Liara
Length: 34.1m
Exterior stylist: Malcolm McKeon Yacht Design
Naval architect: Malcolm McKeon Yacht Design
Builder: Baltic Yachts
With this selection, the judges were equally impressed with innovation and aesthetics. While Liara is not a huge yacht, her owner has big cruising plans. The boat is designed to take him and his wife on a safe and easy circumnavigation with careful thought on how to keep the cockpit dry and warm or equally shaded from the broiling sun. Yet competitive sailors often find it hard to abandon the excitement of racing completely, and eventually the brief to Malcolm McKeon changed to accommodate the occasional superyacht regatta, which led to the design and construction of a removable hardtop for the now multipurpose sloop. Carbon-fibre and foam cores infused and vacuum- bagged resulted in a light but strong top that can easily be removed by the crew and stored ashore. The fact that Liara presents a lovely profile in both cruising and racing modes is noteworthy. Accommodating the gear of a racing boat without torturing a cruising layout was addressed by individual deck access bins for large racing sails and clever ’tween deck positioning of most sheets, winches and sheaves, a feature that keeps the deck safe and uncluttered for passages.