Beneteau First 36
Beneteau’s latest midsize racer-cruiser gets the mix right
Under sail
We easily powered out of Southport Marina with the 29-horsepower Yanmar and saildrive. The boat’s deep twin rudders offered excellent control. The Yanmar pushed the slippery hull to 7 knots without a struggle. With about 9 knots of breeze from the southeast, we quickly hoisted the main and unfurled the jib outside the harbor. The boat was outfitted with a delivery main and jib from North, and a beautiful asymmetrical.
We set off to windward and the boat settled into an easy 6.5 knots, accelerating in the puffs. The boat tracked beautifully and handled with fingertip control. We found a little more wind offshore and heeled the boat over on its chine, the twin rudders provided a lot of bite even with some heel. The boat was rock solid in the water, the 3,730-pound bulb and 7.5 feet of draft doing their job. The helm position was perfect, with a seat outboard and a molded chock on the sole to keep you in place when standing. The sail controls worked flawlessly, even in cruising form. I was especially impressed with the 3D floating point jib lead adjustment. The mast shape is controlled by a tackle-adjusted backstay, with hydraulics as an option.
After getting a few miles offshore, it was time to pop the asymmetrical and fly back to the harbor. The kite allowed the boat to shine in the light conditions, we easily reached 9 knots with not much more wind. The bowsprit made handling the spinnaker easy.
As we were leaving, Val, contemplating buying a house (or maybe making a wiser investment in a boat), mentioned the First 36 would be a perfect boat for her and her husband. I think Beneteau hit its goals with the target demographic.
LOA 39’4”; LWL 33’8”; Beam 12’6”; Draft std. 7’5”,shallow 6’5”; Light displacement 10,580 lb.; Ballast 3,730 lb.; Sail area 861 sq. ft.; Auxiliary 29-hp; Fuel 18.5 gal.; Water 53 gal.
Sailaway price: $470,000
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