So, the story of the winch seat began on an awesome yacht called Queen Anne, which until recently was owned by one of the original founders of Tides, Anders Onsager. Queen Anne was the first-ever yacht built by Baltic Yachts, designed by a Canadian company called C&C Design. The interior was designed in-house by Baltic Yachts. This yacht was specially designed to make living on it as comfy as possible, and it was perfect for both racing and cruising.

The story of Baltic Yachts started with five young guys who left another company called Nautor to start their own. They were passionate about boats and wanted to learn and try out new tech. They dreamed of building boats that were lighter and faster.

They set up shop in a small village called Bound, which only had one phone line back in the 1970s. It was tough at first, with snow falling every day while they were building their first shed.

Their first design was made for competitive ocean racing, and they did a lot of research to find the best equipment and deck layout. But they didn't forget about comfort—it was a top priority for them. The roomy cockpit and clean deck were great for racing, and there was plenty of space for a comfy cruise or a party at the dock.

The inside of the yacht was also super comfy, with a master bedroom at the back that had two beds and high-quality fittings. The front part of the yacht was roomy and well-lit, with a lot of ventilation in the navigation and galley areas. The saloon had super-comfy seating and sleeping space, and they paid a lot of attention to ventilation and how the space was used. The interior was all about using wood in a traditional Finnish way.

The Baltic 46 was super advanced for its time, with better tech than many production yachts today. They did design and performance studies in the fall of 1973 and even tested different hull models in tanks.

The yacht was packed with innovative features, like laminates using a sandwich construction and a thinner-than-usual teak deck that was glued to the FRP deck with epoxy for durability, weight saving, and extra strength. It also had rod standing rigging, which, at the time, was only used on more extreme racing yachts.

The Baltic Yachts showcased the Baltic 46 at the Hamburg Boat Show in 1974, and it was a huge hit! A famous Norwegian Olympic yachtsman named Theodor "Teddy" Sommerschield saw the yacht at the show and just had to have it. They signed a contract, and that was it.

Over the next two years, they delivered a whopping 43 boats.

A year after Theodor Sommerschield got Diva in Kiel, the Canadians asked if they could rent it for their Admiral's Cup team. The Admiral's Cup was a big deal back then, and in 1975, it brought 57 yachts from 19 different countries to Cowes on the Isle of Wight.

Diva was up against some of the greatest ocean racing yachts, like the winning team from the UK, Battlecry, Yeoman XX, and Noryema, as well as Pinta, Rubin, and Duva from Germany, and Charisma, Tenacious, and Robin from the USA. Even though the Canadian team didn't do so hot, it was still an awesome experience, according to Teddy Sommerschield's son, Johan, who sailed on Diva with Star Olympic silver medalist Per Ola Wiken.

When Anders Onsager's father, Sverre, bought the yacht in 1979, he renamed it Queen Anne after his wife. He got a yacht that already had a lot of upgrades, like 18 winches, a grinder pedestal, and a huge sail wardrobe. And guess what? Those winches are still in use today!

Fast forward to 2022–2023, and this iconic yacht, the Baltic 46 Queen Anne (originally named Diva), came back to the yard for a refit and got to celebrate the company's 50th anniversary.

Now, the next generation is getting to enjoy the special way of life that Queen Anne offers. Anders' childhood friend, Mathias, who's a co-founder of Tides, has had a blast taking regular family trips on Queen Anne since he was a kid. As they got older and Anders took over ownership, they started bringing their own kids along, and now they love the sea just as much as their parents.

Queen Anne will definitely be there for the next generation too.