Majan starts "Tour of Arabia"

The first Arabian 100 (A100) has now been launched by Oman Sail, and officially christened Majan (the ancient name for Oman). After four months of assembly in Oman's southern-most port of Salalah, Majan has been carrying out sea trials off the Omani coast under the watchful eye of skipper Paul Standbridge.

Designed by Nigel Irens, Majan is a development of the proven design Sodeb'O, the single-handed record breaker designed for Thomas Coville. Image © Sail Oman, used with permission.

Majan first kissed the water back on August 23rd. She has since been rigged and fitted out ready for sea trials. Image © Oman Sail, used with permission.

Her first official outing will be a 'Tour of Arabia' starting today from Muscat, which will include stops in UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar before joining the Dubai-Muscat race back to Muscat at the end of November.

Designs: Lots of fun for very little money with the Maora

What is the lowest cost production trimaran available for sale today?

A flock of Maoras, showing some of the rig options and colours available. Image © Nautylys, used with permission.

Well, it would be hard to beat the Maora, a new design by Stephan Vallet being produced by Nautylys in France. Built for fun and simplicity, the Maora is being targeted for sale to schools and resorts, where it offers ease of sailing and peace of mind (against capsize) for beginners. The base version of the Maora trimaran with a 5m² (53.8 ft²) semi-battened sail is offered for sale in Europe for €1,590, and the sport version with a larger 6m² (64.6 ft²) fully-battened sail is offered for €1,990 (plus delivery from the factory), making this the least expensive production trimaran of which I’m aware.
The Maora is designed for simplicity. All the major components (main hull, floats, “nacelle” and rudder/tiller) are roto-molded from high-impact thermoplastic resin. The aluminium tube beams which support the floats are locked to the main hull by a “nacelle” which is bolted to integrally-molded bolts in the main hull. The “nacelle” also provides an anchor-point for the mainsheet and wings which spread outboard of the main hull, forming a generous seat on each side. Each of the main components can be molded in 9 different colours, so you can choose a boat of one colour, or mix and match all you like.

Low-cost fun! Image © Nautylys, used with permission.

The un-stayed rig comes in 3 versions: the “Classic” rig of 5m² (53.8ft²) with horizontal top-battens; the “School” rig also 5m² with vertical top-battens enabling sail area to be reduced by rolling around the mast; and finally the larger fully-battened square-topped “Sport” rig of 6m². The mast drops into a tube molded into the hull fore-deck “Laser-style”. A simple vang keeps the boom under control, and simple down-haul and out-haul lines give control over the sail shape. The mast breaks down into three sections for transport – the whole boat can be transported on car-top roof-racks. You can also slide a pair of wheels over the aft beams to roll the boat (upside down) to and from the water.
The main hull features a long shallow “skeg” (no centre-board) and a low aspect-ratio shallow-draft rudder to avoid damage from beaching – ensuring simplicity and ease of use for beginners. Check out all the details and prices on the Maora website.
This looks like a fun off-the-beach boat, for very little outlay. That’s trimaran cool!

Image © Nautylys, used with permission.

New designs: Fast cruising in comfort - Langevin's Trial 1100

The Trial 1100 fast cruising trimaran. Image © Sylvestre Langevin, used with permission

For those of us outside France, the name Sylvestre Langevin may not immediately come to mind as an accomplished trimaran designer. However this should be rectified, as Sylvestre has a long history of high-performance multihull design over the last 20 years, including record-breaking designs like the 18m (60ft) aluminium foiling trimaran Mecarillos, first to reach 30 knots during an Atlantic race.

Sylvestre has recently announced his new Trial 1100 design, an 11m (34ft) “swing-wing” design intended for fast comfortable cruising. The design includes many of Sylvestre’s signature touches, including wide lines aft (above the water-line) for maximum cockpit space, a clean deck devoid of raised coach-roof, multi-chined hull constructed in aluminium; and a self-tacking jib for easy handling while cruising.

The floats swing towards the aft for marina berthing, and are locked in their sailing position with a bracing strut aft from the rear beam and a wire forward from the front beam. With the floats swung in-board, they extend beyond the stern and the overall length increases to 13.2m (43ft).

Sylvestre describes the Trial 1100 in his own words: Among the sailors who have experienced a trimaran, not all are able to repeat the experience. But all of them have dreamed of a trimaran that combines the advantages of the monohull (good interior volume) and the catamaran (stability and speed) and provides a sensation beyond the ordinary.

At low speeds in confined spaces the handling is equivalent to that of a monohull of the same size, but at higher speeds when let loose a little trimaran accelerates dramatically. Under power, the fineness of the 3 hulls enables fast cruising with low power.

Designing a fast trimaran without concessions to comfort is relatively easy. But to reconcile an efficient hull with internal volume sufficient to allow long-term cruising requires a real knowledge of trimarans. On the Trial 1100, I decided to create a "step" in the main hull above the waterline while maintaining a fine and powerful hull. This has resulted in a design not found in any trimaran of this size. It includes a double berth aft, a forward cabin with double berth, two raised beds in the main cabin, a spacious L-shaped kitchen, a bathroom, a navigation station and many storage areas. The intended engine is an inboard shaft-drive 20 HP diesel.

Internal layout of the Trial 1100. Image © Sylvestre Langevin, used with permission

On deck, the useable deck area is impressive and equivalent to a monohull larger than 18m. The oversized cockpit allows 10 people around the table for lunch. Obviously, the arms are pivoted and when returning to port the beam of 10m (32.8ft) can be reduced to 4.6m (15ft). Beaching is facilitated by a pivoting rudder and centre-boards placed in the floats to allow for easy movement in the central hull. We chose pivoting boards and rudder because who knows, you can always hit something hard ... inadvertently.

Wetted surface area remains moderate because the displacement of the Trial 1100 does not exceed 3,100kg. However, the hull and structures were calculated to enable 1,000kg of payload, allowing a week-long cruise with a crew of 6 people in full independence. Water (300 liters) and fuel (120 liters) capacity will match the needs of such a cruise, and remain very exceptional on a trimaran of this size.

Finally, the choice of aluminum construction provides great strength and durability – both important, and contrary to general thinking, is not heavier in comparison to fiberglass molded construction.

In short, if you enjoy speeds of 15 knots under sail and 10 knots under power, and if you like to moor right on the beach, all while keeping a comfortable living environment, then the Trial 1100 is for you!

The Trial 1100 features a fully battened large-roached main with self-tacking jib. Image © Sylvestre Langevin, used with permission

New designs: Has Ian Farrier done it again with the F-22?

Yes he has.

(Image courtesy of Farrier Marine)

Over the last 20 years Ian Farrier has been leading a quiet revolution in the sailing world, converting thousands of sailors into worshippers of “trimaran cool” with his innovative folding system and trailable trimaran designs. Following hits like the original Trailer-Tri 680 (hundreds of which have been built by amateurs), the “beach tri” Tramp, and the USA Sailboat Hall of Fame winning F-27, he has now launched the entry-level F-22. I’m willing to make the armchair prediction that the F-22 will open up a whole new generation of trimaran owners with its economical package and solid pedigree.

(I also have to admit that I liked it so much, I now have a set of plans and I’m s l o w l y building one myself)

The F-22 cruiser and its all-carbon F-22R racer sibling are highly-developed designs, benefiting from Ian’s many years of folding trimaran experience and incorporating the latest design and construction features from some of his larger boats. His strategy for offering construction plans for home-builders before his own production is established will get the design off and running faster, and allowing only factory-built beams and beam mounts (although more expensive than home-built beams) will ensure that buyers of home-built boats can trust the integrity of these critical structural components.

With a length of 6.96 metres (22 feet 10 inches) and a beam of 5.51 metres (18 feet 1 inch) or 2.5 metres (8 feet 2 inches) folded, the F-22 may be built in numerous configurations – the standard cruising cabin with or without an aft cabin, a cuddy-cabin day-sailer with or without the aft cabin (resulting in a very roomy cockpit for the size of the boat), and the option of a sliding daggerboard or pivoting centreboard (offset slightly to free up leg-room inside). The standard cabin actually offers more interior room than the earlier F-24, with the 3rd generation beams taking up very little internal volume. Another interesting option on the F-22 is a boomless main, which reduces weight and enables an un-cluttered cockpit with the traveler mounted a long way aft. The sail may still be slab-reefed using cam-cleats at the foot of the leech.

The F-22 is constructed in temporary female frames from foam sandwich, using Farrier’s “vertical strip planking” process. To qualify for the F-22R designation, the sandwich should be laminated with carbon fiber, and a carbon-fibre wing-mast fitted. Target weights for the F-22 and F-22R are between 590 - 680kg (1,300 - 1,500 lbs). The F-22R also has a taller mast and more sail area - 35.9m² (386 ft²) compared with 30.2m² (325 ft²) for higher performance.

What will an F-22 cost you? Farrier’s latest estimate is around US$45,000 for a sail-away home-built boat, depending on which design options you select and how economically you can source your materials. Of course the F-22R would cost more on top of this due to the more expensive materials. With so many options to select and careful purchasing of materials you may get away with a little less, but this estimate appears realistic (based on what I’ve spent already and what I have yet to spend!).

There is a great deal more information on Ian’s F-22 web page.

With 80 boats already under construction and 4 already on the water, this looks like a new boat with a great future that may open up a new market for entry-level trailable trimarans. That’s trailable trimaran cool!

(Image courtesy of Farrier Marine)