I could feel the boat find her groove and settle in at 7.2 knots on a beam reach with the code zero flying. It was a crisp autumn day on Chesapeake Bay and we were hauling the mail with one finger on the wheel and twin rudders gripping below the waterline. This was the kind of sailing I could do all day.
Our test boat was hull No. 3 of the Beneteau Oceanis 37.1, the newest model and the seventh in the Oceanis “.1” line. It replaces the very popular 38.1 of which 900 hulls were launched, so she has big shoes to fill. The from-scratch new hull slots perfectly into the line, which now includes models ranging from 31.1 to 51.1.
Designer Marc Lombard was