|
The Lehrers were in no way neophytes with impractical notions. Although the 53 was their first custom vessel, they'd owned several other boats together, from a 16-foot Century purchased second-hand at an auto-repair shop to a 44-foot Viking motoryacht that had sustained them and their children on weekends and vacations for almost 18 years. Moreover, they'd gone all sorts of places, cruising Long Island Sound, chartering in the Caribbean, and exploring the coastal waters of Rhode Island, Connecticut, and Massachusetts.
No exterior teak—that was the first suggestion they lobbed over Alden Yachts' transom. Although the company had never faced such a request before, a positive response came quickly. Traditional style lines inherent in varnished-teak fitments would be replicated either with King StarBoard (joined with the same elegance as teak) or polished stainless steel rails and caprails.
a d v e r t i s e m e n t
|
Anigre, an exotic golden-brown wood from Africa, was another biggie. Alden Yachts typically offers interiors in ash, teak, mahogany, or cherry, but Eileen wanted something more welcoming and vibrant, like the striking wood she'd encountered earlier in one of Peter's construction projects. Again, although Alden Yachts had never faced such a request before, a positive response came quickly. Anigre veneer was purchased from a Midwest supplier, shipped east for inspection, shipped to California for lamination onto marine ply, and finally shipped back to Alden Yachts for installation.
It's gorgeous. When I arrived at the stern of the 53 much earlier that day, in the predawn darkness favored by photographers, I had a chance to appraise the anigre interior from the dock by looking through the open companionway hatch into the saloon. With the lights on, the paneling and corner posts glowed with a gorgeous vitality. "See the grain?" Peter asked once he and his wife had welcomed me aboard. He ran his fingers over a cabinet fascia in the galley. "See how it gives the wood such life?"
Of course, I don't expect any of these little details and observations will really explain why Eileen and Peter own and enjoy their 53. The fact that the boat maneuvers dockside with the same fluency and grace she marshals underway is not likely to suffice, either. Styling preferences, customization successes, and spirited manners ring rather hollow, after all, at least when stacked up against a deep and abiding emotion.
No, to get a true picture of the relationship the Lehrers have with their boat and with each other, you have to look at the name on the transom: Second Love.
Says it all, I believe.
For more information on Alden Yachts, including contact information, click here.
|
PAGES:
|
|
2
|
 |
This article originally appeared in the January 2007
issue of Power & Motoryacht magazine.
|