Helming the 100-foot super maxi for hours on end at speeds of over 25 knots through the notorious seas of Bass Strait and the often-brutal sea conditions the Hobart race is infamous for has given him a highly refined sense of hull dynamics we lesser mortals simply lack. And all Palm Beach owners are the beneficiaries.

When Richards started Palm Beach nearly three decades ago on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, he wanted to create what he called a sailor’s powerboat based on key elements to any successful high-performance sailboat design – wetted surface, reduction of energy required to move a boat through the water and running attitude. Less weight requires less power, while a slippery hull design reduces wetted surface – the design is intended to stay flat and keep the full waterline in the water.

Those principles have now been enshrined in Palm Beach’s design DNA and the patented V-Warp Technology the company has developed. If you’re a serious nerd and want to delve into the various applications of computational fluid dynamics it’s a fascinating area, but the bottom (fast) line is that all nine Palm Beach hulls from 42 to 70 feet combine minimal drag and maximum lift to provide a class-leading combination of seaworthiness, performance and fuel efficiency.

The factory line is that a Palm Beach uses about half the fuel of any motor yacht of a comparable size. I’ve never seen the comparative numbers but I’m assured they exist and my intuition – which is based on nearly as many Sydney to Hobarts as Richards, plus the fact that my family was formerly dealers for Grand Banks (prior to the amalgamation of Grand Banks and Palm Beach in 2014 but no affiliation now) – also tells me that statement feels right.

I often see Palm Beach boats cruising up Pittwater and they never fail to afford the simple pleasure of watching a beautifully conceived, engineered and crafted boat cut through the water with minimum wake and noise.

And while it’s nice to know the impeccable technical underpinnings, you can’t fully understand what sets a Palm Beach apart until you step foot on board.

A few weeks before the 2023 Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, I was invited aboard hull #11 of the 42 model, which was undergoing final running tests before being handed over to her Sydney-based owners.

Resting on her mooring lines at the dock, the Palm Beach 42’s flawlessly finished navy flag hull set off against cream topsides, with high-gloss-varnished wood-grain trim on the cockpit combings, evokes poise and elegance. A distinctive low-profile flared bow and graceful curving sheerline running aft to a slight tumblehome stamp the 42 as unmistakably a PB.

According to Richards, the 42 is packed with all the great features of the bigger Palm Beaches at an entry-level size. But even as the entry-level model of the range, I found the dimensions of the 42’s aft cockpit very generous as I hopped onto the teak swim platform and through the inward-opening transom door.

A very stylish lounge with diamond-quilted stitching stretches across the transom to port and, along with a height-adjustable and extendible high-gloss teak and holly table, creates a swish entertaining/ relaxing space just a few steps away from the allure of the sea. The entire cockpit can be shaded by a lightweight and durable Weather Max awning – an option for some overseas buyers but a must for anyone contemplating cruising in Australia.

A wet bar housing a Vitrifrigo ice-maker and Zip Hydrotap is handily tucked up against the saloon bulkhead on the port side, while there’s a drawer fridge on the starboard side. The electric window above the wet bar retracts, opening up the saloon to the cockpit and creating an extended single-level zone for mingling or just chilling out.

Each Palm Beach can be customised to the owner’s tastes, and this 42 is a palette of tactile delights – from the granite-coloured Sisal wool-blend carpet in the saloon to the headboards and headliners in the owner’s cabin made from sustainable Greentex fabrics.

The 42 is offered as either a galley-up or galley-down configuration; this hull was the former with the galley in the saloon, featuring plenty of Corian counter space to starboard, plus sink, Panasonic convection microwave and drawers snugly containing embossed Palm Beach glassware and dinnerware. I really liked the specially crafted knife block in the cutlery drawer that keeps the blades safe and secure – it just speaks volumes about the thought that has gone into the details.

The main advantage of a galley-down arrangement is that food preparation is on a separate level, maximising living and lounging space in the saloon, but you do lose the guest cabin as a result.

A large L-shaped settee runs nearly the entire port side of the saloon, with the double helm to starboard.

It’s worth noting the Palm Beach 42’s 4.48-metre beam is the same as its larger sibling, the PB 45. That equates to more internal space for the 42 than other boats of a similar length.

Stylish Palm Beach touches impress. Georg Jensen analogue engine gauges are set on either side of the Garmin 17-inch screen that runs the chartplotter.

There are also digital displays for the Volvo Penta IPS 650s, Humphree stabilisers and an engine-room camera, while the throttles and joystick controls are right next to the signature branded Palm Beach five-spoke chrome wheel with teak trim. Even the centre handhold in the saloon deckhead is meticulously finished.

The superb wood finishes are carried through to the master cabin in the bow, which boasts more than ample storage in an array of lockers with soft-touch catches.

The queen-size berth has a compact settee at its foot, a big bonus if you’re down below underway. The cabin is remarkably quiet thanks to extra sound-dampening in the engine room and the quality of the solid teak doors.

As this 42 is a galley-up configuration, there’s a guest cabin to port where the settee converts to a double berth by a clever pull-out arrangement over two tables.

Across the corridor on the starboard side is a spacious head with a separate shower that has enough room for a bench seat. All the fittings are premium grade, from the Tecma head to the Hansa tapware and Caroma basins. Of course, the teak grate in the shower and teak flooring are a subtle reminder you’re on a boat – and not just any boat.

All these enviable comforts don’t compromise what the Palm Beach 42 was designed to do – effortlessly cruise at 27 knots and handle the kind of conditions that elicit unseemly creaks of protest in other vessels.

On an all-too-brief excursion off Broken Bay, the 42’s vinylester-infused E-glass hull sliced cleanly through the 1-metre-plus Tasman chop and resisted any sideslip through a series of tight turns. Applying more throttle just made the Palm Beach go faster, with minimal change in the running attitude.

There were no rattles and nothing more than an elevated hum from the engines, highlighting the stiffness and integrity of the hull and the carbon superstructure and side decks. In flat water at 10 knots and 1,560 rpm, the 42 consumed a total of 22.4 litres per hour. At 20 knots and 2,660 rpm, engine load was 56 percent.

Due to time constraints, we couldn’t verify an advertised top speed of 32 knots but the hull – with flares amidships to roll the water away, and low deadrise – most certainly felt like it had more to give.

A check of the engine room found good access between the Volvo Penta units as well as to the battery management panel, fuel filters and Fischer Panda generator. The main switching panel covers every single operating system, in keeping with the ethos of being able to troubleshoot and fix most problems at sea.

The Palm Beach 42 can easily be operated by a couple and, despite being the marque’s smallest model, it’s more than capable of bluewater passages to isolated cruising grounds. But it’s also right at home as a chic weekend entertainer with substance in reserve should it ever be called upon.

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