Boat International - May 2018

The successful Westport 112 model is 20 years old and, until the arrival of the secondLyons Pride, had remained largely

unchanged since an update in 2002. Owner Michael Lord introduced many changes, notably larger windows

from it he culled innovations that could be implemented on his second

Lyons Pride. He talks about that process while seated in the sizeable

galley on the main deck of his new yacht. It’s a great space, with a central

island/bar and comfortable sofa wrapping around a table suitable for

convivial meals under a large skylight. In the Miami sun, the inviting space

is aglow with light.

It was Lord who suggested enlarging all the windows. “It’s not something

so novel in the yachting industry because everyone

is doing it, but it was novel for the Westport 112

design. The changes may not be obvious for

someone who is not so familiar with boats, but just

look at the diference,” he says, pointing to another

Westport 112 next to his. “The old boat had these little

windows and that’s the way they’d been since the

beginning of time.”

The builder’s way of working until now stems in

part from its business model – keeping changes to

a minimum allows it to keep a handle on production

time and cost – and in part from its location on the

Pacific coast. It is not unusual for boats to encounter

five metre waves for hours while travelling up or

down the coast. “We build these boats to be Pacific

Northwest great sea boats and our naval architects

did not want to compromise that. There had to be

a lot of stifening made,” Miles says.

Other significant modifications, not obvious at

first glance, included changing angles on the house

structure, moving air intakes, redesigning the

foredeck as a lounge, adding raised seating under the

hardtop, squaring of the design’s exterior lines and

extending the stern with a swim platform. The mast

is that of the Westport 125.

When they are on board, the Lords like to spend a lot of time in the galley

and he is a licensed captain. “Owners of this [type of] boat tend to be more

hands-on owners,” he says. “The boat has to be user-friendly not only to the

crew but also to the owners to operate the boat. That is why this galley does

not feel like a crew galley at all,” he says, casting a sweeping look around the

space with its bar stools by Durante Furniture, with polished nickel and

shagreen accents, stone worktops, a stain-resistant porcelain tile floor and

full-size appliances.

Another favourite spot for this owner is the pilothouse. Lord liked the

glass bridge that Westport installed on the new 125 and worked with the

yard’s engineering team to adapt it to the 112’s smaller dimensions. “We

spent a lot of time redesigning all this,” he says.

The captain’s lair onLyons Prideis an eye-popper. A single Norsap helm

seat faces the array of electronics and screens on the console. “The

pilothouse is so much larger and more sophisticated than most boats of this

size,” Lord observes. On occasions he likes to handle his own yacht.

From the pilothouse, a sliding hatch leads to the split-level flybridge/

boat deck, another area significantly redesigned at Lord’s request. The

blond teak decking with grey caulking extends to the boat deck, normally

topped with a non-skid finish over glass. It is spacious enough forLyons

Pride’s 6.4 metre centre console tender and a jet ski and, with the toys

oloaded, it’s a great sunbathing area with a spa pool.

The upper part of the deck is shaded by the hardtop, which has been

It was Lord who suggested enlarging all the

windows. “It’s not something so novel in the

yachting industry because everyone is doing

it, but it was novel for the Westport 112”

PHOTOGRAPHY: MAURIZIO PARADISI