1999 Bowman 48 Aft Cockpit for Sale – 49 ft – Oxford, MD, United States

Designed by the legendary Chuck Paine, the Bowman 48 was the largest of his designs built in Britain by Rival Bowman Yachts in Southampton. Bowman Yachts produced the Bowman 48 from the early 1990s until 1998 when it was merged with Rival Yachts to form Rival Bowman Yachts, which was then acquired in 2002 by Rustler Yachts, which continued to offer the model. Blending the talents of Chuck Paine with the hundreds of years of shipbuilding talents that were born in England led to great designs and high quality. Some 30 years ago, some of the very best and biggest ocean sailing vessels were created/built in England, it was Camper Nicholson, Oyster and Rival Bowman which grew into Rustler.
The Bowman 48 was outfitted with several state-of-the-art features from the hand of Chuck Paine, including the highly successful Paine Keel, with its efficient bulb-ended endplate, and beautiful interior joinery. Relatively fast compared to other designs of the era, it has a kind motion, good stability, and a forgiving helm. The design was optimized from the outset, incorporating all the necessary gear, tankage, and more, so the Bowman 48 was capable of sailing with all needed cruising gear from the beginning. As such, she cruises excellently offshore, and in a lighter, coastal trim, the Bowman 48 sails even better.

The deck features an integral pilothouse, which offers commanding views from the galley and nav station and avoids the cramped feeling that can result from a traditional low-house design. The Bowman 48 is CE Rated A for unlimited ocean service.

A total of 11 Bowman 48s were produced as a semi-custom bluewater design, offered in both aft cockpit and center cockpit configurations. The Bowman 48 is considered one of the finest British-built yacht designs ever made. They are known for being safe, comfortable, and fast yachts capable of extended bluewater cruising.

"TACK" was built as one of the last few Bowman 48s and was finished to an excellent standard. She is a traditional aft-cockpit design with a forward-facing nav station, a very large galley and saloon for the size and era, two cabins, and two heads, plus a large workshop/mechanical room. There is easy access to all of TACK's mechanical equipment, plumbing, electrical systems, and tankage.

Under prior ownership TACK placed first out of around 200 yachts in the 2003 ARC Rally, and a sistership won line honors in the same event years later.

The seller purchased TACK during COVID in the winter of 2021, where she was on the hard in Antigua. A skilled yachtsman and tradesman in the marine industry, he proceeded to commission an extensive refit of the yacht's systems and cosmetics. Working day in and day out, virtually every system was taken apart and serviced, and in most cases, directly replaced with new, state-of-the-art equipment. With the heavy lifting done, the seller then delivered TACK to the Chesapeake Bay, where more detailed work was completed by traditional tradesmen on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, some of the best in the industry.

Changing circumstances have forced the seller to put TACK on the market in a nearly complete state after the refit, save for the re-installation or replacement of some ancillary bluewater cruising equipment. A complete list of refit items is available in the full specifications.