Limitless

LENGTH: 315ft. 9in. (96.25m)
SHIPYARD: Lürssen, Germany
YEAR: 1997

Lürssen built the Jon Bannenberg-designed Limitless in 1997 for Leslie Wexler, the American son of Russian Jewish immigrants, who founded a clothing empire in Arlington, Ohio in 1963. During a decade that witnessed the disappearance of the general store, Wexner opened a specialty store focused on young women’s clothing, which became The Limited. Named in tribute to the store, Limitless, while sharing styling characteristics with Carinthia VI, has unique features that reflect her owner’s entrepreneurial spirit. Although Limitless relinquished the title of the world’s largest private yacht that she held for six years, she remains the largest private yacht to fly the American flag. Her twin 5,420 kW CAT engines allow a sporty cruising speed of 25 knots, and her engine combines diesel and electric propulsion. The helm features state-of-the-art electronics that include an F-16 joystick control. There is a carbon fiber retractable light mast on the foredeck and lights encircling the waterline that give the nighttime illusion of levitation. The owners of the yacht never authorized interior photos to be released. Wexner, now 73, and his wife, Abigail, are active both in business and philanthropy. Forbes estimates their fortune at 3.4 billion. Limitless is still mobile and cleared that famous bridge in St. Maarten early in 2012.

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