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Forward wheelhouse, wide side decks; Etoile is a practical boat, in which life atsea is good...

CATAMARANTRAWLER ETOILE 65

The perfection of modern thermal engines seemsto have waited for the meeting with the logicalmultihull support to express a new potential. Therecipe is not obvious, because it is simple andrequires reasoned moderation of the perfor-mance. In this area, it’s the sailing renegadeswho are showing the way! Let’s embark aboardone of these remarkable prototypes for a fewdays.

Text and photos: Philippe Echelle

CAPTAIN BOB'SAMAZING EXPEDITION

MACHINE

Etoile is genuine expedition boat, its ‘voyager’style clearly shows this!

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DREAM HUNTERS

Which sailor hasn’t dreamed of the perfect instrument?Haddock had the Sirius, a coal-fired cargo ship,always ready to set off to look for the Licorne and

Rackam le Rouge’s treasure; Scott had the Discovery,Amundsen the Fram, Charcot, Pourquoi Pas? In a differentregister, James Wharram merged with Oro and Gaia (55’ and63’ cats); Tom Follet asserted that he was fully satisfied withCheers, apart from the absence of his piano! Phil Weld founda balance with Moxie (50’ trimaran, winner of the 1980 Ostar),as did Roger de la Grandière with Vakuta, an 8m HeavenlyTwins, for a circumnavigation!

In 4000 years, the Polynesians accomplished the conquest ofthe 176 million km² of the huge Pacific aboard an infinitevariety of audacious multihulls. The history of these tribalmachines died with the accomplishment of their objective, buttheir DNA, adapted to the Atlantic by a few iconoclastic pio-neers, opened a royal road to leisure sailing, which has nowreclaimed this heritage and is continuing its developmentthrough an abundance of attempts. The speed record undersail belongs to a multihull, as does the record for the incredi-ble North West Passage under sail alone... As for¨PlanetSolar’s round the world voyage, it gives a glimpse of analternative to fossil fuels...bravo, and a big thank-you to thePolynesians!

The latest segment to date to be stirred up by these turbulentand visionary boats with several hulls is that of the blue-watermotor cruisers. Santorini (Joubert-Nivelt) hit hard in 1998,Laurent Bourgnon hasn’t stopped developing his Jambo(Sunreef 70’), proving during his long cruise (Patagonia – NewZealand – Polynesia) that a sober motor yacht is possible (1litre per mile at 8 knots, with a 7000-mile range). Bob Escoffierand Patrick Balta have explored this direction in their ownstyle.

THE ROAD TO THE STARS

Robert Escoffier comes originally from Paris, but the shores ofPort Mer (near Cancale, in Brittany) and the family cruises casta powerful and irrevocable spell on him. Head of a prosperouscompany (in the measuring instrument field), Bob becamebored with this ‘shopkeeper’ activity, and sold the business in1986. Already in 1979 (with the Bob IV), during a stopoverwhich was dragging on (because of a fishermen’s blockade!),he discovered the semi-wrecked Scirocco, and bought it! Therestoration took 10 years; it was to be called Popoff and wasthe first link in a long chain, that of Etoile Marine Croisières.Having left Normandy, Bob settled in St Malo, his home port.From 1992 onwards, the collection grew at the rate of oneboat per year; the passion for traditional boats merged withthe entrepreneur’s spirit, and a small fleet was created. EtoileMolène (dundee tuna fishing boat) joined Popoff, then cameEtoile de France (30m Baltic trader), Etoile Polaire (classicketch from 1914, built by Abeking-Rasmussen) and manyothers. Etoile du Roi (replica of a St Malo frigate from 1745captured by the English) is currently the flagship of this tumul-tuous armada. Several multihulls joined the flotilla, a 25m cata-maran ketch designed by Plessis was built in the in-houseyard, and crossed the Atlantic a dozen times (amongst otherthings)! Bruno Peyron’s ex-Explorer (Multiplast, 22.5m)became Etoile Explorer, Etoile Filante was to be a Pinta 60’...The insatiable Captain Bob also likes ocean racing, and suc-ceeded in entering Etoile Molène in the 1994 Route du Rhum(he abandoned, but what a coup!); the ’98 edition saw himaboard Adecco Etoile Filante (a Pinta 60’) and he finished 6th

in 2002 (in Class 2) aboard his 50’ monohull (already designedby Balta) after having rescued Karine Fauconnier. Two TransatJacques Vabres later (with his fitting-out manager ChristianMacé and the other with his daughter in 2003), Servane tookup the torch in 2010, by being at the start of the Rhum in thevery physical Etoile Explorer! Quite a family, if you considerthat Franck-Yves dominated the Multi50 class for severalyears, before becoming its president, and that his two sonsare in the thick of the action on the fastest multihulls in theworld (Loïc in M50’ and Kevin as crew member and head ofthe R & D department for Banque Populaire V and VII!).

Etoile 65, a boat which is leaving to discover the shores of Africa,then the planet’s extreme latitudes.

With 1.4m under the bridgedeck, the cat never slams, even in (very) rough condi-tions, such as those we encountered during our test.

THE BEDROOM AND BATHROOMS AREOF ALMOST UNKNOWN PROPORTIONS

ON THIS SIZE OF BOAT, AND THE VIEWPOINT IS FANTASTIC...

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For cruising in good weather or amongst thecoral, Etoile 65 is equipped with a steeringposition on the flybridge.

BOB ESCOFFIER AND PATRICK BALTA,A STIMULATING ENCOUNTER!

Patrick Balta is an atypical naval archi-tect; he discovered multihulls at the ageof 5 in New Caledonia, with the catama-ran his father had designed and built. Hewas a fisherman aboard the (sailing)tuna fishing boat ‘L’Aviateur’ for a cam-paign in the Galapagos, then becameskipper of a shrimper in Guiana. It washere, on the edge of the rain forest, thathe developed a particular sensitivity forwood as a material; he then enrichedthis technical baggage to become a refe-rence in the field. Keen on calculationsand computers, he has become an

expert in hydrostatics and structures.This skilful mixture of practical commonsense, talented intuition, and experiencesingled him out as the ideal accomplicefor Bob Escoffier’s future expeditioncatamaran.

ETOILE 65’: AN ATTRACTIVE BOATFOR OCEAN CRUISING

My previous experiences in multihulls, apassion for sailing, and an immediatesympathy for the ‘small is beautiful’ pro-tocol dear to Dick Newick hadn’t reallyprepared me for visiting motor catama-rans, however discovering the Santorini

65’ in 2001 had turned things upsidedown and had opened my eyes to thepotential of the successful marriage oflong, slim hulls with robust, soberengines.Bob wanted a boat, not a gleamingyacht; Patrick Balta designed a boatlacking in any arrogance, whose appealcomes from its functional choices. Thewheelhouse, standing proudly at thefront, gives it a look of an Americanfishing trawler, reinforced by the cove-red side decks (like those on the classicItalian ‘navettes’), surrounded by bul-warks and a handrail. The back of theboat accommodates a splendid multi-activity living area, where an enormous

rattan corner setteecovered with comforta-ble soft furnishingsoccupies the place ofhonour, with chairs for6 – 8 people and anoutdoor galley. Let’snow go into theowner’s accommoda-tion. As the coachroofis not structural, the

master and mistress of the house havebeen able to freely express their creativespirit in the 70m² of the first level, and ata reasonable cost, as they were able toorder from the catalogues of terrestrialkitchen installers and furniture suppliers!Bob and Françoise have moreover had agastronomic kitchen delivered at a goodprice, with drawers equipped withmagnetic locks (commercial child safety)which work wonderfully at sea! Thebedroom and bathrooms are of almostunknown proportions on this size ofboat, and the viewpoint is fantastic. Allthe openings are made up of a frame inanodised marine aluminium, with double

glazing. Combined with 35mm of foam,the acoustic and thermal insulation ofthis cocoon, open to the nautical sce-nery, is amazing. The construction in ply-epoxy-glass on stringers is very homo-genous, and contributes to the resultthrough its specific qualities. It also pro-vides the ease of use of modern woodcomposites using digital cut-out for thepanels. The floats accommodate 4 dou-ble cabins, the 4 (enormous!) tanks andthe engines.

TRANSFORMED TEST

For our test, the skipper had chosen toinvite a crew with complementarytalents (Françoise, boat owner, CaptainBob’s partner and constant companion,former restaurant owner in Cancale,Jean, ex-gastronomic critic, both hedo-nistic leisure sailors, Olivier, ex-boss of aboatbuilding company, a recent roundthe world sailor with his family and hiscatamaran, Jangada, and a merchantnavy captain, and your humble servant),so this was going to be quite a test! Theskipper’s morale was set fair despite adodgy weather forecast for the evening(‘excellent for a strong wind test with bigseas’ he said!). In the basin at St Malo, Itook the controls to take the boat intothe lock, impressed by the smoothnessof the gearboxes (electric controls). Boththe size and the lateral windage of theEtoile 65’ don’t predispose it to slalo-ming around the marina, but the torqueand the balance favour its capacity formanoeuvring. On the way to Guernsey,we rounded the Minquiers plateau tothe west; the weather was fine, but thebig swell on the beam and the force 6wind forecast a serious deterioration. Itook advantage of the conditions to getto know the Etoile’s entrails, andbecome familiar with the two agricultu-ral 6.7 litre engines. They are modern,turbo-compressed engines (no naturallyaspirated engines can now pass the dra-conian EC standards), but with no elec-tronic management. These engines willthus be easier to maintain and more

◆ Exposure to noise in the aft cabins in the hulls◆ Engine insulation perfectible◆ Absence of engine handrails

◆ Inspired approach to leisure motor multihulls◆ Efficiency, performance and safety at sea◆ Exceptional nautical comfort

THE SKIPPER’S MORALE WAS SET FAIR DESPITEA DODGY WEATHER FORECAST FOR THE EVE-NING: “EXCELLENT FOR A STRONG WIND TEST

WITH BIG SEAS”...

The weather was starting tobecome quite gloomy, but the

Etoile 65 continued on its way inremarkable comfort.

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tolerant of variations in fuel quality.Technical accessibility is good, fire figh-ting is automatic and permanent came-ras monitor the engine room from thesteering position. Ventilation (essentialfor the turbos’ operation) is taken careof by columns whose air intakes aresituated on the flybridge, 6m high! Thetest in beam seas is important on thistype of vessel, and allowed us to checkfor the absence of unpleasant rhythmicrolling. It has a firm grip on the sea, anddidn’t create any oscillation in the wave-length encountered. We scurried alongat 1900 rpm at a stable speed of 10.5knots. Throughout the 50 miles whichseparated us from St Peter Port, thewind and sea continued to increase to

gale force, without disturbing our tas-ting of the local oysters. The intelligentarrangement of the nav station alwaysoffers a sheltered side, ideal for a revi-ving snack, full of flavours. The Etoiletook the sea’s energetic impacts sere-nely, the tunnel didn’t slam, the bowsstarted to generate spray, but nothingreached the deck. The pit stop inGuernsey lasted less than an hour, andwe went back to sea, heading forCherbourg, 35 miles away! The VHFconfirmed the severe gale, still hesita-ting to class it as a storm! At the sameengine revs, the speedo started to dis-play the first record speeds in the surfs;14, 15, 16 knots in the long slides. TheEtoile was leaving a nice straight wake

since we had lowered the autopilot’srudder response from 5 to 3, whichamongst other things demonstratesthe good directional effect of the rud-ders. Inside, the absence of noise andviolent movements was remarkable;the feeling underfoot remainedsmooth and pleasant. The small tidalcoefficient allowed us to reachCherbourg at 8pm, after having cros-sed the Raz Blanchard with a solidforce 7 – 8 behind us! The port’s floa-ting pontoon was a safe shelter: the fil-let of beef came out of the oven, on itsbed of Paimpol haricot beans, accom-panied by a nice Bordeaux, to cele-brate the day’s excitement. Outside,the wind was blowing at 45 knots, butwe remained indifferent to the wea-ther's fury, sheltered in our nauticalchalet and completely insulated fromthe exterior din.The next day, the clock struck eight aswe crossed the roads, on the way toLe Havre, 80 miles to the east. Thestorm named Christian had arrived,the Raz de Barfleur (fearsome!) wascomplicated by 50 knots of wind and aquite chaotic short, lively sea. We now

Captain Bob at the helm of his cat, well protectedin his wheelhouse. Aim: ocean cruising!

The back of the boat accommodates asuperb living area, with a corner settee, abig table for 8 people and even an exteriorgalley.

The exceptional interior volume allows all types of accommodation to be envisaged in the 70m² of the first level.

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THE ARCHITECT’S POINT OF VIEW“Design me a motor multihull, a big one, for myretirement...” This is how the story began. It was tobe a 19.5 metre cat, because of the length of theshed, with the look of a trawler or a working boat.No useless luxury, rationally rustic, easy to buildand maintain. The challenge appealed to me.Changing to motor after sail meant changing myhorizon, my approach, my state ofmind, but not completely, as I was afisherman and mechanic on traw-lers when I was younger, and manythings have stuck! It was obviousthat the boat would be built in ply-wood, laminated with glass/epoxy.For one-off construction, the mate-rial is ideal from more than onepoint of view. Light, strong, easy towork with, what's not to like? (and noelectrolysis or osmosis)...The boat was cut out in the finest detail by a digi-tally controlled cutter, directly from the plans (M-C-N). The manufacturer delivered packages of ite-mized parts, to be assembled as a kit directly inthe yard. Not everything is made of plywood; thestructure is in solid wood (keel and bow parts, strin-gers, crossbeams, deck beams...). I wanted to usespruce from the Jura or the Vosges, but it wasimpossible to obtain it! Unfortunately, the hemlockused is quite heavy (550 kg/m3, whilst spruceweighs around 450 kg/m3). For 8.5 m3 of wood,this alone represents a difference of 850 kg!Now let’s get on to the serious business, the mass,

the shape, the structural calculations, the workingplans... Bob wanted a boat capable of enduringthe bad weather and cold in the Far North (orSouth); we had to keep to the weight estimationwith almost a tonne of thermal insulation anddouble glazing! The diesel: enough to cross theAtlantic at 9 – 10 knots, plus reserves. I calculated

that it would need 14,500 litres (12tonnes), divided into 4 tanks fittedslightly aft of the hull centre (thismoves aft as the boat is loaded).The drinking water, rain water, blackand grey water storage: 3500 litres.The max desired speed was 16knots half laden, which required two260 hp engines, weighing 750 kgeach. A 350 kg generator was alsoplanned. With the structure, the bul-

kheads and all the equipment, distributing it allappropriately so the boat would be correctly trim-med when empty was no picnic!I design my boats with a hull centre quite far aft,and very slim forward sections, which don’t createbig bow waves. My hulls, thus designed, damppitching movements rather well and do not ‘digin’. To finish, Bob didn’t want a cat which slammedunder the bridgedeck. We agreed on a height of1.2 – 1.4 m above the water, depending on theload. To reinforce the joint of the two hulls, I des-igned two parts inclined at 45° under the‘nacelle’, which moreover give some interiorvolumes which are interesting to use.

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had confidence in the Etoile; the surfswere longer, at 17 to 18 knots. The skip-per was in a playful mood and decided toaccelerate; the test revealed the boat’sexceptional agility and ease in handlingthe seas. We touched 21 knots on someof the waves! The trim was dead right,with just enough ‘nose up’, and anappropriate centre of gravity; the trajec-tory was perfect and the crew approvedof the tunnel height. No bridgedeckimpacts! Military ships, cargo vesselsand oil tankers were all heading towardsthe coast to anchor; this general remin-

der confirmed that things were beco-ming serious! The Balta-designed boatwas in its element; the slim forward sec-tions passed through the wavessmoothly, the vertical thrust from thehulls was real, but very progressive. Theheight of the freeboard here finds its jus-tification (designed for high latitudes).The two 45° longitudinal steps whichjoin the bridgedeck to the hulls, runningfrom the forward crossbeam, play theirrole of stiffener-deflector perfectly. Theenergy of the waves in these conditionsdidn’t seem to have any effect on thetrawler cat. The boat’s simple shapesdon’t spoil the hydrodynamic efficiencyat all; the progressive forward slimnessand the flattened very open V shape ofthe sterns give the Etoile superb ‘offpiste’ surfing qualities.This slightly wild stampede was inter-rupted at the entrance to the Baie deSeine, so we could test the boat’s abilityto heave to and motor directly into thewind (over 50 knots!). The exercise wasconclusive; at low speed, the Etoile wasable to confront heavy seas head-onvery well. The return to Le Havre wasmoreover against 35 knots of wind!

CONCLUSION

A nice encounter with this Etoile 65’;beneath its appearance of a workingboat, it hides a rare level of comfort atsea. The two designers’ maturity showsthrough in the boat’s handling and per-sonality. The boat's real nature is hiddenbehind a feigned rusticity - that of anexpedition voyager, combined with anautical 'home sweet home’. The profi-ling of the appendages and the optimi-zation of the propellers, scheduled forthis winter, will increase its speed by10% and allow the very moderateconsumption (estimated as less than 1.5litres/mile at 10.5 knots) to progresstowards reference values (1 litre/mile at8 knots?). The extraordinary acoustic-thermal insulation predisposes this traw-ler cat to cosy winters in countries withharsh climates as well as to tropicalwanderings.

TECHNICAL DESCRIPTION

Shipyard: Mayday BoatArchitect: Patrick BaltaDesigner: Bob EscoffierMaterial: ply/epoxy/glassUnladen weight, equipped: 30tMax. displacement with 14,000 l of fuel: 45tTunnel height: 1.2m/1.4mLength: 19.7m Beam: 8.6mDraft: 1.4mEngines: 2 x 260hp IvecoMax. speed: 16 – 17 knotsEconomical cruising speed: 10 knotsPrice: 800,000 € exc. VAT basic / 1,000,000 € exc.VAT with all the options

OUTSIDE, THE WIND WAS BLOWING AT 45 KNOTS, BUTWE REMAINED INDIFFERENT TO THE WEATHER'S FURY,

SHELTERED IN OUR NAUTICAL CHALET AND COMPLE-TELY INSULATED FROM THE EXTERIOR DIN.

Model: Cat Power Dazcat power 15 RS57’ Queensland 55’ Sunreef 60’

Builder: TOURNIER MARINE MULTIMARINE RIVES SUD FOUNTAINE-PAJOT SUNREEFLength: 17 m 15.90 m 17 16.75 m 18.29 m

Unladen weight: 20 t 13 t 9.2 t 22 t 30 tEngines: 2x300 hp 2x225 hp 2x75 hp 2x435 hp 2x800 hp

T H E C O M P E T I T O R S

The owners’ bedroom: bright and comfortable!

The choice of plywood laminated with glass-epoxy waslogical for the construction of Etoile 65...

In the hulls, we find four nice double cabins, to accommodatefriends and guests.

The engine room is equipped with cameras, to keep aneye on the engines from the steering position...

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I am going to get to know Etoile well, as we are going to live aboard! I believe it suits mewell; it is a boat and a house at the same time! I can cut myself off if there are too manypeople, which is generally difficult aboard! The Etoile for me is above all a way of life.Depending on our coming programme, I am going to be able to transport my occupa-tions – reading, sewing machine, writing, photography, video... I also like cooking; I haveno problem making a little foie gras or lobster armoricaine! A real bed, just like at home,and a wonderful area for entertaining the people we like, and I'm happy!

The ‘nautical patio’, with its well-protected

outdoor galley. The classic woodendinghy with its crane

is obviously part ofthe equipment.

The Etoile 65’s originality comes from the absolute freedom with fitting-out

(the coachroof is not structural, and thevertical hull sides allow ordinary domestic

equipment to be used!

The flybridge steering position, anextraordinary viewpoint for relaxedobservation and discovery in goodweather.

Slim, high bows: the secret of passingsmoothly through the waves

in heavy seas.

Deep rudders forgood directional

effect in roughseas and at high

speed.

Fixed four-bladed propellers.

The skegs play an essential stabilisingrole when beached; under way, theyprotect the propellers and rudders.

The position of the 4 fuel tanks is fundamentalto the boat’s centre of gravity and balance.The 14,000 litres carried give an exceptionalrange.

Sturdy stub keels for beaching, essentialcomplements to its ‘go-anywhere’ vocation.Optimisation of the hydrodynamics of theseappendages is currently in progress.

The wood-epoxy-glass construction on strongstringers and bulkheads gives stiffness, mode-

rate weight and rationalised construction,thanks to digitally cut-out panels.

The 260 hp Ivecoturbo engines haveno computer mana-gement, so they willbe more tolerant ofvarying fuel quality.Their position well

aft means they needno intermediate

propshaft bearings.

THE FAMOUS “WOMAN ACCEPTANCE FACTOR”!

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