Performance cruiserr

The interesting thing about this no man's land of handicap rules we seem to be in now is that we are seeing a return of dual-purpose boats much like the boats of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Last month I received four dual-purpose boats and this month there are at least two, depending upon your view of the Sabre, maybe three.

This new Elan 31 designed by Rob Humphreys is another obvious attempt to do one boat that appeals to both racers and cruisers. I have always been a fan of Humphreys' work. The line of Elan models all have one thing in common-the Humphreys' trademark perky sheerline. I have the benefit of some photos of this boat and I can tell you confidently that this is a good looking boat. It looks a little bit "lumpy" in the drawings but as built it has a sweet appearance.

The hull profile shows the same skeg that we saw in the Sabre but this time it's proportionately much shorter and does not fair into the canoe body profile as it does on the Sabre. The rudder is on a vertical stock and the keel shows a large bulb. Overhangs are minimal and there appears to be a slight convexity to the bow profile. With a L/B of 2.94 this design breaks the 3 barrier and qualifies as a beamy boat. This fullness is carried out into both ends. The D/L is 190. Your draft choices are 6 feet and 4 feet, 11 inches. The keels are cast iron. There are no surprises in this hull shape that I can see other than an apparent fullness forward as indicated by the trace of the V-berth in plan view. Clearly Mr. Humphreys can draw a faster boat with an LOA of 30 feet, 10 inches, but in this case he had a variety of interior accommodation pressures to deal with and I think that is behind this beamy hull form.

It's pretty amazing when you look at this interior plan and consider what was considered adequate in a 30-footer 25 years ago. But if you added both bow and stern overhangs similar to what you would have seen in 1969 you would be looking at a 35-footer at least. The Elan is laid out with a huge double quarterberth that is enclosed to port. There is a head to starboard with a wet locker. The nav area looks big enough and the galley does not. However, it's only a 30-foot, 10-inch boat. The V-berths convert to a double berth with a filler piece. This basic layout has become widely used. If I'm reading the brochure and converting from metric accurately, there is only 6 feet of headroom in the saloon and galley. I can put up with less than standing headroom anywhere in a boat with the exception of the galley. This is a tough call on a 30-footer where the designer wants to keep the profile as low as possible.

The deck plan shows a large cockpit with the mainsheet traveler bisecting the cockpit well. A tiller is drawn and the specs do not list a wheel as an option. I like tiller steering and I have one of those handy tiller-activated autopilots for my own tiller-steered boat. It works very well and can be stowed away easily when not needed.

This cockpit is open to the swim step aft. Note that the cockpit coamings are cut away aft where the helmsman will sit. This seat area is angled to make it level when the boat is heeled about 15 degrees, making for a very comfy helming position. Teak pads on the deck here will have a good grip on the seat of your pants. Genoa tracks are well inboard and the decks are clear. There is an anchor well forward with a flush hatch.

The rig is the standard of the day-the swept-spreader, fractional type. The mast is deck stepped. The SA/D is 18.31. The Elan 31 is built in by Elan Marine in Slovenia.