NEW BOATS

Ultra-cool, sporty weekenders and dayboats are a niche of the market that's seeing some exciting new designs emerging. Theo Stocker takes a look at two of the latest

- Theo Stocker

SAFFIER SE 24 LITE

Dutch yard Saffier really knows how to make fun, fast boats that are a doddle to sail solo or shorthanded. The hull is wide with flat aft sections and a long waterline, coupled with a meagre 1,200kg displacement and decent 450kg ballast (37.5%) on a deep L-keel of lead. The upwind sail area isn’t huge, but stick up the 41m2 Code Zero or 48m2 gennaker, set from the end of the carbon bowsprit, and you’ll easily be planing and hitting some serious speeds downwind.

There are three depth options for the keel between 1.00m and 1.44m for sailing in shoal areas. Though it’s a fixed keel, the boat is trailable and can be launched from a single lifting point. Tiller steering controls a deep single balanced spade rudder for an immediate and rewarding helming experience. Lines are led aft to the coachroof, while the mainsheet is taken from a traveller across the aft deck to a cleating block mounted on the cockpit sole forward of the tiller. Winches for the off-wind sails are set outboard of the coamings. Enclosing the aft end of the cockpit is a large raised sun pad, leaving the cockpit feeling pretty secure for a small boat.

Electric propulsion is a huge part of the boat’s concept, with a 3.5kW Torqeedo pod drive and solar panels built into the coachroof. There is enough integrated solar panel capacity designed in to charge the 3.5kW Torqeedo battery for the electric drive (estimated to be 70% lighter than diesel propulsion). The instrument displays can be removed to recharge at home or in the car.