A Chief returns to the Village
by John Curnow, Editor, Sai-World AUS 16 Sep 2018 15:00 PDT
Paul Clitheroe's TP52, Balance, charges downwind during last year's Sydney Harbour Regatta © Andrea Francolini
The news from inside the village is that Balance is to become the Quest, again. Now the Goetz-built Farr-penned 52 is one tough baby. She has won the Sydney Hobart twice now. Once as Quest, and then more recently as Balance. Coincidentally, her new owner has also won it twice. His first time was with a very pretty Nelson/Marek 46 – They just don't make boats like that any more. Shame...
The next time he won it, it was with the very same boat he has just re-purchased. So that would make him the tremendously affable, Bob Steel. Bob once said to me that he did not want to spend too much time on the couch in front of the TV. Looks like he very much has plans to get back into it, full bore. As we know, the boat is also totally capable, and always been kept in tiptop condition.
In a way, it all comes down to a 75th and some hundreds. The 75th is the 2019 Hobart race, and the other numbers are those when compared with a lot of the TP/IRC 52s running around. You'll find she is a few hundred kilos lighter, a few hundred mils wider at the chain plates, and a few hundred mils deeper. Add all of that to her strong frame, and you get a stiffer boat with great righting moment, and despite a bit more wetted surface area, something that works hard uphill, and then runs like Winx! The latter is what her crew will be hoping for out in the big blue.
Tacking! Helm down. Time to congratulate Jeanneau on a stellar sales effort, itself on the back of a lot of innovation, which is a subject we've talked a lot about of late, and something we'll touch on again soon. In Australia, they have sold over 40 of the Sun Odyssey 349, and over 80 of the Merry Fisher range of outboard cruisers in recent times, and more like 200+ in the last five years. Yet at Sydney it was the SO 440 and 490 that were the stars (Amazingly the 490 is still available at just $595k, also a new 319 arrives at the beginning of October), and now the new 410 has had a solid airing at Cannes. What a good-looking thing the Marc Lombard-penned gem is, and she is even better in the flesh.
The Dreadnought bow is impossible to miss, just like the knuckle out of the water at rest, as too her long prodder, and she shares the distinct chines, the distinct chamfer in the gunwale, and the Open 60-esque style gooseneck and German mainsheet system with her larger sisters. On paper she looks to be something like a metric tonne lighter than her rivals, and has a big stick option too, so she could well dominate the ever burgeoning social racing scene at a club near you. Alas, you will be waiting for Autumn 2019 for the first three to arrive into AUS, so to my thinking, and in order to secure one, you need to speak to your Jeanneau dealer now!
To get more of a handle on it all I spoke with Paul Blanc, the Managing Director of Groupe Beneteau's Asia-Pacific regional office. "We are currently receiving a strong demand for both sail and power ranges worldwide. In Australia, it's been particularly driven by our Sun Odyssey line of yachts, and the Merry Fisher range of outboard weekenders, that have grown fast over the last three years."
"Generally speaking, the DNA of Jeanneau is to combine a timeless elegance with good seaworthy hulls, and smart layouts for storage and life onboard. Then all of that is combined with a competitively priced package, thanks to the economies of scale offered by the Groupe."
"On the yachts side, in 2018 we launched our new generation of Sun Odysseys, with the 440, 490, and now the 410. These new designs bring a lot of useful innovations. First is the hull design, by adopting more powerful hull forms with full length chine, offering better stability and stiffness, thereby allowing these boats to carry larger sail areas."
"Secondly, the most noticeable innovation is the walk-around side decks that allow a completely flush circulation all around the deck, revolutionising the circulation on board."
"The Sun Odyssey 440 has collected all the major industry awards in 2018, and eight have already been delivered into Australia! Worldwide, Jeanneau is delivering 3,500 boats a year, making it the leading brand inside the Groupe."
"On the power side, the growth of the outboard-powered boats segment is a clear trend globally. Our Merry Fisher line is already the best selling line of pocket cruisers in Europe, with over 1,500 units delivered last year. Four years ago we identified the potential for these in Australia, prompting us to promote them actively in the market. They have proven very popular, as they offer a combination of fishing capability, and cruising features, making them the ideal family boat. You get all that with simple maintenance and easy handling. This year we introduced the new 1095 at the Sydney show, which pushes the 'pocket cruiser' concept into a 10 metre hull. This boat offers a lot of volume with three cabins, and a lot of smart features."
"But good products is just one part of the business. We are also proud to work with some of the best dealers in Australia, who offer a quality service in every State. They are entrepreneurs who know our products very well, and care about our clients beyond the delivery of their boat, with the assistance of our regional office, which is based in Hong Kong," said Blanc in closing.
Time to get on the other board for a bit. I could not help noticing the new Formula Foil Ocean Racing Championships (FFORC) out of the UK, which distinctly shared a lot of components with the Figaro 3 programme they are trying to set up here in AUS. All of which will be great news for Beneteau, who are actively out there selling the boat, now that all 50 have been made for the Class.
What was interesting about the UK model, is that it is ten teams in ten races and covering something like 10,000nm. Oh yeah, and they have loads of prize money involved! Like 80,000 Quids worth. WoooHoooo... It is a fully managed, OD scenario for crews of at least four, not weighing more than 500kgs.
All ten races are counted, and include inshore events like Round the Island, and offshore races in the English Channel, then longer races to Ireland, Lanzarote, finally culminating in a Transat race, where you'll finish in Antigua. Nice. Very nice! And you can be in for £75,000 (+ VAT). Cool.
Set up. One and in. Seeing as we are talking Beneteau, I could not help noticing that North Sails had a huge day out with a fleet of Beneteaus out of Rhode Island. This was one of the first times that new little Firsts (formerly Seascapes) could be seen in their new livery. North Sails products are standard fitment to these, with the Figaro 3 receiving 3Di Raw. The new members of the Oceanis line can be ordered with North inventory. One of the reasons for mentioning Beneteau First, is that the line is only going up from here, which will be good news for all those that raced them so happily in AUS.
Right oh - here today there are some gems for you to review. We have information about Bavaria's new owners who will take all the company's new and innovative products to market with solid financial backing (which is just awesome news for Australian Distributor, Ensign Ship Brokers), World Cup in Enoshima including AST stars, 52 Super Series, Big Boat Series out of San Fran, GC32, Kiteboarders, Laser Masters, Sharpies, two-handed division in the Pantaenius Newport to Coffs Coast Yacht Race, Swan Cup, the wonderful Macif Ultime Tri, Sir Jim Hardy and Geelong, Pittwater to Paradise and the subsequent Sail Paradise Series, and of course AC if that's your thing, and certainly there is much, much more.
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John Curnow
Editor, Sail-World AUS