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Two Oceans Marine Manufacturing and Du Toit Yacht Design have recently launched the Open Ocean 800 Luxury Expedition Catamaran. This impressive catamaran is expertly built by Two Oceans Marine Manufacturing and designed by Du Toit Yacht Design, both of Cape Town, South Africa.
Ultra Vires, the Open Ocean 800 Expedition Catamaran, is the largest of the cats in Two Ocean Marine’s Open Ocean series, and the largest power catamaran ever to be launched in South Africa. She is powered by two Cummins 228 kW/305 HP motors, is robustly build for transatlantic voyages and are capable of motoring long distances economically, independently or towing another boat at big as 50 foot. She is built to cross oceans effortlessly and with speed and have a motoring range of around 4,500 nautical Miles.
Designing and building this impressive catamaran is a project that took many months, with four designers involved at various stages in drawing up the interiors, lines, structure and various mechanical details in consultation with the owner and builder, Two Oceans Marine Manufacturing, at all stages of the project.
Ultra Vires is expertly built in a sandwich construction, using epoxy E-glass with a PVC foam core. Two Oceans Marine is renowned as industry leaders and specialists in building custom designed luxury catamarans with a build quality and attention to detail that is exemplary.
Ultra Vires is designed as an on-the-water home for a kiteboarding and surfing family to chase the perfect kiteboarding and surfing conditions, and has ample storage space for kites, kite boards and surf boards.
She is a yacht of elegance, with beautiful lines and intricate features. The interiors have been designed for effortless ocean living as the easy accessible spaces are open and free-flowing. Ultra Vires’ interior is predominantly wood and monochrome and the interior layout, furniture and finishes was done by Du Toit Yacht Design and the décor and design by designer Hanno de Swardt.
She boasts a spacious saloon and galley, with all the comforts one could ask for on a luxury holiday –air conditioning, sound system, TV and DVD player in the saloon, plenty of fridges and freezers and appliances such as an ice-maker, microwave, coffee machine, dishwasher, washing machine, tumble dryer and a gas oven and hob in the galley area.
The main saloon is spacious, the galley being part of this area. She has a state-of-the-art navigation station in the corner of the main saloon. The Open Ocean 800 E has a relaxed atmosphere, where one would often expect the guests to enjoy preparing their own food or partaking in its preparation, while enjoying a cold beverage after a day of kitesurfing or playing on the water.
Moving out of the saloon into the spacious aft cockpit, one finds plenty of comfortable and stylish custom-made outdoor furniture and a bar area with braai and a fridge on teak decks. She has two spacious aft cockpits – one upper and one lower – both protected from the sun and the elements. The upper cockpit on the flybridge is the main command centre of the catamaran, from where one drives the boat, sheltered from the elements.
Accommodation is luxurious and comfortable, while at the same highly practical: Ultra Vires has two cabins in each hull, each cabin with its own entry way from the saloon and galley area, and each with an en-suite heads. The port aft cabin the main cabin, and both fore cabins can be made up as a double bed or as two singles. All heads have a vanity and shower in them.
Ultra Vires has accommodation for four crew in the front of the hulls, each hull having a crew cabin with double bunks, a heads and a shower.
Above deck, the seemingly endless decks are beautifully finished in teak, and around every turn on the beautifully laid out exterior, is another toy – SUPs, a jetski and a smaller RIB/tender on the foredeck, and a large davit which holds a large 16 foot RIB/tender on the 750E’s aft deck and a 21 foot ROB/tender on the aft deck of the 800E, providing some privacy to the occupants of the aft cockpits when the boats are moored stern to.
The Open Ocean 800 Luxury Expedition Catamaran is a perfect example of how the close collaboration of the boat builder and designer, working with the owner at every step of the project, can create the perfect ocean-going vessel and home. Two Oceans Marine and Du Toit Yacht Design have shown this to be true over and over, and Ultra Vires is a true work of art from the team.
