greg elliott yacht design

Elliott Boat Design: Sailing Yachts and Racing Boats that are ‘Sea Kindly’

Elliott Boat Design is a design firm that specializes in luxury sailing yachts and racing boats. The firm is located in New Zealand and owned by designer Greg Elliott. Elliott yachts has over 25 years in the yacht design business as well as boat racing and cruising. Notable Elliot designed yachts include HYDROFLOW, MAXIMUS and MARI CHA III.

Elliott states that his philosophy in yacht design is to design boats that are “fast, functional and sea kindly.” By sea kindly, he means that his boats are user friendly in the sense that they will be safe and easy to handle even in rough waters. The owner has no way of knowing or controlling the unique conditions that the sea can surprise him with. Elliott Yachts has launched hundreds of yachts in their career. Some of these include 2008 cup winners Elliphunk, Second Nature, Ran Tan II, Upshot, Sea Biscuit, Diablo, High Voltage, Bushido II, House of Elliott, Bullrush, Elysium, and Rager. Elliott’s High Voltage has placed in seven races and Ran Tan II in five. Elliott Yachts offers complete custom design services for clients commissioning racing and cruising yachts. These services include the full design of the client’s boat to complete satisfaction prior to building, consistent liaison with the builder and the client all the way through sea trials, and consulting services for sea passage and racing. Once the sale is complete, Elliott Boat Design staff offers support services to ensure proper and safe sailing and care and handling of the boat. The technical standards at Elliott Boat Design are beyond the norm. Yachts are designed to meet most major technical standards set by the classification organizations such as Lloyds, not just the classification that applies to where the yacht is being built or will be used. The Elliott team also uses wind tunnel and tank testing, where some other designers forego this important step and leave it up to computers. Elliott’s also owns a fleet of their own full sized racing yachts that they take out on the water for real research and development. They use computers, too. An Elliott 40’ sailing yacht, the Astral Express, was the chosen vessel in which yachtsman Graeme Kendall attempted to set a world record by sailing around the world solo and non-stop. The Elliott did just fine throughout the sailing, but unfortunately the Arctic did not cooperate. Kendall was advised by Coast Guard and other experts that the ice was just too dangerous to pass and he was forced to give up his mission. The statement that yacht sailing and racing enthusiasts love Elliott designed boats can be proven by the fact that there are rarely any to be found for sale. The production yachts are more commonly found on the market, but the custom yachts are held on to by their owners. Just about the only time a custom Elliott sailing yacht will be found for sale is when the owner is upgrading to a newer Elliot Boat Design model. It’s no wonder that owners aren’t willing to give up their Elliott racing yachts. They won’t sell their winners. The design and technical team at Elliott Boat Design are committed to making the fastest racing yachts on the water, and at the rate Elliott boats are winning the competitions, it seems they are sticking to that commitment. Elliott Boat Design Ltd. has three locations, one in which to consult with designers to have your custom racing superyacht built, and two where Elliott cruising sailing yachts can be purchased or ordered. The main office is located in Auckland, New Zealand, and this is the office of Greg Elliott. There are sales offices also in Melbourne, Australia and London, England. Of course, you can always find Elliott Boat Design Ltd. on the web, and while you’re there you can also check updated race results of Elliott design yachts.