Pursuit
This 1929 Abeking & Rasmussen M-Class yacht, Pursuit, had fallen into disrepair before being offered for sale. When an anonymous buyer in France stepped in, it set off a logistically complex delivery from San Francisco Bay to Europe.
I was hired by Sevenstar Yacht Transport to document the move through photography. Pursuit was lifted into a custom I-beam cradle designed by my friend, naval architect Frank van Hoorn of Argonautics Marine Engineering. Once carefully wrapped in protective plastic, she was placed on a modular barge and towed across San Francisco Bay from the Port of Richmond to the Port of Oakland. From there, another tugboat delivered her alongside a container ship at the TraPac terminal, where a ship-to-shore crane lifted her into the hold and cargo specialists secured her for her long voyage around the world.
Photographing a classic wooden sailing yacht being prepared for international transport was a rare opportunity. The combination of maritime engineering, specialized yacht shipping, and the iconic backdrop of the Bay Area made this a project that perfectly captured the drama and precision of moving historic vessels across oceans.
