More Of The Same, But More IRC Friendly
Andi Robertson sails the new Farr designed Beneteau First 40 which promises much as a regatta winning cruiser-racer. THE FIRST of the new Farr designed First 40’s will already be afloat in Scottish waters when this issue reaches the news-stands. After final preparation at Clyde Marina in the hands of northern Beneteau dealers Sunbird, this new First 40 is expected to enjoy an inaugural family cruise before possibly taking part in a few races at Tennent’s West Highland Yachting Week. For the prominent, successful Clyde owner who has taken delivery of the new boat which is the heralded replacement for the highly successful First 40.7, the First 40 will have a typically dual role - working as a family cruiser as well as winning under IRC at Clyde regattas and beyond. Chris Dodgshon of Sunbird explains: ‘He wants to be able to race, but also cruise the boat on a regular basis. The First 40 fits this role well, taking after its sister the First 40.7. She has great accommodation and an excellent deck layout. Add to that the Farr hull design and she also offers great flexibility.’ ‘Beneteau have taken care to use the most popular features of the predecessor 40.7, thus enhancing the new design by keeping the removable cockpit lockers and basic interior layout.’ ‘Hence the new First 40 has a similar feel to the 40.7, but the difference is seen mainly in the boat’s performance. He wanted a boat with more focus towards the IRC rating. So the new 40 comes with a T bulb keel and high aspect rig with non-overlapping jibs and masthead spinnakers.’ ‘After the first cruise the boat will come back to the Clyde and compete in Largs Regatta and the last of the CCC races. Sunbird are looking forward to getting the First 40 sailing in Scotland and also working with the owner to ensure the boat is as competitive as possible,’ enthused Chris. ADAPTABLE The 40.7 became the industry standard adaptable do-it-all performance family cruiser-racer which could and did win regattas and offshore races worldwide under a variety of handicap systems. Despite the fact it was very much designed to an IMS brief it became an accomplished performer under IRC. It offered good value for money, held good resale values – and still does. And, as they say, success breeds success. As numbers grew worldwide, so the reputation of the 40.7 as a no-nonsense, easily kept boat grew and grew. The honours have been many and widespread in the 11 years since the boat was launched. Remember Sequana, top individual boat at the 1998 Commodore’s Cup; recall the formative successes of Smile and sister ship Fruit Machine at the Kenwood Cup back in 2000; Michael Spies’ First National Real Estate, the 2003 Rolex Sydney Hobart race win under IRC and Thierry Bouchard winning last year’s Middle Sea Race on the First 40.7 Ad Hoc. There are now fleets racing worldwide including Spain, France, the UK, Australia and the USA, and at most major regattas there will be at least a handful of 40.7’s slugging it out. Indeed over 800 40.7’s have been sold and the geographical spread is testament to the genuine success of the design, not simply the selling power of Beneteau. In an ever more condensed and competitive market place Beneteau needed to tread a careful and cautious line with the replacement. They know, for example, that they have a market worldwide of 40.7 owners who simply want a newer, more modern and slightly quicker boat of the same size and genre. The Farr designed 34.7 has never proven the success it should have been, and lessons were learned. For that matter the First 44.7 met some resistance to the interior. The First 45 has sold well, 80 in the first year, and sailed well, while the First 50 perhaps represents too much of a compromise to cut it as a racer-cruiser, needing too much spent on it and sailed well to be competitive against custom and semi custom boats in an IRC arena which is much more of an arms race at that size, but it has sold 80 boats over two years. So, with these facts as a starting point it is little surprise that Beneteau commissioned Farr to a tight brief in terms of what they were looking for. Same again, but more IRC friendly. Same kind of cockpit layout, same interior plan but modern - and IRC friendly. In every respect it is a tough act to follow. The new First 40.7 shows the same hallmark styling references from the First 45: the recessed semi-hooded windows, the low deck line and sleeker freeboard. In essence it looks everything that the 40.7, the original ‘Beach Balls’, are not. Personally I think the ‘Farr’ transom ages the boat unnecessarily, but that is a purely subjective call. In every respect the 40 is a good looking boat which does, as we said with the 45, have as broad an appeal as possible in terms of the appearance. Certainly Beneteau could have gone for something much more contemporary, but this boat is about creating something which will stand the test of time. And 40ft is a critical size. There are many owners of 40 footers who don’t want to go bigger, and within that group are 40.7 owners. Ironically, of course, they are the ones who are hit by the vagaries of the secondhand market at the moment. Compared with ten years ago the market is probably more competitive too. Up against the new First 40, the Elan 410 is a good boat, as is the X41 at a more competitive prices than the more cruiser-racer X’s. The Archambault RC40 is more racer orientated, then there are the J122, the Grand Soleil 40 and the Dufour 40. COMPARISONS WITH THE 40.7? The new First 40 is stiffer, 25% more righting with a taller, high aspect rig, and non-overlapping headsails. The hull is about a foot longer and is stiffer due to the newer build technologies. It is quicker on all points of sail. Typically the 40.7 rates around 1.060 to 1.073, while the new First 40 is reckoned to come in around 1.088. Just as with the 45 there is a carbon rig option for the more serious racers (for an extra €51,000 ex VAT), and the standard keel is T shaped. For this type of racer-cruiser the keel configuration is a slightly difficult call. The T-shape keel is taxed within the IRC hull factor, believed to be around .005 to .006 but the performance benefits are worth it. And, according to Beneteau, customers won’t accept a draft of 2.5 or 2.6m on a boat like this as a deep fin would require, so the T-keel gives a draft of 2.45m, less wetted surface and significant performance advantages. But, there is a down side. The hull shape is generally pretty moderate, it appears beamier, lower and sleeker than the 40.7. The stern sections are quite powerful, but with a generous, but shallow overhang to shorten the static waterline and reduce wetted surface in light to moderate conditions. However, as the boat heels a little and picks up speed it maximises the effective waterline length. The shorter static waterline brings the wheel forward, typical of the modern IRC design. There is a payback in plenty of space behind the helm, nice for a nav tactician’s play area if you like that kind of thing, but also serves as a nice flat sunbathing platform for the idyllic days away from the race course. The cockpit is generous and safe, a place to work efficiently. The wheel pedestal is cast steel A-shape to reduce weight and keep the CG low. Under the helm’s feet is a generous cockpit sole locker ideally suited to the liferaft, when required. Access to the steering quadrant and for the emergency tiller could not be better, protected by a lift-up, locking flap. The transom cross beam is removable, as are the twin cockpit lockers. In my limited experience on 40.7’s I can only remember sailing with them in place, and without them there is less of a step out on to the rail for the trimmers and so on, but I’d happily be corrected on that one. The three spreader rig is easily set up and controlled with a Navtec hydraulic PBO backstay, dyform rigging on the aluminium rig and solid rods on the carbon mast. The standard jib is 106%, but there are additional full length cars for a bigger genoa – the cruiser-racer option suggests a 135%, but the American PHRF system apparently accepts to 155% with very little penalty. The headsail is sheeted through inhaulers, which our jib did not seem to require under our circumstances. In flat water and moderate conditions with a good helm then I suspect there would be an advantage, but there are more situations where they would hamper the average club helm. The mainsheet is a standard German A-style and there is a good, secure space for the mainsheet trimmer alongside the helm. The kick bar foot rests are extra, but definitely needed for active racers. A small gripe: on the starboard side the engine throttle control on our boat, boat 1, is sited directly in the small gap between the wheel and the side of the cockpit, meaning you have to step over it to enjoy the best helming position with the wheel in between your legs. Beneteau again insisted we test this new boat at their world press test in Marseille, rather than take the chance to sail one of the three race prep’d boats currently in La Trinité. In truth, this time, it was better than last year’s Monaco launch with the First 45, but I still maintain that readers of this magazine want an informed view of the actual performance in something close to race conditions, rather than a whirl round with random media of widely differing levels of ability and interest. Presenting Boat 1, which does not have the speedo calibrated, is a passport to all kinds of misinformation and suppositions. In fact Marseille worked out well for weather conditions and we had the opportunity to sail the new First 40 in different conditions across a morning and an afternoon which gave a pretty good overall picture of the boat’s potential. In light conditions, 5-8 knots – the boat seemed pleasingly quick all round. There was no obvious stickiness. It is light on the helm and in the chop there were certain similarities to the 34.5. It certainly likes to speed build and get movement across the foils in the choppy Med conditions. We were finding our feet. Even Eric Ignouf, Beneteau’s manager for the First projects, had not sailed the boat that much. It certainly seemed to like some depth in the jib to create a wider groove to get into in the lighter and sloppy seas. But once the boat was powered-up upwind, it was relatively easy to keep it tracking well, and quickly. It did not seem overly stiff and responded nicely, and predictably to the puffs. The high aspect rudder and light steering does take some getting used to, especially upwind. Good cooperation and communication with the trimmers to keep the boat well powered up through the lulls is rewarded and it was noticeable across the whole wind ranges how having the finesse of Ignouf on the mainsheet made all the difference. That said, it was also perfectly acceptable to just let the boat do its own thing upwind and sail to an average course, as you might in fast cruising mode. It is still in every sense a utility cruiser-racer which will cruise happily. Downwind and reaching in the lighter stuff the same principles applied. Speed seemed to be everything, and again the one thing it did not seem to like was getting depowered and ‘dotty’ – where it takes time to get the foils powered up again. Certainly you’d guard against getting squeezed by the lee, say at turning gates and things like that, but overall these are all the traits of a boat which is necessarily aimed further up the performance curve than its predecessor. In 15-22 knots of breeze it was an absolute pleasure to sail. Even with just four of us it could be kept nicely balanced upwind in a moderate choppy swell, just by easing a couple of cms on the mainsheet from time to time. Upwind we could make a good 6.7 to over 6.9 knots on the GPS without too much effort and no weight on the rail, sailing moderately flat, or the F40 was happy to be squeezed hard into ‘high’ mode, the light helm and rudder area allowing a precise and positive feel to be kept. It seemed keen enough to hold its way through the tacks and accelerated evenly as you came out on the other side. In every respect, in the biggest gusts we always felt there was rudder traction to spare, even if at times it perhaps took a little more helm application to get the initial response. Downwind under kite with 20-22 knots of breeze, the new First 40 was something of an eye-opener. It had an almost unexpected urgency. It was a delight to place in the waves and play around, almost like a grown up sportboat, but not quite as lively. It was responsive with smooth acceleration, tidy water release and remaining always light and enjoyable on the helm. Only time will tell how much more kite area the boat will take, but there was never any issue with control, even pushing onto a tighter reach. First time out on the race course, the weekend prior to our test, Gery Trentesaux’s Courrier Zen had shown a clean pair of heels to the other 40 footers in light – 5-10 knots conditions – but on our evidence it’s a boat which will be a pleasure and rewarding to sail in more robust conditions. FAMILIAR FEEL Down below the interior is by Nauta. The layout is very much the same as the 40.7 with the heads forward and to starboard which gives access from the forecabin too. The light oak finish wood and ample natural light makes for an airy, spacious feel. The nav station has lots of flat surface area and easy access for mounting instruments. The aft cabins are good too, big and spacious with 1.85m of headroom and decent sized berths with hanging lockers. The main saloon is spacious and would be pleasant for evening meals cruising, and this would be a comfortable option for staying on board during regattas. Overall it is not great for sails, working space, hand holds and moving around downstairs when the boat is well heeled, I felt a little more vulnerable, but maybe that’s an age thing! In conclusion, Beneteau seem to have produced a worthy successor in the new First 40. The market is much more competitive than when the 40.7 hit the spot at the right time, but the new boat ticks all the right boxes for both racing and cruising.