Sail Magazine

by Bill Springer

Best Boats Nominees 2007

by Bill Springer, Posted August 10, 2011

If last year was the year of smaller boats, this is the year of bigger boats - almost 50 percent of the fleet launched this year is above 40 feet. But this year's fleet has more than just big boats; it includes a 16-foot sailing proa, a healthy list of cruising monohulls in the 30-foot range, and what has been a rarity in the past, sub-40-foot cruising catamarans. As with years past, performance

Best Boats Nominees 2005

by Bill Springer, Posted August 8, 2011

Are you looking for a daysailer with luscious overhangs, meticulous craftsmanship, and responsive performance? How about a 15-foot dingy that depends on a retractable bulb keel rather than herculean hiking for stability? a stylish performance cruiser? Or a cruising catamaran with a helm station built into the cockpit roof?That's just a taste of the 43 boats you'll find at the boat shows

Best Boats Nominees 2009

by Bill Springer, Posted August 4, 2011

With foreclosures, credit woes, and skyrocketing oil prices painting a gloomy economic picture recently, I’ve been pleasantly surprised to see so many new boats being introduced this year. And it makes perfect sense that boatbuilders should compete that much harder for our business. As they say on TV, “when [builders] compete, you win”—in this case you get better, more innovative, more

Best Boats Nominees 2008

by Bill Springer, Posted August 3, 2011

During years of keeping my finger on the pulse of the new-boat market, I’ve seen boats get bigger and more complicated. I’ve seen construction materials and techniques evolve to produce lighter and stronger hulls. And I’ve seen the word “daysailer” used for everything from a 15-foot trailersailer to a sumptuous cruising boat measuring well over 40 feet. As this year’s fleet of new boats shows,

Hunter 50 Center Cockpit

by Bill Springer, Posted March 10, 2009

I needed little excuse to escape the New England cold to test-sail the new Hunter 50 Center Cockpit in balmy Palmetto, Florida, last December. I’d inspected hull #1 at the Annapolis Boat Show last fall so I knew the interior was spacious, but how would this newest and biggest Hunter perform under sail? The Gulf of Mexico didn’t serve up much wind, but Hunter’s chief tester,

Andrews 28

by Bill Springer, Posted March 10, 2009

The Andrews 28 sportboat is Canadian builder Sylvana Yacht’s answer to the question “Can you build a boat that’s fast, stiff, easy to sail, and easy to trailer with enough interior space to be a comfortable cruiser as well?” It’s a question that builders have been trying to answer for years, and at first glance, the Andrews 28 may be on to something. I took a test sail off

Beneteau 31

by Bill Springer, Posted November 3, 2008

I’m always impressed when a boat design shows you can teach an old dog new tricks. Thirty-one-foot coastal-cruising designs have been around since builders started using fiberglass to build hulls, so it’s easy to think that it’s all been done before. But the new Beneteau 31 has innovative solutions and incremental changes that have a positive effect on comfort, functionality, aesthetics, and

Alerion Express 33

by Bill Springer, Posted August 8, 2008

Daysailers are back. They’re not the low-cost, first-step, “let’s learn to sail” boats of the 1970s, but instead are elegant, classic-looking upscale little yachts for experienced skippers who have steadily moved up to cruisers over the years and now seek something simpler. The Alerion Express 33 fills a gap in that company’s line of 20- to 38-foot daysailers. On Deck•

Mah 36

by Bill Springer, Posted July 18, 2008

Fountaine Pajot’s new Mah 36 replaces the popular Athena 38 as the company’s entry-level boat. Since many cat builders have shied away from smaller cruising models, I was eager to see how the Mah could provide interior headroom and volume without looking top-heavy or sacrificing bridgedeck clearance. I was also interested in learning how or if the shorter waterline would

Pacific Seacraft 40

by Bill Springer, Posted June 13, 2008

The sturdy, traditionally styled offshore cruisers of Pacific Seacraft are part of the history of the fiberglass-boat industry. The company fell on hard times, however, and was sold last year. This is far from the first time a venerated brand has gone out of business, but Pacific Seacraft is being reborn, and in an unlikely place. Unlikely until you think about it.As the