Dusseldorf boat show, the biggest on the planet for sailboats, was killed by Covid and it did not happen for two long years in a row and its survival as main boat show was questioned by many because Covid is stronger in winter, and Dusseldorf boat show takes place in late January, while many other major sailboat shows take place in the fall or summer, and brands had reoriented their promotional exhibits to those shows.
First 36
And when two major brands (group Hanse and X-yachts) announced that they would not be there, I feared for the worst. In fact this edition posed a risk because for a brand, the participation on a show like this, with several yachts involved, implies that they take the decision many months before, and then nobody knew what the conditions in winter would be, in what regards Covid, in Germany, what would be the travel restrictions and even the restrictions that could be imposed to the ones that were visiting the boat show, in what regards social distancing, use of mask.
First 36
And we all know that, when there is a need for it, the German authorities are pro-active in legislating, and are quite strict about enforcing the law.
But the ones that were afraid lost the bet, and the many that came won: no flight restrictions, nor mandatory use of masks (only in public transports), in fact I was quite surprised because I was expecting masks to be mandatory in the boat show, and thought that visitors allowed inside the boats at the same time would be less than in previous years, but no, nothing of that, and nobody is using masks on the boat show.
First 36
And in what regards sailboats on the boat show, maybe there are slightly less bigger boats but there are probably more smaller sailboats exposed, and the two big pavilions that are normally reserved for sailboats were full.
Anyway I would have come to Dusseldorf, even if the "Messe" was smaller this year because I was really missing the annual beer "treatment". I love the city, and most of all its breweries and nice people.
Dusseldorf, and some smaller cities around, have a distinct bear that they call Alt (old in German) because they still make them by the same process it was used in medieval times. It is brewed on the spot and served as fresh as possible, in fact in some breweries you can hear the wooden barrels being rolled from the brewery to the bar.
On top Pogo 36, above J112e
The number of old breweries is big for a town of 650 000 inhabitants and they are always full and not mainly with tourists but with locals. Maybe this kind of socialization makes for the warmer character of the inhabitants face to the ones of other German cities, where people go to bed earlier. Here breweries are open till midnight and one of them till 1.00 in the morning.
First boat I visited was the First 36. I was accompanied by a friend that was particularly interested in that boat. I was very curious to see if what I had written regarding the boat, just looking at pictures and dimensions, was confirmed by a visit, namely the size of the head that seemed on the drawings incredibly small to me.
Pogo 36
And yes, the head is really bad, not only due to size but for having a foldable washbasin, something that would be acceptable in a 28/30ft boat, but completely inadequate to a 36ft performance cruiser and that diminishes in much the First 36 cruising potential, specially in what regards family cruising.
The boat interior looks good, it is functional, comfortable and nice, for a fast race-cruiser and that just turns more incongruous the choice of having that ridiculous head, just for having a 3 cabin as the only layout. Who needs 3 cabins with that head?
J112e
It is so amateurish a choice that it is hard to understand as a big firm like Beneteau went for it. With 2 cabins and a space for sail storage and cruising stuff, it would be possible to make a boat with a good head.
Anyway while cruising or racing, one of the cabins has to be occupied, either with cruising stuff or with racing sails, because there is not enough storage outside for that, so why a 3 cabin layout at the cost of a decent head?
First 36
Overall the First 36 looks nice, and very beamy, but not properly innovative. In what regards that, light years away from the innovation that the First 27 brought to sailboat design, when it was designed 12 years ago (then named Seascape 27). I still think that the designer of the two boats, Sam Manuard (First 36 in collaboration with others) was conditioned in the design, and that Beneteau would have done far better letting him do freely what he does best: designing innovative sailboats, racers or cruisers.
Pogo 36 Below, J112e
For knowing more about the boat in what regards design and performance, as well suitability for different types of races, look here:
One of the most, if not the most interesting things in the Beneteau stand was the opportunity to know Lars Reisberg, the one that was going to show the First 36 to my friend.
Lars is the author of my favorite boat blog, full of interesting stuff, and very interesting interviews. It was nice to know that he knows my blog and that he truly appreciates it. If you don't know Lars' blog, here it is a link to it:
After seeing the First 36 we visited part of the competition, the J112e and the Pogo 36, both in the boat show. These two boats, plus the performance cruising version of the JPK 10.80, are the closest competitors. They are the other 36ft fast sailingboats that offer a comfortable and suitable interior for cruising.
The Pogo 36, has almost the same HL (10.86 to 11.00m) and it is an even beamier boat (4.0 to 3.8m). I believe that while racing, overall, the First will be faster (in real time), with a better performance upwind, and will have a better ratting for IRC/ORC, but downwind the Pogo is probably faster (it is lighter - 3800 kg to 4800) and overall easier to be sailed fast, by a less experienced sailor.
Pogo 36
The Pogo interior is more radical, meaning out of the usual, than the one of the First 36, maybe not as well finished, but functional, full of light and offering an all around outside view from the interior while sailing, allowing to do a watch without going outside.
It has much more storage space, namely in what refers cabinets, offering a decent head that has the disadvantage of being inside the front cabin, taking privacy to the ones that are using the cabin, and that is not the case in the First 36.
But on the First the head is so tiny that if you are big you won't be able to close the door, seated in the bowl. Taking a shower in that space should not be easy, not to mention the foldable washbasin, that you have to rise to use the toilet bowl. More about the Pogo 36:
The J112e looks like a jboat, elegant for the ones that like that kind of more classical hulls, with the beam not all pulled back. Curiously the J112e is beamier than it looks, and if it looks narrow compared to the First 36 and Pogo 36 is not because it is a narrow boat, but because the other two are very beamy boats, with all beam pulled aft.
If compared to the Sunfast 3600 many would be surprised to learn that the Jeanneau has less beam than the Sunfast (3.55 to 3.60) and that the JPK 10.80 is very close, even if beamier (3.65 to 3.60).
J112e
The 112e has a very nice, I would say, classy interior, even if the choice of colors (or even finish) of the one that was at the boat show was not the nicest I have seen. The interior finish is very good.
It has about the same cabinet storage as the First 36, but an incomparably better head, and this one offering all privacy, not intruding with any cabin or even the saloon.
J112e
It offers only two cabins, but contrary to the other two offers a truly dedicated and very functional big storage space, that can be accessed by the outside or by the inside (through the head), and because a storage space will be needed for racing (sails) or cruising it has by far, from the three, the layout that is better suited for both activities.
Compared to the First 36, it is a slightly heavier boat (5125 to 4800kg) being that difference in weight due mostly to a bigger ballast needed because it has less draft (2.10 to 2.25) and a less effective L keel. I believe this solution is taken not because the boat is not well designed but to give it the better ratio/performance, and in fact from the three this is by far the best boat in IRC/ORC racing, with many victories in major races.
First 36
Yes, I know many would say that the Pogo 36 and the First 36 would be faster in real time and in some conditions, I am sure that is true, but almost all would misjudge the J112e comparative performance.
I would say that overall a Pogo 36 is slower than a JPK 10.80 (even if in some conditions it can be faster), and regarding the First 36, even if there is not yet data to really know for sure, I would say the overall performance should be close, with different strong points. Probably the JPK 10.80 is better for racing due to a better rating, but that is another story.
Pogo 36
And a J112e is slower than a JPK 10.80, right? Well I thought that was the case, even if not by much, but then in the 2018 Spi-Ouest, being both boats raced by top teams, it was not the case. A surprisingly fast boat, the J112e:
"In the final analysis of the leading IRC boats, some fascinating facts emerge. For those four races, the J/112E beat the winning First 40.7 (with pro's and sailmakers driving) by an average of 1:56 elapsed and by 1:36 on corrected.
J112e
And, versus the JPK 10.80 Dream Pearls (a famous Fastnet Race winner), the J/112E beat them by an average 1:29 elapsed and 1:14 corrected. Perhaps even more fascinating, the brand new JPK 11.80 sailed in IRC 1 Class by owner Gery Trentesaux ("Mr JPK" and Fastnet Race/ RORC winner) and professional skipper Jimmy Pahun and a fully pro'd up crew, got beaten by the J/112E "sport cruiser" by an average 2:04 corrected on the same race track! In fact, the 11.80 (a bare-bones, semi-custom, IRC-optimized racing boat) could barely muster a 2:30 elapsed time over the J/112E family sport cruiser. Amazing."
Boat building quality and building techniques are similar on the three boats, using vacuum infusion, a cored hull (foam in the Pogo and First, balsa on the Jboat) polyester resins with an outer layer of vinylester, cored bulkheads. Regarding the way the structure and bulkheads are fixed to the hull, Beneteau and Pogo don't mention it (I assume they are bonded) on Jboats say that besides being bonded all intermediate bulkheads are also glassed to the hull and deck.
Pogo 36 cockpit
Both Pogo and First use deck steeped masts while the Jboat uses a keel steeped mast. Both systems are safe, but keel steeped masts offer additional resistance, with the disadvantage of being difficult to prevent a small entrance of water, even if there are systems that can manage that.
Last but not the least, the price, and it is with surprise that I find out that the First 36 is the more expensive at 234 130 euros, followed by the 112e that costs 222 270 euros, being the less expensive the Pogo 36 at 201 000 euros (with a fixed keel). A swing keel version costs 5000 euros more. Prices for standard boats at the shipyard without taxes.
J112e cockpit, This boat has not a fixed cockpit table option , but it has an option for a collapsible table mounted on the side, on a rail
With an European 20% VAT and equipped, ready to sail swing keel Pogo 36 will end up costing over 300 000 euros. The others should not come cheaper, but because the equipment prices for different boats can be different, to really know and compare prices, you need to have them with the same equipment.
By the way, the First 36 has won the 2023 European award for the best performance cruiser beating the Elan E6, the Grand Soleil 40, the Italia 12.98 and the Solaris 50. The result was announced at Dusseldorf. I don't understand how such a flawed 36ft cruiser (by the inadequacy of its head for cruising) can have won the award, even if they loved the way it sails.
They are choosing a performance CRUISER, and no matter how good it sails, the cruising ability is the main attribute and if one side of the equation is so inadequate as it is the case in the First 36, how is it possible to consider it better than other boats, where excellent performance meets great cruising potential, as it is for example the case with the Italia 12.98?
Some decades ago this was a very important market, today it is difficult to find interesting boats in this range that are not hugely expensive, and that are not in contradiction with the major goal for this size: cruising with the family at smaller costs.
Above Bavaria Cruiser 34, below, Hanse 348
Today most new cruising boats that reach the market are between 42 and 50ft and are bought by 50-year-cruisers (or older), looking already at retirement days, or are boats intended as a second house, for living at weekends, or for living some months in the summer doing coastal cruising.
Sure, there are also cruising boats bought for living aboard permanently, boats bought to cross oceans and sail extensively, and also cruising boats bought for enjoying sailing and racing, but they are a small minority in what regards sold sailing boats.
Above Hanse 348, below Sun Odyssey 349
There are also cruisers bought by younger people, and those are not yet thinking about retirement, but about enjoying life with the family (or racing) in a sailboat. Those buy smaller boats, most of them smaller than 32ft, but some want a boat that has already good offshore seaworthiness (class A), and that will allow them to cruise on the weekends, and spend the holidays sailing with the kids, cruising out of home waters, with comfort.
In fact, more than 20 years ago I have done that, enjoying for 8 years a new 36ft boat, before starting to look for a bigger boat for my retirement days.
Today the choice is smaller and these models tend to be substituted much less frequently than bigger models. Let's look at them, at the cheapest, smallest class-A sailboats in the market, with adequate size for family comfort, and see what they have to offer.
But before you say that what I wrote about the comparative sail performance of these sailboats does not ring true with what is said in sail tests, let me tell you that if you look at sail test pictures, you will see that these boats are being tested by three or four experienced sailors, and always deploying big gennakers, and that is not their standard configuration.
Above, Oceanis 34.1, below, Dufour 37
Most sailors that use these boats for cruising and sailing are still at a very early stage, they are learning, sailing the boat solo, or with a little help from the wife, and are not using gennakers, which are difficult sails to handle solo, and are expensive, fragile sails. Test sailors do a bad service to the sailing community never referring in the tests to the comparative performance of these sailboats in standard configuration, that is the way they are used by most cruisers.
Performance with standard configuration, with the sails they are sold with, is the sail performance I am referring on this post. They all will have a better performance with a gennaker, which will be easier to deploy and use in a beamy boat than on a narrower one.
It makes no sense to sell these boats with a small jib on a self-tacking rail, to make sail easier, implying they are sold mainly to inexperienced sailors, and then test them with a gennaker and talk only about their performance in that configuration.
Above, Bavaria cruiser 34, below, Hanse 348
Experienced sailors that want to sail fast in small sailboats will be interested in another type of sailboat, performance cruisers, or cruiser-racers and those are the ones that will be interested in sailing with gennakers and code 0. Those boats are much faster, more rewarding boats to sail, but do not offer the same family cruising potential, with comfort and safety, at the same cost.
Let's start with Bavaria, which has always had nice small cruisers, and now has in that range the Cruiser 34, which in fact is a 32.0 ft boat, certified as Class A (A6 ). It has a very nice hull, designed by Farr, before the mania to increase the hull beam as much as possible (at cost of light wind and upwind performance), for interior volume.
Above, SO 349 below, Oceanis 34.1
With a beam of 3.42m, a modern cast iron bulbed keel with 2.0m draft and 25.7% B/D, for a 5298kg displacement, it is a relatively heavy boat for its size, as are all in this category. A modern hull, with fine entries and moderate beam, will provide a good sail performance, except upwind with stronger winds and waves, where the small ballast will not be enough to give it a good performance.
Above Oceanis 34.1, below, Dufour 37
It has a modest 17.0 SA/D, (that the narrow hull will maximize), an interior with plenty of cabinets and storage, it is nice, interesting, and comfortable.
In regards to running rigging, it has the possibility of having 6 winches, which allow for easy sailing, even with the standard genoa. It comes standard with a genoa track.
It costs 110 665 euros without VAT at the shipyard and that makes it a very interesting sailboat. It is really a pity the 34 does not have more ballast, but that would increase the price, and I can understand why they have chosen to design the boat like it is, allowing for the less expensive boat in the category, but even so, one of the more rewarding to sail.
Hanse has the 348, that curiously has a Class A certification with less crew (A4). It is a 32.8 ft boat with a 3.50m beam displacing 6560kg, having 2300kg ballast (35%B/D), on an L bulbed cast iron keel, with a 2.0m draft.
Bavaria 34
It is difficult to understand why the Bavaria 34, with a lot less ballast on a similar keel, is certified as A6 while the Hanse is certified as A4. Still, if the technical characteristics are right, the Hanse 348 has a lot more stability than Bavaria, including final stability and a better AVS.
They have different hulls, the one from the Hanse considerably beamier (3.42 to 3.50m) and with larger bow entries, but even so, a nice hull designed by Judel & Vrolijk. All in all the Hanse is a very well-balanced cruiser, offering a bigger interior than the Bavaria 34 on a nicely designed sailboat, that looks bigger than it is. It offers a 4-winch setup, more stiffness (sail power), even though it has a smaller upwind SA/D than the Bavaria 34 (16.2 to 17.0).
Hanse 348
Between the two, if the price were the same, I would choose clearly the Hanse 348, but there is a reason for Bavaria being designed the way it is, and that is the price: the Bavaria costs 110 665 euros and the Hanse 137 900 euros. The Bavaria in weak winds and downwind is probably faster than the Hanse, it will give more fun to sail, but will lose clearly in seaworthiness, and with strong winds the Hanse will be much faster upwind, being easier to sail downwind.
Both boats have a good interior with plenty of cabinets, offering the Hanse a bigger forward cabin and a bigger toilet area. Only you know if what Bavaria offers in what regards forward cabin space is enough, taking into consideration that the aft cabin is big. If that is the case the Bavaria, costing considerably less, can make more sense.
Above, SO 349, below, Oceanis 34.1
If there is no shortage of money or if the boat is to keep for more years, and if the need for a bigger boat is not previewed in the future, then the Hanse 348 makes more sense. In fact, it will offer much more potential as a cruising boat to sail anywhere, without safety concerns.
Jeanneau has the Sun Odyssey 349, one of the more, if not the most popular cruiser in this segment. It is a 32.7ft boat with 5340kg displacement and a 29.6%B/D with a cast iron L keel, with about 2.0m draft, on a hull with a 3.44 m beam.
Above, Oceanis 34.1, below, Dufour 37
The hull is very well designed by Marc Lombard, with narrow entries and almost all the beam pulled aft. It is certified as Class A (A6) and it offers a good sail performance, with an 18.4 SA/D, slightly more that the one of Hanse and it costs 123 500 euros. It is hard to beat what the 349 offers at that price, and it is easier to see why it is a best-seller, but even so, the Bavaria is considerably less expensive and the Hanse offers superior seaworthiness and bigger overall stability, feeling like a bigger boat.
In what regards interior, the SO 349 offers a head as good as the one in the Hanse, a smaller front cabin (due to a small and protruding anchor locker) and an interior that even if it is very nice offers fewer cabinets than the Bavaria or the Hanse. It should also be said that, from the above, it is the only one that offers a true bowsprit, which makes its image more sportive and contributes to a better use of a gennaker or a code 0.
It comes standard with a genoa, but not with a genoa rail. As an option, it can have an efficient but more difficult to use 3d cable system, for controlling genoa shape. It comes without a backstay but it can have one as an option. You should always look at boat prices with the equipment you want because that can turn an apparently cheaper boat into a more expensive one.
Bavaria cruiser 34
A very interesting proposition, with a price in between the one of the Bavaria and the Hanse, not as much boat as the Hanse (not the same overall stability or safety stability), but a faster one in most conditions, and also faster than the cheaper Bavaria, even if in light winds, they should be very close, and with Bavaria using a gennaker or a code 0, I doubt very much it will be the case (in light wind).
Beneteau offers the Oceanis 34.1 which is also a 32.7ft boat, also designed by Marc Lombard. It has a very different hull than the Jeanneau, basically because it is much beamier (3.57m to 3.44m). It displaces just a bit more (5470kg to 5340), for a smaller 28.9%B/D, on a similar L cast iron keel with the same draft (2.00).
Above, Hanse 348, below, Jeanneau 349
It has a slightly overall bigger stability (more hull form stability) for a slightly worse safety stability and AVS. With a 15.9 SA/D (with the bigger mainsail and the standard self-taking jib) it will be till now the slowest of all considered boats, especially because the smaller SA/D corresponds to a bigger drag. On this one a genoa is really needed and that will give it a 17.9 SA/D, but that implies a more expensive boat, with two additional travelers and a bigger sail (as on the Hanse, for mounting a genoa).
Above Jeanneau 394, below Oceanis 34.1
The Hanse and the Oceanis are the beamier boats (3.50 and 3.57), the ones that will sail slower in light wind but also the ones that will heel less while sailing and that means a more comfortable boat for cruising, even if one less rewarding for sailing.
The main difference between the Oceanis and the Hanse, besides the bigger Oceanis beam, is the displacement, the ballast and the B/D, all with influence on the boat stability, being in the overall one, the safety stability or AVS.
The Oceanis will have a bigger hull form stability due to a bigger beam, but that will be more than compensated by the bigger Hanse displacement (6560kg to 5470kg) and for the result, the big B/D difference (35.0% to 28.9%) (with similar keels) will have in the overall stability.
That difference in B/D will have a bigger impact on the safety stability and AVS, which is considerably better on the Hanse.
Dufour 37
Like the Jeanneau, the Oceanis has an interior with fewer cabinets than the Hanse or Bavaria (even less than the Jeanneau), and the interior is a lot less nice than the one of the Jeanneau. The front cabin is as bigger as the one of the Hanse and even if the chain locker is bigger than the Jeanneau one, it also protrudes inside the forward cabin. Like the Jeanneau it can have a fixed bowsprit, (but only as an option) and has no backstay, not even an optional one.
Regarding the backstay, that both Hanse and Bavaria have, don't let them convince you that not having a backstay has any advantage, other than allowing for bigger top squared mainsails (that is not the case here, at least standard), and being cheaper. Really sportive or race boats, with square top mainsail have two backstays and use one or another depending on mainsail position.
Bavaria cruiser 34
In fact not having a backstay implies that the spreaders are much more brought aft and that means you can open very little the main while sailing downwind, making it much less effective, it means also that you cannot trim the frontal sail pulling the mast back, or allowing it forward (spreaders less pulled aft) sailing upwind. Obviously, it will also give the rig less stability and less safety.
The Oceanis 34.1 costs 5700 euros more than the Jeanneau (129 200 euros) and I cannot see why. Maybe because the Jeanneau 349 is an older model. But I would say that, if you want a boat that sails with less heel and with a bigger overall stability, you should buy the Hanse 348. It sails better upwind and has a nicer interior with more storage.
Above, Hanse 348, below SO 349
The small price difference seems more than justified to me, for a better boat in all aspects, maybe except outside looks, where the Oceanis looks more aggressive and the Hanse more classic.
Dufour has the 32, which is an interesting sailboat, with more SA/D than these ones, but it is only a 30.7ft yacht that does not offer the interior comfort these boats offer. It is a remake of the older 310 (a great boat), with a cheaper finish, a smaller boat that costs 8000 euros more than Bavaria, and only 5000 euros less than the Jeanneau 349. I talked about it here:
Dufour has also the 37, which, incredibly, is only a 32.8ft yacht, the same size as the Hanse 348, for instance. I have seen much misleading information provided by boat builders, but calling a 32.8ft sailboat a 37, beats them all!
The Dufour 37 is a hugely beamy boat, much more than the Oceanis (3.57 to 3.80) that tries to justify the name (37) by a big interior volume, not only due to the beam but because, contrary to the Oceanis, the bow entries are huge. An exercise about how much volume you can put on a given length, signed by Felci yachts, even if I doubt Felci himself designed such an aberration (as a sailboat).
Oceanis 34.1
The Dufour displaces 6737kg, has a 27.6%B/D on a 1.90m draft L cast iron bulbed keel and has a single rudder that has almost the same depth as the keel. The big rudder is necessary due to such a beamy hull. In this case, it is hard to understand why Felci did not opt for twin rudders (cost?). This rudder will be very exposed while med mooring.
The interior is nice, with as many cabinets as the Bavaria or the Hanse, with a pleasant design, but with a 16.8 SA/D, already with a genoa, this is a slow sailboat, that will not please anybody that likes sailing, but due to the huge interior volume will please those who want the more voluminous sailboat for the money, but don't have the money for a cat.
Dufour 37
And even so I don't know about that, because at 156.000 €, I find it expensive, for what it offers, except if you really value interior volume above all things, and cannot have a longer boat.
The Dufour price will be increased by 9 000 euros if you want a backstay, a much-needed genoa, and a 3d system similar to the one offered by Jeanneau for genoa shape control.
I have not mentioned building differences between them because, being some of them models with some years on the market, the specifications I can find can be outdated, and after 5 or 6 years after its launch, hulls can be built in a different way, as I am almost sure it is the case for some. Anyway, the building materials and techniques are very similar.
Above, integral contre-moule, below integral grid system
They are built using monolithic hulls and equivalent quality polyester resins, being the internal structure typically or a kind of integral contre-moulle, in the French boats, and a monolithic integral grid on the german boats, using all plywood bulkheads and basically they have all parts put together by bonding agents. For now, you will have to check personally, and I would advise a visit to the shipyard because I am quite sure dealers will not know more than this.
Normally in this size of boat, there are fewer structural problems than in bigger boats: they flex less, the ballasts are a lot smaller, as well as the involved forces. Only if one wants to build a lighter sailboat (with the same strength), other materials, and techniques are justified (because they are much more expensive).
As an option to these you have better built, lighter and faster sailboats, with an interior volume smaller than the one offered by the Dufour and that are also more expensive, like the Salona 35 (34.1ft), the Elan E4 (34.8ft), the Dehler 34 (33.8ft) or the RM 970 (31.8ft). We will have a look at them in another post.
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