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Boat Reviews

Boat Review 2014: Jeanneau Sun Odyssey 349

Thirty-four is the new 50. And even if that doesn’t sound directionally correct, it is the trend now in new-boat introductions. In Miami, I tested Jeanneau’s new baby, the Sun Odyssey 349, and found there’s a lot to love in this relatively small package, which feels much bigger than its dimensions suggest.

Boat Review: Beneteau Oceanis 38

At the last Annapolis boat show everyone was talking about Beneteau’s new multi-personality performance cruiser, the interior of which can be changed so much it defies the limits of what can be considered a production boat. This model doesn’t just evolve from previous concepts, it leaps off the drawing board and challenges you to imagine its perfect use.

Boat Review: Dufour Grand Large 500

I first saw the Dufour Grand Large 500 on paper, not on the water, when Eric Macklin of Dufour Yachts let me have a sneak peek at the French builder’s new flagship. A year later, there she was, afloat at the Annapolis boat show, packed with innovations that seemed to break the mold of traditional thinking in yacht design.

Boat Review: Hylas 63

In the ranks of dedicated bluewater boats, a few names crop up time and again that are synonymous with solid construction, reliable engineering and good seakeeping. One of those names is Hylas, whose stable of cruisers, from first Sparkman & Stephens and latterly Germán Frers, have an enviable pedigree.

Boat Review: Hanse 505

The boats built by this German yard just keep getting better and better Following on the success of its 575 model, this new mid-range cruiser

Boat Review: Seaward 46RK

It’s fitting that one of the most interesting big cruisers I’ve sailed in a long while came out of a small Florida yard that builds trailerable sailboats. No mass-production builder could have come up with the Seaward 46RK—it wouldn’t have got past the focus groups.

Tested: Bavaria Vision 42

Not only is Bavaria Yachtbau one of the world’s largest boatbuilders, it has got to be one of the hardest working. When it came time to begin work on what would become its new Vision line, the company didn’t just sit around and brainstorm what it thought its customers would like. Instead it went out and spoke to the customers themselves—hundreds of them—to find out what they thought worked (and didn’t work) on a cruising boat.

Boat Review: Moorings 5800

While test-sailing the new Moorings 5800 (sold to private buyers as the Leopard 58), the opening line from Samuel Coleridge’s famous poem kept running through

J/88

Although the new J/88 has very similar lines to the J/111 and J/70 that precede it, the boat still has a personality that is distinctly its own.  For example, whereas the J/111 is almost in “big boat” range with its 9,300lb displacement, 36ft 6in LOA and 663ft2 of sail area, the J/88 is refreshingly nimble with its 4,990lb displacement, 439ft2 of sail area and a LOA of just over 29ft.

Boat Review: Lagoon 39

It looks like a Lagoon. It’s built like a Lagoon. But this 39-footer is a new breed of catamaran.

Beneteau GT 40

Beneteau GT 40

Sporty, sleek, and comfortable—meet Beneteau’s new and versatile GT 40.

Photo by Adam Cove

Cruising Off The Grid

When getting away means more than just a weekend out of the slip, here are some ideas for achieving range and independence when you go cruising.

Photo By Lydia Mullan

The Long Road to Newport

After sinking in the Newport-Bermuda Race, one sailor makes her slow way back to offshore racing—and maybe sets a new Annapolis-Newport record in the process.

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