Contessa Club Nederland - A RACER FOR CRUISING

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Contessa 28

A RACER FOR CRUISING

Geschreven door RODGER WITT

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Sailed by RODGER WITT

(Published in Practical Boat Owner, december 1978)

Moving ever up-market, Jeremy Rogers is presently building a 39-foot Contessa - 'the poor man's Admiral's Cupper'. At the other end of the scale, moulds for the good-looking but uncompetitive Contessa 25 have gone to Sweden while, as everyone knows, the classic 26 stays nearer home at Maclan Marine's diminutive yard, just round the corner, in Lymington.

So today, the 28 is the smallest Contessa he makes. Clearly, Mr. Rogers, whoa started out building cold-moulded Folkboat, has gome a long way indeed. Add in his development with vacuum-injection moulding on the OOD 34 plus numerous racing successes, and it's no small wonder that he commands such respect.
In resent years, competition and Doug Peterson have been dominating influences but, for all that, production boats still exude good taste, and the 28 is no exception.
IN contrast to your zappy, boat show interiors full of striped cloth and sharp cirners, hers has silky smooth teak, plush, contoured berths, and not a gimmick in sight.
Her character is just as refined. She stems from a long line of successful racers - boats like Moonshine come quickly to mind - but avoids extrmes, has a chunky, flat-bottomed keel for drying-out alongside, and should appeal as a fast, able cuiser. A strong, powerful boat which revels to windward, she feels buoyant and eager.

Early boats were somewhat heavy to steer, but a new rudder seems to hve solved the problem, and my particular demo boat was easy to handle. Mind you, unlike some craft which tend to 'stick in a groove'on the wind, Contessa responds to every twitch of the tiller or touch of the sheets. She's not skittish or awkward, merely alive.
I tried her in gusty conditions with two reefs, and felt thoroughly relaxed. The slab reefing system itself is worthy of note. An efficient winch (one of eight on board) harnessed to neat, streamlined jammers shows forethrought, even if someone should have set up the reefing lines in advance. No matter, having sorted that out, everything worked smoothly and well. The coachroof mounted mainsheet track is another good idea and saves spce in the cockpit, but I thought the engine controls vulnerable. They might be better housed in a recess. On the other hand, proper liferaft stowage in teh cockpit is a plus, so is excelent visibility at the tiller.

A rather conventional layout

Down below, we find a Vee berth forard, then moving aft, a toilet compartement complete with hanging locker and vanitory unit. The saloon has 'port and starboard' leather-look settees, the starboard one of which converts to a double - with a quarter berth to starboard just inside the companionway, and neat corner galley opposite. A chart table lives on rails and stows under the bridgedeck.

Auxiliary power comes in the shape of a Petter Mini Twin 12 hp diesel coupled to a folding prop which engages with a 'clunk' and takes time to bite in astern.
On the construction front, after a single layer of chopped strand mat had been laid up on the gel coat, combinations of the mat and Linrove are built up - althought no figures were vailable to indicate the final thickness. Either way, the builders bond in three separate interior mouldings to add stiffness and make fitting-out easier. The bottum one even incorporates engine beds.
Good news here is that since Contessa 28 may be had part complete, partical boat owners can enjoy the time-saving benefits of this sophisticated arrangement. So long as you like the layout...
The price in part complete form is £ 5,750 before VAT - which buys a bonded hull and deck complete with interior mouldings, encapsulated ballast, rudder and backing pads, all fitted to the boat. In addition, components such as hatches, windows and locker lids arrive loose, and drawings are thrown in for free.
Complete boats start at £ 13,250; sixty five were sold in the first twelve months of production. As well as the new rudder, changs made during that time includd alloy instead of wood for toerails and window frames, plus more grab rails below. Future mods may include an injection-moulded deck, bit the time thisappears in print.
To get right up to date, write to Jeremy Rogers at Waterloo Road, Lymington, Hampshire.

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