Spirit Yachts | Owners | C72 Interview

30.04.25

ELVIS BRINGS ROCK ‘N’ ROLL TO SPIRIT YACHTS

SPIRIT YACHTS OWNER

INTERVIEW

The disco ball hanging in the saloon reflects light across the handcrafted timber interior. The vinyl inlaid into the Sipo Mahogany table glimmers under the glow of the disco ball. Music blares from the yacht’s sound system, calling people to the party…

Nearly 12 months into ownership of his C72 ‘Elvis’, Cameron Stewart is a happy man. He and his partner spend nearly half their time onboard their new Spirit yacht – it’s where they feel most relaxed.

We caught up with Cameron to hear what attracted him to buying a Spirit and whether the reality of Spirit yacht ownership lives up to his initial dream.

What attracted you to buy a Spirit Yacht? Was there anything in particular that captured your attention?

When I came across Spirit Yachts, I was in the process of selling my Discovery 55 and looking for a larger yacht. From the moment I first saw a Spirit, I loved the natural timber and the pure beauty of the yacht. Quality of craftsmanship and the detail in the design were jaw-dropping. I love beautiful things and I was drawn to a yacht that could give me more sailing performance.
I investigated other production yachts but having seen a Spirit I realised I didn’t want ‘another plastic boat’. The idea of a bespoke build became more attractive. If you look across any marina now, it’s a sea of plastic and Spirit offered something different, something that stood out from the crowd.

How did you find the design and build process?

For a yacht builder with such a global reputation, the Spirit yard is relatively small. They are building five or six yachts at a time, so you become a very special person as you are part of a small, exclusive group.

Throughout the build, my visits to the yard became like looking forward to Christmas. I’ll be honest I did wonder, as the build visits were so enjoyable would it be as much fun once I got the yacht?

Once I had decided to spend the money, I embraced the whole process. The involvement with the Spirit team is very personal, it’s not like buying an iPhone, you feel special and it is a truly unique and memorable process.

Not only did I form bonds with the Spirit team, I enjoyed getting to know other owners and being part of a like-minded community. Whilst Elvis was in build, Spirit invited my partner and I to join a regatta in Cowes. We really got a taste for it, we met interesting characters, and had a lot of fun. It was a sign of things to come…

Tell us about your first season onboard…

Our first season began in style with a launch party at Spirit Yachts with our closest family and friends (some dressed in Elvis costumes!). The Spirit team was there and it was very special to show those closest to me where the yacht was created and for them to meet the people behind the project. It was a memorable evening.
The way Andy (Spirit build lead) and his team crafted the yacht is phenomenal. Before Elvis launched, handling such a big yacht on and off the dock was a concern for me. I needn’t have worried as she is easier to manoeuvre than my Discovery 55.

After leaving Suffolk, we sailed to Guernsey and went straight into our first event, the Spirit owners’ regatta. It was a bit of a baptism of fire as we were still getting to know the yacht but we loved it. We had a great crew and we embraced the party on and off the water.

We enjoyed Guernsey so much, we decided to stay in the Channel Islands for a month, cruising the islands with family. It’s a fantastic place to relax, eat good food, walk, cycle, and enjoy being on the water.

From Guernsey, we sailed to Porto, where we had lovely weather, it’s a beautiful city. By then, we were happy doing long passages and we sailed on to Calheta in Madeira, where we met lots of nice people in the marina – we love the social side of sailing. From Madeira we went on to Lanzarote and had a month sailing around The Canaries.

Earlier this year, we left Tenerife to go back to Madeira as we had enjoyed it so much. The wonderful thing about sailing is discovering new people and places. On our passage to Madeira we sailed past the Selvagens Islands, a small archipelago between The Canaries and Madeira. It is fascinating sailing past such remote locations and learning more about the world.

Most memorable moment on the water so far?

That’s tough as the whole thing is an adventure. All these places you discover that you would never find or think to go to if you weren’t on a boat – beautiful bays, cycle routes, lovely people, and remote locations. Arriving at new places is so exciting, even though we haven’t been to many destinations that are particularly obscure or dramatic, we love exploring.

Two memories particularly stand out. The first was sailing to Canaries and being surrounded by dolphins. As we cruised down the coast of Portugal, we saw countless dolphins and whales – it never gets old seeing marine life in the wild, it’s a privilege.

The second is an amazing sail from Lanzarote to Madeira with just our skipper and me onboard. We averaged 10.1 knots the whole way with the wind behind us and a reef in, it was beautiful.

I love the sailing but ultimately we’re living in a stunning apartment moving between fabulous places. The sailing is important but the lifestyle is fantastic.

What are your favourite places or moments onboard?

It’s so simple but when I am on the boat I don’t wear shoes. Occasionally I wear flip flops or cycling shoes but largely I have bare feet and it feels immediately relaxing. I come back home and my shoes feel like they don’t fit properly!

I have never felt so relaxed as when I am onboard. I remember arriving into Tenerife early one morning. It was just my partner and I onboard and she said, “What are we going to do today?“ I replied, “Nothing”, and we thought how lovely to have the whole day ahead of us to indulge in pure relaxation. I wasn’t brought up to do that, never in my working life did I have that freedom, but this is what life on a boat offers – guilt-free relaxation.

My favourite quote is the famous line from Wind in the Willows, “There is nothing – absolutely nothing – half so much worth doing as simply messing about in boats.” It is so true. The simplicity of pottering around the boat doing little jobs is so satisfying.

I never previously had to time to do D.I.Y or fix things myself, and now I enjoy taking something apart and fixing it, or even cleaning the stainless. I once met the late, great Eddie Jordan in Antigua, and he was also cleaning his stainless. We agreed in our working life we never would have considered doing anything like that but we both enjoyed the simplicity of it. There is a huge sense of pride in looking after your boat and I love keeping her immaculate.