andra and Garry Elliott have been putting
the fun into boating for years, frst with
their Ross 930 Wasted Away, then with the
Ross 1066 Wasted Away Again and now
with Margaritaville. As Garry jokes, it took
them 20 years to get through one line of
the Jimmy Bufett song.
But the time comes for all yachties to slip into something
more comfortable, and for the Elliotts, it’s Margaritaville,
their Ron Given-designed E-Cat 11.5m, built by Craig
Partridge Yachts in the Bay of Islands.
Te powercat was built alongside Partridge’s E-cat, Taiaha
Rua, which featured in the July 2016 edition of Boating
New Zealand. Te Elliotts saw Partridge’s own boat under
construction and decided they wanted a bit of that – with a
few modifcations.
“It was good to see Craig’s boat half-built,” says Garry. “We
had been thinking about doing something like this for three or
four years, and when he was about four months into building
his boat, we started to talk about what we wanted to do. Years
of sailing have taught us what we really want in a boat.”
Garry’s been a sailor since the age of 12 but at 77, he
says, he’s not getting any younger. Cruising on a yacht was
becoming less convenient, and the idea of having more space
and fewer ropes started to appeal. “If you’re going up the
coast and it really freshens up, you have trouble reefng or
getting the main down.”
Margaritaville is similar to Taiaha Rua, with a few
modifcations. Te hulls are from the same moulds but are
750mm longer for more storage space in the saloon and a
larger galley. Overall she’s also 250mm narrower, to ft into
the Elliotts’ marina berth at Orakei. Te boat also has a pull-
out roof over the cockpit, dubbed the ‘garage door’, and a lift-
up platform on the transom for storing the tender.
Partridge and the Elliotts worked together with designer
Ron Given to make the tweaks as construction progressed.
“Here we were: three yachties designing a launch,” laughs
Garry.| subscribe | magstore.nz/boatingnewzealand Boating New Zealand 65
If you’re into beige and
boring, look away. If you’re
looking for a party, jump
aboard Margaritaville.S