Design and Construction
Britton Chance's brief was unambiguous: a boat that could win races and still serve as a family cruiser. Towing tank tests were conducted at the Stephens Institute in New York under Britton Chance's control to optimize the hull shape for high performance, and the result is a hull whose wetted surface area is minimized for its length. The Chance 37 carries a fin keel with a spade rudder, a masthead sloop rig, and a solid fiberglass hull and deck. At 15,150 pounds displacement with 7,000 pounds of lead ballast, her ballast-to-displacement ratio sits at 46.2 percent, a figure that helps explain the incredible stability owners and the builder both attribute to her. The deck is simple and uncluttered with generously sized fittings making maneuvers easy, and deck hardware spans the brands PROCTOR, BARLOW, GOIOT, LEWMAR, SEABORD, and GAASTRA.
Rig and Handling
The Chance 37 was designed as an IOR 1 ton and easily won the first races it participated in, with Michel Malinosky taking the week in La Rochelle in 1975 aboard one. Her hull was fast downwind for its era, and she sails upwind at 25° to the apparent wind, described as almost unbeatable upwind even today, sailing to within 20° of the true wind. She reaches 16 knots under spinnaker in Force 7 wind while remaining under perfect control, and her stiff canvas makes her a dry boat with great ease in chop. Grounding is possible and commonly practiced with the Chance 37, a telling detail for a fin-keel racer-cruiser meant to be owned and used rather than coddled. A genoa with strong overlap and a total sail area near 608 square feet give the rig its punch, though some versions carry a shorter rig with a 579-square-foot total.
Accommodations
Below, the Chance 37 is laid out for seven comfortable berths and a headroom of 1.85 meters, including in the forward cabin, which alone is a real cabin with two berths, storage underneath, two all-purpose lockers on either side, a special wardrobe with drawers, and a very wide main closet behind it. Behind that forward cabin lies the large bathroom with marine toilet, sink, and shower, ventilated by an opening porthole and drained by a pump. The saloon is very spacious, with a U-shaped dinette to starboard that converts to a double berth and two bunks to port, all 2 meters long; the dinette can be replaced by two bunks at no extra charge. Aft of the dinette to starboard sits an extremely large galley with a 3-burner stove and oven, pressurized water, refrigerator, large icebox, and stainless steel sink. The chart table faces the direction of travel immediately behind the port berths, large enough for a radio transmitter and receiver, with a quarter berth and oilskin locker behind it. The large cockpit easily accommodates 8 people.
Known Issues
The sourced material for the Chance 37 is unusually free of defect reports; no structural, osmotic, or systems failures are documented. The most operationally notable point is that grounding is possible and commonly practiced, which speaks to owner behavior more than latent fault. Shower water is evacuated by a pump and gas bottles are installed in a separate self-draining locker aft of the cockpit, both details that imply routine owner attention rather than inherent weakness.
Refits and Ownership
Ownership centers on a 25 hp Volvo Penta MD2B diesel with alternator that propels the boat at 7 knots easily and offers a range of 70 hours, fed by a 15-gallon tank. With only 95 built between 1973 and 1977, the Chance 37 is a finite population of IOR-bred cruisers whose value lies in the original Britton Chance design intent rather than later changes. The simple, uncluttered deck and generous fittings make maneuvering easy, lowering the barrier to competent single-owner upkeep.
The Verdict
The Wauquiez Chance 37 is a rare thing: a limited-production IOR 1-ton derivative that genuinely bridges racer and family cruiser without apology. Her documented downwind speed, upwind angle, and stability are not marketing vapor but measured traits of a hull shaped in a towing tank under the designer's own control. The accommodations are generous to a fault for the length, and the lack of documented defects keeps the ownership conversation on use, not repair.
Pros
- Almost unbeatable upwind, sailing to within 20° of the wind, and fast downwind for her era
- Incredible stability with a 46.2 percent ballast-to-displacement ratio and dry, stiff ride in chop
- Seven berths, 1.85 m headroom, true forward cabin, and an extremely large galley for 36.92 feet
- Simple, uncluttered deck with generously sized fittings for easy maneuvering
Cons
- Only 95 built between 1973 and 1977, limiting brokerage availability
- Grounding is commonly practiced, implying shoal-minded ownership patterns to vet
- 70-hour engine range on a 15-gallon tank demands disciplined fuel planning
