Beneteau's sundowner launch
Beneteau dealer Vicsail recently threw a party in Sydney to welcome the arrival of the first Oceanis 54 into NSW, reports Kevin Green.Floating alongside the grey-hulled flagship Oceanis 58, these range-topping boats represent the French builder’s state-of- the- art approach to the cruising market. Vicsail proprietor Brendan Hunt said the remit for the Oceanis range was to allow full sail up in 18 knots of wind while giving cruising sailors a comfortable ride. Aiding sail handling on this latest generation of Oceanis is the use of in-mast furlers as an option and electric winches all round, so that couples can comfortably handle these larger boats.
The base price for the 54 is $537,000 and for the 58 $811,000.
Launched prior to the arrival of the 58 last year, the Berret Racoupeau designed Oceanis 54 looks a more compact version of its bigger brother. The launch boat was fitted out with a more race-orientated rig conventional fully-battened main and adjustable backstay -- as the new owner, who traded up from a First 47.7, is planning a winter series on Sydney Harbour and perhaps Hamilton Island Race Week.
The interior offers two main options, a four-cabin version which has two symmetrical cabins up front or the three-cabin version with the roomy owner’s suite forward, as was shown to the press and guests on Tuesday night. Both boats can have forward crew quarters fitted out, and for the 58 which is actually a 60-foot mini superyacht, crew would be advisable.
Alternatively, fitting Beneteau’s recently-designed Dock & Go system would allow these big boats to be handled comfortably in marinas. The joystick operated system uses a bow thruster combined with a rotating propeller aft to take the stress out of close-quarter handling, and is especially useful when the wind’s up, as these tall-sided cruisers would create plenty of windage. Boatpoint recently tested this system at sea and in the marina and 10 minutes was all the familiarisation time required to master it.
The Oceanis 58 really does look like a go-anywhere boat and the new owners, a family, plan to cruise to New Caledonia and some other Pacific islands before a return to Sydney.
Powerwise, an interesting development has been the use of 140hp VW engines on the 58 while its smaller brother sported a 110hp Yanmar.
Look out for these boats at the upcoming Sanctuary Cove Boat Show (May 19-22) and of course the Sydney Show (28 July-1 August).
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