If you want to make yourself feel old, go to your bookshelf and pick out an older boating magazine. No, you don't have to go way back to a vintage issue. Something in the late 80s will work fine for this anthropology exercise. If you don't have a collection of nautical magazines, then something is wrong with you and I suggest you purchase several stacks at a tag sale. They make for great reading.

After you have chosen your device, turn the page to a boat review of any mid-size motoryacht. It's at this point where I feel a tad older than I want to be.You see, although I?Ĵm fairly conservative when it comes to boat design, a lot of models that I remember as the latest and greatest of their time, now look completely antiquated. It's not the profile necessarily, but the interior design and space planning appear antiquated. For some reason, many boaters were completely content to hunker down in bunker-like accommodations, sleep on wood slabs, shower in birdbaths, and cram the family in staterooms that were smaller than the closet of a Japanese hotel.

Today, however, most builders have seen the light-literally in some cases-and have made comfort as important as performance and handling. In hindsight, it seems an obvious evolution since builders want boaters to spend more time on the water. Carver Yachts can certainly be accused of playing a major role in this campaign, and the new 42 Super Sport is one of its star pupils.

There is plenty of space to entertain on the 42?Ĵs bridge.

I have a unique perspective, having evaluated about nine different Carvers during the last 7 years. Although, I think it's safe to say that Carvers have always been comfortable boats, I'm not sure luxurious could be used as a descriptive for models from 8 to 10 years ago. But this is certainly not the case today. "We've learned a lot from building our Marquis line, "said Kim Riley, Carver's Director of Communications, referring to the company's successful series of larger motoryachts.

For instance, wood inlays of sapele pommele accent tables, while the woodwork is a rich cherry. Interior hardware is beefy and up market. The interior finish rivals many of the higher priced European yachts I've toured over the years. The fabrics and soft goods follow the same luxury credo.

If I give the impression that the 42 is just a pretty face that would crumble from the task of taking on a family for serious cruising, then I would not be placing Carver in the proper context. Riley explained to me that Carver owners are very serious cruisers, who try to spend as much time on their boats as possible. Based on my experience of meeting these owners along the waterways, I have to agree with them. A few years back I ran into a couple on a Carver 396 halfway through the Great Loop cruise. They were having the time of their lives and were talking about upgrading to a Carver 44 for a Bahamian trip.

Carvers certainly are a sensible platform for extended cruising. For example, engineers went to great lengths to maximize the interior storage. The 42 Super Sport basically has a basement underneath the galley. This compartment, accessed via the galley sole, is approximately 5-feet, 4-inches long by almost 7- feet wide.With the hatch open, there is standing headroom. On our test boat, there was an optional washer and dryer-not the combo units, but side-by-side units. There is enough pantry space to allow you to go to Costco at the beginning of the season and provision with dry goods to last most of the summer.

The galley has a full range of appliances, right down to the coffee maker. Counter space was adequate, and could be improved by recessing the cook-top under covers, allowing for more counter space to spread out the sandwich fixins when the stove is not in use. The area benefits from a lot of natural light, one of the main trends I've seen on boats in the last several years.

It's one thing to incorporate larger windows, but if the space isn't oriented to take full advantage of the views, it kind of misses the point. On the 42, you can see through the side windows while seated on the saloon settee or barrel chairs. A forward dinette is oriented so guests can see through the side windows and after double sliding doors to the cockpit. It may appear that I'm over emphasizing this point, but being able to absorb a new destination, or the ebb and flow of boat traffic on a busy weekend afternoon, is one of the fun things about boating.

One area that forced me to give Riley a big thumbs up during my walk-through was the guest stateroom.Thanks to some clever engineering and a little nip and tuck, Carver was able to accommodate a queen berth, which is accessible from both sides.There is a side window and two opening ports, which again blankets the area with streams of light. At the entryway, there is more than seven and a half feet of headroom, providing a feeling of a space. I get a little strange in small confined cabins, and would have no issue of settling down in this space for an extended cruise. In fact, our test 42 sold the day before I arrived, and this stateroom was a big selling point for the buyer and his young family.

The master stateroom is tucked in the bow and has an en suite head with a separate shower stall on the port side.You won't have to worry about a gymnastics routine when it comes to making the queen berth. There is enough room on both sides to ease the pain.

Our test boat was equipped with the Volvo IPS drives, thus creating more space in the engine compartment below the saloon and cockpit. Systems were easily accessed for routine maintenance and service. Carver places the battery disconnect switches in the engineroom (so does most of their competition). I'm not a big fan of this practice, it makes sense to a degree because the wire runs of heavy cable are shorter. However, in case of an emergency or a fire, I still prefer not to open up the engine hatch to disconnect the batteries. The overall fit and finish of the engineroom was well executed, and I like the fact that Carver is now finishing the space with white paint, versus the brownish-greenish shade of past Carvers.

I've had the opportunity to drive a few different types of boats with the Volvo IPS drives.The IPS units steer the boat the way outdrives do, so there are no rudders on the underbody. The engines are mounted on top of the rotating units, which use a forward facing propeller. This creates more useable interior space amidships, since log shaft runs are not required.

One of the main pluses of the IPS drives is the reduced noise. Exhaust exits through the units underwater, reducing exhaust noise to a minimum smothering the fumes. On the 42, the highest sound reading we registered on the bridge was 82 decibels. Most of this can be attributed to wind. Under way, the cabin also remained whisper quite with a reading of 73 decibels at 3,300 rpm. (Normal conversation is about 65 decibels.)

We didn't have the opportunity to run the 42 in any type of seas, but this voluminous cruiser handles like a spirited runabout. The response on the helm is almost immediate, without being tender. We hit a top speed of 30 knots, which required little attention to the tabs.You can expect a comfortable cruise speed in the mid-20- knot range with the IPS package. The standard engine choice is a pair of Crusader 8.1 MPIs, which is a great engine as well.

For now, the Carver 42 SS with Volvo's IPS drives certainly seems to be the ahead of its time. I'm going to have to stretch my brain to see what will make this combination appear dated 15 years or so from now. Carver Yachts, (920) 822-1600; www.carveryachts.com.