He was eagerly awaited and well placed on the pontoons of La Rochelle: right at the foot of the access to the pontoon. Next to him, his little brother RM 890 . Even side by side, it's hard to tell them apart. Passing behind, at cockpit level, you can see that everything is a little smaller on the 890. This smallest model in the range has a tiller. This is not the case with the new 970, which has 2 steering wheels.
Still designed by Marc Lombard, this new RM has a new, flatter hull with more volume at the bow and an out-of-water beam, clearly visible on this Grand Pavois pontoon. The deckhouse, a distinctive feature of the range, ends at the bow with a large front porthole. The latter features two "cat ears", giving this RM a playful air. This large porthole is a special feature of the range, brightening up the interior (there's no other word for it), but one to be wary of when moving around on deck at sea: watch out for slips. Still on deck, we note the choice of matt black balconies and stanchions. An option that shows this shipyard's desire to break away from traditional marine clichés.
Inside, this RM 970 is fitted with a double cabin on the starboard side aft and an open bed forward. While this type of layout doesn't offer much in the way of privacy, it does have the advantage of providing a large visual volume as you enter the boat. However, at this size, it's always difficult to fit a chart table, galley and central table. As a result, circulation around all this furniture is a little restricted.
As we're used to from the shipyard, the choice of colors and materials is very modern, with sharp-edged furniture, gray tones and very little visible woodwork. Surprising for a yacht built in wood!
This yacht took advantage of the summer weather at the end of Grand Pavois 2016 to tack a few times and take the first images under sail. Before heading out into the open sea for which she was designed!
