innovation, SITO, a young and award- winning industrial design teamwas chosen. ‘We have always been very outspoken
about our belief in this boat’, says Tit Plevnik, the head of communications and customer experience at Seascape, Beneteau’s partner for small and medium Firsts. ‘We are not afraid to say that this is an unseen combination of performance and comfort. No one else has taken it so far in the mainstream market. I know that some smaller custom or semi-production yards have done similar things, but no one has achieved this in the mainstream market, where Beneteau is solidly placed. ‘Two promises were made’, Plevnik continues. ‘The first was to provide a boat with a full cruising interior – but still displacing only 4.8t, planing at 12kts of TWS without any special skills required. So basically a cruising boat, just a lot faster and more fun. The second was to build a boat that was also a club racer. Which means it had to be competitive under rating. ‘Obviously, this
market. These factors are the background of the numerous awards we have received: European Yacht of the Year, British Yachting Award, Cruising World’s Boat of the Year, Sailing World’s Boat of the Year, Voile Mag’s Boat of the Year and Sail magazine’s Boat of the Year. ‘But until recently the second promise
was yet to be proven,’ Plevnik says. ‘The new First 36 has been competing locally and has done well. But the big test for the racing – or more precisely, the rating aspect – was the Rolex Fastnet Race 2023. And since the race happened to be sailed in extremely demanding conditions, it also had the benefit of being a full-scale test of the seaworthiness and build quality of the boat.’ As we taxied slowly into rainy Cherbourg
was a big ask. But now, after two seasons of sailing, the first point is fully proven. Sailing journalists all over the world agree on the exhilarating planing capabilities and our customers constantly tell us that they experience a boat that has finally made speed easy. They have been given a whole new sailing experience without sacrificing the wonders of a modern, comfortable cruising boat. You just ease the sheets and it’s a planing boat with a galley and a bathroom. ‘At the same time, the living space
equals a First 40,7. We measured it carefully, so we know. Volume and performance can co-exist – if done correctly. It also feels like a bigger boat above decks. A charter fleet of at least 12 boats is upcoming in Croatia and will be ready in 2025. So the boat is already accepted in the mainstream cruising
‘We picked off one boat after another, no one in sight being faster than us’
on the morning of the fifth day, we could conclude several things: First of all, absolutely nothing broke on the boat. There had been no creaking, no rattling sounds, even though the boat was banged against steep waves for several days and nights. The investment in
structural bulkheads, infusion moulding and building the hull and deck as one structural unit has resulted in a really robust, seaworthy vessel. The boat behaved well all the way through and we felt safe and taken care of. The last 100 nautical miles through the Channel was downwind under gennaker in 30kts- plus of wind – finally conditions where the First 36 could flash its most distinctive feature: planing capability. And yes, we picked off one boat after another, no one in sight being faster than us. We topped at 21.4kts, even achieving 20kts on jib and main only, after wind picked up beyond the range of our only remaining gennaker. The First 36 Fastnet Race idea began
with a British owner signing up for a doublehanded entry. The Seascape team suggested this was changed to a fully
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The First 36’s strongest suit is its remarkable planing performance downwind
Sam Manuard, naval architect
As I see it the First 36 is a boat that can let you have fun while sailing as well as having a great time with friends and family while cruising. That was definitely the design specification. The whole design team made a collective effort to bring enjoyable inside space, clever ideas on how to live aboard as well as keeping the boat light and fast. To achieve that we did not want to corner ourselves into something too radical in terms of hull shape. A subtle balance has to be found between absolute performance and motion through waves, which is basically comfort at sea. I was pleased to experience that fine
balance during the Fastnet, where we did have a bit of everything: reaching, upwind and downwind in all conditions from very strong winds to light winds. The motion through big waves upwind during the first night of the race was very much appreciated, especially coming from Imocas and Class40s which are really brutal in waves. We were sailing safely and enjoying the difficult conditions as much as we could. The build quality and the level of structural engineering is also part of this feeling of punching through waves reasonably well. Having a stiff and sound boat is paramount in those conditions as well. Downwind was also quite fun and we
The design teamhad to create a full cruising interior without using exoticmaterials
could keep the kite up to 30kts TWS in the short waves of the Channel. There also, the balance of things (hull shape, rig, appendages, light displacement) helped to keep the bow out of the water. We did not have any occurrence of nose diving, which is a big advantage when sailing with friends out of a racing environment. This all-round aspect is also quite remarkable in the light winds where the boat reacts to every puff and sail trim. All in all, a very positive test.
SEAHORSE 67
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