'JAG' | Growler VTR950
Owner and builder of 'JAG', Murray De Lacy, writes about the boat and how it has performed in his home waters of New Zealand.
“Jag is tracking very well can take your hand off the helm at any speed for minutes on end and she says on course. Did this one day in slight seas and 20 knots of wind for seven minutes at 16 knots boat speed and her course altered by 7 degrees. I am very much enjoying ‘JAG’ she is awesome. I am cruising at 16 knots using 24.4 litres per hour for both motors.”
“We just sat out a NE blow with a max of 62 Knots wind speed. We were both very impressed with the way ‘JAG’ rode this out, I have done years of boating and ‘JAG’ would have to be the best I have been on in these conditions. Our friend was anchored beside us in the same bay in his 13.5 meter heavy displacement yacht, and he was sailing all over the bay. The outcome is his boat is on the market and one guess what he is looking at.”
“I have had fifteen boats of all kinds, and ‘JAG’ is on top of the list.”
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I have sailed Immagina, a G-Force 1500C, from Cape Town to Grenada covering 6,500 Nm across the Atlantic. She sailed wonderfully throughout! We had south easterly winds that ranged from 10 Kts to 40 Kts, mostly 15 Kts to 25 Kts. With Code 0 hoisted, Immagina was often doing wind speeds. You have to keep in mind that we had provisions for four people for two months on board (we had one month spare provisioning as a safety factor), and this was not “dried” food but rather good, tasty Italian food. Most of the time we had the fresh water tank with 300 – 400 litres in it and 200 – 250 litres of diesel (generator back up). Then about 90 Kg for dinghy and outboard and many tools and spare parts. So we were not sailing light. Yet, Immagina behaved beyond my expectations. She was very stable and kept her course so well that I’d forget she was sailing under autopilot most of the time. Sailing at speeds of 15 kts was the norm and we were able to cook, shower, eat, sleep and do whatever at speeds between 10 and 20 kts. She is very stiff which translated in immediate accelerations with any wind increase or gusts and if I was resting in my cabin I would be able to tell her speed by the different sounds she was making through the water. Even in 40 kts winds, I never felt in danger or that she was not able to cope with the increasing seas and worsening of sea conditions. She is defiant and certain!
The particular layout with “U” galley and so forth is quite comfortable and useful for long passages and even she is quite light for her size nonetheless we still have three double cabins and three heads with two large showers, two freezers, two fridges, microwave, electric oven and induction cooktop which make an Ocean passage very pleasant and comfortable, yet you are crossing at double digit speeds at all times.
“I’m a long time catamaran racer. A Nacra 5.8 in the mid 80’s. A 40’ Crowther cat from 1997-2000. And in 2001, Afterburner, a 52’ x 30’ Tennant racing cat, heavily modified by the previous owners from a Bladerunner design. She had a great NZ racing record. We imported her and raced her for 16 years. It was quite the hoot, flying a hull into the high 20’s regularly. She had no center cabin, and would be described as wet and Spartan by most people. As an overpowered beast by others.
I got to specify the fit out and rigging. I went for a bit taller carbon mast at 20m, as wind in southern California is generally lighter than the Cape of Good Hope. We got a deal on shipping her to the British Virgin Islands. My friends and I spent most of 2015 bringing her back to Sothern California in a series of legs. It was quite the adventure with lots of boat repairs in exotic locations. Her fundamentals are sound. The design is great. Her construction is a bullet proof work of art. She sails great! We have pushed her hard without drama. (Who doesn’t have some issues with plumbing, electronics, fuel, and engines on a new boat?)
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