TOUGH CAT

GARCIA YACHTS CONCEIVED THIS NEW GENRE 52FT ALUMINIUM CATAMARAN AS A DISRUPTIVE GAME-CHANGER. DOES IT LIVE UP TO THE PROMISE?

- Rupert Holmes

Tested by RUPERT HOLMES

Where we tested: Cherbourg, France.

Conditions: wind south-east to south-west 7-19 knots, flat water.

Model: three cabin/two heads version with options including carbon mast, twin helm stations, Hydranet sails, 1,080W solar, and electric winches.

In recent years there have been two clear trends in serious long-term cruising yachts. Firstly catamarans have become mainstream, to the extent that professional racing sailors talk of ‘buying a catamaran’ for cruising with their families – a monohull doesn’t even enter the equation.

This trend can also be seen in ARC entries, where multihulls are increasingly common. In 2020 they accounted for 28% of the total fleet and a much higher proportion of new boats and more recent designs.

The second trend is the rapidly growing popularity of rugged metal expedition yachts. Aluminium is favoured for this as it offers good strength and stiffness without a weight penalty, especially for yachts over a critical size. That’s why many top-end racing yachts were built of aluminium before composites dominated that scene.

It was, therefore, surely only a matter of time before someone married these two concepts to create an aluminium expedition catamaran.

Cherbourg-based Garcia Yachts has been building metal boats for almost 50 years, including Jean Luc Van Den Heede’s 36.15 MET, in which he scored a podium finish in the inaugural Vendée Globe Race in 1989.