The illusion is partly down to the power plants responsible for the speed
boost. The 16V 2000 M96Ls are MTU’s latest tier three engines and
very quiet considering they are generating 2,600 horsepower each. The
place you don’t want to be at 50 knots is the flybridge, where you could
literally be blown away. The top deck, with its pop-up navigation
console, is quite low profile, hence there’s not much of a windbreak.
At the main deck helm, corporate captain Damon Lish smiles.
“There’s no way around it, she’s just a fun boat to drive,” he says as, with
fingers on the tiller, he takes a sharp turn at 40 knots. We heel like a
sailboat and cross our wake with nary a bump. So much of the yacht,
including the propellers, is out of the water at this speed. If the vast
bathing platform wasn’t concealing them from view, you could see the
props breaking the surface, thanks to the Top System surface drives. But
you don’t need to know anything about the drives to take the wheel
though; Autotrim can do it all for you.
It’s an ideal system for a fast boat as it reduces drag, but there’s much
more to the speed picture, says Coleman. “It’s not just the engines and
drives, it’s the very deep V shape of the hull, it’s the way the furniture
is assembled and put in the boat, it’s the way the whole boat is put
together. There are very few seams on all Ferretti products, but
particularly on a Pershing. It’s one solid piece of fiberglass.”
When the Ferretti Group revisited the 82 model to increase the
performance, it also took the opportunity to add a new layer of Italian
luxury to the interior. Poltrona Frau furnishings and leather stand
out among the dark and pale-streaked oak backdrop. The guest heads
feature striking Bisazza-tiled showers and Antoniolupi basins, and
the master is accented with a metallic patterned wallpaper by Frenchpower
company Elitis. Expansive windows in the forward
VIP and amidships master make it obvious that you
are directly on the sea. I particularly appreciate the
textured flooring on the main deck, a Pershing
hallmark, which securely grips the feet.
The hull I am cruising on includes a media lounge,
which takes the place of a fourth cabin, and makes
a pleasant landing spot when going below. Another
gathering place is the foredeck, which has a large
sunpad forward of a table and seating that can be
covered by a canopy.
I had arrived at the boat in the morning via the
mayhem that is driving into Miami at rush hour.
Like me, the Pershing 82 VHP also left Fort
Lauderdale that morning and, even with a brisk
wind churning up the Atlantic, it makes it dock
to dock in less time – its cruising speed of 45 knots
(52mph) far exceeding my plodding progress down
Interstate 95. I’m sure it was a heck of a lot more
fun too.BAbove: the 82 VHP
has a low-profile
flybridge. Right: the
salon opens on to a
spacious aft deckPHOTOGRAPHY: ALBERTO COCCHI; MAURIZIO PARADISI