PHOTOS: B. Galeron and B. Stichelbaut
“Long” in “Long Island 85” isn’t just a word in a model name. It’s the ideal description for the type of cruising the owners of NDS Evolution plan to do. Long-distance voyages, comprised of long periods onboard, are what they envisioned in commissioning the mega catamaran from JFA Yachts. And, it’s what they’re doing already.
Having taken delivery in time for their first summer aboard, the owners are currently cruising Greece. Measuring 86’1” (26.25 meters), NDS Evolution is the second Long Island 85 built to date. Her owners are incredibly ambitious, embarking on a circumnavigation. In fact, that circumnavigation will take them as close as they can safely get to the northernmost and southernmost extremes of the world.
That explains why they can enclose both the aft deck and the flying bridge and pump in heat. In addition, it explains the variety of toys stowed aboard. NDS Evolution carries four bicycles, dive gear, an inflatable stand-up paddleboard, a wakeboard, and more. Furthermore, the mega catamaran carries a 16-foot (4.9-meter) tender, on a hydraulically lowering platform.
JFA Yachts and Marc Lombard Yacht Design Group ensured NDS Evolution’s owners and guests could enjoy these activities in so many diverse destinations. The shipyard says sea trials confirmed her high-performance focus. She topped out at 11 knots upwind with 15 knots of true wind. With her gennaker at 90 degrees from the wind, she saw 12 knots. (The gennaker, by the way, measures 3,068 square feet, or 285 square meters.) Given the breezes Greece is known for in summertime, surely she’ll continue seeing good numbers the rest of the summer.
The photo gallery below gives you glimpses at the comforts the owners will enjoy inside, too. Dining on the main deck should be even more enjoyable when the aft-deck doors directly next to the table are open. A bar and lounge seating just opposite keep the ambiance casual, as does the primarily oak interior. The owners worked with Darnet Design to add rich walnut accents, too. You’ll especially note the latter in the master stateroom, forward on the main deck.
Speaking of the master, it occupies the full 39-foot (11.93-meter) beam of NDS Evolution. The owners have private access out to the trampolines as well. Since children are in the family, they can check on the kids in their three-berth cabin in the port hull. Another double guest cabin is in the same hull, while a fourth guest stateroom goes in the opposite hull.
While NDS Evolution keeps cruising, JFA Yachts is negotiating additional Long Island 85 builds. The semi-custom series offers three to five guest staterooms.
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