The Search:

When quality is the key criterion...

For us it was clear from the outset: safety requires quality and this defines demands on the substance of a sailing boat. And so we found ourselves in the middle of a dilemma in today's boat market, which is dominated by the mass market!

Either the yachts on offer - mostly GRP - did not meet our expectations or they were very expensive aluminum constructions. For various reasons, aluminum was out of the question for us. As a result, steel yachts increasingly became the focus of our interest.

Here, too, the search was not easy: one yacht had already been on the bottom once before, the other had fire damage and the next one did not suit us due to the layout.

The search took around three years. But then one morning a Motiva yacht aroused our interest: After we had already viewed a Motiva 42 once - but it seemed too small - we spontaneously searched for “Motiva 44” one morning - and suddenly there she was - albeit a large Motiva 46! It had only been in the database for one day and we immediately made an appointment with the yacht agent for the next national holiday.

We approached the boat moored at the jetty with great respect due to its size - we didn't want it to be that big - but we were immediately impressed. After the very reputable owner couple gave us a very friendly welcome and explained every technical detail and also the history of the boat in detail, the initial euphoric enthusiasm was underpinned by facts. However, we first made an appointment with an expert who was able to take a detailed look at the object of our desire on dry land, from the outside and inside, as well as under sail and under engine.

After we received the report, our decision was made: this is the boat we want to embark on our long journey together! Even though we were aware that we would be on very thin ice financially in terms of the expected maintenance (servicing, repairs, etc.), we decided on SOULMATE because the substance and condition were and are in exceptionally good shape! You can find out more about the things that still needed to be reworked under “Refit”!