As You Like It
Production builder Horizon Yacht proves it can compete on custom in the E88.
When a prospective owner first laid eyes on hull number 16 of Horizon Yacht’s E88 series, the builder already had constructed the hull and the interior was complete. Most buyers with custom preferences would have required a brand-new vessel—with a brand-new waiting period—but this buyer was able to move forward, with the shipyard conceding a challenging list of modifications. As it turned out, even the 16th hull of a series can set the owner’s and builder’s imaginations ablaze.
Missing Card III, a 2015 Horizon E88 that made her debut at the 2014 Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, started out humbly enough as an inventory boat. She was spec’d as an enclosed skylounge version (open bridge is also available) on one of the production lines in Horizon’s Taiwan shipyard.
“The owner wanted a boat soon. He didn’t want to go through a complete build process,” said Roger Sowerbutts, head of Horizon Yacht USA.
The owner’s list of modifications wasn’t long, but it was challenging. First and foremost, it
included nearly doubling the size of the full-beam master suite on the lower deck by breaking into and incorporating the starboard twin-berth guest cabin just forward of it. The extra space would be used for a sitting area, desk and additional closet space, and a private laundry room would replace the twin cabin’s head.
“The owner spends a lot of time on board,” Sowerbutts said. “He wanted a desk and a place to relax.”
Further modifications comprised a near-total reconstruction of the main-deck galley, adding a second Sub-Zero refrigerator and four freezer drawers. Instead of the standard lacquer finish, the owner asked for the galley cabinets to be trimmed in the same gloss walnut as the main salon’s cabinetry. And he wanted an overhead TV near the dinette just forward of the galley.
The owner’s preferences also would affect the yacht’s most identifying characteristic: her enclosed skylounge. He asked Horizon to build a custom desk to match the standard walnut dining table, while completely redesigning the bridge deck aft, repositioning and enlarging the built-in bar.
Horizon met the owner’s expectations, and in the short space of a couple of months, transformed hull number 16 into Missing Card III.
“Horizon has the capability to make something like this happen,” Sowerbutts said. “That’s one thing that makes us different. We’re a production yard that can still work with an owner’s wish list.”
That ability is perhaps best evidenced in the innovative new skylounge desk, which folds out of a side cabinet and latches to the floor when in use, not to mention the custom master suite, which the designer smartly integrated with the rest of the interior.
“It certainly sparked a lot of conversations for us at the boat show,” Sowerbutts said of the Fort LOA: 94ft. (28.6m) BEAM: 21ft. (6.4m) DRAFT: 5ft. 8in. (1.73m) DISPLACEMENT: 86 tons CONSTRUCTION: fiberglass ENGINES: 2 x 1,700-hp Caterpillar C32 ACERT SPEED (max): 24 knots SPEED (cruising): 18.5 knots FUEL: 2,700 gal. (10,250L) WATER: 500 gal. (1,900L) PRICE: on request Lauderdale premiere.
The hull, designed by John H.V. Lindblom, combines sound seakeeping abilities with a relatively shallow draft. It also has a 21-foot beam that holds a wealth of interior volume in addition to a covered exterior walkaround deck. The main deck is all one level, easing transit fore and aft even in a seaway. The U-shape galley, which divides the deck, has an electric glass panel that can be raised to give diners added privacy or lowered to include the chef in the conversation.
The layout of the lower-deck service areas is noteworthy for a yacht of this size. In the engine room, there is plenty of working space around the Caterpillar C32s, enhanced by almost 9 feet of headroom. Moving aft, the crew quarters—to accommodate a captain and two crew—incorporate a head, Sub-Zero refrigerator/ freezer, microwave and 24-inch TV.
But the E88’s pièce de résistance, on full display when Card III was tied up stern-to at the Fort Lauderdale boat show, is the beach club. Her transom opens to reveal a spacious teak area perfect for sunning or accommodating water sports. Just forward, steps lead down to a cool and inviting lounge with a TV and stereo. New to the E88 series, the yacht’s swim platform is a high-low hydraulic model that can hold and launch a tender, and it can be raised and lowered by crew with the push of a button.
Despite being Horizon’s 16th hull in a semi-custom series, this particular E88 posed perhaps the best challenge to date for a production builder that touts its ability to cater to almost any client request. According to Sowerbutts, this yacht really had the staff thinking outside the box. And if the proof is in the pudding, future Horizon owners will do well to carry a big spoon.