Dear Lars, Credit where it is due so you deserve it and glad to promote the club and the real sailing that the club does from small boats to the offshore passages. Yes in Dec 2024 or so (that sounds closer than Jan 2025!) we will be there to start the test sails and shake down cruises and we will meet again then but also probably also earlier as we have the regular trips to Dubai to check build progress...Thanks again for everything!

Thanks Heather!

Thank you so much, David!

Thank you so much!!

Awesome! Thank you Ben and Ashley! Nice of you to be watching and congrats on your almost completing the circle!!! I will be in Cape Town from April 14th to sail a Leopard 50 to the USA but presume you will be well gone before that time... Enjoy SA - wines, game reserves and spectacular places!

Thanks, glad you liked it!

Thanks for the support again and hopefully the videos will continue to be interesting and exciting!

Thank you! Cheers, mate!

Absolutely fantastic and thanks so much for supporting us on the journey!!!

Glad you enjoyed it Derek! Nice of you to comment too1

Yes Jim that would be an excellent idea. The problem usually arises between different countries that each country wants "THEIR" system but we may try and get something happening....

great idea✨

Good idea but common over the counter pain killers in some countries like where the docs are can land you in jail for trafficking or as an addict.. Even in France there are some surprising restrictions. ... 🙄🤔

More people die from opiods overdose than pain. Did anybody die from pain???

@@rafalwyszkowski70 Hi Rafal, You are right that people do not "die" from pain but opioids are the BEST treatment for severe pain in terminal cancer when nothing else works and it allow individuals to die in peace. These are usually full morphine or similar drugs (oral, subcutaneous or IV) but the abused over the counter drugs that cause most of the deaths (codeine based) are not being used for pain but used inappropriately and in excess.... So there are two sides - one really effective pain relief for the most awful pain that is possible and deaths from the same drugs when they are abused. Hence the controls that vary from country to country....

Glad you like them and thanks for the kind words and support, Nick!

Thanks for the idea Lionel. I will put it to Eli but she really likes her faded day bed where we can lie together...

Hi John, fully understand the need for a large day bed. Other idea : could the backrest of the aft sofa be removable and become an extension of the sofa(instead of only canting seating fwd/seating aft)? Idea being to be able to make a large day bed of this sofa when you want it. Wouldn’t be able to use it under way though. Have fun finalizing the GA.

Cheers guys, same for us! It should be an amazing journey and we will share it with you as the build develops!

Good points! It will be a discussion with Eli.... The swim platform as not heavy like on the leopard though so that is not such an issue. Thanks for your insights and ongoing support

Thanks very much Leanne! Thanks for following and supporting our journey!

Thanks David and hope we can brighten your days!

Wow, thank you Magnus! Yes it is interesting that many people compare the price of the Aluminium boats with the GRP without understanding the significant benefit you get - and it may one day save the whole boat! Thanks for your support and very kind words!

Thats good to hear - its only the feedback that lets us know if those sorts of things are useful or not wanted. So thanks very much for watching and the feedback!

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 I might as well add, that I have been preparing to buy a cat, and your video has helped sway my decision for a Portofino, but it will be a few years still. Your modifications are spot on as well. Come visit us in Canada at RVYC Vancouver!

Hey Ian thanks for your take on the bbq seat. If they could construct in lighter material would be good but we have a bit of time. Hope your world is wonderful ❤

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 All is good thanks, crazy busy with JV set up, audits etc. Look forward to seeing you both next time when you back in dxb.

Thanks very much David! Yes is very exciting and we want to see more renders too!!! Interesting times ahead and performance in the water will be very interesting!

Wow, Karlene, nothing gets past you!!! Yes we are on the high dose Vit C and would have been much sicker without them!!! We are getting lots of positives ideas from Raffa so we all hope to get a win / win / win (us, him everyone out there)....

Hey Karlene nice pick up with Johns voice. Yep is smiles all round on so many levels. So glad you are coming along to keep everyone true. Love ya lots from Eli ❤

Thanks very much!

Thank you! Cheers Claudio!

Thank you so much Genie! 😀

Cheers billyDaniel we are pretty chuffed too. Thanks for coming along, it makes the journey so much sweeter when you share it with friends.

Our pleasure Nicolas! We are always happy when we spread good stuff around!!!

Thanks Castro! Exciting times....

Our pleasure, Calvin! thanks for your kind words and blessings as we accept them always with gratitude and appreciation. Yes it will be a spectacular boat on completion and very unique in many ways...

Cheers so much guys. It does feel like it is finally coming together. Should be an exciting ride going forward( in a positive way). Thanks for your ongoing support! ❤

Hey wannabesailer, it should be an exciting journey that we will share all we can. After all you are our Barefoot family❤

Us too! It will be very interesting to see how close the computers can predict the speeds cause there are som many things they don't consider like superstructure shape, bridge deck height etc But we will be sharing the when the time arises in he best part of two years away...

Us too but we have the 2 year wait now but it will be a very interesting time anyway!

Absolutely and thanks for your support and comments!

Thank you for your comment and support!!

Thank you very much Dan! and thanks for your regular comments and support!!

Thank you so much!! Glad you're with us!

Hey ProspectingMonkey seems like the light is at the end of the tunnel!! This will be a very interesting journey. Thanks for coming along with us through the ebbs and flows of real life! ❤

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 still miss your Mcgreggor lol

Well said! Than ks for the support Barry!

Thank you very much Aytac and thanks for your kind words, support and regular comments!

I'll check it out! Thanks Greta.

Thanks Gus!!

Cheers Kurt pretty dam excited, so glad you are coming with us, should be fun!

Hey….. I heard that! Haha yes it would be a really cool feature. We have a bit of time up our selves so maybe they can source lighter material. Raffa is always on the lookout for innovative products. And so sorry to hear about your brother, his experience teaches us to be more diligent. Cheers for your message OnTheFlipSide!

Thank you, Rich!!!!

Hi Louis yes and there will be plenty of that. Sometimes Raffa just surprise us with a new modification and says .. I have a surprise for you. It will be certainly and exciting journey and we are glad you are coming along with us Louis❤

Cheers guys for all your great support over the time, you always give a nice vibe. We appreciate you!

Absolutely we will be sharing the construction process in a fair amount of detail, Richard! We also hope to have Timelapse of the construction and there are many technical and fitout details that we will share along the way too...

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Wow!! fantastic ... I look forward and of course the details on your choice (the barbucue at the back like "a momument" is a wise choice)

Thank you< Keith for your kind words and support!! 😊

Thank you Luis!! Yes there is nothing else on the market that ticked all our wish list...

Thanks Jim - that's a bit rough on the "last boat" - we won't tell her or she'll be upset! Thanks for your comments and support!

Keep up that creative thinking Jim much love from Eli❤️👣👣

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 easy peasy Its not my money haha

Thanks Ray - yes you are right it is sexy and fortunately I have much more knowledge and we are VERY happy with it! It offers so many things that no other brand offers....

Us too, "Will"! There will be lots of interesting stuff in the build process but the launch and real water performance will be very exciting!

Thanks so much, Ned!! Glad to have with us on the journey!

Thank you so much, Vivien!! Glad you're enjoying the journey.

Yes Robert and it makes this time even sweeter! Glad you are coming along with us. ❤

Thank you so much again!! Glad you are enjoying the episodes with us!

Yes, it is nice to be able to get all the things done where the other brands (because of size) just say this is it, take it or leave it... Thanks for the support and the comment

Thanks as always Mango! Nice to have you with on the journey with us and bringing all your positive support!!!

Hey Mango just want to chip in and say how much we value you, always supportive and looking out for us. You are a rare find my friend. Much love Eli❤

Thank you 👍

Hi Boston, as always such a detailed and well considered comment cannot go unanswered - we really appreciate your wisdom and the many others that give us good advice too! You Are right isn that it is the galley that prevents the aft goes cabin to be athwartship - we flipped the hulls 3 times for different reasons and that was one of them! We are going to have sound insulation in the engine rooms and with the solid bulkhead, we hope the sound will be minimal in that cabin... We have deliberately kept the dive room and engine separated cause the dive room will be wet and water being sprayed to clean gear and the engine room will have all the electrics... And yes the vice will be in the engine room. With the toilet orientation, I don't think it matters so much on a cat we don't get the rocking and all the cats I have had have been fore / aft orientation. I was also on a racing mono in the Sydney to Hobart race with a athwartship head and the guy dislocated his shoulder while hanging on while in action... Fortunately we could relocate the shoulder and continue the race!

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 "guy dislocated his shoulder"... never dull reading your replys.

The Garcia is specifically great for the higher latitudes and that is not our focus but each to their own. the wait for Garcias cats is also 3-4 years...

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Sure, I understand! Congrats on your choice anyways!

Thanks a lot and thanks for the comment!

I am very excited for you guys and can’t wait to see the build process! Are they using a CNC machine to cut the various pieces? I saw that process in the Distant Shores boat building videos in the Netherlands. They cut every piece in advance and each piece was labelled. Thanks

Hi Walter, not sure if you ar mixing up the master cabin with the guest cabin - the master has a transverse bed and the forward guest is transverse but the aft guest can't be traverse because the galley units come down to the floor above that area....

Thanks for commenting Floyd and yes, we remember you very clearly! Yes, it's been a journey of exploration but more for the right boat than world cruising although we are happy to have had last summer cruising the Med as we get the future boat on the way... Thanks for your good wishes and hope you keep well and travel safe yourself!

🙏🏻👍🏻

Thanks Ann. Yes in the Med we did not find much variety in the cleaning products so just had to use what we could get... We did have one large sponge but it was only good for soft easy algae growth.

Thanks for flowing and for your comment Brian! When you are talking about through holes, are you referring to the channels where all the wires and pipes have to go through the bulkheads or are your talking about through holes to the sea?

Thanks for following and for your support! Yes 2 years or so is the usual time to build and we still have our Leopard 45 that we are saving the Med on so at least we can continue to enjoy the cruising while we wait...

So true! Thanks Claudio.

Thanks so much we appreciate your support !

Thanks of rate support and felicitations!

Thanks Lincoln, yes we really liked the Versa helm too but because we have in internal steering position, that will not be necessary.

Thanks Chris! Yes we were really impressed with Versa helm from Balance and we actually went through all the design issues with that but because we will have steering stating at the nav position with an electric wheel there, the visibility will be much better.

Hi CB, interesting question and we actually originally had them in the middle of the hulls (which is where the 47 Portofino has their engine. The benefit of this is that the weight of the engines is central and low and the normal position of aft is just for convenience for builders and for fitting stern drives. Shafts have many advantages over stern drives but we will cover that in later episodes. We had to move our engines further aft (to where they are now cause when we redesigned the hull for speed the depth below the floor (sole) was reduced and the engines would not fit in!!! So now they are 3/4 back but still with shaft drives... The hull reshaping was all to improve the performance and that was the compromise / change we had to do.

Dear Somebody (and everyone is someone - not nobody!) Thank you so much for your very kind and generous compliments ad we are VERY GLAD that our content can have positive effects for you personally and everyone else that gets those benefits! As for the "reincarnation of angels" that is certainly the domain of Eli but I am happy to just be dragged along on her wing feathers! We are certainly working to make our path a beautiful one while dealing with high level issues, ironically right now as we are in the middle of legal processes to try and get some outcome from the fire damage - so you kind words are like words of support, helping us on the rocky road!!! As of the incredible joy, Eli and I always ensure we create the joy and love around us so that any negativity no matter how intense does not prevent our daily love and happiness... It is sometimes hard work to rise above it but we focus on what we have and not what we don't have and remember Eli's mother's wise words "Honey, everything's gonna be ALLLRIIIGHT!" So to your important questions - the flybridge will probably lose a knot to the speeds up to 12 knots and perhaps 2 knots from 12-20 - these are my estimates only. So really if you are still getting easy 12s - 15 knots in the right conditions and sailing almost wind speed in light winds, the 52 with a flybridge will be spectacular too. We are going to have loungers on the flybridge that have backs that can fix in sitting position as a compromise but no structure up there and we sacrificed the flybridge cause we wanted the boat to perform as well as it can with all it's other features as well. If you want to have a boat that is also bale to survive ice collisions then Portofino can easily make it to suit - slightly more aluminium supports, thicker aluminium in the bow and probably an extra ton or two by the end but that is "easily" done. I specified to them that we would not sail into iceberg areas so the heavy construction requirements were avoided. By the way, the 47 would probably be strong enough for icebergs as it is but it is much slower and there are many features that we got added to the 52 that makes it an amazing boat! So if you are serious, ask Raffaele about your specs and I'm sure it can be done!!! Yes we do watch for comments on old videos and get to answer almost every one. Fortunately KZfaq has a filter that allows us to see comments that we have not responded to so this catches the comments on old videos - but feel free to drop the comments in every other video as it would probably be good for others to see and improve our KZfaq ratings!!! LOL.

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Good day John and Eli. I am with you on the sentiment that everyone is somebody and I appreciate that you look at me that way, however my old self was determined to be somebody, and I am much happier being Knowbodie. It's a long philosophical conversation we can have someday. I do not look at my self as less or more than anybody, I look at myself as equal to everyone and anyone. We are all the same, just on different journeys in realities of our own creations. I thank you dearly for your well constructed answer, I did not want to contact Rafaelle just yet till I was more certain of my choice. The 52 with a flybridge will be my choice, reinforced structural to withstand ice bergs. I will now get into contact with Portofino and Rafaelle to get the next step moving ahead. Thank you John. 👍🙏 I would like to play devils advocate regarding your own choice on 52 without flybridge. In your first video of this series 3 videos, you and Eli mentioned having a covered flybridge as a must have, and you also did say on a later video of the series that maximizing performance will be a choice that is worthy of getting rid of a covered flybridge, I am with you and support your choice, playing devils advocate now with my question... 5 years from now, and you make a video 'what we will change/regret on our portofino?' , how many times will you have gotten your boat to full speed to the amount of times you would have enjoyed the covered flybridge? For myself personally I am still in my 30's and will love to start a family in the near future, and we will live permanently on the boat, the flybridge with the steering wheel there, will give me a larger time spend with children and friends while also allowing them to steer the boat and get them more interested in sailing. Just feels like it will be a space that will have much better use than merely a sunset cocktail lounge. I truly believe this journey you both are on will change the boat living industry completely. I was pushed into accepting what I didn't want to accept because it was the only offering, now knowing more options are available, soon boat companies will have to adopt to Portofino ideas into there boat or they will become 'Blockbuster' relics of the boating industry. Never knew I wanted a step ladder in the front or a beached able boat, and now I wil never get a boat without it, the door in the owners room that leads to the outside to take a jump in the ocean is something I will not be able to live without now, the diving room is one of the most genius ideas and conception on boat designs since slice bread. And there is so many more ad-ons that is way beyond expectations. Thank you again for everything, and I look forward to meeting you and Eli one day. Have a great day. 👍

@@IamKnowbodie Dear Know Much Bodie! Thanks for the reply and when you are dealing with boats, you are always having to weigh up one thing against another and trying to predict how you will feel / do with the different options. The upper lounge is nice and we sat up there at night a lot, great for sunsets and sailing along in fine weather. Whether we will regret the decision down the track, time will tell but when there is another 52 built with a flybridge and many people do want it, then the performance difference will be clear and if it is minimal, we may have regret on that one aspect.... However it will be such a phenomenal boat, we will still be amazingly happy with it for all the other reasons which are much bigger and more major importances. I agree with you that this boat should change the industry and like you, we were forced to accept features that we did not want in the production line boats..... Also I don not believe that people understand the huge benefits of shallow draft and beaching as they have never experienced it but we certainly are trying to help more folk understand how good it is! Good luck with your creation of your own ideal boat and if you get serious with a Portofino, for sure we will meet up as you will be coming to see our boat and deciding how fine details can be altered to make it even better! Have fun and keep us up to date with your progress.

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Thank you again for your well thought out and considering answers, as well as your brutal honesty John & Eli, I appreciate it tremendously. I agree that all choices do have their sacrifices, and personally off the believe that the boat industry is approaching boat building from a vacation point of view, whereas I am looking personally to have a permanent house that can go anywhere on the sea. Same same but different. Rafaelle's ideas and approach is the closest or ideal to what I want than anywhere else. And Rafaelle's approach of we are in this together, is remarkable and is a true indicator of a wise man. I am excited to have him part of my journey, my journey to have a home, that I can point on a map, and say let's go there. I would say your association with Leapord 50 was what got me to your channel, and my boredom drove me to your journey which really intrigued me, especially 'what would be the end result' question mark. And as I was watching the Portofino introductions, things I never thought of, and then was like that is pure genius and marvelous convenient. Thank you universe is all I can say as all cards is finally playing out for the better, for all. Enjoy the journey. 👍

@@IamKnowbodie ❤️❤️👣👣

Thanks Jerbona! Yes it is a very unique design with lots of interesting extras... We will continue to sail the Med in our Leopard 45 for the next two years and take delivery Xmas 2024 and sell the 45 several months before that.

Wow such great ideas Clive!!! You are right about the fold down flat screen being better for visibility and the details of the aft seat is in process. The disadvantage of the rotating back is that you lose the ability to open the seat wide so getting stuff out is a pain... Great ideas to fold further back with the back rest to be used with the platform! We'll see what the designers can do...

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 The steps problem is a major issue..the only thing i could think of is a safe narrow set of steps that pass up behind the helm position allowing a gentler Climb and a longer slot in the floor/cabin roof that stops you from bashing your head as you descend. It also lets you see whats going on at the saloon door area . Youve probably figured this out from your own experience... Re the rear bench take a look at some of the recent Galleon and other motor yatch designs. Basalt is chemically and electrically inert unlike even carbon fiber and could be made as highly resilient moulded deck fitting item ... They are also producing basalt construction products in the gulf region and they have no shortage of solar to power the small extrusion smelters used to produce the fibers...

Thanks of rthe comment and nice compliments, J. Because each boat is individually built (no moulds) many things are possible as long as the underlying structure does not have to be altered. If you were seriously thinking about it, contact Raffaele and take it further.

Hi Paul, thanks for the suggestion and it sounds quite good. We do have plenty of space in the cockpit so the guys were not worried about the loss of space but I will forward this to them in case it is a better option!

Yes, Russell, it is not what is costs but what value it gives you and you will leave the world with nothing and only the legacy of what you have DONE... Yes enjoyed building the 42 foot cat with western red cedar and epoxy glass sandwich, daggerboards etc (20 years ago) but now we want to enjoy the time, not be working and doing that again! And we want aluminium for the safety....

Hi Yakan, yes we know the cause of the fire but it is in court at present so we need to keep private till that is over... Nothing sinister or worrying for boat systems and safety though... Yes we will keep an evil eye on board with us - got several in Greece and Turkey!

Hi Garth, we are still going to have BBQ but just a simple one in that area.... Still to be designed

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Ah, I thought you might have been trying to move the weight further forward. Congrats, nonetheless and I wish you all the happiest of days moving forward. Fair 💨 and following 🌊 for you ⛵!

Yes around that - $1.39M + options

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 US or AU? Rough build time?

@@SailingSeahorse2026 HI Clint, the base price is US$1.39M plus options so th3e end price will be around $1.5 although we have not decided on many options yet - sails, engines, hybrids, solar but that price includes DC generators and Lithium batteries and many of the other innovative features.... The launch date is expected to be "Xmas next year" - cause that sounds closer than Jan 2025!

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Oh wow. That ends up being MUCH more reasonable than I expected. I thought the sail away price would easily be 2mil+. That puts it in the range of the WIndelo 50 that I was also looking at (I'm a sucker for that forward helm).

Hi Robin, thanks for watching and following. Dec 2024 is the completion date for the 52 and what you mean by selling the polos / polars? They are free and available from Portofino....

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 He probably meant the Portofino polo shirts you were modelling! I will be following your journey to have this boat made with interest, some of it all seems too good to be true, hopefully not too many changes required.

Hi Hakan, thanks for the interest and I am sure the price is in there but it is US$1.39M plus options with final price around $1.5M.

Yes that is one of the options that they were showing in the design meeting. The back rests that rotate obstruct the seats from rising to get gear out of the lockers below...

Hi Kirk, we are comfortable with the contract but as it its very personal, I am not going to get into the different conditions but we took on board you advice several episodes ago on this matter which is wise and sensible!

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 Okay understand & wish you luck in the build process! I'm comfortable telling you that the contract for our Balance 526 being built by the Nexus yard has both a displacement and timing. Hopefully you covered yourselves as this is a startup brand with no track record, and I've heard of another horror story with another new catamaran start-up in Dubai that has turned into a disaster and legal debacle.

Hi Kimble, yes great idea and we love how the Balance (and some other boats have the rotating wheel to allow different positions to get out of the weather. The reason we are not doing t=it is because we have gone for an internal secondary steering position at the nav station (at the front of the saloon) which has much better visibility and weather protection than in the aft cockpit...

Hi Jeff, yes I shared the costs in the last episode - $1.39M + options and I did not think there was a completed design for a 55 but understand there are many interested parties... So for other prices, please contact Portofino themselves.

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 thank you I must have missed that part

Hi Daniel - email Raffaele at info@portofinomarineservice.com or check their website with the same name - www.portofinomiarineservice.com. Good luck with your search!

Hi Nemo, Not sure which flag you are referring too but if it is the ones on our shirts, the Italian flag is behind (red, white green) and the UAE flag is in front (red, white, black with red stripe at rear). The green should be against the flag post I presume is your point? Very good spotting, eagle eyes! Fortunately we did not make those so are not responsible....

Hi Ann, two years to build and the cost in $1.39M + options and we need to decide on which options still...

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 🤗👍🏻

Hi again Louis! We will sail it till about 3-4 months before completion and then sell her to put towards the 52.... We will put the boat up for sail a few months earlier to have a contract the completes at a time that works for both parties but is early enough for us to get the money to pay Portofino!

$1.38M plus options and we have not finalised them so we don't know yet but you can estimate...

After you've been sailing for a few years and realise that sailing slowly is painful and you use a lot more diesel. Also the poor performing boats don't sail upwind effectively so that really limits your choices when cruising. As the You Tube channels earn more money, they can also afford to buy the higher cost boats that perform well so there are a number of factors that have created this effect... We. of course had the performance cat that I built and went to the slow side for the convenience of the comfort (and I did not want to spend another 3 years building another one) but after sailing "slowly" and not having the shallow draft and reachability, we went through the process to get the our desires filled and Portofino were the only yard that could put it all together to tick off everything on our list. And it's a very sexy looking boat!

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 i have noted that no youtuber is sailing SeaWind eco boats why is that

@@matthewmeuleman9872 I am not sure what you mean by "eco boat" - Ruby Rose is getting a Seawind but what engines you put in into any boat is optional. Most eco boats are actually hybrids with back up diesels to generate power when motoring for longer periods. As for the other barriers, the electric engines are an extra expense and are still not able to motor more than 5-6 hours without any diesel being used and then you need to recharge batteries. The extra expense of the extra engines, extra solar, very large expensive lithium bank that you need and the fact they are not "easily" operated when fully green puts the ideal of being fully green out of financial range for most and it is not practical... We are hoping that the systems will get significantly more advanced in the next 1.5 years before we have to commit with the Portofino 52 build- electric engines and new batteries hopefully will make a truly eco boat possible.

@@barefootdoctorssailing8567 i ment to say SunReaf ecoboats

@@matthewmeuleman9872 Dear Matthew, while the Sunreefs have outstanding marketing about their eco systems, they are just a hybrid system that requires diesels to generate the power for their electric engines. This is present in many other brands too and in boats that actually sail well. So unfortunately they appear to be poorly performing sailing vessels but their marketing is very good to make many folk get sold on their "eco" status which many other brands also have with the sailing pedigrees. The fact that no one of the experienced sailors has bought one speaks volumes without us having to make any comment....

Glad to have you back for as long as it is! Yes we have had ups and downs and we have just kept the focus on what is important FOR US and not accepting the standard offerings in the yacht market. So in this way the fire has pushed us to challenge the status quo and fight to get the features that we believe are very important. I am sure that over time these different features will come in more demand but I certainly hope we can start forcing the industry to up their game in essential features like water tight bulkheads that are actually watertight (many are not) and built in air tight void to guarantee you don't sink if you run over a container or reef and get multiple holes.... We will keep pushing safety info out for the community and hopefully the people can pressure the manufacturers to up their game