I also had the pleasure of meeting Hugh in CT and sailing with him while commissioning the
sails. Since I am in the market looking for a
boat, I have traveled to
South Africa in order to look at the SFR 50 and visit the factory. I did it since I find the Lavranos design of the SFR 50 appealing. It is an able cruiser with lot of space and good tank holding capacity. The weight distribution is correct in my eyes, as most of it is under the gravity center. It also offers very good protection at the
helm station. The
boat sails great, better than most of the standard
boats I have tested (Leopard, Bali, FP, Maverick..), in par with others and a bit slower than the performance
boats (Catana 47,
Outremer 51). Probably the correct mix. Wayfinder is a great boat and I admire Hugh, being an experienced and able sailor, for knowing exactly what he wants and then staying near the
builder, feet on the ground during most of the building process, ensuring that he gets it while refining the small details. I believe his positive attitude and direct relations with the fine team of SFR, made this
project successful so far. As he wrote me from St. Helena he is very happy with the boat.
I was also glad to meet so many fine boat builders in South-Africa. Having refining my view after visiting their factories, looking at their processes, meeting with owners eye to eye and getting a feel for their client orientation there is a pretty good chance that i will by my boat there.