Multi 23

“The only difference between men and boys is the size of their toys,” according to the Anglo-Saxon saying. A phrase which perfectly suits the Multi 23! Imagine: a trimaran which from a distance could easily be mistaken for a 60-foot Orma. Quite normal, you could say, as it has the same parentage as a good number of them – the Van Peteghem Lauriot Prévost office, designers of some of the best of the ocean-going trimarans (Banque Populaire V, Groupama 3, BMW Oracle 90 ‘Dogzila’, plus a load of Orma 60s and Open 50s...). It was waiting for us in the harbour at the Kéroman base, in Lorient. Fanny and Jean-Marc from Multisailing, the importers of this Chinese-built boat, were carrying out the final preparations. “Launching is simple,” confided Jean-Marc Le Goueff, “and with a bit of experience, two people can have it in the water in around two hours.” Whilst it was under the crane, I had to have a look underneath. My eyes lingered on the central hull with its slim forward sections. They are associated with tight lines aft; the curves and harmonious shape of the crossbeams; the volume of the floats (200% of the displacement); the absence of antifouling and of course, the object’s beau...