Jeanneau Sun Fast 39

A Jeanneau cruiser-racer from Jacques Fauroux, no longer built, for racing sailors who want three double cabins and a proper galley as well as speed.

Three double cabins, two shower rooms and a teak interior by Andrew Winch aren't what you'd expect on a boat drawn first and foremost to race, but that's what the Sun Fast 39 offers. Jeanneau no longer builds her. She measures 11 m overall, draws 1.95 m and is rated for 6 people.

Her designer, Jacques Fauroux, was a helmsman and tactician as well as a yacht designer, and a seven times World Champion. The hull lines owe a lot to his results in major European regattas. Jeanneau's background in custom race boats and one-off multihulls shaped how she was laid out and what she was built from. The sail area is large, so she responds and accelerates quickly through manoeuvres, and the optional lead keel was there for owners who wanted more. The rigging was over-specified on purpose to leave a wide safety margin.

On deck, little gets in your way. Handrails are let into channels in the coachroof moulding, the chainplates are recessed and the vents sit under stainless steel domes, so there's less to catch a foot on. With the mainsheet and its track up on the coachroof, almost every trimming job can be handled from the cockpit. You steer with a wheel, the engine controls are tucked in by the helm out of the weather, and the cockpit is finished in teak with four big lockers for sails and kit. There's a bathing platform in the transom too.

Below, the saloon is set to port around a big C-shaped settee and the dining table, which leaves a clear route forward to the forecabin. The galley faces it, with oven, hob, fridge and double sink, and pressurised hot water was an option. Each cabin has room to stand, an upholstered seat, and good stowage and hanging space. The aft pair are mirror images, each with its own shower and WC that you can reach from the cabin or the saloon.

The joinery is solid teak and teak-faced panels, and the curved laminated wood trim gives you something to hold when it's rough. Plenty of windows and hatches bring in light and air.