Above: where it all began. When Patrizio Bertelli asked Federico Nardi to rebuild his 1938 Olin Stephens design Nyala he had no idea that he was about to launch an entire new yacht racing industry. This is Nyala winning the 12 Metre Worlds in Barcelona in 2014 – she continues to be a regular on the Med circuit where Bertelli is often joined on his always beautifully turned-out yacht by fellow Cup veterans Torben Grael and Mauro Pelaschier. Nyala was originally commissioned by Standard Oil tycoon Fred Bedford as a wedding gift to his daughter and new husband Briggs Cunningham… he of luff-tensioning fame. Left: not quite ‘before’ but the notably unsuccessful British 12 Metre Sceptre is seen in the foreground at the Argentario yard during her refit five years ago. After being soundly thrashed by 1958 Cup Defender Columbia, Sceptre has enjoyed a far happier later life as a charter yacht
FN: Several examples come to mind. Generalising, the lead keel is certainly one of the things that keeps best over time. If we then go into detail every boat has other unique elements that characterise it and which have survived time. I am thinking of the restoration project
of Scud, the 1903 class auric cutter designed by Nat Herreshoff, actually also owned by Patrizio Bertelli; the furnishings of this boat remain because they were dismantled at the time and saved from decades of natural wear and tear. Very little of the original remains of the hull, the bulkheads, maybe a few of the floor timbers. Unfortunately, when the starting condition is compromised, it is impossible to keep some parts of the boat. Many elements often cannot be saved. One very important clarification must be made here. The restorations carried out
46 SEAHORSE
by us are not museum restorations, it is a question of restoring yachts that are then engaged in high-level competitive racing. So when carrying out a restoration you must be sure that once the boat is in the water it can sail in total safety. Drawing a line between old and new therefore becomes complicated. In some boats, on the other hand, more
elements can be saved. For example, partial but significant interventions were carried out in the restoration of Stormy Weather and Dorade, but the base of the boat has always remained the same. On the other hand, yachts such as Bona Fide, which dates back to 1899, had been heavily damaged by wear over many years. SH: Do you think your craftsmanship has something to do with being in Tuscany and with the area’s famous art and excel- lence in related fields… the sculptors of
Pietrasanta and the famous marble caves of Carrara are of course not very far away? FN: Perhaps. I do believe that the geo- graphical area in which we find ourselves has a positive influence when the owners are selecting us to restore their vessels, both for a regional tradition of making beautiful things but also for the guarantee that the work is done in the most correct way. This gives the owner a lot of confidence. SH: Can you tell us more about your relation ship with Olin Stephens? FN: I remember that he would always come to the yard for a couple of weeks in the spring or early summer. He loved Tuscany and Maremma, the area where we are, he would visit the ancient churches around here. Olin was a wonderful person, his mind
travelled faster than the words he spoke. But I learned many secrets by listening to
JAMES ROBINSON TAYLOR
PEDRO MARTINEZ
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