Bertram 60
You won’t find me arguing about it: the rebirth of Bertram Yachts is one hell of a story. With the Bertram 35 turning heads as a modern makeover of the iconic Bertram 31, the rebirth seems to be well into its paces. But Bertram CEO Peter Truslow feels something is getting overshadowed by their relaunching of the brand: and that’s the quality of 60 on the horizon.
“What I think is getting a little bit lost in the ‘Rebirth of Bertram’ story is we’re really building a great boat right now,” says Truslow. “The 35 is a modern interpretation of a classic Bertram. But the 60 is the modern Bertram. [Her] design is really the direction for the entire brand.”
Bertram 60
The Tampa-based builder is throwing its weight back into the upper tiers of the sportfishing market with the new 60, an ambitious project but one that is also methodical, according to Truslow. At 60-feet, the company is setting its sights at “really the heart of the sportfish market. What’s great about it is, it allows us to tack left or right—smaller or larger—with future molds.” (Word is a tack left might be on the horizon following the debut of the 60.)
Bertram 60
Due out in the winter of 2018, the 60 emphasizes Bertram’s foray away from a production-line company churning out boats like the 46, 54, and 60s of the past, and entering the realm of the semi-custom, individual experience.
Bertram 60
“There’s some really beautiful, well-built boats in that size range. “[The 60] really, I think, is going to stand out from the crowd in that—it’s a Bertram. It’s a fiberglass boat, it’s not cold-molded,” adds Truslow. “It’s a V-bottom, and it looks like a Bertram with its stepped sheer. So it’s built to quite a different design criteria, which we think is better than what you see coming out of North Carolina or New Jersey.”
Bertram 60
Similar to the 35, the 60 comes in two versions. On the one hand, it has the specifications to be a tournament darling, rigged to fish as a battlewagon with a tower and blocked-out front windows. Or, it can be equipped as a comfortable cruising boat designed with families in mind.
“As I spend my days on the factory floor, I’m thinking, ‘Man, if only people knew how good we’re building these boats,” says Truslow. In due time, I have a feeling they will.
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