Sailing World named the Figaro 3 its 2019 Boat of the Year. The class remains a strict one-design: the builder guarantees that the boats are the same from bow to stern, give or take a few kilos according to Sailing World.
Design and Construction
The Figaro 3 has a ballast-free foam-sandwich hull made from fiberglass and polyester infused resin. Its hull form offers better performance than that of its ballasted predecessor, the FB2, while the specifications state that the new boat matches the earlier model for reliability.
The 2.5-meter keel is cast iron, with an iron-encased lead bulb and a straight blade designed to create minimum drag. Beneteau chose not to protect it with a fiberglass shell, reasoning that such shells eventually leak and require repairs.
The deck and hull use polyester infusion with a combination of CoreCell and balsa core, placing structure where loads concentrate. A full bow section helps prevent the boat from tripping over itself in a seaway. Volume in the ends also helps the 35-footer sail like a longer boat.
The side foils are two unmistakable, arcing carbon wings that project from slots in the topsides. They required a major investment in tooling and are no gimmick. Their inward-facing profile reduces drift and improves righting moment without adding motion. They don’t lift the hull clear of the water; instead, they help straighten the boat upright.
Beneteau claims that weight differences from one molded boat to another remain within 40 kilos. Across the first 20 boats, the carbon-fiber rigs varied by just 50 grams, while rudder variance remained under a kilogram.
Rig, Foils, and Handling
The setback mast, similar in concept to IMOCA 60 practice, helps balance the boat under sail and makes room for high-performance sails and a bowsprit. The carbon-fiber rig has a wide shroud base and carries a larger, more extensive sail plan than the previous boat.
Solo sailors race the Figaro 3 with a square-top mainsail, genoa, jib, and 105-square-meter masthead spinnaker, along with a small gennaker for speed in light air. Test sailors considered the rig the right size for the boat and praised its strong, positive grip upwind. The leeward foil’s bite makes the boat unusually stiff on that point of sail.
In roughly 10 knots, the active foil creates a sensation of lightening the boat while adding righting moment. Twin rudders provide powerful steering under the large sail plan.
The foils are fully deployed off the dock and adjusted independently through a block-and-aft purchase to the cockpit. Each has about five inches of fore-and-aft travel. In light air, the setting is neutral to forward. Foil-adjustment lines lead to winches, while tack lines and halyards run through banks of jammers.
The centralized deck layout keeps controls close to the cockpit, reducing the time a shorthanded crew must spend exposed on deck. Sets, douses, tacks, and jibes proved easy with four hands, or with two hands and an autopilot.
Sail Inventory and Onboard Equipment
The class sail inventory specified for Boat of the Year includes:
- A 440-square-foot North Sails 3Di square-top mainsail
- J2 and J3 jibs
- A furling code zero
- A5- and A2-sized Airex spinnakers
The Figaro 3 also carries the Seanapps mobile application and onboard unit. This allows an owner to check battery charge and tank levels, and to plan or review routes by smartphone.
Accommodations
There’s no attempt at comfort beneath the low-slung deck. Sailing World describes the interior as a white, wet, and noisy fiberglass cavern, with only the bare essentials needed for shorthanded distance racing.
Two adjustable, Class A-compliant piper berths are more likely to hold gear than sleeping crew. This is a place to collapse from exhaustion, not somewhere to lounge or relax.
The Verdict
The Figaro 3 is a serious shorthanded racing weapon. It brought foiling to one-design production sailing without sacrificing the predictability of class racing.
It’s brutally ascetic below and demands a crew comfortable working with carbon wings and centralized controls. In return, its stiffness, added righting moment, and big-boat feel make it a landmark design.
Pros
- First production foiling one-design monohull, built to a guaranteed identical class standard
- Ballast-free hull with a slender, deep keel and minimum-drag straight blade
- Side foils add righting moment and reduce leeway without extra motion
- Setback carbon rig with a wide shroud base and a large, versatile sail plan
- Twin rudders and centralized cockpit controls suit solo and doublehanded racing
Cons
- No comfort belowdecks; the interior is a wet, noisy cavern intended for gear and exhausted sailors
- Keel has no fiberglass shell and relies on bare metal for protection
- Foils adjust only fore and aft, and not under load
