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So
There We Were.....
A
most excellent report filed by a bitter and perhaps very drunk reader.
And we couldn't be any happier!
by
Frank Booth
We trapped Geoff Stagg and Barry Carroll where they were hiding in the
Farr 36 Tazo at the end of a very long boat show day at the Chicago Strictly
Sail Show. They looked burnt (quote from Geoff, "Why does everybody
have to tap on the carbon?"), but somehow hung in there (mainly Geoff)
for another 1.5 hours talking boats with just my friend and me. Very cool.
Had a very interesting convo. Talked about the new Farr 36 mainly and
also about how pleased both Geoff and Carroll are with the Mumm30 (they
gauged pretty quick that we weren't going to be buying a 200+K yacht right
away, but my friend is going to pull the trigger on a Mumm soon). I may
be wrong but it seemed they liked it even more than the Farr 40 but not
as much as the Farr36 and definitely not as much as the Farr52! Safe to
say they weren't saying anything bad about any of their boats....
Geoff is a kind of grumpy, competitive (combative?) little Kiwi who scoffs
at the competition (especially J-boats) as "pieces of shit"
and obviously doesn't suffer fools easily. Or maybe it was just the drone
of the milling hordes that was suffering him. When I compared the Farr
36 as 'similar' to the Thompson 35 Rumours he was a little upset with
me ("We need to sell 20 of these at our price to get out the tooling
and design costs. Those Thompson boats haven't got SHIT on this. It's
night and day. The carbon finned lifting bulb keel alone has more design
in it than that whole boat."). I'm glad I was given another chance
to make an ass of myself. He also had somewhat unkind words for the 26Sierra
"Who is going to pay 80K for that? It's too radical, it scares people;
the minute they step onto it they think it's going to flip over on top
of them!". I kept my opinion to myself on that one. As I said before,
he was mighty pleased with the Mumm30 (so was every other sailmaker, broker,
etc. that we talked to at the show, mainly east coast and midwest people).
Some more quotes from Geoff; "We've sold more of those things than
any of our 30 foot competitors put together. They can't even touch us!
It's probably the best one design racing out there." Please set up
an appointment with Tony Robbins for Geoff since he obviously needs to
work out some self-esteem issues....
Here's another funny quote, when my friend said he used to own a certain
late model grand-prix IOR 50-footer, Geoff replied, "Can I ask you
just one thing?.... WHY? WHY? Why in the hell were you possesed to buy
that boat?". Not much my friend could say except, "Hey, I sold
it didn't I?".
Geoff agreed strongly that one of the main components of the Farr40's
success was the strict owner-driver policy with closed off loopholes.
I like the guy, thought he was hilarious and when we talked about the
Farr 36 (and Farr52) his eyes lit up showing you that here is a guy who
clearly loves what he is doing. Despite sitting around under flourescent
lights for 2 days....
Geoff Stagg is also a major-fucking-league riverboat gambler. He sold
their house (!) 3-4(?) years ago to buy Scream the first Farr52, so as
to drum up support for that. Looks like he won on that bet and now is
betting big on the Farr 36. (He initially bought hull #1 through DK but
cancelled it when they fucked around on delivery, now he is buying hull
5 (or 6?). I think he will win this one too (have I said the boat is sweet)?
If you think about it, you will probably not see very many boat brokers
who actually OWN their boats! He is concerned of course, though overall
looks pretty damn confident, which might be the riverboat gambler coming
out again. He is right to be concerned, this thing is no holds barred,
top of the line race machine and looks geared to people who are in for
major thrills at a major price tag (220K says the man), which may not
appeal to some of the grey poupon slurping owners who can afford the entry
fee (unlike some boats there are no built in can holders here).They may
have major dough on the line in tooling and design, but if Farr International
can't pull off a new 36-foot one design class then who the hell CAN????!!!!!
So, as I said, there we were in the Farr 36 with Geoff and Barry and drooling.
This boat is shit hot and will fucking crush any boat it's size and, for
a while at least, up to 40+ feet. Screw those KWRW finishes, the PHRF
fleet it was in was a ridiculous hodge-podge of horses for courses (come
on, Mumm36's and J44's, Farr 395's, an Olson 40 and this thing? Especially
in big air and chop?), plus this machine is still getting geared up. Especially
in light air downwind and reaching with the monster asymm this thing will
move out. The jib ain't a hanky and it looks like it will perform strong
upwind too. Hold on to your juevos downwind in big breeze. There is a
lot of "buzz" going on with CBTF and who knows, maybe that is
the shit, but there is no doubt that this thing will give thrills and
be easier to maintain in top race form. Plus, I would bet my money on
Farr Inc. starting another top notch one design fleet over Schock, et.
al. any day. And isn't that what one design is really all about anyway,
putting your money down on a corporate name brand?
The cockpit is around 6 feet across and maybe 45 feet long (tough on a
36 footer), very clean with minimal controls evoking the feel of a 49er.
What controls there are seem very well laid out (familiar sprit boat),
details like inset numbering on sheet leads, etc.. A nice sheet lead system
and equiplite fittings and Loups through out. No hydraulics; a magic wheel
(around 2.5' diameter) controls the backstay. The mast wasn't in it so
I can't say anything for that or the boom. There is a cockpit floor hatch
for safety gear including liferaft so it appears this thing really IS
built for offshore!
Geoff was saying that before the first production boats had any deck hardware
mounted they raced the proto for a while to tweak it (moved somethings
a little and changed the balance of the rudder). In short, the deck seems
very nice overall with very little to get in your way while working it
and very little to get in the way of all the spray that will surely come
over since with a 3K lbs fin at 8.5 feet of depth at 20kts you will be
going right through the waves and whatever else gets in the way. A way
sexy clear coat carbon tiller (what, you wanted a wheel you fucking puffter?)
tells you what you are driving.
Below it is carbon, carbon everywhere with an interior detailed to show
it off and not much to get in the way of the view. Mostly clear coat with
white accented bulkheads and some white painted hull interior surfaces.
There are no floorboards. Helps when the headroom is around 5 feet and
gives incentive to keep the floor dry. The floor is the inner hull skin,
clearcoated carbon (like most everywhere else) with non-skid added. Being
a minimalist I liked it. There is a stove and portapotti shitter (way
up front in the middle with nothing to hold onto as I recall) when you
are slamming along at 18-20kts that will be fun.... Add in 6 (?) pipeberths,
two facing each other in the "main salon" and 4 uppers and lowers
along either side of the cockpit (the upper you will store gear in since
there ain't no stinking shelving. What you wanted somewhere to stow overnite
racing shit and safety gear you fucking pansy! If we give you stowage
you'll just put shit in it!). Very nice detailing around bulkheads, electronics,
sprit and built in stantion pockets, etc. with much thought going into
keeping the boat dry from leaks despite all the controls led below. So
the only leaks will come from the huge flush deck leading to the forward
hatch and big companionway hatch! Most all of the deck fittings are mounted
with Beckson (type) screws so they are mainly flush, except for the stantion
braces. Nice, but I'm waiting for stainless plates set flush with the
inner skin that you tap from the deck.
Obviously the centerpoint of the boat and main design challenge was the
monster lifting keel with carbon fin blade. The one at the show was out
on display, and the hydraulic/electric lifting mechanism wasn't in this
unit. The design is to lift the keel while at dock, bouy or trailering.
Can't say much about it other than I hope it works, has pins to lock in
place and has a lifting point so you can lift the keel without the mechanicals
when (oops, if) they fail. I didn't ask but I'm sure it does.
Both below and topsides this thing makes a major statement as an anabolic
steroid race machine for very hardcore offshore (and you WILL be hardcore
to race this thing offshore), and around the cans on big courses with
big fast boats one design against other owners with big fat wallets who
are also hopped up on adrenaline. But hell, after that, the thing will
be alot cheaper to campaign certainly than a Farr 40 and given the highest
end construction will likely last a lifetime. I suppose it had better.
So who is the "target market"? That is
What impressed us about Geoff was not only that here's a guy who is president
of Farr International, arguably the most influencial yacht broker in the
world, and willing to talk to a couple of low rent yahoos from the sticks,
but also that when my pal was looking at two boats that Farr is brokering,
both Geoff and Barry recommended the cheaper one when he might have been
convinced to buy the more expensive boat. I think that is integrity; either
that or they already had a buyer for the more expensive boat but hell
that would be awful cynical on my part, wouldn't it? They also were actually
interested in our opinion, they know what THEY want but is it what we,
the "serious amateur" want? That is actually something to think
about.
So WWJD? Probably buy a Farr36 if he had the scratch.
Other side notes from the show; I don't know why the hell I paid 40 fucking
bucks for the second to last mango One World baseball cap, BUT I DID.
And then I realized I hadn't gotten my wife anything so I had to give
her my fucking $40 hat with a smile. "Hi honey, I went to Chicago
and got you this really cool hat!", only marginally better than "Hi
Honey, I went to Chicago and got you this really cool America's Cup tie!"
Shit, 40 bucks, they should have just forgotten about wasting all that
coin on boats and sold more hats.
There was not a SINGLE OTHER PRODUCTION RACE YACHT THERE aside from Farr's.
(I DO NOT COUNT the remanufactured Tartan Ten!) WTF!!! I thought that
Sidney 38's were trying to get serious. At least the Great Lakes 70's
had a booth! Get with it people!
I scored 12.24 seconds on that goddamn Harken grinder (around 2.3 seconds
off the pace) and almost threw up the Bacardi club sodas and 3 pieces
of shitty deep dish pizza I had just inhaled in the totally lame concession
area. I'm getting old. We all had a good snicker when the Catalina yacht
brokers tried some kind of sing-along or maybe it was a call and response
or maybe they were just heckling the crowd with a bullhorn. I don't remember
so well. I'm getting old. We were unsuccessful in our efforts to cut in
line in front of a bunch of kids at the RC boat demo. I was also unsuccessful
in my efforts to steal a crutch from a cripple. Once again, old age....
Anything else? Hmmm, yeah, try to catch Cavanagh on Storm Stories and
never get off the fucking boat....
Peace and Joy, your pal,
Frank
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