Beneteau First 27.7

With the market pushing towards ever-bigger production boats, it's refreshing to see a new yacht like Beneteau's First 27.7 enter the field. It's a clever little boat with the potential to appeal to a broad range of buyers, from relative newcomers to veteran racing enthusiasts.

Small imported sailboats have historically been a hard sell in Australia. Potential buyers have been been able to find cheaper new boats here, or pick up apparent bargains on the secondhand market, where they can find bigger boats for similar prices.

These days, though, you'd be hard pressed to find a local production sailboat under 30ft that's still being built - the secondhand stock of boats in this size range is ageing and buying a bigger boat for 'a steal' can ultimately result in bigger problems.

Besides, the market moves on as builders find new ways to produce faster, lighter boats and make greater use of interior space. Developments include asymmetrical spinnakers with bowsprit poles, which are easy to handle and fast and fun to use.

Major French builder Beneteau has evidently been keeping an eye on recent releases from companies like J-Boats, as well as keeping its own hand in with the production of the new Figaro one-design racing boat. Now it has released the 27.7, designed by Groupe Finot in association with the French builder's own design team.

The new boat cleverly combines a host of features. For starters, it has a retractable keel and lifting rudder, so that it can be cruised in shallow waters and also kept out of the water and trailed behind a powerful tow vehicle (to the Whitsundays in winter, for example).

Next, it has a modern rig with the potential to run masthead or hounds asymmetrical gennakers from a retractable bowsprit.

These can be far easier to manage than conventional symmetrical spinnakers, avoiding the bowman's 'dance of death' on the foredeck during gybes, and reducing the need for lots of crew.

This is but one element of an overall thrust towards exciting performance. Another is the effort to keep hull weight low within the constraints of a production line environment (new injection moulding techniques for the deck have enabled Beneteau to avoid the necessity for an interior deck liner, thereby keeping weight down, for example).

Associated with this is the decision not to include cruiser/racer staples like pressurised hot/cold water, refrigeration and bathroom vanity units. At the same time, the boat is far from a stripped-out racer - it has a functional interior that can sleep four or even six, plus a basic galley and toilet facilities for overnighting or longer term cruising for those prepared to do without all the comforts of home.

In this, the boat's creators have recognised the realities of recreational boat usage. Many owners would like to spend more time on their boats but rarely manage to do so. Daysailing is the usual pattern, so why bother with all the liveaboard extras when the reality is that they're mostly superfluous?

The emphasis here is on fast sailing, just for fun or around the race track. We've seen removable cockpit lockers on the Beneteau First 41.7; now we have removable interior cabinets on the First 27.7 to reduce unnecessary weight when racing.

Beneteau and its Australian representative Vicsail are also seeking to reduce unnecessary weight in the price, with the 27.7 retailing for $135,000 with basic sails and instrumentation.

ON DECK
With its broad stern and transom-mounted rudder, the First 27.7 looks something like a Mini-Transat racer from behind, but in profile the big coachhouse indicates that the designers had comfort in mind, too. The aft hull sections are powerful with a hard turn to the bilge, leading forward to a deep, plumb bow making maximum use of overall length.

The lift keel carries the ballast deep in a lead bulb and the rudder blade can be raised or lowered within the transom-mounted rudder box, skiff-style. Another unusual aspect of the transom is the inclusion of outboard mounting plates for the backstay, intended to prevent the backstay from catching on a fully-battened, large-roached mainsail.

The tapered aluminium mast is set up with two sets of spreaders and a fractional headsail, which can be set up with roller reefing if preferred.

DOWN BELOW
The immediate impression upon stepping below is open space, with a surprising amount of cherrywood veneer cabinetry amid clean white surfaces. Where possible, extra weight is avoided; there are no floorboards, for example. I slipped and slid a bit at first on the cabin sole.

The view forward takes in the double berth in the bow, partly enclosed by the main bulkhead (privacy could be gained with the inclusion of a curtain). There is another double berth aft, which does offer privacy thanks to the inclusion of a cabin door, and is accompanied by a hanging locker.

Occupying the central area of the saloon is the retractable keel case, and optional timber table, flanked by settees of 1.95m and 1.75m length. The keel-stepped mast slots through the centre of the table, while the keel mechanism includes a lifting wire and aft post.

When the keel is fully lifted, the bulb sits up flush under the hull and the top of the keel is just below the deckhead. Beneteau has added locking sytems to lock the keel up and down, and a guiding system to prevent it from getting stuck out of alignment in the case.

The galley to port features a single burner gas stove, single stainless steel sink and a freshwater supply via a foot pump. There is an insulated icebox but no refrigeration.

Opposite is the nav station - a relatively generous area that offers a swing-out stool as an option. Stored at the base is the hydraulic unit that operates the keel lift. This requires roughly 50 pumps to fully raise the keel; an electric powered option is available.

Behind the nav station is the bathroom, which contains a Jabsco manual toilet and a wet hanging locker. Battery switches and manual bilge pump are aso in here. Handwashing facilities are at the galley sink.

The engine is a 10hp Yanmar diesel saildrive, housed under the companionway with access from the sides and front.

PERFORMANCE
The first day set aside for this test (and photography) proved perfect in ever regard except for the wind. We started out in about 5–8kt which soon fizzled out to nothing.

So I tried again several days later, this time as a member of Neville Wittey's crew aboard the 27.7 in one of the Cruising Yacht Club of Australia's winter series races. Disappointingly the breeze was again quite light, in the 5–12kt range. The boat performed well upwind and down, particularly under a huge new masthead gennaker from the Sydney Ullman Sails loft, which hauled us along in step with much bigger boats.

This really is a boat that deserves tiller steering rather than a wheel, and it's well set up for the driver with a lot of space and easy access to sail controls including the mainsheet, traveller (which runs across the transom) and the powerfully-purchased backstay.

I was reminded of my limited J24 experience, which generally seemed to consist of the driver sitting back having all the fun, while the rest of the crew perched forward on the windward rail.

Having said that, the deck hardware is user-friendly, and handling the headsail and gennaker presented no headaches.

I'm just sorry that we were denied the thrilling fresh wind spinnaker rides promised by the 27.7's appearance. I'm sure this is a fun boat to sail in a breeze, and I'm determined to find out first-hand when the opportunity finally arrives.

Meanwhile, it's worth noting that the First 27.7 was voted European Yacht of the Year at the last Dusseldorf Boat Show.

I haven't the judges' brief, but I wouldn't be surprised to see innovation and performance ranked high among the criteria.