Design and Construction
Felci's hull carries a plumb bow and an open stern, with a wide-open cockpit that reads more like a beachcat footprint than a conventional 28-footer. The structure is solid fiberglass in both hull and deck, with lead ballast estimated at 1,543 pounds giving a ballast-displacement ratio near 55 percent. The lifting bulb keel is the defining trick: it retracts up to 4 feet 6 inches to ease trailering and drops to 6 feet 6 inches to provide upwind stiffness anchor. Displacement is listed at 2,778 pounds in builder data, though period reviews described an ultralight 2,590 pounds, and the 26-foot waterline with 7-foot-2 beam supports a low displacement-length ratio around 69, a number that explains the boat's liveliness.
Rig and Handling
The fractional sloop carries over 800 square feet of available sail area, and a masthead A-sail flies from a retractable carbon-fiber pole for downwind work. Sail controls are led under the deck, a layout that makes for easy singlehanding and reinforces the shorthanded brief anchor. With a sail-area-displacement ratio near 41 and the lifting keel down, the polars show the Esse 850 is capable of reaching well over 10 knots of boatspeed in 20 knots of wind. The combination of ultralight displacement, a plumb bow, and a deep bulb gives her a planing, responsive feel rather than a heavy-weather grinder's posture.
Accommodations
The Esse 850 is not a cruiser and the available material describes no interior berth count or galley. What it does confirm is a stylish Euro-look that is easy on the eyes and a wide-open cockpit suited to daysailing and one-design racing rather than overnight living. The open stern and trailerable nature point to a boat designed around the ramp and the racecourse, not the anchorages.
The Verdict
The Esse 850 succeeds as a Felci-designed one-design that blends racer pace with genuine shorthanded simplicity. The retracting keel solves the trailering conflict that usually forces a compromise on upwind performance, and the under-deck controls keep a solo sailor in command. She is light, quick, and polished in appearance, but unapologetically a daysailer and racer rather than a cabin cruiser.
Pros
- Trailerable with retracting bulb keel for easy transport and deep-keel upwind stiffness
- Over 10 knots reachable in 20 knots per polars, with ultralight planing hull
- Under-deck sail controls and A-sail pole make shorthanded sailing practical
- European Yacht of the Year recognition; stylish Euro styling
Cons
- No described cruising interior or tankage; daysailer/racer only
- Open stern and wide cockpit favor racing over sheltered comfort
