Family cruiserr

There are actually two versions of the Malo 41's hull. You can get this boat with a reverse transom, swim step and an LOA of 41 feet, 11 inches or with a traditional transom and an LOA of 43 feet, 2 inches. While it sure is nice to have additional deck space aft I think the advantages of the boarding platform are preferable. Aesthetically my eye prefers the traditional transom version, but this sheerline is so bland it really does not make much difference. Let's face it. This is not a very sexy boat. There is little sparkle to this design on paper.

Still, here's a case where the yard has added enough sparkle in the form of teak decks and a teak overlay to the cabinhouse top that the finished boat is quite striking. I even like the practical fixed windshield that dead-ends on the mainsheet arch. I recognize that aesthetics are primarily a personal thing, but I find it hard to not recognize some universal parameters for beauty. The workmanship shown in the accompanying photos looks good by any standards.

The hull is a very conventional shape with moderate overhangs in the ends and an arclike midsection. The bow is on the full side, which should give good volume forward but will slow the boat down when beating into a chop. The bottom never quite goes flat at centerline. The L/B is 3.27, which makes the Malo borderline beamy. Displacement is a moderate 23,100 pounds for a D/L of 243. This is right in the middle of "medium" displacement. Draft is a moderate and sensible 6 feet, 5 inches.

I have drawings for four different layouts for this design, and I get the impression that the Malo yard will do semicustom interiors on order. You can have port and starboard aft quarter berths, or you can have a nice big lazarette and one quarter berth. Within these berths you can have over-and-under stacked quarter berths or a single double. The saloon is available in a variety of configurations including settees with a nav station; chairs and dinette with no nav station; and chair with nav station and dinette. The forward head is probably a one-piece molded unit so it stays the same as does the V-berth. You know how I feel about chairs so I guess it shouldn't surprise you that I like the one shower, dinette with bench settee and nav station. Whichever you choose, the layouts are all beautifully executed in mahogany veneer and solid mahogany trim.

The sailplan shows a very conventional masthead sloop rig with swept spreaders and fore and aft lower shrouds. The mast is well forward in the boat, and I would estimate that this boat will balance very nicely. The mainsheet arch is practical and gets the traveler out of the cockpit. The only problem with this traveler location is that it makes the traveler itself quite short, and I can't see from the photos how you would adjust it from the cockpit. The sheet itself dead-ends on the boom then goes through three blocks to lead down the side of the arch where it turns 90 degrees to go to a winch. The big standard equipment rigid vang shown should take care of the short traveler length. Malo offers the option of a main that stows inside the mast. I know this is very convenient, but it makes getting a good shape out of your mainsail so hard. If you need a furling main you would be better off with in-the-boom furling. Many owners of in-mast furling systems love them. It just boils down to one of those sailing "style" things.

Today we are bombarded with increasing ratios and exaggerated hull proportions. A lot of these are attractive on paper, but it's important to remember the virtues of the modestly proportioned family yacht. The Malo 41 is just that type of boat, i.e., predictable and reliable in performance. There is enough displacement in this design to give the engineer a free hand for strength making it perhaps the perfect cruising boat for you to face the challenges of life on the water. As Dr. Gizmo says, "To recognize the beauty of the sea you must actively engage the sea and wrestle with it." You should be safe doing your wrestling aboard the Malo 41.