Editor-in-Chief Dan Harding looks back on the memories made during a summer boat program that took the Power & Motoryacht team from NYC to Martha’s Vineyard.
I don’t hear the generator running,” mentioned my boss Gary DeSanctis as we glided up to the stern of the Prestige 460 we were testing for the summer. “The air conditioning isn’t on either,” replied Executive Editor Jeff Moser.
It appeared that the draw of a charging Seabob overwhelmed our generator. After a couple hours trying to rectify the tripped genset, our crew resolved to call it a night and readdress the situation at first light.
It was well after midnight at this point and our crew of editors dispersed to find places to sleep. There are a multitude of options on the 460. You have the master amidships, scissor berths in the forward VIP, a salon sofa and the crew’s quarters. The only issue was that it was a warm July night and the light breeze on our Vineyard Haven mooring barely permeated the interior. Some chose to brave the sweltering conditions belowdecks. Myself, DeSanctis and Digital Director John Turner sought refuge on various outdoor spaces.
Lying on the cockpit seating, I couldn’t help but admire how well the team was handling the situation. Five coworkers on a boat without power can make or break a team faster than any ropes course or trust falls ever could.
I sat up for a while on the cockpit settee, trying my best not to kick the crew’s quarters hatch closed and accidentally entomb Moser, who rested in the space below. I shifted from facing the salon to looking out and admired the billions of stars that painted an impossibly black canvas above.
I wondered when was the last time I had stopped and looked up at the stars. The short answer: Too long. Like many of you, my colleagues and I had been sprinting the rat race. Work travel beckoned, deadlines loomed and summer was slipping by like an oil-covered snake.
In some ways it felt like we had just taken delivery of the new yacht from Staten Island Yacht Sales. How was it already almost August? The backdrop for my first night aboard the 460 was far different than our generator-less night in the Vineyard.
We listed heavily from side to side. Our lines, tight as guitar strings, pulled mightily around our cleats. Ferry and commercial traffic was rampant just a stone’s throw from our slip in Manhattan’s Chelsea Piers—affectionately referred to by our crew as the rock and roll marina. What it lacked in any semblance of sea protection, it made up for in access.
Behind us, urbanites just out of work smacked golf balls and the stresses of the day away at the driving range. New York City was alive right beyond the marina gates. Energy radiated off the concrete. Cabs honked and people shouted.
Both that night, and my night under the stars, stand out when I think back on our summer-long test of the Prestige 460. They stand out in part because of their stark contrast, and how well the 460 seemed to fit in at both locations.
In New York I spent time with leaders from the Prestige U.S. team as well as a pair of Prestige owners. We ventured into the city, enjoyed a five-star dinner and kicked back in a couple bars. Some late-night golf at Chelsea Piers capped a fun experience in the Big Apple.
The truth is though, I felt more at home on a quiet mooring—I’ll take stars in the sky over stars on a menu any day. Surrounding our boat that night was a who’s-who of beautiful yachts. Schooners, trawlers, lobster boats, superyachts—all mixed together and flanked by luxurious Martha’s Vineyard homes. It was a reminder that the right boat can help you create some unbelievable experiences, but at the end of the day, the view is free. All you have to do is stop and look up.
