Issue link: https://www.balharbourdigital.com/i/1414025
BAL HARBOUR 121 COURTESY OF RICHARD MILLE On Time NICK REMSEN TAKES NOTES ON THIS YEAR' S MOST IMPRESSIVE NEW WATCHES. The lux ury watch world has never been hot ter. Reta i l stock is drought-level low, a nd resa le prices a re th rough the roof. Fi ndi ng one' s drea m t i mepiece ca n, as a result, feel l i ke someth i ng of a m ission. But watch obsessives k now that ha rd work pays of f, a nd, i n 2021, noth i ng feels as good as th is Holy Tri n it y of launches f rom Audema rs Piguet, Richa rd Mi l le a nd Panerai. These watches a re except iona l ly ra re, w ith hy per- l i m ited quant it ies designated for each, a nd they embody the vangua rd of thei r namesakes' haute horlogerie prowesses. W hether engi neeri ng razor-precise automot ive aesthet ics or boldly updat i ng classic naut ica l cues, these watch ma kers have reached a new, col lect ive zen ith of tech nologica l a nd v isual bri l l ia nce. As the say i ng goes, t i me f l ies, a nd w ith these models, the l i m it is… wel l, sk y h igh. RICHARD MILLE RM 40-01 Automat ic Tourbi l lon McLa ren Speedta i l Les Breuleux, Sw itzerla nd-based Richa rd Mi l le has ma i nta i ned a pa rt nersh ip w ith McLa ren, the Brit ish automot ive w underk i nds, for the past f ive yea rs. Thei r longstandi ng col laborat ion has y ielded its fa i r sha re of ma rquee watches, yet none have been as da ri ng a nd desi rable as the RM 40-01. Inspi red by McLa ren' s Speedta i l hy perca r (the compa ny' s fastest st reet-legal veh icle to date), th is watch reca l ls the shape of a water drop, wh ich is one of nat ure' s most aerody na m ic forms. Orange accents seen on parts and strap are the exact same tone as McLaren's signature color. The case alone contains 69 individual parts. This watch's casing took 2,800 hours to perfect over an 18-month time frame. To get it exactly right, particularly with the width differences between 12:00 and 6:00, five different prototypes were made. McLaren's swept logo is found on the watch's wheels. Limited to 106 pieces total, which is the same number of McLaren Speedtails that will be produced. Richard Mille is often spotted on the wrists of A-listers such as Nicki Minaj, Pharrell Williams (who once had his very own collab with the company) and Formula 1 driver Charles Leclerc.