2015 Dufour Yachts Drakkar 24

Drakkar 24 essentially is a big dinghy with a ballasted centre plate, aimed at clubs and sailing schools as well as people who want a boat that’s roomy, light, forgiving, undemanding to sail and easy to trail, launch and recover. At the same time Drakkar 24 was designed to be sufficiently engaging to be fun to race.

Weighing a mere 1,900lb (870kg), the Drakkar has a swinging centre plate rather than a vertically-lifting dagger board, and a cockpit with room for eight. She has no main sheet traveller (though one is shown in the early photographs) and a conventional mainsail with a high boom and a conservative amount of roach that allows the use of a back stay.

Combined with the rig of modest size, the moderately proportioned hull and the single rudder, it sends out a clear message: she should be reasonably fast but definitely not furious. I will come to the systems and details, but first: how does she sail? If a boat like this doesn’t behave as she’s designed to, the rest is academic.