After wowing crowds at her first public showing at the Palm Beach International Boat Show in March, the Grand Banks 85 will make her European debut at the 2022 Cannes Yachting Festival in September.
The Grand Banks 60 debuted in 2017 to an enthusiastic response. The Grand Banks 54 followed the 60, debuting in 2020 and almost immediately sold 10 hulls to yachtsmen around the globe. The company cites customer demand and confidence in its V-Warp platform as primary reasons for introducing its new flagship.
The GB85 benefits from the knowledge gained from building cruising designs for nearly seven decades and delivering more than 7,000 yachts. Many details are incorporated such as on maximizing storage and allowing an abundance of fresh air flow or ensuring comfort both at sea and at anchor.
True to the brand’s heritage, the GB85 is an ocean-going Bluewater cruiser that is also nimble with a shallow draft, making it equally suited for coastal cruising. Designed to travel efficiently at 21 knots for extended cruising, and easily handled by owner-operators, the internal configurations also accommodate spacious and highly impressive crew-quarters capabilities should that be the owners’ choice.
“First, we focused on what makes a superior long-distance cruiser while underway for long legs,” said CEO Mark Richards. “This means understanding the rhythm that occurs while on passage and creating various spaces where you can separate from others off-watch. Some people onboard are focused on running the boat, others are relaxing, and others may be sleeping. This approach ticks a lot of boxes in how the designs come together.
Hull No. 1 is powered with twin 1,000HP Volvo IPS 1350s. Richards reported that, during the pre-delivery test, the GB85 met all expectations. Like the entire range of the new generation of Grand Banks, the GB85 runs flat and pushes very little water, demonstrating the superior efficiency of the V-Warp platform.
A beam of 22 feet allows Grand Banks to offer a range of internal configurations and amenities for both guests and crew. For long-distance cruising, special attention was given to both sociability and privacy.
