It can be a leap of faith to become the first person in the country to buy a particular type of boat. If, however, you have faith in the company behind the boat, the people you’re going to be dealing with and, of course, in the boat itself, is there any reason to hold back?
Back in 2003, Kathy Claydon didn’t think there was. The boat she had in her sights was the Arcona 370, then the newest model in a Swedish range that few people in the UK had heard of. Since then, Arcona has become an established and highly respected name among British sailors, helping to maintain the reputation of Swedish yachts in general for combining good performance with soundly engineered construction and an exceptionally high level of interior finish.
The fact that Arcona’s smaller models are built on an Estonian island (albeit one with a Swedish history) had no significant bearing on the way the boats were perceived in the early days – and nor should it. Other Scandinavian yards have also taken advantage of the boatbuilding skills offered by some of the islands in the Baltic. Arcona’s HQ was (and still is) in Gustavsberg, near Stockholm, where the Estonian-built boats are completed before being shipped or commissioned.
Kathy’s only problem at the time was that there were no 370s in the UK. She had sailed the 400 owned by the then UK distributor, Tony Bottomley, liked it and had faith in the construction, but a trip to Sweden was needed for her to see a 370 in the flesh, to visit the yard and to meet the builders.
FASTER IN STYLE
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Denne historien er fra September 2021-utgaven av Yachting Monthly.
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Midsummer on Hanö
This wonderful little island in the south-east of Sweden is a real gem off the beaten track
ADVENTURE SAILING TO HAITI
After spending two months in the Dominican Republic, Andy Brown sails west to Haïti bringing medical and school supplies to the town of Mole Saint Nicholas
In celebration of bad sailing
New owner Monty Halls tests his sailing skills with his family aboard their Colvic 34 ketch, Sobek. A recently qualified Day Skipper, Monty faces a few unexpected challenges...
Winter brings excitement and opportunity
Oddity’s double glazing, insulation and heating create a warm, homely environment as I bash out this column.
ADVENTURE MAISIE GOES TO GOES
To depart or not to depart? That is the question. Is it safer to stay, or suffer the wind and weather of a rough North Sea?
'MAYDAY, GRANDAD OVERBOARD!'
When David Richards and his grandson Henry went out racing from lowey, they didn't expect their sail to end with a lifeboat rescue
VERTUE
For a 25-footer, the Vertue has a huge reputation and has conquered every ocean. So what makes this little boat quite such an enduring success? Nic Compton finds out
Sailing siblings
Mabel Stock, her brother Ralph, a friend Steve and an unnamed paying passenger passed through the Panama Canal in December 1919 on the sturdy Norwegian cutter Ogre. They were towed to a quiet anchorage in Balboa away from the boat traffic but within rowing distance of the shore.
TECHNICAL MAINSAIL MODIFICATIONS
Safety and performance improved hugely when Mike Reynolds reduced the size of his mainsail and re-configured the systems controlling it
PILOTAGE DONE PROPERLY
Chartplotters are an amazing aid, but can detract from your real-world pilotage if not used with caution, says Justin Morton
