A Grand Surprise…
Racing editor Andi Robertson runs the rule over the latest OD all rounder to reach the UK. Rhu Marina was the venue… SO WE have bought the big boats 15 years ago and lost a pile in resale value, we’ve gone for big one designs and had close racing, but the boats were slow or expensive, we’ve done 1720 Sportsboats and had fun, but they didn’t go that quickly, so interest waned and long hours afloat on a cold day are not much fun, especially in a fleet of five or six boats. Moving on, what next? A Laser SB3 is one option. Golf, skiing, family cruising are others, but what about a small, grown up sportsboat which is fun and practical, which is relatively inexpensive, has a bit of French flair about it, and you’ll enjoy sailing just about anywhere? With a lifetime in the business Nick Stratton has seen almost all there is to see. He’s done IOR racing, he’s done Dragons, IOD’s, Sigma’s big and small, Sigma sportsboats, he’s done budget racers and prestige racer cruisers and had more or less moved out of boat sales. But the French built Archambault range of yachts sees a gleam back in the eye of Rhu Marina based Nick, especially inspired by the little 9.5m long Grand Surprise and the A35. He’s had the Grand Surprise since the summer and it has raced successfully at Fairlie YC’s Winter Series prior to the boat being sold to a well known Rhu owner. The Grand Surprise is a real head turner which has created a good deal of interest that, having just sailed the boat for the first time, you’d have to expect this to translate into sales. For a modest French yard based in Chaterellaut which is miles from the sea, lying almost exactly half way between La Rochelle and Paris, Archambault export nearly 60% of their production. The Grand Surprise has done well in Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Belgium, the USA and Australia, racing in mixed handicap fleets, but with one design fleets all over Europe, especially in France. The company has been building boats since 1954 and employs 36 people. An aspiring Beneteau-Jeanneau it is not, but they have been successful with the development and marketing of their boats. In France their A35 is reported to have outsold the new First 34.7, proving something of a thorn in the big boy’s side. As a design it is selling particularly well on the back of its success as the top boat at this year’s Rolex Commodore’s Cup. The Grand Surprise is also a good looking boat which fills that gap between the out and out sportsboat and the small racer cruiser. In many respects it is like a slightly bigger and much updated First Class 8, in terms of the simplicity of purpose, yet you can sleep and cook in it. It is a quick boat with an excellent all round performance. Designed by Joubert Nivelt, the ‘Surprise’ is pretty slender on the waterline with a deep T shaped keel and bulb drawing 2.05m with 1,050kgs of ballast for an all up displacement of 2,650 kilos. The balanced rudder is high aspect. The rig is 7/8ths with twin swept back spreaders and non-overlapping headsail and a single multi purchase cascade backstay. Standard set up is with a carbon bowsprit which is launched through a bow aperture, setting a standard 138sq.m asymmetric spinnaker. First impressions of the Grand Surprise is of an ergonomically appealing cockpit which is big and easily worked for the size of boat it is. The mainsheet track runs full width along the floor of the cockpit, remaining unobtrusive. The helm and mainsheet hands have relatively flat side decks to sit on, with good foot bracing. The mainsheet crew has alloy kick bars on the cockpit sole, while the helm has the edge of a raised surround to the main cockpit locker hatch. The tiller is set quite forward in the cockpit, affording good communication with the mainsheet hand, or of course the opportunity for the helm to operate the mainsheet as well as maximise weight on the rail. Forward of this there are good moulded cockpit seats either side. We particularly liked having the compasses fitted into the after edge of the spray coamings. Overall we felt the ergonomics and the workability of the cockpit was excellent. For once, a November test sail out on the Clyde’s East Patch had weather to order. A puffy south westerly to 18 knots and sunshine was just ideal to put the Grand Surprise through its paces with five on board, and it proved enjoyable and responsive. Certainly one of those boats you would happily sail for hours. While it is in no way a demanding boat to sail it does reward good work on the helm and crew hiking. Although this is not essential it does have a pleasing, almost big boat feel. It is not especially stiff, but it doesn’t have to be, for it feathers beautifully upwind, is impeccably balanced and as a consequence it is fingertip light on the helm. It is a long, long time since we have sailed a boat of this size which was such a pleasure to sail upwind. While it tracked truly, so you could just urge it a little closer to the breeze as the gusts hit and yet keep the foils fully powered. The rudder has plenty of feel but no weather helm, not even when we deliberately overpowered the boat you could mostly steer out of it. It has a nice motion in the chop. With a deep, rounded fairly soft forefoot there is no obvious slamming in the mild sea-way we encountered. It is undoubtedly quick upwind, but its strength seems to be the ability to use different modes thanks to the deep, powerful keel, moderate foil area, and the powerful rig. You would be happy to take on most opposition off a start line. We sailed with both the big running kite and the smaller reaching kite. In windward-leeward racing, the big running kite would be the weapon of choice, but we used the reacher most to get a better feel for the higher angles and push the envelope a little more in the puffy breeze. And it proved a delight. In about 15 knots apparent the bow would pop and the Grand Surprise will plane happily. The tendency is for the bow to sink and load before it pops rather than simply lift and accelerate, but understanding this does then mean that you work to that and push the hotter, high angles then bear away slightly more sharply into it, kicking the bow onto the bow wave. All the time we were impressed with how easily the boat was controlled. The main was never over heavy using the fine tune and the traveller was perfectly adequate upwind. The kite, although massive, was readily controlled. It is a well thought out and executed regatta boat which is clearly developed by performance sailors. And below decks it is relatively compact with not too much headroom but plenty of natural light for an easy kept and cleaned interior. There is a big keyhole semi-bulkead leading to a big open forepeak. There are two sets of head to toe berths either side, running aft under the cockpit which, in theory allows six to sleep on board. There is a small two burner grill to starboard, plus a 50 litre fresh water tank, a stainless sink and a storage cool box. There is no heads, but a chemical toilet is set between the forward berth and there is a curtain enclosure. It is attractively finished, but basic inside. However it’s certainly nothing you would balk at spending the odd weekend, or a few days at a time in the summer on the Clyde with the kids, or up the Sound of Mull to Tobermory. In short we were left with a definite dose of amour for the Grand Surprise.