The definition of a labour of love, 52-foot sailing yacht, Serenity III has undergone a massive overhaul from the refit experts at Kingfisher Cruisers, at The Boat Works.
Serenity III is a Sparkman & Stephens-designed sloop, built in 1984 in Long Island New York by Eric Goertz.
With a hull made of cedar and mahogany with cold-moulded epoxy and interior of birds eye maple, she was built as an ocean racing yacht and earned a string of accolades in regattas on the east coast of the US before a new owner sailed her to England. The keel and rudder were replaced and she participated in Cowes Week and Fastnet races before sailing to Portugal, Panama, Fiji and ending up in Melbourne. She undertook several Melbourne to Hobart races and a Sydney Hobart in 1997 before two long cruises to New Zealand and the South Pacific.
Director at Kingfisher Cruisers, Per Andreson and his son Christian located the vessel in Pittwater, Sydney and purchased her in late 2014.
“The boat looked tired after years of hard ocean racing and a few years of neglect,” said Christian. “We sailed the boat up to The Boat Works where the project really began.”
Kingfisher Cruisers, comprising four boat builders/shipwrights, have been tenants in the southern yard at The Boat Works since 2010. They specialise in refits for sailing and motor yachts, timber and fibreglass.
The original mast was used, complemented by new rigging and deck hardware throughout. New teak decks were installed in the cockpit and raised deck section, as well as non-skid texture elsewhere on the deck, plus new teak steps and swim platform doubling as an easy access from the transom to the marina. In addition, they installed new electric winches and a stainless davit system for easy loading of the tender, and a fresh new Bimini top and spray-dodger.
As Christian explained “We bought Serenity III as a project and for resale. We’re planning to take her up to Airlie Beach Race Week and Hamilton Island in August. But now that she’s done, it all depends on whether Per can let her go. She’s beautiful.”
For the restoration, the team stripped and gutted the entire boat leaving only the bare structure. The raised section of the deck was redesigned and modified to allow the ropes from the mast to invisibly run under the deck to the cockpit. She underwent a full 2pac respray.
She was equipped with all new B&G electronics system with solar power/inverter setup and a new Highfield tender.
The project was completed intermittently over five years in between client projects. Now that it’s finished, Christian said they can’t wait to sail her north and show her to an appreciative audience.
“She’s not a Broadwater boat,” he said, referring to her 3-metre draft. “We’ll sail it to Airlie, have some fun, then sail it back to the Gold Coast or Sydney and put her up for sale.”
Boat building is in Christian’s blood and it’s something he never tires of. “I’m third generation boat builder, with Norwegian roots. The best thing about boat building is that every day is different. There’s vast scope for creativity. You get to mix modern methods with timber boats that have real heritage. They are made from a living thing, even when working on them you can sense that. Timber has real character.”
Ensconced at The Boat Works in the Coomera Marine Precinct, Christian said his business is located in the hub of boat refit and maintenance.
Thanks to the dredging of the Coomera River, depth at low tide is 3.5-metres, and The Boat Works has a lifting capacity of 300 Tonnes with the new lift, with no need to de-mast or remove forestays. Both the 100 Tonne and 300 Tonne lift can handle wide-bodied boats, and for catamarans there’s a 45 Tonne submersible hydraulic Sealift.
“Everything is on-site,” said Christian. “From the marine trades and professionals to suppliers to chandlery.”
Kingfisher Cruisers | Ph: 1800 642 677 christiankingfisher01@gmail.com
