There will be times when you get caught out, when the weather doesn’t do exactly as forecast and the sea state becomes worryingly erratic. These are the sort of times when you feel the eyes of the young or less experienced members of the crew turning to you, wanting reassurance you may not be able to give. This can be the unpredictable nature of cruising.
At times like this it matters little how many sunpads you may have on deck, what size your flatscreen TV is, or which toys are lurking in the lazarette. You’d trade any of them for a comfortable and forgiving motion, safe passage on deck and a minimum of unnerving noises.
You want to be able to set the correct sail to the conditions. You may also re-evaluate what makes life comfortable: proper protection in the cockpit; a navstation where you can think and plan; somewhere to dry wet gear, make a hot brew safely, or cocoon yourself on a berth with a sturdy lee cloth
These may not be the sexy features that sell yachts at boat shows, but they could make a crucial difference to the enjoyment of an offshore passage. Rustler Yachts knows this well. It builds very elegant-looking cruising yachts, but they are designs that shun fashion for exactly this type of pragmatism.
It’s no fluke that the top three of five finishers in the retro, attritional Golden Globe Race 2018 were Rustler 36s. The Penryn, Falmouth, yard takes a belt and braces approach to its builds.
Its range has spanned modest-sized cruising yachts up to 44ft – until now. This new 57, by far its largest model to date, is still a yacht that its creators hope will provide that total reassurance.
No frills introduction
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