Sense of Porpoise
Never mind swimming with dolphins; now you can swim like one. The Seabob Cayago F7 water sled enables you to scoot across the surface at speeds as fast as 13.7 mph and move underwater—as deep as 130 feet—at 9 mph.
A battery-powered propulsion system produces the 7 hp that the 141-pound F7 needs to move at those speeds. The batteries can run for as long as an hour and can be removed and recharged in as little as two hours. You use hand controls to start, stop, and accelerate the F7 and to set the diving depth. To steer the F7 and to make it dive, you just shift your weight.
Cayago is a boutique manufacturer in Stuttgart, Germany. The exclusive North American dealer for Seabob sleds is National Marine Suppliers in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. It sells the F7 for $17,900.
What a Relief
Some of the top art galleries, antiques dealers, and jewelers from Europe and the United States will display their wares under the glass roof of Paris’ Grand Palais in September for the 25th edition of the Biennale des Antiquaires. The event, considered one of the world’s premier art and antiques fairs, takes place September 15 through 22.
The selection of items presented by the 80 galleries will range from archaeological finds to tribal art to rare books and manuscripts to modern paintings. Antoine Laurentin of Paris will be among the gallery owners hosting a booth at the fair. He’ll present a collection of 14 three-dimensional reliefs by avant-garde artist Cesar Domela (1900–1992), including Relief No. 19 (right), a 1945 piece measuring about 3 feet by 2 feet and made from ebony, ivory, brass, and Plexiglas.
Outside the main building, under a covered patio, a small but impressive group of jewelers will present some of their finest pieces. The jewelers will include Van Cleef & Arpels, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Cartier, Harry Winston, and Piaget.
Delahaye Now
At its 25th annual Sports & Classics of Monterey sale, RM Auctions will present a dozen cars that it expects will fetch at least $1 million apiece. A 1949 Delahaye (below) will be among the stars of the event, which takes place August 13 and 14 at the Portola Hotel & Spa and the Monterey Convention Center as part of Monterey Classic Car Week.
The Delahaye, a one-of-a-kind turquoise and chrome 175 S Saoutchik Roadster, was commissioned by Sir John Gaul, a flamboyant English collector. The car features coachwork by Jacques Saoutchik.
Gaul introduced the car at the 1949 Paris auto show and entered it in several European concours later that year. Subsequent owners included actress Diana Dors, who was often described as the English Marilyn Monroe. At the 2006 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, the Delahaye won a best-in-class award.