Sanlorenzo’s 57Steel range and Captain Divan J van Rensburg are only just getting started...
Captain Divan J van Rensburg made a bold decision and traded a life working in the corporate world for the high seas. His best friend at the time had given up studying medicine to become a yachtie, a career path that Divan knew little about. “I was working a corporate job at the time after finishing my degree in logistics management,” he says. “I had lunch with my friend after his first season, and I immediately resigned from my job and knew this is what I am going to do for a living.”
And Divan made it a reality, working his way up to the role of captain, which he’s held for two years. Along the way, he crewed on board superyachts such as Atomic, Skyfall, Gitana, Double Down and Vida before stepping on board his current yacht, the 184ft Virtuosity.
Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, Divan’s first boating experience was water skiing on a lagoon as a teenager. He now resides in the Western Cape in South Africa when he’s not on board Virtuosity, which splits her time between the Med and Caribbean. “My previous captain brought me into the program and introduced me to the owner of Virtuosity,” Captain Divan says. “I came in towards the tail end of the commissioning phase and was there for the acceptance, commissioning and full outfitting of the vessel.”
Virtuosity is the second hull in Sanlorenzo’s 57Steel range. These steel- hulled, semi-custom yachts offer a generous volume of more than 1,000GT in a relatively compact length overall. “She is a very high volume vessel in the 55- to 60-meter (180ft-197ft) range and offers a lot to the client,” Divan says. According to Sanlorenzo, the goal was to provide extraordinary interior spaces while staying below 60 meters LOA. This challenged longtime Sanlorenzo collaborator Zuccon International Project to design a voluminous yacht that didn’t look too top heavy.
The typical upper-deck wheelhouse was repositioned up one level to the sundeck above — a seemingly simple move that creates more internal volume. Instead of an entirely open sundeck, the wheelhouse sits forward on the top deck and, like a proper bridge deck, includes a chart room and captain’s cabin directly aft of the bridge.
A corridor leads from the bridge to an interior lounge and DJ area that opens onto an aft deck made for parties. This space, which Captain Divan aptly calls the “sundeck fundeck,” sets the tone for a yacht built for entertaining and enjoyment. “This is kind of a ‘new age’ yacht,” he says. “Take relatively young owners with a modern/minimalistic sense of style, sprinkle a bit of tech savvy on top and you get Virtuosity. The beach club is by far the nicest area I’ve ever experienced on a yacht, with the ‘sundeck fun-deck’ DJ area a close second. Every space is unique and it’s difficult to pick an outright favorite with so many different elements that each space represents.”
Not only does Virtuosity’s lofty bridge position provide a higher vantage point for the captain, but freeing up space on the upper deck has allowed for an enormous 580-square-foot owners’ suite. The apartment feels like one you’d find on a much longer yacht.
Captain Divan is also impressed by the level of customization available in the 57Steel range. “Sanlorenzo has delivered a great product based on the owner’s wishes,” he says. “The vessel has carbon finishes on all possible exterior items such as handrails, dining tables and even the forward mast. I am very fortunate and grateful to be part of a program where the owner’s vision aligns not simply with the yard, the interior designers and the build team, but with the crew alike in order to ensure growth and progress across the board.”
As far as her performance goes, “Virtuosity exceeded our expectations,” her captain says. “We cruise comfortably between 11 to 12 knots at 1,050rpm, and that’s wonderful. She is a classy lady, so we tend not to take her into too much chaos. So far, she has handled everything we threw at her with ease.”
With entertaining and fun integral to her initial brief, Virtuosity is beginning to make a name for herself in the charter market. “The ‘Virtuosity experience’ is becoming a phrase that everyone will soon be aware of in the near future,” Divan says. “There are bigger things happening that we are thoroughly involved with and very excited about — so watch this space.”
This article was originally published in the July 2024 issue of Dockwalk.