January 2004 Craig Watkins from
H&S Yacht Sales invited us to attend a wine and cheese party presented by H & S Yacht Sales in conjunction with Jeanneau America for the unveiling of the new Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 49 and 54 Deck Salons at the San Diego Boat Show.
We were very impressed at the interior and exterior design of the Jeanneau
54 DS however we both agreed that the 49 foot would be a better size for the two of us.
That evening Paul Fenn
from Jeanneau America informed us that they were designing the baby sister of the 54 DS which was going to be the 49 DS. We looked at each other and said "here we go again" as this would be the third sail boat purchase in three years.
After looking at the specifications and the floor plan we decided the 49 DS would be the perfect yacht for us to comfortably do extended cruising.
During the next few months Paul Fenn from Jeanneau America kept us informed on the development of the Jeanneau 49DS. When we attended the Pacific Sail Expo in April 2004 we mentioned to the Jeanneau staff that we would prefer a forward state room in the 49 DS, just like the
49 Sun Odyssey.
Before making our final decision to purchase the 49DS we had the opportunity to take a trip to France to preview the new Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 49 DS, the only one available to see at that time.
Danielle Launais from Jeanneau America, based in Annapolis Maryland, did a wonderful job arranging a tour of the Jeanneau factory located in Les Hebiers, France. We took the train from Paris to Nantes, and rented a car to take us to the factory.
At the factory, Erwin Devillefroy greeted us with the updated brochure on the 49 DS. which showed a new layout with the forward state room. We were thrilled. Erwin gave us a great tour of the factory and we left there on cloud nine knowing we were going to be getting the sail boat we wanted.
The last highlight of our trip, also arranged by Danielle, was seeing Patrice Fontaine sail the first Sun Odyssey 49 DS into the Marseille harbor to rendezvous with us and take us on a short cruise around the Island off the coast of Marseille. |
