Pershing 50

In the Med', it's just a short boat ride from one country and culture to the next. You can cruise from the Cote d'Azur or French Riviera to Sardinia via Corsica, cross the Adriatic from Italy to Croatia, and head south from Monaco to Spain via the Balearic Islands. All you need is a fast boat with a decent range and some nautical style so you're noticed at each porto.

Little wonder, then, that the first question people ask when they come aboard an express boat in the Med is: Che motore? What motors? Or perhaps: come rapido? How fast? (Hey, my Italian is lousy but bare with me on this.) To which the hired hands are likely to reply twin 1000hp something-or-others and 45 knots. (Translations intentionally withheld.)

While you can't reach another country quite so easily in Australia, motor boaters are most definitely coveting more speed from their cruisers. More speed means less travel time and more enjoyment at anchor. And just like the Med' you can change the scenery with a fast boat in a big city. Think Sydney to the glittering Gold Coast then tropical Whitsundays and onto the Great Barrier Reef.

Which brings me to an Italian stallion called the Pershing 50. Designed by Fulvio De Simoni, who has been described as the Godfather of open express boats, the Pershing 50 is designed around common-rail, advanced injection, 900hp V8 MAN diesel engines and, get this, Arneson ASDII transmissions with surface drives.

Why surface drives? Silly question. Speed, of course. Think 40kt cruise. Think 45kt top end. Think, well, Sydney to Palm Beach, the swanky summer hang for the who's-who of the big hitters, in just half an hour.

With that in mind I tossed-up the challenge to our photographer who was perched on the cliff tops at North Head, the gateway to Sydney Harbour. Once he was in his car the checkered flag would drop. That would signal a race to Palm Beach. For us, the sea wasn't exactly calm. For him, it was midweek when traffic was light on.

As such, some folks on board thought we couldn't beat the car. Having completed this passage many times I had other ideas. Down went the throttles whereupon the rooster tail from the surface drives obscured the skyscrapers behind. Sydney, eat my wake.

But first, some housekeeping. Who is Pershing? To what standard are its boats built? Do you get more than a point-and-shoot express(o) for $2.43 million as you see it here. And what about the engineering? Race results later...

BUILT FOR THE OCEAN ROAD
Built to Rina Class A, the Pershing 50 is lot more than a fast flat-water flyer. That building standard, which covers such things as the hull design, construction and stability, machinery and systems, materials and welding, plumbing and electrical systems, produces a light but strong ocean-going boat.

Like all Pershings, the 50 is built to handle Beaufort Force 8 conditions. That's 34-40kt near-gale winds, 5.5m seas, dense streaks of foam, crests rolling over. And should you have a mechanical shutdown you can somehow take comfort in the fact the boats are designed to remain self-sufficient and not rollover in such conditions.

In production-boat terms, the construction of the Pershing 50 is high-tech. The boat is made with the Scrimp system involving high modulus E-glass - plus Kevlar and carbon-fibre, say the local agents - vacuum infused with vinylester resin and closed-cell PVC foam sandwich for the bottom and side panels. Marine ply and foam encapsulated stringers and frames add stiffness, while the deck is composite bagged foam with E-glass and aramid fibres.

PERSHING PROFILE
So who is Italian boatbuilder Pershing? It's part of the Ferretti Group, which manufactures six different brands of boats from Azimuts to Bertrams, Riva runabouts to 65-metre custom motoryachts.

 Pershing, whose tenet is yachting into the future, has nine models from 37ft-115ft usually dressed in signature but optional silver livery. All are similarly fast and fleet-footed and, importantly, engineered for fast offshore running.

With Arneson surface drives there is nothing to create drag on the smooth-bottom deep-vee hull. The drives exit the transom and can be trimmed up where the five-blade props transfer power straight to the hull. And with that you get your 40kt cruise speeds on the Pershing 50 and a ride that will most definitely win friends and influence people.

I am told well-heeled businessmen, self-made professionals, Formula One drivers, European hierarchy and royalty, and Hollywood notables as well as rock stars are among those who own Pershings. All told there are more than 500 Pershings worldwide, dealers in over 60 countries including here now, and over 2000 employees at the Ferretti Group, which is among the biggest three boatbuilders in the world.

ENGINEERING HIGHS
There's a lot that goes into a boat designed to do 40kt at sea, which is why I began my tour in the engine room. There was oodles of room around the V8 MANs and, interestingly, no engine options since the hull is designed around these very motors.

There were wet exhausts with underwater outlets at idle and thick sound insulation. The sea strainers and fuel filters were found under the checkerplate walkthrough floor.

Fuel is carried in an integral GRP tank, with remote fuel and engine-vent shutoffs like a survey boat. Also in a structural tank is the water, forward, and filtered. The boat had an impressive bilge manifold system and all the seacocks, with ball valves, were labelled. I also noted a 6.5kW Kohler generator, upgraded chilled-water air-con system, hydraulic unit for the passerelle and 400kg-lift crane that can put a jet RIB on the transom. There was an aftermarket bilge-water filter system.

All the equipment was from top-shelf suppliers and the local agents, Yachting Unlimited, have engaged a team of contract engineers to maintain their boats and tailor a custom preventative maintenance schedule, I was told. MAN motors are pretty common in the other big-ticket European boats seen here too.

While Italians are famous for design, the push-button features on this boat went beyond my expectations. I expected the electrically operated carbon-fibre sunroof, Besenzoni davit and passerelle. But not the inflatable anchor-locker bag so your ground tackle doesn't rattle at sea; the convertible copilot and navigator seats that change aspect to become an extension of the lounge; and the retractable push-button dinette that rises from the floor.

With these trick gadgets you can go from speed demon to grand entertainer at the push of a button or two. The boat's static features were no less impressive. There were walkaround decks backed by useful stainless-steel rails and toe rails, plus an inward cambered foredeck, where a sunpad was attached and withstood the high speeds at sea. A stainless steel Bruce anchor comes gratis.

DECKED OUT
The Pershing 50 had trick designer bollards, a smart integrated swim ladder, deck shower and a huge teak-topped boarding platform that, without a tender, was big enough to kick back on an Italian-designed deck chair. Such chairs could be stowed in the deep lazarette, where I found an optional washer-dryer had been installed, alongside a single crew bed and bulk storage.

The optional silver hull has its coats of paint applied wet over wet for superior adhesion, I'm told. I also thought the stitched vinyl upholstery through the cockpit was first class. The huge aft sunpad is big enough for two couples and the U-shaped lounge to port under the hardtop can convert to a lunch setting for eight (the boat's rated for 12 offshore).

There's dedicated storage for a liferaft and cavernous storage space underneath the aft sunpad and all the lounges. The amenities centre to starboard behind the helm bench seat included an icemaker, electric barbie, sink and more storage, plus I found a rubbish bin nearby.

Unlike some Italian boats I've been aboard, the Pershing 50 had pizzazz and practicality. There was a real sense of space and lofty headroom under the all-weather retractable hardtop as indeed there was below decks. I also found heavy-duty grab rails where you needed them, such as in the cockpit where everyone could stand and hold-on for the offshore blast. It was certainly standing weather for the race to Palm Beach.

 I also found a deep glove box for storing personals, wipers and washers on the safety-glass windscreen, and not much evidence of the wagon-back effect where spray is sucked back aboard.

Unlike so many American-made boats there were no in-your-face drinkholders. The fitout was more subtle and understated. As the dealer said: you don't find drinkholders in a Ferrari. Though the dash, with its trick alloy wheel, was reminiscent of a jet-aircraft.

The silver pod put all the controls at hand, everything from bowthruster to multifunction engine-management panel jointly designed by Ferretti and MAN. Electronics were factory-fitted Raymarine gear, with toggles and gauges to trim the Arneson drives, and cool electronic MAN gearshifts.

HOME AWAY FROM HOME
As touched on, the Pershing 50 has a very generous interior for a boat built for speed. The deep-vee hull is indeed deep, leading to good headroom and three cabins with two heads. All the high-gloss cherrywood joinery is grain-matched, with Italian fabrics, stainless-steel galley appliances, and opening ports and air-con.

The saloon down five steps featured a U-shaped lounge dressed in sunrise yellow corduroy-like material, before a folding table with two clip-in stools. The lounge converts into a dinette for up to six people. The galley to port is concealed behind foldaway timber covers on gas struts. Behind the covers I found a ceramic Bosch cooktop and deep sink, with a Whirlpool microwave fitted locally that had no convection function. There was an opening port and an extractor fan, cherrywood doors on the 24V/240V stainless-steel fridge, teak floor and supplied table service for six, and a skylight.

The dayhead just forward had a Techna loo and a shower with a shower curtain instead of a separate stall. Still, it's good to get two heads, especially when they are fitted with genuine porcelain sinks and trick Italian bathroom fittings.

Guest's or kids accommodation was aft. The commodious portside cabin had twin single beds, a ventilation system for the mattresses, and white-and-gold bedspreads. Being a standard-size single mattress means you can buy bedding and bedspreads from major suppliers and change the cabin décor yourself. There were lots of storage lockers, a hanging locker and mirror, room to dress before the bed in a footwell, opening ports, air-con panels, and a 240V outlet.

The second cabin has a queen-sized double bed running athwartships, dressed with a mocha bedspread, with stylish reading lights, opening ports and air-con, plus a three-quarter depth hanging locker.

A carpet runner ranges forward to what is the owner's suite. There's a big island double bed and still plenty of headroom below the foredeck, another commercial-grade television on the wall, mood lighting, air-con, nice cherrywood surrounds and full-length hanging lockers with lights and a mirror. The overhead hatch had shade and privacy curtains. The en suite had a great big shower stall. Bravo!

THE RACE IS ON
Finally, with the engines warm we pull away from the dock. The bow thruster improves the manoeuvrability of the Pershing 50 with surface drives. When the big MAN motors are put into gear the boat lurches. The big five-bladers have oodles of bite. Even chopping along at six knots there was an air of excitement about unleashing this 40-plus knot boat. The boat felt eager, like a racehorse champing at the bit.

The way it's built the 50-footer weighs about 18,800kg dry (the Riviera 51 displaces more than 20,000kg dry with 700hp Cats), so it enjoys an excellent power-to-weight ratio. And with a 2400lt fuel capacity the Pershing 50s isn't short on range. At 33kt, where each 900hp MAN consumes 116lt/hr while ticking over at just 1820rpm, you can cover over 300 nautical miles leaving 10 per cent of your fuel in reserve.

Cruise at 41kt, which you can do on this boat (the Riviera 51's top working speed is 26 knots with 700hp motors), and your working range is still about 285 nautical miles. That's Sydney to Coffs Harbour fish co-op - for fuel and fish-and-chips - in about five and a half hours. Beats driving.

 With the pics taken, we were about to start the race to Palm Beach, about 30km to the north. Watches were synchronised at 10.42am. Gentlemen start your engines. The lights flashed green. We were away, racing the photographer in his Toyota Prado, who was largely confined to 60km/h. Like a slingshot, the Arneson drives take time to wind up. You start with the drives trimmed right in and slowly trim them out as the boat starts gaining speed. It's slow at first, but then in the space of a few hundred metres the boat breaks free, the turbos strut their stuff, and you've suddenly hit 40 knots.

Actually, top speed was 42.5kt on the day, though the agents had seen 46.2kt previously. Yet it wasn't humanly possible to maintain a 40kt cruise offshore. We had a 20kt southerly and confused 1.5-2m swell and sea. I guess you are always going to be limited by the state of the sea.

But at 34.6kt at 1975rpm the boat ate up the miles, proved dry and there was only one thump when we fell into a decent pothole on the Pacific. Not sure which council to blame. Vision was great, too, the boat running flat and with a seven-degree angle, I'm told.

Steering off the wheel is exceptional, the surface-drives far away outmanoeuvre traditional shafts, and the boat was quiet enough to carry on a conversation all the way to Palm Beach... All the way to Palm Beach? Ha!

At 11.15am, 33 minutes after leaving Sydney Heads, we are idling off Palm Beach Wharf, expecting the photographer to toot his horn or wave with a Cheshire grin from the end of the wharf. But no. A call reveals he is at Mona Vale Hospital, still 10 minutes away. We have left him for dead.

As much as I thrilled to the drive aboard the Pershing 50 I couldn't help but notice a new 62-footer with enclosed saloon also tied to Jones Bay Wharf. The boat had just arrived after being sea-trialled and commissioned by the local Yachting Unlimited team. They had taken delivery of the boat in Fano on the Adriatic Sea and virtually circumnavigated the whole of Italy.

The new Pershing 62 arrived here 22 days after its Italian sea trail. But that, as they say, is another story. Top speed 49.2kt. Cruise 42kt. Put your money on the table. Who wants to race me?


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