Rival 32 review and test sail
As the years trundle by I become increasingly aware of the dilemma facing those who want to buy a ‘proper yacht’. In days gone by, would-be buyers of moderately priced 30ft to 35ft sea-going cruising yachts that could leave harbour with little worry about the weather they might encounter, could find plenty of candidates at a boat show.
By ‘candidates’ I mean solid GRP production yachts with sea-kindly hull shapes, moderate beam, secure cockpits, longish keels and comfortable yet compact accommodation. Yachts that are as happy cruising on open oceans as they are pottering along friendly coastlines.
But things have changed. In order to pack in voluminous accommodation, modern production yachts have moved towards wide beam, short-chord fin keels, flattish bottoms and wide cockpits. And many are appreciably lighter than their forebears. A series of holiday charters has taught me that, while such yachts are wonderful for casual coastal pottering, life can change dramatically when wind and waves turn nasty. Even in a 45-footer, going upwind in a Force 7+ Meltemi under sail (or power) was a very uncomfortable experience.
True, there are still a few modern brands built and marketed as ‘bluewater cruisers’ and these tend to be more sea-kindly. But they invariably cost considerably more than series-production yachts.
Buyers can still find capable cruising yachts on the second-hand market. Many famous British cruisers built by Sadler, Nicholson, Contessa, Westerly, Moody, Vancouver et al are still voyaging far and wide even if many of their original builders are no longer in existence.
And then there are the
