After a long search for yards with suitable experience of building a GRP boat of this size, the contract went to Belliure's yard at Calpe in the south of Spain. This yard had the correct mixture of experience with GRP, good traditional workmanship, sound engineering capabilities and an appreciation of the new possibilities of composite materials.

The construction details had to take into account operating off Cape Horn and encountering ice, so a conservative approach seemed appropriate. To reinforce the outside skins of the hull laminate, I called for Kevlar, a material highly resistant to impact which is used in armour plating for tanks and for bullet-proof vests.

Belliure approached this new project with skill and enthusiasm. Hoping to build several more yachts of this size, they decided to make a female hull mould, specially adapted to accommodate variations in styling, beam and overall length up to 93 feet.

Thalassi was launched in 1985 and sailed across the Atlantic for presentation at the Annapolis Boat Show. In her first year she circumnavigated the South American continent visiting many of the remote areas of Patagonia that Dione had previously visited

The second yacht built from this mould was the new Jubilee for an experienced American yachtsman, Francis Wetherill. Taking advantage of the flexible mould, Jubilee IV's length was increased to 86 feet and her beam increased in proportion. A pilot house arrangement was incorporated to suit the new owners. Following the success of their first two big yachts the facilities at Calpe have been greatly expanded and Belliure's is now one of the best equipped and technically accomplished GRP yards in the world.