Grand Banks Eastbay 43 Sedan

Cool cruising comfort

Jeff Holland

John Shanahan has been selling Grand Banks boats since the mid-1970s, and he knows what his customers want. That's why the owner of the Oxford Yacht Agency customized an Eastbay sedan for cruising hot climes. He's taken the basic package designed by the distinguished marine architecture firm of C. Ray Hunt and tweaked it to provide cool cruising comfort in places even as hot as the Chesapeake Bay in August.

This is basically the flybridge sedan model without the flybridge. All the windows in the main saloon are tinted and come with ingeniously customized Oceanair Skysol blinds and drapes that keep out the sun so effectively you don't need to bother with exterior snap-on canvas coverings.

The opening windows have screens. The overhead hatches are likewise tinted, screened and equipped with blackout curtains. The sliding rear door has been replaced with a gasketed aluminum door with a unique roller-furled screen door. The cabin top has been extended a bit over the cockpit to provide additional shade. The middle of the three large panes of the windshield opens with the aid of an electronic actuator for good ventilation. When this fails to keep you cool enough, you can batten down and turn on the AC.

The main saloon has two facing settees with a foldina vacht table in between. A large Sony flat-screen TV lifts up from behind one seatback. A hatch in the teak and holly sole leads to the engine compartment. The inside steering station to starboard has a custom helm chair tank clash with room for a pair of 10-inch Garmin chartplotter screens, and a teak-rimmed ship's wheel. There's also a sturdy aluminum gasketed door leading out onto the side deck. The passenger seat is a comfortable double wide bench with a large chart table to spread out on.

You take three steps down to the galley, a compact but functional Ushaped affair with all the necessities placed conveniently around an expanse of white Corian countertop that contrasts smartly with all the teak cabinets. Across the passageway, the starboard-side guest stateroom can be closed off with a screen that slides out of the bulkhead. In between here and the forward stateroom, the head and shower are in separate compartments on either side of the passageway.

We left the docks at Shanahan's Dickerson Harbor facility up Trappe Creek and wove our way out to the Choptank River. While the bright summer sun beat down, we were cool and collected in the 74-degree interior. Heading out across the mouth of the river to Tilghman Island, we opened up and found a top speed of 30.9 knots at 2800 rpm. We found a low cruising speed of 15.7 knots at 1 800 rpm, bringing the bow up with the tabs to keep the twofoot swells rolling in from the open Chesapeake Bay from bumping us off course. As we approached Knapps Narrows we throttled down, but the boat was still on plane at under 1 1 knots. After grabbing some crabcakes and a few pictures, we headed back up the river at a comfortable 20.9 knots at 2200 rpm. The hydraulic steering was effortless, and the twin CATS provided smooth acceleration and plenty of power. Overall, it was one cool ride.

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August 2005

Dickerson Harbor
3831 Trappe Landing Road
Trappe, MD 21673
410-822-8556
dickerson@oya.com