July 2009

new boat:

Leopard 40

Here’s the open-water proof. Tenthousand miles, two ocean crossingsand this 12-month-old Leopard 40 is inpristine condition, boat-show ready.Literally the only sign of the extensivecruise was slight fading of the headsailsuncover wrap.Owners Linda and Paul Blackbeardtold me they averaged an impressive 6.2knots point-to-point crossing both theAtlantic and Pacific Oceans. They sailedtradewind routes, so generally hadquartering seas. In lighter winds theirspeed was boosted with the optionalgennaker. Linda and Paul experiencedno disquieting moments.On quizzing them about bridgedeckclearance, which I measured at 54cm,they could recall only about threewave slams. That’s about one or so perocean crossing, so you have to believethat designers Gino Morelli and PeterMelvin have got it right for this design.It’s performance out at sea that counts,not artificial prescriptions of whatbridgedeck clearance should be. PaulBlackbeard’s tip for catamaran cruisingsuccess and safety: reef down early.That way you are not stressing the crewor the boat or going anywhere near itsstability limits. They carried, but didn’thave occasion to deploy, a parachutesea-anchor.The test boat was equipped with theoptional larger engines (29 instead of 21hp Yanmars), davits, RIB dinghy,outboard, liferaft, Fiorentino parachute-anchor, spare anchor/chain, AGMbatteries, GPS/chartplotter, stereo, TV,VHF, instruments, EPIRB, autopilot,icemaker, gennaker, storm jib, windgenerator, solar panels, 220V 50Hzshore power/charger/inverter, poweredwinch at the helm — to name just a few.Leopard Catamarans has an excellentpolicy of pricing a base boat, keepingthat standard on the production line,and then having a lengthy string of factory options. The base price of theLeopard 40 is US$349,000 ex-factory plus water delivery (US$40,000) andGST. All the options are presented alongwith prices in a simple spreadsheet, so you can play on your PC with optionsto suit your needs and budget. UsingUS dollars brings some consistency to global pricing as we have seencurrencies have had a roller-coasterride in recent times. Of course, you canhave dealer-fitted options and then lateradd your own after-market options, sothere are many ways to skin this cat.

On the water

Test day in Moreton Bay, out fromManly boat harbour, produceddisappointing 6-9 knots breezes. But thefigures were impressive nonetheless:6.1 knots water speed at 70˚ apparentin nine knots true wind. Then close-hauled at 45° apparent with a seven-knot true wind we made an excellent 5.5knots water speed. The polar diagramindicates nine knots water speed at 80°apparent in a 16-knot breeze. With theoptional gennaker in the same breezekick that up to 10.2 knots water speed at95°. Tacks with the Edson cable steeringwere reliable, but in true cruising stylethe autopilot was engaged for effortlesssailing once on track. I noticed theocean-experienced crew used a barber-hauler to help control headsail shape inthe light wind conditions.

Roger Priest

checks out the latest import from overseas —the South-African-built Leopard 40 luxury catamaran.

Proofof the pudding

ABOVE The starboard owner’s double berth is comfortable and pleasant to be in. Lots of wood.Lots of cupboards; RIGHT The luxurious starboard owner’s bathroom. There’s a large bowstorage locker behind the hanging towel.

July 2009

new boat:

Leopard 40

The twin 29hp Yanmar saildrivespushed us along at 7.1 knots. Thiswas at 2200rpm, the long establishedcruising optimum on this boat for thosenecessary periods under power. Pushedto the 3200rpm limit, the Leopard 40made 8.8 knots. Expect not much lesswith the standard 21hp motors in goodconditions. But I would be opting for the29hp donks, secure in the knowledge thatthe boat would, in adverse or emergency situations, still make adequate headway into the dreaded combination of heavy head seas, current and strong winds.

On deck

Striking, and making the marqueimmediately identifiable, are the threesteps-cum-sunvisors right across thesaloon forward windows. They provideexcellent shade inside the saloon andmake stepping up to the cabin-topalmost a stroll — certainly very friendly for aging baby-boomers like me. There’senough space round them to shed solidwater rapidly so no concern from thataspect. The bows are good lookingfrom all aspects and of average height,happily avoiding the trend toward highbows (with increased side-windage andleeway) among some current Europeancats. I would have liked a safety rail/ wire across the bow, but this is an easy item to retro-fit.The trampoline is large — good forsafety — reducing bridgedeck weight,windage and, to coin a term, waterage.It is extra-well secured with doubled-upcordage in no fewer than six separatesections, freeing it from the commonproblem of a single failure causing thewhole tramp to let go.A Quick Hector horizontal anchorwinch (model HC1012D) of adequatepulling capacity comes standard. Itallows freefall anchoring via a sheetwinch handle, features a warping drumfor seamanship, and handheld control.The anchor comes home through a holesimilar to that seen on many high-speed powerboats. This effectively restricts your choice of anchor to thosewithout roll-bars. I would like to see theunderdeck moulding altered such thatany type of anchor could be housed —similar to the set-up found on largerFountaine-Pajot cats. The Leopard 40

FAR LEFT Fore-and-aftbench seat combineswith the semi-circular table seatingfor great outdoorsentertaining. Note thatthe helmsperson canconverse easily with allin the back deck.LEFT The saloon hasgreat ergonomics forthis sized cat. Notethe shade from stepsacross the forwardwindows.The Leopard 40shows off easyboat speed in just eight knotsof wind.

July 2009

new boat:

Leopard 40

ships without anchor unless you specify a factory option (Delta or Britany). TheAustralian dealer has opted to supply a60lb Manson plough as standard. Greatsize but many better holding-power andweed-penetrating choices around nowsuch as the Sarca Excel.There are four foredeck lockers —anchor and anchor winch centrally onthe fore-and-aft line and a large lockerto each side. These latter two providecopious room for a spare anchor, chain,gas bottle, fenders, lines, gennaker andthe like.Stepping up to the saloon cabin-topgives ready and safe access to the boomand to mast reefing points. From thesaloon cabin top I stepped easily aft andhigher again onto the solid back canopy. You should only need to go there very occasionally to access the aft end of theboom. Mainsail reefing is via two slabswith the reefing line led aft to the helm.The small vertical gap between salooncabin top and back-deck canopy is greatfor helm viewing — either sitting orstanding – and can be optionally filledwith clears but this Leopard 40’s ownersdidn’t see a need for them in tropicaland subtropical cruising, preferring thefree ventilation alternative. They reportthe boat to be relatively dry spray-wisewith only horizontal driving rain to bea problem at the helm. There is a well-designed large sliding hatch above thehelm in the hard-top. It is opened to view sail shape. You couldn’t help liking the back-decklayout. A great deal of thought as toergonomics has gone into it. Seated atthe helm you can talk to all down loweron the back deck and, with a bit of a leandown, to those in the main saloon andgalley. What a boat for a party! OwnersLinda and Paul report 20-30 people tobe no problem in a safe anchorage. Ireckon at least 16 would be comfortably seated in a combination of back deckand saloon. The boat is designed for10 max at sea. There is a large slidingsee-through door to the saloon. It hasa central securing point for passageunderway in cold or foul weather. Theonly limitation to the layout, with itsstarboard high-set helm, is viewingwhen coming alongside port-side-to.The boat is sufficiently high-sided toneed a step when accessing either sidedeck from a marina finger. No problem,of course, if you’ve backed into a berth,

OPINION

Likes

• State-of-the-art design in terms of hull

shape, motion, efficiency and handling.

• Excellent value for money and resale

value.

• Proven boat-builders with a long

successful cat-building history and anexpanding future.

• Great to see a cruising-ready smart

alternator regulator to minimise dailyengine running for battery charging.

• Superb back-deck ergonomics and helm

with excellent sun protection for helm.

• Replacable/sacrificial keels.

Dislikes

• I would have preferred the transoms to

offer side access on the inside for easeof unloading heavy items from the dinghyin remote cruising anchorages.

• Anchor securing hole not positioned

to allow all types of new-generationanchors, especially roll-bar types.

• Smallish sewage holding tanks. I would

like to see 100 litres minimum per headand to see them made from rotomoulded

plastic as recommended by US sewage

guru Peggy Hall.

TOP The helm hasexcellent sun shelter andvisibility. Most controllines are led to the helm.LEFT The optionalfibreglass davits arehigh-set and strong andhave proved themselvesat sea, with a cover overthe dinghy.BELOW Two centrelinehatches give accessto ground tackle andwinch. No roll-baranchors with this set-up.