Boat International US Edition – June 2019

boatinternational.com• 062019

fully functional helm station up under

the hardtop with an unparalleled view

ahead. Every function on the bridge is

replicated up here, from chartplotters

to FLIR night-vision cameras and even

the Bridge Navigational Watch Alarm

System that spots when the helmsman

has nodded off – a requirement of

classification.

To complete his aerie up in the fresh air,

Gibbs wanted to put a new companionway

in to connect the main bridge and the

sundeck helm. This, in turn, meant

extending the large fiberglass hardtop, to

protect the stairs. “On the 115, you got

drips from the hardtop going down the

companionway,” he says. “Every morning,

the guys would be out with sponges and a

chamois to clean it up, then 15 minutes

later the water would be back. Sunseeker

made me a new mold for the hardtop and

there was no extra charge for that. They

couldnothavebeenmorehelpful.”Itnow

appearsasanoptionforthe131.

Thebiggerroofneedsacouple of

stainless-steel pillarstosupportits

leading edge, and that has meant

reconfiguring the forward sundeck area

as well – all knock-on consequences. The

spa pool that would usually sit here has

been moved back behind the bar area. In

its place, the sunpads have been extended

to provide cover for raising the deck

beneath, increasing headroom in the gym.

To finish the job, he had a custom mast

put in forward with a bit of extra height

that puts the yacht’s steaming light out of

sight lines above the edge of the hardtop.

“Otherwise you’re blinded by it for night

sailing,” he says. The elegant sweep of the

bar up here has also been enlarged to

make it a really convivial space for

pre-dinner drinks.

Elysium is comfortably the most

customized of all the 14 Sunseeker 131s

delivered to date

ELYSIUM

Hardtop

Extendedto

providemore

shelterto

thesundeck

helm,andto

coverthenew

companionway

STANDARD SUNSEEKER 131

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