July 2008

One-design

Here is an unusual one-design from Studio Lostuzzi Design and built in Italy by the Vetroresina 2000 shipyard. The idea was born out of the all-carbon RC44 project put together by Russell Coutts and Thomas Gozdecky. The Twelve is an attempt at a similar boat built to a more affordable price.

The first thing that jumps out at you when you look at this design is that the deck plan is a lot like a big dinghy with minimal side decks. In short, what normally would be the cockpit in this case goes the entire length of the boat. The "cockpit sole" appears to be about 20 inches below the side deck. The side deck looks to be about eight inches wide aft and broadens out to about 12 inches amidships, then tapers down to a constant six inches forward of the mast. The only thing breaking this long cockpit area is the mast partners. You will have to climb over or crawl under this structure if you want to go forward. Most of the sail controls live on this mast partner structure. The jib sheets to short tracks immediately aft of the partners "thwart." There is one hatch to access the area below the cockpit sole and a removable panel to allow the fin keel to be raised. Twin wheels are located well forward in the cockpit with the mainsheet traveler in the end-boom position. Long foot bensons provide security when the crew is sitting to weather. With the entire deck "sunken" there is no need at all for lifelines or bow and stern pulpits. You are always in this boat rather than on the boat.

This is a very attractive hull form. Volume is pushed forward into the bow knuckle and fore and aft rocker is minimal. The topsides are slablike in keeping with the beam of 8 feet, 2 inches. The turn of the bilge is on the soft side amidships but hardens up aft to a tight turn at the transom. The deadrise is faired out of this hull immediately aft of the forefoot. There is a hint of concavity to the topsides in the bow sections. The D/L is 75.09. No DWL was given but I estimate it to be around 33.982 feet. Draft is 8 feet, 2 inches and the keel can be raised for trailering. There is 3,960 pounds of lead in the keel bulb. The L/B is 4.79, indicating a very narrow boat.

The Twelve is high powered with an SA/D of 40.01. I did not have I, J, E and P for the rig so I just used the sail areas listed in the promotional material. I think when the main has a fat head and lots of roach, using P and E for mainsail area is no longer relevant. The jib is slightly more than 100-percent LP, so our SA/D might be on the generous side but it's not far off. The sailplan shows no diagonal shrouds but I see them in the pics so don't worry. With the headstay pulled aft off the stem by 40 inches there is no need for a sprit. This simplifies things greatly. There is no pole to stow and the big foredeck well must make dowsing the chute quite easy.
I've sailed a lot of boats but I have never sailed one like this. The deck is like any number of racing dinghies but it's almost 40 feet long. I suspect that it may be one of those features that either works extremely well or has some serious idiosyncrasies. To my eye it looks like it will work great. So, if you are looking for a 40-foot one-design with absolutely no accommodations at all, not even a head, then this could be the boat for you.