Please select your home edition
Edition
Super Yachts at boot (newsletter)

Having a tanti

by John Curnow, Global Editor, Powerboat.World 3 Jul 13:00 PDT
Those bows. Pretty unmistakable - ILIAD 53S © John Curnow

First came across these bows at the recent Sanctuary International Cove Boat Show. They popped up again just a few days ago at Hervey Bay. Obviously, there's the super fine entry, with the stepped chine that serves brilliantly as a spray rail, and this also allows for the kind of internal volume needed to be a powercat. Now they all belong the to the very new - and as it stands for now, one of a kind - ILIAD 53S.

Big thing to note back then was that the name was not on the proud prows like it is now. I kind of loved it. I mean who doesn't have one, even now? Kids get away with it. Well, sort of. But adults? We're meant to be above that sort of thing. I'll just go and have a chat with that bloke in the mirror... Still. I loved it. Like just whom is going to see or hear you have one at sea. Not many. Then too, it could be the old answer to the rhetorical question. Boats are meant to be about chill, chill, chill, and hence this is new ILIAD powercat is the antidote.

Other big thing to note was that Hervey Bay was a mere stop on her something in the order of 5000nm journey home to Perth, via the Top End no less, from her commissioning base on Queensland's Gold Coast. Also, could not help noticing the short, sturdy game fish rods in holders on each hip, nor the gold bling-a-rama reels that looked like Shimano Tiagras, at the base of them.

Serious tuna and Spaniard hunting going on there me thinks. And this was the point. It got me back onto boats, for cruising at 8-12 knots are perfect trolling speeds depending on your target species.

Anyway, it is no secret that I have become more and more of a fan of single level boating as time has gone by, and boy has it what! Both the sedan and flying bridge concepts have merits, and this is not the paper to be going into that.

What I liked here with the ILIAD 53S was that there was good vision, which the well for'ard position helped afford by getting you up an over those high stems, but moreover, it was the expansive cruising lounge that meant all and sundry on board could interact with the helmer, should they so choose.

Conviviality was a word that came to mind when pondering her interior and living spaces. Equally, her reduced profile certainly pruned back any block of flats question right to the node, but there are two very important benefits to being vertically challenged, as it were in the powercat world.

The first is air draft overall. Perth has bridges, and is also situated up the Swan River right past a few of said crossings. Sedan works. Whereas full tuna tower is more like not in your wildest dreams. The next item is windage. Australia does have wind. Be hard not to produce the kinds of sailors we over the years without it.

People in Perth go to Rottnest Island a lot. The Indian Ocean can pick up, especially for the return, and presenting less profile to a stiff 25 knots means the catamaran's hulls can do even more to deliver a smoother ride. A pair of 440 horses pushing 24 metric tonnes (lightship) means you will be brisk, but never express, so a good ride is critical to the overall experience.

Now ILIADs are never about outright pace. The key item is cruising efficiency, and I have to say the supreme level of standard on board amenity. Just look at the opening about where we discuss the overall journey Tantrum is undertaking, and then take in the pics. Are you with me?

So here it is. Her total bunkering of 3500 litres makes for 3150l usable (10% reserve), and seven knots equates to very miserly 8.5lph combined, for a range of 2600nm. Boom. Right there. At 18 knots, the ILIAD 53S burns an equally impressive 135lph that equates to 450nm. That's Sydney to Hobart, or Gold Coast to Whitsundays in something like 24 hours of steaming. Weather dependant, of course. If you have your Centurion with you then you won't even have to top the card up when you give the tanks a splash.

For what it is worth, it would look like 21 knots is your sprint pace at WOT depending on load and sea state, naturally.

So then, what about this 'standard level of amenity'? Well it is always good to talk about boats with the right gear. Some you see, and others you don't. The important bits on ILIADs, like hulls and structural bulkheads, are made with high density foam in GRP sandwich which is infused with vinylester. Sounds good, and is code for tough, durable (over the journey), uniform, reasonably quiet, and light as possible. The fresh, grey, black, and fuel tanks are all made with 5052 Marine Aluminium.

You get A/C, bow thruster, fire suppression, cameras, deck wash, solar, inverter, lithium house batteries, LED lighting, autopilot, radar, 16" screen, AIS, fishfinder, all the exterior brightwork from swim ladder to tender stowage, freshwater hot and cold shower on the swim platform... (take a breath now)... underwater lighting, BBQ, the Bessenzoni helm seat, TV, fridge/freezer, washer/dryer, dishwasher, and basically, pretty much as you see it in these pics.

I'd say it will be a while before I can get back on board this particular one, but never fear. Soon the new ILIAD 53F will be upon us, and we could get an extended go with that one. Book your viewing now to avoid disappointment at the impending Sydney international Boat Show.

OK. Today you will find that the website has an abundance of material from right across the globe, and if you cannot find something, just try the search button right up the top of the landing page, above our logo. If you cannot find what you want or wish to want to add to that, then please make contact with us via email.

Finally. Please look after yourselves.

John Curnow
Global Editor, Powerboat.World

Related Articles

Interview with Raymarine's Grégoire Outters
We speak to the Managing Director about the huge changes in marine electronics We spoke to Grégoire Outters, Managing Director of Raymarine to find out more about the marine electronics company, his role, the challenges faced, and where he sees development being concentrated in the decade to come. Posted on 10 Oct
Upcycling your Recycling
This stabilised monohull is the carbon fibre mould from a mighty Volvo Ocean 70 The mighty Volvo Ocean 70 once held the sailing monohull record for point-to-point distance covered in a 24-hour period. Believe it or not, this stabilised monohull is the carbon fibre mould from one of those gems from that all-conquering class Posted on 9 Aug
Interview with Rodney Longhurst
The Riviera Australia Owner updates us on the 585 SUV and the exceptional new 58 Sports Motor Yacht Mark Jardine spoke to Rodney Longhurst, the Owner of Riviera Australia, in the AIMEX Garden at the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show 2023. Posted on 27 May
Close Relations
They are both now a reality... What links a 50-foot Centre Console and a 75-foot motor yacht? We have talked about them before, and now they are a reality... The first relative is a 50-foot Centre Console. The other is a 75-foot blue water cruiser par excellence. Posted on 2 May
Not even a start…
Sometimes you're just plain lucky. Another mantra is: you make your own luck Sometimes you're just plain lucky. Well now, many would like to subscribe to that theory, and that's just fine. Yet there are people who prefer to hold another mantra close to their chest. That one is; you make your own luck. Posted on 14 Apr
HMAS Enterprise (OK. M.Y. Enterprise)
What started out on a driveway, effectively as a one-man band, is now a 50 person strong enterprise. What started out on a driveway, effectively as a one-man band, is now a 50 person strong enterprise. (And there are very good reasons for that!) Posted on 19 Feb
First Look: X Shore at boot Düsseldorf 2023
Evolution of the Eelex 8000 and the new, game-changing X Shore 1 We spoke to Johan Astrom, CCO at X Shore, during boot Düsseldorf 2023 to find out more about the evolution of the Eelex 8000 and the new, game-changing X Shore 1. Posted on 2 Feb
Can your Grandma use FaceTime?
Perhaps not the most nautical of headlines, but it is definitely of the time... Perhaps not the most nautical of headlines, but it is definitely of the time, which is kind of the point with Alloy Boats. Posted on 13 Jan
Powered by LandCruiser - Towed by LandCruiser
There is many a thing to grab your attention about the brilliant, little Tasman80 It remains that there is many a thing to grab your attention about the brilliant, little Tasman80, so it was kind of hard to work out from whence to start. Posted on 14 Dec 2022
Interview about Yanmar's e-saildrive development
We speak to Igor van de Burgt and Bas Eerden at METSTRADE 2022 We spoke to Yanmar's Igor van de Burgt, Application Engineer, Engineering and Development, and Bas Eerden, Global Sales Manager, about the development of e-saildrive, scheduled for launch in 2024. Posted on 22 Nov 2022
Maritimo 2022Mar - S75 FOOTERMarine Resources 2022 - FOOTER