Radical-looking, certainly, but more than 65 of Alex Vrolijk’s first 24ft Bente design have sold since it was launched in 2015, its contemporary styling enticing many buyers from outside the usual target markets for a small racer-cruiser. The 39ben (left) is styled along similar lines with the addition of a reverse stem and a relatively more powerful hull and sailplan. More Pogo than Dehler, the generous hull volume has been used to deliver plenty of form stability… or was it the other way around? Either way the reaching performance offshore should be most pleasant


well, just with a different brief. SH: She certainly looks more powerful. The performance version has a towering rig, generous sailplan and a draught of 2.65m… So pretty radical in this market sector. AV: She is. But it’s not all about sail area and weight and righting moment. The 39ben will still be a cruiser with lots of volume down below and a safe, comfortable, well-protected cockpit. SH: You’ve already designed the rather docile-looking Dehler 38 – arguably the bestselling performance cruiser below 12m since it appeared in 2013. Do you consider her a competitor? AV: No. As I mentioned, we are trying to bring something new to the market. That’s why the 39ben looks so different. She really isn’t mainstream. We don’t want to and we hardly could compete against production builders like Dehler or X-Yachts. So we won’t even try. Neither are we challenging Pogo. Our unique proposition will be the semi-custom concept. Owners will be able to tailor the boat to their needs more than at any other yard. We will even consider a flush-deck version if there is demand. SH: What are the design’s key characteristics in terms of performance? AV: There is an emphasis on reaching, no doubt. The hull is still relatively slim forwards of amidships, with a rather narrow waterline, and it has plenty of rocker. So it won’t be a slowcoach upwind. But its strength is clearly downwind. We benchmarked the preliminary performance figures and feel happy where the 39ben slots in. SH: Her features are quite a departure from what Judel-Vrolijk is known for… AV: In the early stages my father [Rolf] was shaking his head. Initially he commented on my first sketches quite critically saying ‘This isn’t something the world has been waiting for’. But the closer he looked into it and the more hours he put in the bigger a fan he became. SH: How much of Rolf is in the design? AV:He is involved 100 per cent. He has done so many outstanding yachts in his life, especially raceboats, and still he’s fired up as if Bente were his first job. Several times he sent me pictures he found on the web in the middle of the night or came up with detail changes in the design. He has just commissioned the Baltic 175 Pink Gin VI, his biggest project. At the same time he worked on hull


lines and appendages for the 39ben. I couldn’t be happier to have this kind of commitment and professional input. SH: Was the whole office involved? AV: When it comes to feedback, yes. But the actual design has been done by six people. Apart from my dad and me Antoine Cardin was one of the lead engineers. He usually works in the performance and race department at Judel-Vrolijk. It is great to have him in the team because he brings the French DNA with him… as maybe you can see! SH: Why did it take so long for open class design features to infiltrate serial production yachts? AV: I don’t know. I am a bit puzzled as well because there are so many obvious advantages – not least the fun of fast reaching. Let’s be honest, most people don’t enjoy beating into a force 5, gusting 7. They’d much rather crack the sheets and head for a different marina. They do want the sensation of speed, but they don’t want all the hassle and fighting. I always had a big affection towards that kind of sailing and especially boats that are made for planing. Maybe it’s because of my education: when I studied naval architecture in Southampton 30 of the 54 students in my year were French. It seems to have rubbed off a bit… SH: One of the most crucial factors for performance is weight. AV:We discuss this a lot in the office. The importance of keeping displacement low is always high on our agenda. If you look at the market there are huge differences. Some performance cruisers displace seven tons while a Pogo 36 weighs just 3.8 tons. So we studied the lamination plans thoroughly and found that up to 20 per cent of the glass fibre used today really isn’t needed for rigidity. After that we went through every stage of production and reworked


the weights of all the main components. Take inner liners, for example, they have become a de facto fixture. Today you can hardly propose a yacht without them. Yet they are highly complex pieces of GRP. Not only are they costly, they also limit your options for the interior and – even worse – they are mighty heavy. In a 39-footer they can add nearly 300kg– just for aesthetics. Crazy! SH: And your solution is… AV:We will simply fair out the cabin tops, like Pogo Structures do. You will then be able to choose the amount of detailing and furniture inside. That’s where the semi-custom concept comes into play. You can specify the 39ben with an open layout, for instance, or with more privacy. But in either case the boat will have floorboards; my dad insisted that you cannot have people walk about on the inside of the hull, stumbling over stringers. So that’s a no-go! SH: The build? AV:We will start with a small series we call First of Five. It may not offer all the options of later versions but there will still be choices. The hulls are foam sandwich laminated using vacuum infusion. The hull and deck are built in Poland, as is the 24. Fit-out will be done here by us, though. That way we can ensure thorough documentation of the build process – before we decide if we continue in-house or if we outsource more of the production later on. SH: In the past rating rules have had a big influence on hull shapes, keels and sailplans. With the 39ben you didn’t seem to care much about IRC or ORC compatibility… AV: I’ve seen a lot of frustration among owners when it comes to ratings – so we didn’t pay much attention to it. As a sailor I don’t want to compete in a black box! SH: Last year you ordered your own Bente 24, a souped-up all-carbon version that you planned to race in ORC4… AV: Aah, yes… she is actually for sale! I am so tied up in the 39ben that I won’t have enough time to go racing this season. But the new boat is perfect for a transat – so next year for sure I will be gone for a sabbatical at sea. I hope. Jochen Rieker


q SEAHORSE 53


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