Boating

IGUANA X100

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The beaches of Normandy, France, are stunningly beautiful but, as any World War II historian will tell you, a difficult place to launch and retrieve a boat. Built in Mondeville, France, Iguana Yachts (iguana-yachts.com) are RIBs and boats designed to solve the same problem the Sealegs does, only instead of wheels, this builder’s solution involves a tank track.

The company’s founder, Antoine Brugidou, started to develop the Iguana Mobility System in 2008, and produced the first boat with tracks, the Iguana 24, in 2011. One of its most popular models in Europe is the X100, a RIB powered by twin 300 hp outboards. It’s a highly capable RIB.

What sets it apart is its electric mobility system, which features a pair of all-terrain tracks that retract and deploy like an airplane’s landing gear in just eight seconds. When the system is retracted into watertight compartmen­ts, the hull looks and performs like a typical RIB. When you’re ready to drive up onto the beach, a 15 kW electric motor deploys the tracks. They can be deployed in up to 4-foot waves, and can help the boat get up and down a 40 percent grade. While primarily sold in Europe, Iguana does have dealers in both Florida and Massachuse­tts.

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