First 30 Fin keel

Sailboat specifications

The First 30 is a 28’11” (8.8m) cruiser-racer sailboat designed by Bureau Mauric (France). She was built between 1977 and 1981 by Bénéteau (France) with 969 hulls completed. The Fin keel version adopts a classical fin configuration, the easiest option to provide a low center of gravity.

The First 30 has also been marketed as Bénéteau R/C 30.

First 30's main features

Model: First 30
Version: Fin keel
Hull type: Monohull
Category: Cruiser-racer sailboat
Sailboat builder: Bénéteau
Sailboat designer: Bureau Mauric
Sailboat range: First
Sailboat collection: Half Ton class
Country: France
Construction: GRP (glass reinforced polyester):
Single skin fiberglass polyester
Number of hulls built: 969
First built hull: 1977
Last built hull: 1981
Appendages: Keel : fin without bulb
Helm: Single tiller
Rudder: Single semi-spade rudder
Unsinkable: No
Trailerable: No
Former French navigation category: 2
Standard public price ex. VAT (indicative only): N/A €

First 30's main dimensions

Overall length: 29’ 5”8.95 m
Hull length: 28’ 11”8.8 m
Waterline length: 25’ 5”7.75 m
Beam (width): 9’ 5”2.86 m
Waterline beam (width): 7’ 11”2.41 m
Draft: 5’ 8”1.73 m
Mast height from D_WL: 39’ 10”12.12 m
Fore freeboard: 3’ 1”0.95 m
Mid-ship freeboard: 3’ 1”0.95 m
Light displacement (M_LC): 7826 lb3550 kg
Maximum displacement (M_LDC): 8995 lb4080 kg
Ballast weight: 3748 lb1700 kg
Ballast type: Cast iron
French customs tonnage: 7.10 Tx

First 30's rig and sails

Upwind sail area: 524 ft²48.65 m²
Downwind sail area: 922 ft²85.65 m²
Mainsail area: 168 ft²15.65 m²
Genoa area: 355 ft²33 m²
Jib area: 274 ft²25.5 m²
Symmetric spinnaker area: 753 ft²70 m²
I iFore triangle height (from mast foot to fore stay top attachment): 36’ 8”11.2 m
J iFore triangle base (from mast foot to bottom of forestay): 11’ 2”3.4 m
P iMainsail hoist measurement (from tack to head): 32’9.75 m
E iMainsail foot measurement (from tack to clew): 11’3.35 m
Rigging type: Sloop Marconi masthead
Mast configuration: Deck stepped mast
Rotating spars: No
Number of levels of spreaders: 1
Spreaders angle: 0 °
Spars construction: Aluminum spars
Standing rigging: 1x19 strand wire continuous

First 30's performances

HN (French rating) iHN or "Handicap Nationale" is an empirical rating system used in France allowing various monohulls, of different sizes and designs, to race each other fairly. It is particularly suitable for cruiser and cruiser-racer. Therefore, by comparing these values, we can have an indication of the relative speed of 2 boats.: 14.5
Upwind sail area to displacement iThe ratio sail area to displacement is obtained by dividing the sail area by the boat's displaced volume to the power two-thirds. The ratio sail area to displacement can be used to compare the relative sail plan of different sailboats no matter what their size. Upwind: under 18 the ratio indicates a cruise oriented sailboat with limited performances especially in light wind, while over 25 it indicates a fast sailboat.: 225 ft²/T20.91 m²/T
Downwind sail area to displacement iThe ratio sail area to displacement is obtained by dividing the sail area by the boat's displaced volume to the power two-thirds. The ratio sail area to displacement can be used to compare the relative sail plan of different sailboats no matter what their size.: 396 ft²/T36.81 m²/T
Displacement-length ratio (DLR) iThe Displacement Length Ratio (DLR) is a figure that points out the boat's weight compared to its waterline length. The DLR is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement in tons by the cube of one one-hundredth of the waterline length (in feet). The DLR can be used to compare the relative mass of different sailboats no matter what their length: a DLR less than 180 is indicative of a really light sailboat (race boat made for planning), while a DLR greater than 300 is indicative of a heavy cruising sailboat.: 216
Ballast ratio iThe Ballast ratio is an indicator of stability; it is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement by the mass of the ballast. Since the stability depends also of the hull shapes and the position of the center of gravity, only the boats with similar ballast arrangements and hull shapes should be compared. The higher the ballast ratio is, the greater is the stability.: 48 %
Wetted area: 185 ft²17.2 m²
Righting moment @ 1° iThe righting moment is a moment (torque) that tends to restore a boat to its previous position after heeling. Its value corresponds to the torque needed to heel the boat for this angle. Higher the righting moment is for an angle, greater is the stability.: 400 lb.ft55 kg.m
Maximum transverse section: 11 ft²1.02 m²
Critical hull speed iAs a ship moves in the water, it creates standing waves that oppose its movement. This effect increases dramatically the resistance when the boat reaches a speed-length ratio (speed-length ratio is the ratio between the speed in knots and the square root of the waterline length in feet) of about 1.2 (corresponding to a Froude Number of 0.35) . This very sharp rise in resistance, between speed-length ratio of 1.2 to 1.5, is insurmountable for heavy sailboats and so becomes an apparent barrier. This leads to the concept of "hull speed". The hull speed is obtained by multiplying the square root of the waterline length (in feet) by 1.34.: 6.76 knots