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December 13, 20122013 Boat of the Year: J/70The j/70 nailed its design brief: a fun, reasonably priced, and ramp-launchable sportboat. Six months after prototype testing, hull numbers were into triple digits.
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December 11, 2012Dufour 36 PerformanceBest Crossover
Photos by Walter Cooper
For an owner seeking a sharp-looking raceboat to take off on for the weekend, the Dufour 36 Performance, selected as the Boat of the Year's Best Crossover, has everything to make that a reality: The cockpit is set up for racing, and even with an aluminum rig package, the boat was lively and quick. The interior, and even some of the more subtle cruising details, are so well thought out that you quickly forget you're sailing a dual-purpose boat.
There were several strong candidates in the Crossover category, but the Dufour 36 had all the right traits: excellent build, great speed and handling, and a respectable price tag for the quality ($225K). Most definitely, the best value of the fleet, the judges agreed.
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December 13, 2012Ker 40: Best Handicap RacerJason Ker, master of IRC-winning designs, teams up with McConaghy Boats to deliver a no-excuses, semi-custom raceboat that's dialed in for offshore sprints and buoy racing triumphs.
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October 15, 2012Boat of the Year 2013 NomineesDuring the week of Oct. 8, SW's Boat of the Year judges put 15 new models to the test on the Chesapeake Bay. The best of the best will be announced in SW's January/February 2013 issue, which will hit newsstands in mid-December. Photos by Walter Cooper.
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December 13, 2012Dufour 36 PerformanceDufour’s approach to its new performance range gives them a high-quality crossover that was quick, responsive, and easy to sail. The judges loved its light helm, racing-oriented deck layout, and the price.
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December 11, 2012X-Yachts Xp 38Boat of the Year Nominee
Photos by Walter Cooper
Travel around Europe, and X-Yachts are a staple of all the major handicap races. There’s no denying that X-Yachts make fast, great sailing boats, and the Xp 38 continues the tradition, only better. Their updated crossovers now have robust carbon keel grids (instead of metal), and the hull shape of the Xp 38, said Greg Stewart, was very stiff, quick, and easily driven. From off the boat, it’s racy looking, with a low-profile cabin top, angular hull features, and flared topsides, Stewart added, so it will appeal to an owner looking for a more crossover-type aggressive design.
The judges noted the construction quality was very high, perhaps even the best of the entire BOTY fleet, and the interior is a purposeful three-cabin layout, with the head aft, on the starboard side. X Yachts owners tend to be racers first, so the cockpit is open, clean, and set up for efficient manuevers with twin steering pedestals located outboard to provide a good line of sight on the telltales.
Of the three crossovers in the competition, however, the Xp 38 came with a considerably higher price tag ($365K). “Build-wise, the thing is incredible,” said Chuck Allen. “We couldn’t find a single area of the boat with any flaws.” But under sail it was “so, so,” he added. “I think a carbon rig and a full race crew on the rail, would have made a big difference in how it felt.”
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December 11, 2012Tartan FantailBoat of the Year Nominee
Photos by Walter Cooper
After inspecting the Tartan Fantail at the dock, and being impressed with its construction quality, the judges had high expectations. And when winds kicked into the high-teens, just in time for its test sail, they were especially eager to see what this radical-looking daysailer could do. As is often the case, however, strong winds quickly reveal a boat’s weakest points. “The rudder had a ton of helm,” said judge Greg Stewart, “and most of the sheets were pretty tough to pull.”
To be fair, the boat was a late entry, and had been fast-tracked out of the factory to make it to the boatshow. It hadn’t been sailed, the rig wasn’t tuned, and the systems were not yet sorted, but based on its aethetics and build quality, it's off to a good start.
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December 11, 2012SeaRail 19Boat of the Year Nominee
Photos by Walter Cooper
The SeaRail 19 is a pint-sized trimaran imported from Vietnam, built by a former Corsair Trimaran employee with imput from noted multihull designer Nigel Irens. The test boat was delivered straight from U.S. Customs, so its U.S. distributor, Bob Gleason, a multihull veteran, was on the water sorting it out before its test time. As we approached Gleason, he looked concerned and suggested the boat not be tested. “The [leeward] float is really burying, and there’s a lot of flexing in the forward beam,” he said. “I don’t think we should go through with this: The boat’s just not ready.”
“Nonsense,” BOTY judge Chuck Allen responded before rolling onto the SeaRail’s trampoline like a Navy SEAL. Off the two of them went, with the screacher deployed, reaching across the bay at a high rate of speed. Gleason was right, though. The other judges looked on as the leeward ama submerged every time a gust filled the sails. After an hour and a half of hard sailing, however, the boat was perfectly intact and the judges were pleasantly surprised. “It was easy to sail, had a high fun factor to it,” said Rich. “If they cleaned up the construction and got the buoyancy right, they’d have something worth talking about. It’s almost there.”
The standard pricing was quoted at $28,000.
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December 11, 2012Best Handicap Racer: Ker 40The Ker 40 is a semi-custom boat for the serious IRC racing team. Our test boat, Catapult, was built for an experienced owner, and was fitted out primarily for offshore racing.
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December 11, 2012Rondar K1Boat of the Year Nominee
Photos by Walter Cooper
Rondar president Paul Young told our Boat of the Year judges that nearly 100 of these 15-foot singlehanded keelboats have been sold in England, with the typical buyer being middle-aged and preferring to "not end up in the drink every time they go sailing." That's a pretty specific ask for a narrow and lightweight (286-pound) dinghy, one that's accomplished with a 137-pound bulb attached to a lifting keel. To keep it interesting, they designed a clever jib-pole system that the judges said was easy to deploy for wing-on-wing sailing. They liked its upwind performance, but off the breeze, said Chuck Allen, "it was nothing special." Fellow panelist Tom Rich said the boat was fun to sail, and lively, but its $15,000 price tag would be a barrier to one-design class development.
