The Dehler 42 model was designed by Judel/Vrolijk with the interior design done in house by Dehler. This design is typical of what we see coming out of the European production yards today. I’m not sure I have ever seen a time when there was less variation in the style of Mom and Pop production boats. I’m not saying that is a bad thing but I do like some variation from time to time.

First off, the name Bulletproof 43 was always intended as a joke.  The client said, “Call it bulletproof” one day in jest and it stuck. Secondly, there is nothing standard or normal about this project. I met with the client. We agreed that the boat would be an offshore-capable cutter with full keel, outboard rudder and generous displacement, similar to the client’s last boat.

Sometimes I get in arguments when I mention this, but I see a distinct Euro style and a distinct American style in yachts. Of course there is plenty of cross pollination between the two styles, but I have no problem pointing out a Euro-styled boat or an American classic-styled boat. I’d put the Alerion boats, including this new Sport 30, into the classic American-style genre. US Watercraft, in partnership with Langan Design Partners, designed the Sport 30.

The Winner 8.0 is a Dutch design and build. The design is from the Van de Stadt office, and it has been around since I was a kid and maybe even before that. Over the years, it has produced hundreds of outstanding designs. The builder is Winner Yachts. From what I can see, the 8.0 is designed to be a fast cruising boat that also comes in a performance model for those interested in racing. It’s a handsome package with clean styling and no affectations.

Holy cow! This is the most extensive conceptual design package I have ever seen. One thing I can always count on in these reviews is that the Farr office will send me top-notch design drawings and not

Hanse thinks big. The German company, one of the world’s premier production builders, currently produces five models larger than 40 feet, and its new flagship, the 675, is nearly 70 feet. A recent test of the 575 found a collage of modern design, fresh thinking and exhilarating performance. 

 The J/24’s story reads like the script of a Disney movie. It’s 1975 and amateur boat designer Rod Johnstone is tinkering in the garage at the family’s Stonington, Connecticut, home. 

 I suppose you could go so far as to call this 20-footer a motorsailer given that you could sit at the mini dinette and have enough visibility to see forward and enjoy the scenery while the autopilot does the driving. 

 This is a heavy boat, weighing 72,600 pounds, but with the long DWL and minimal overhangs, the D/L is only 140. The L/B is 3.55 making it on the narrow side of medium beam. Two keels are available, one drawing 9 feet 10 inches in a T-bulb configuration and the other drawing 8 feet 6 inches.

At first look I was inclined to think, “Oh God, please don’t make this fast.” But I knew that scow bows have a long and successful history so the chances were strong that this bow would work. It works on the many scow one-design classes and even the old, sedate, CCA rule had Hoot Mon, a scowlike yawl with a successful race record. 

Cruising catamarans were well established before Gunboat. Twin-hulled boats had become mainstream and very popular with charterers. As time went on, the two hulls, connected by a main cabin, expanded to the point that almost the entire rectangle was filled with accommodations. Cruising cats got heavier and heavier. Efficient daggerboards gave way to shoal, very low-aspect, stubby keels. With this evolution the hope of good speed to weather was dramatically reduced. In time the big cruising cat became an accommodation-focused platform that was a far cry from the performance-oriented cats that had initially caught the attention of sailors.

Fountaine Pajot was one of the first companies to build large cruising cats. Its designs have always been well crafted and very good looking. Barret Racoupeau designed the new flagship model, the Ipanema 58. In the ultra-competitive world of cruising cats it was only a matter of time before someone looked at the huge footprint and thought, “Hey! We can add a second story!” 

In Bavaria’s Open 40, Marc Lombard created an interesting design that blurs the line between cockpit and interior. The freeboard is high to allow for headroom in the hulls, and the hull ends are chopped off to maximize the DWL. I see square-cornered fixed ports in the hull sides. This seems to be a very popular styling feature of the new European models today. I think the look works well in this design.

Monohull one-design racing is as popular as ever, but it can be harder to find affordable one-design multihulls, especially trimarans. Corsair Marine aims to change that with its Pulse 600, a trailera

The Gunboat 55 makes a powerful impact, but it is easy to get the wrong impression of this intriguing new model from Peter Johnstone and the crew at Gunboat International. Sure, the shapely hulls and stealthy deck lines cause necks to crane at boat shows. And it’s a Nigel Irens design so there’s no doubt it’s a rocketship. The finely honed interior by Nauta Yachts based in Milan, Italy, is naturally elegant. So what’s not to understand? Despite the fusion of design innovation and cutting-edge materials and manufacturing processes, the Gunboat 55 is a simple boat at heart. 

A Seascape 27 won the doublehanded division of last year’s Chicago-Mackinac race, so there is no doubt about its racing credentials. A lot of boats fall into the racer-cruiser classification, b

American yacht designer Doug Peterson gained the attention of the world’s most competitive sailors when he unveiled the one tonner Ganbare in 1973. The 35-foot sloop was innovative below the waterline, and it was praised for its looks and sailing capability. It went on to win the SORC. By 1976, Peterson had designed the Peterson 34, an offshore racer-cruiser.

I have been a big fan of the Van De Stadt Design office since I was a kid and saw the first drawings of the mighty ocean-racing ketch Stormvogel. I think “Stormy” caught everyone’s eye.