Contemporary styling and custom features provide exciting alternatives for the serious cruiserSome people are satisfied with the basics—a basic car, off-the-rack clothes, a standard house floor plan, a production boat. But others are not. Bob Perry’s Passport Vista 515 Center Cockpit cruiser comes from a builder who specializes in satisfying sailors who like to have
The Hunter 45DS is a handsome vessel with an “I can take you there” look. The DS stands for deck saloon, a concept that’s become popular in Europe and is gaining ground in the U.S. Deck saloons are popular because they work well. As well as providing panoramic views through the large portlights, they encourage good use of interior space and allow heavy masses like engine and tankage to be
Catana is back, and with a vengeance. This builder of performance-oriented cruising catamarans foundered when the fin-de-sicle dot.com crash decimated its customer list. But the company reorganized and is again building these swift, dramatically styled yachts in its Catalonian factory. This new 50-footer is very different from the 52-footer Catana was building under the old regime. Hull and
The Island Packet 465 is evidence that the company sees the benefits of the center-cockpit configuration, as do the owners of the boat I test-sailed off New London, Connecticut, last fall. Mark and Janet Gorrell invited me to join them on their boats maiden cruise to see how the first 465 to be launched here in the States (hull #1 went to Europe) performs.ConstructionThe
Since even cruising sailors see the benefit of a little extra speed, the people at Elan have taken a logical step with their restyled Performance series. The Elan 410 is touted to be quick (especially in light wind) and comfortable. To do that, a tall rig allows for maximum sail area when the wind is light, but is easily reefed when the wind gets into the high 20s. As with
The new J/122, a 40-foot cruiser/racer, was designed by Alan Johnstone of the legendary J/Boats family and is being built in France by J/Europe. Its sporty credentials include light-to-moderate displacement (14,900 pounds), minimal overhangs, and a slippery, flat-bottomed hull form. A swept-back double-spreader Hall Spars carbon-fiber rig and a retractable carbon-fiber bowsprit are standard; the
Jeanneau helped to revolutionize the deck-saloon aesthetic when it launched the curvy and distinctive 54 DS about five years ago. The orders rolled in, the company soon realized it was on to something, and 49- and 42-foot models followed. The most recent deck-saloon launch, the 39 DS, is probably about the minimum length for this popular layout and is designed to provide, in a smaller package,
Daysailers are back. They’re not the low-cost, first-step, “let’s learn to sail” boats of the 1970s, but instead are elegant, classic-looking upscale little yachts for experienced skippers who have steadily moved up to cruisers over the years and now seek something simpler. The Alerion Express 33 fills a gap in that company’s line of 20- to 38-foot daysailers. On Deck•
Hanse Yachts’s stylish 40-foot 400e (the “e” stands for the epoxy resin used in the hull) is the first in the Judel/Vrolijkdesigned line the German builder is billing as “crossover boats.” It’s already made a splash at U.S. boat shows with its clean hull lines and innovative styling belowdecks. I took one out for a test drive off Marblehead, Massachusetts, to see if “crossover boat” is just a
Ted Hood has been designing seagoing yachts for over 50 years; his latest is an all-round ocean voyager. Its designed with a tall rig for running before trade winds, and theres also a big diesel to get to windward when time is short and the winds are from the wrong quarter. Theres comfortable seating behind either of the dual wheel stations, with good visibility in all directions. A remote
After 32 years of operation, Chesapeake Region Accessible Boating (CRAB) is moving. Six years, countless volunteer hours, persistent efforts working with state, county, and local
It’s been a minute since I’ve done any serious voyage planning. Even saying that is sort of sad, but I’ve been filling my sailing days
In 2020, 30-year-old Clarisse Crémer set off on one of the most ambitious feats in sailing—the Vendée Globe. Alongside 32 other competitors, she left Les
Chances are you’ve been at the boatyard or marina lately, hovering hopefully as you wait for your boat to get back in the water, checking
Usually when people ask me how I learned to sail, I answer that I taught myself. And this is true to a large extent. No
It happens in a moment of weakness. Perhaps my wife is distracted, perhaps she buckles under the gray of the winter sky. Even though Danielle’s
Video by Elena Patriarca Most of the multihull world seems driven by the concept that bigger is always better. But with its new 38-foot Catsmart,
The Cruising Club of America (CCA) is a collection of 1,400 ocean sailors with extensive offshore seamanship, command experience, and a shared passion for making
After four legs of intense racing, The Ocean Race IMOCA 60 fleet will arrive in Newport, Rhode Island, mid-month for the only United States stopover
Video by Elena Patriarca The new VPLP-designed Outremer 52 is something of a natural hybrid between its enormously popular predecessor, the 51, and the more recent
