Corsair 37 - Quick and comfortable

Boat Test - Corsair 37

Lisa Ratcliff talks with three owners of the Corsair 37 and finds a whole lot of reasons to own one.

The America’s Cup and its travelling spectacle has stirred interest in multihulls across the globe, but for those already converted to the blindingly fast and stable, there’s little point preaching.

The first Australian Corsair 37, the latest competitive cruising trimaran from new owner Seawind and the step up from the popular C36, was bought by Tim and Helen Anderson from Pittwater on Sydney’s northern beaches. Theirs was the display at this year’s Sanctuary Cove Boat Show and is the demo for Seawind Catamaran’s NSW/SA/VIC Corsair dealer, David Renouf.

Corsair was established in 1985 by John Walton, son of Walmart founder Sam Walton. Production began in California but moved to Vietnam to reduce costs and over the decades close to 1,600 boats have been built.

In their 60s and mindful of the guests they would be welcoming board, as well as the perils of maintaining good marital relations while hobby sailing or racing, the Anderson’s C37 called Trident fits the bill.

“We had a Seawind 24 which was great for sailing and young agile people,” says Helen. “We tried out smaller boats but being in our late 60’s with older friends who are sometimes ill or fat, we need a larger boat for cruising. At our age the 37 is perfect, and doesn’t scare our friends.”

Above deck there is plenty of room to spread out and entertain guests with a wide centre cockpit and poop deck helm seating allowing excellent visibility to the two amas (outrigger hulls), the scenery and the opposition when racing.

The 3m wide cockpit could comfortable accommodate eight adults making it “more sociable than most trimarans” points out Renouf.

The Harken winches are manual and with a heavyish main halyard, electric primary winches can be retro fitted to allow the tri to be sailed single handed and to take the strength requirement out of the equation.

The 14.48m carbon fibre rotating mast, taller than the previous alloy version, is held in place by synthetic stays and the retractable carbon fibre bow sprit allows for an asymmetric spinnaker system.

Below deck the gel coat finish is clean, and easy to clean. The 37 has a double V berth in the bow, single and another double in the main galley and a third double in the spacious aft cabin which is accessed by a deck hatch, making it the perfect hideaway unless a weak bladder forces a night-time visit to the head, which would be a shock to the system in a Sydney winter, but not an issue in the Caribbean.

The U shaped hull affords plenty of headroom, making it easy for those over 6ft and of a heavier build to stand up and manoeuvre around the galley and in the head’s moulded shower with cold water pull out nozzle (hot water is optional).

The galley features a two burner metho stove, 12v fridge, cupboard space and a sink with pressurised cold water. The carbon dining table drops down to make the portside double bed, and the macro suede cushions are ideal for cleaning up spills and fingerprints.

Living life

“We will not be going away on long voyages but the comfort of a kitchen, bed and bathroom are very important,” adds Helen.

“It is also a boat which a non-sailor can cope with... that’s me.  I was never brought up to sail and find the presence of the trampolines very comforting.  We might be crazy spending so much money on a boat, but when you get ‘old’ you have to live life.”

Living life they are: “It’s a very exhilarating boat, you have to have your wits about you,” says Tim Anderson, who is chief rope puller while Helen helms. “We found other tris too pokey. This one scorches along very comfortably... and you don’t spill your tea”.

Tim mentions keeping an eye on the lateral windage under power. Trident is powered by a 9.9 Yamaha four stroke motor with a high thrust propeller. The engine, which can be tilted at the push of a button, is linked to the rudder and can be detached while sailing. US owner David Liddell uses a 20hp engine and finds berthing with the steerable outboard straightforward and in reverse, a breeze.

Most multihulls evoke pangs of jealously among monohull owners when they are able to anchor at a secluded beach, hike up their shorts and walk ashore and the Corsair 37 is no different with a mere 400mm draft when the retractable dagger board and rudder are up.

Swimming off the boat is easy with a sea level swimming platform and removable step ladder plus a cold water transom shower for rinsing afterwards.

The competitive folding 3,500 kilogram trimaran is also trailerable with a single use permit.

Going fast

A number of owners interviewed for this article praised the folding trimaran’s speed and manoeuvrability. Liddell, winner of last year’s King’s Cup with his Corsair 37, Miss Saigon, has tickled his tri to be race fit and his efforts paid off when he won south east Asia’s biggest regatta

“I was converted to multis... why sail slowly and uncomfortably when you can go fast and stay upright? I wanted a boat to race and cruise around Phuket and it had to be comfortable, that is have a fridge, head and shower, so 37ft was the minimum I could go for. I wanted a fast boat so a tri seemed a better choice than a cat.

“It is very fast on all points of sail as evidenced by her racing results... two regatta wins in the last 12 months. As a multi her fastest point of sail is reaching but she goes well upwind also. The maximum speed we have seen is 23 knots.

“The boat has been pretty good, there were some teething problems particularly with the rudder but these are now resolved. The boat and mast are very strong with no signs of issues.

“She is also a great cruiser and a therefore a good compromise. I like the boat because it’s fast, tolerant and comfortable,” Liddell adds.

Caribbean cruising

Previously, Massachusetts-based Brian Mann owned F31s but decided he wanted to spend winters in the Caribbean and was looking for something more comfortable for him and his wife and better suited to offshore sailing to and from New England.

He looked at both the Corsair 37 and the Dragonfly 35 Ultimate, eventually choosing the Corsair based on sailing performance. “I don’t race but I like to sail fast and I wanted a boat that is fast enough to surf each wave until it disappears.”

“We have now spent two great winters in the Caribbeand living on the boat and cruised over 11,000 nautical miles. The boat reaches at close to wind speed even when loaded down for cruising and I can usually average 11 knots on long passages (Massachusetts to Bermuda in 2.5 days and Bermuda to St. Martin in 3.5 days).”

Mann repeatedly espouses the tri’s sailing performance, leaving no doubt that the boat has more than met expectations of a quick ride. When asked to single out a unique feature he nominates the raised cockpit seats, “I love to steer the boat from them with a short tiller extender.”

The Corsair 37 appears a practical and roomy family boat great for entertaining and an ideal weekend getaway for cruising couples. When cranked up it also ticks the box for race performance, making it a great all-rounder for those who like plenty of wind in their hair and their tea cup to stay upright.