising this area. Continuing the circumnavigation late last year, they will now spend another year cruising the Caribbean before returning to Australia via the Pacific Islands in 2010. Follow their remarkable adventure at www.lightwaveyachts.com or contact Roger Overell for more information Lightwave Yachts (+617) 5556 0030
