boatinternational.com• 052019
PHOTOGRAPHY:
NEAL
FEAY;
ADAM
VOORHEES
intensely, because I went straight into
racing,” explains Rasmussen. “My family
had horses, so I grew up riding, but I
was always trying to find ways to get out
ontotheocean.”
Asurfersincechildhood,Rasmussen
realizedthattherewouldcomeapoint
whenthephysicaldemandsofripping
waves wouldbecome too much. A
supplierinvitedhimtocrewonhisJ/24,
andRasmussenwashooked.
“IhaveaJ/105calledFreeEnterprise,
whichIboughtbackin2001,”heenthuses.
“It’samuchbetterboatwithatiller,soI
converteditinthefirstyear,addingan
aluminumtillerthatweengineeredto
death.Weactuallyhadtoaddabunchof
weightbackinit,tomakeitlegaltorace.”
Truetoform,Rasmussenalsoreplaced
theboat’sstainless-steelgrabrailswith
precision-machinedaluminumonesthat
“fitbeautifullyintoyourhand,”andis
workingonanaluminumsteeringwheel,
whilehis“24fteasyparker”slipfeaturesa
beautifultexturedaluminumbathing
platform,alongside“variousbitsofthings
bakinginthesun.”Theboats,heexplains,
actasatestinggroundforNealFeay’s
numerousclientprojects.
“Thereareonlysomanymaterialsthat
workonaboat,andaluminum’salready
beenvetted,”Rasmussenexplains.“Even
Benettiisusingaluminumcleatsonits
productionboats,soit’saprovenquantity.
Andit’sincrediblyhard-wearing–that
tillerwemadebackin 2001 looksexactly
thesametodayasitdidonthedaywe
madeit.”Plusit’slighterthanstainless
steel.“Aswetransitionawayfromfossil
fuelsandtowardselectricboats,that
weightisgoingtobeabigdeal.”
Coloredaluminumalsoopensup
excitingnewopportunitiesonboard.
“Champagneisfantastic,andcoolish
tones–graysandblues–lookbrillianton
deck,”heexplains.Blackcangettoohot
tomakeitagoodoption,whilepink
shadesfadefaster.Ievenhaveapainting
doneinbluetonesofanodizedaluminum
sittinginmyhousebytheartistJohn
Millei,”Rasmussensays.“Mywifeand
Ihaveaseriousartproblem,soweinvited
awholeloadofartistsjusttocomeand
play in themedium. While they’re
developingtechniquesthatworkfortheir
art,we’relearningdifferentwaystomake
purely decorativepieces that work
commercially,andwhichdon’thave
aspirationsinthegallery.”
So,wheretobeginifyouwanttobring
aluminumintoyouryacht?Inadditionto
obviousareas–doorhandles,walls,grab
rails, bars, staircases – decorative
chandeliers,sconcesandlampscanbe
veryeffective.“Inherently,aluminumisa
greatreflector,”Rasmussensays.“Youcan
hideLEDssothatyoucan’tseethem,and
thelightisbouncingoffthemetaltogive
abeautifulsoftglow.”
NealFeayisalsolookingintocreating
superyachtspaceilings.They’rewell
placedtodoso,usingthecompany’s
previousexpertiseasahigh-endhi-fi
“Champagne-
coloredaluminum
isfantastic,and
coolishtones,
suchasgraysand
blues,lookbrilliant
ondeck”
Left: Free Enterprise, the
35ft J/105 that Rasmussen
bought in 2001. He added an
aluminum tiller – and then
had to add weight elsewhere
to comply with class
regulations. Above: a 2ft
Rasmussen salver with
rippling wave effect.
Right: the salver under
construction at Neal Feay
Studio in Santa Barbara
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