Side view: This is a boat that packs in much more space than would normally be expected for a boat of this length.

This new American design must surely be the largest ever yacht to be billed as a 31-footer.

For a start, while most builders use a model designation that overstates the length of their products, the overall length of this boat is only an inch short of 32ft.

It also has generous beam and freeboard that also help to contribute to the volume below decks.
However, one of the most innovative space saving ideas is found in the cockpit.

Here the seats are pushed right out to the sides of the hull, creating a great deal more room than is normally found, and allowing the cockpit to be shorter, which gives more room for the interior.

In doing this it would be easy to finish with an ungainly arrangement that left the cockpit difficult to work, especially with the boat heeled. Marlow Hunter has avoided this by giving the option of a canting wheel pedestal that can be positioned conventionally in the centre of the cockpit, or swung to either side.

There are also excellent fold out foot chocks in the floor that enable crew on the windward side of the boat to brace themselves in position at sea.

Cockpit space is gained through the seats being pushed out to the sides of the hull.

The first thing you notice below decks is the open area at the foot of the companionway – there’s plenty of space for people to move around here in harbour without getting in each others’ way. To starboard is a large linear galley, with a short settee berth ahead of it. Opposite this is a larger L-shape settee and dining table that can be converted to a third double berth.

Both sleeping cabins are of a decent size for a boat of this size, with the forward one being particularly spacious.
While this is clearly not a design that’s optimised to cross oceans, it clearly has a number of attributes that will appeal to those whose main focus is day sailing on a comfortable boat that has space for guests but is economical and hassle free to run.
Hull length 9.73m
Waterline length 9.04m
Beam 3.61m
Draught 1.35 or 1.65m
Displacement – shoal keel 5,443kg
Ballast – shoal keel 1,598kg
Sail area – standard rig 54.0sq m
Sail area – furling rig 50.4sq m