Joy Smith's Blog

In the short time we’ve owned our Farr 50 Pilothouse Yacht, JOY FOR ALL has truly lived up to her name from her high tech performance and innovative systems to her beautifully laid out interior.

Gil and I had owned five sailboats over the past 30 years, and planned to squeeze a few more out of our Freedom 45; but, as most boat dealers will agree, a boat is never big enough, fast enough or spiffy enough. The decision to buy a “fancier” boat was sealed the day we went sailing with friends and the green eye of envy made us crave stow booms and furling sails. Rather than upgrade the Freedom’s huge mainsail, I said, “Maybe we should consider a newer boat.” Those words lead to Farr…

The Farr 50 is the smallest boat manufactured by Boat Sales International (BSI), who achieved their goal of building a fast, seaworthy, live-aboard boat that could be single-handed. In less than ten years, BSI’s Bruce Farr-designed yachts have established a solid European foothold, and are now gaining popularity in the United States market.

We placed our order, and then spent the winter salivating over the construction photos sent from the BSI factory in Lysekil, Sweden—a west coast fishing village situated in the famed Orust boat building region. When we pushed for a delivery date, our BSI project manager, Martin, emailed us, “She’ll be in the water and ready for sea trials in June, when the weather is warm and the women are topless.”

Scandinavian summers are not warm. Bundled up in long underwear, heavy jackets and gloves, Gil and I stood on the foredeck of our just-launched baby in the BSI yard and, Swede-style, dribbled champagne over the bow and swigged the rest. Hand-laid teak decking coats the topside, and there is so much deck storage that we’ve sold our dock box. The forward locker is large enough to hold a boatload of refugees!

We were ready to get underway. At first, Gil paled when he saw that getting the boat out of its slip would be dicey, but as the Lewmar retractable bow thruster did its job, he flashed me a cheesy grin.
Clearing the marina, with the lines set on electric winches, the sails unfurled with the push of buttons on the Whitlock steering pedestal--Genoa Up/Genoa Down; Main Out/Main in. Thanks to the Selden hydraulic in-mast and roller furling systems, Gil could handle both the helm and the sail trim without me. I felt like a boat princess. This boat flies--she has topped 11 knots. She’s a dry, balanced boat built to scoff at the roughest of seas.

On that blustery “summer” day, we ran the generator, tested out the inverter, and kept the Escabacher diesel heat going so weenies, like me, could sneak below to warm up. The boat also has reverse cycle AC. Later, we had cushions and padded backrests made for cockpit comfort, as well as a dodger, bimni, and cockpit enclosure to protect against sun, wind, and bad weather.

The openness of the pilot house, with its large wrap-around windows, afforded me a clear view of the surrounding waters. If I chose, I could’ve operated the boat from the interior steering station, equipped with a Raymarine autopilot and a combo radar/chart plotter whose functions are duplicated in the cockpit.
The creamy leather seating we opted for adds warmth to the hand-crafted African mahogany interior, which glows at night with a choice of lighting options.

Corian covers the galley countertops, and also is used in the heads. A conveniently situated saloon cabinet will provide safe stowage for our flat screen TV and DVD player.

JOY FOR ALL has three enclosed sleeping areas: two master berths with heads and showers, and a sea berth that offshore crew has dubbed, “the rat hole.” We opted for vacuum-flush heads---no pumping, no smell, and had BSI install a Spectra watermaker. At the companionway, the step-down galley leads to our aft cabin, which has a desk--finally, a dedicated writing area aboard.

I ventured out into the cockpit when we stopped at Fiskebackskil Island for lunch. The boat docked so easily that we needed no shore assistance. Later, Gil, wedged the boat back into its Lysekil slip, as if it were a BMW.

We moved aboard for the weekend, cooking meals on the Force 10 stove, stashing food and drink in the upright Isotherm refrigerator, and settling the Aquavit (Swedish liquor) into the top-opening freezer, which can also be set as a refrigerator. In the galley, we had BSI replace two sliding upper cabinet doors with a drop down style for optional counter space. Evenings, we wandered the deck with cocktails, settled in to read books on the C-shaped settee in the raised dining area, and then cuddled in our berth with the heat on.

Monday morning arrived too quickly, and it was time to leave JOY FOR ALL behind to be readied for shipping to the United States. Gil’s only regret was that Martin had lied to him—he saw no topless women here. A few weeks later, our baby, strapped to the deck of a huge, transatlantic paper carrier, arrived at Port Jacksonville, Florida.
The story goes on…
We have owned JOY FOR ALL less than six months and already have logged thousands of offshore miles on her. We picked her up mid-July in Florida, outfitted her for offshore travel, and then sailed her the 900 miles home to Mystic, Connecticut, arriving in time to do some local sailing before summer’s end.

In November, we took her down to Hampton, Virginia, linking with the Caribbean 1500 for the southern leg to Tortola, BVI. By Memorial Day, JOY FOR ALL will have returned home to the northeast. Cape Cod with all its islands and coves is a comfortable sail from Mystic, but we may head up to craggy Maine. Who knows?
We continue to delight in JOY FOR ALL. With her, Gil and I can cruise anywhere, easily and quickly; while enjoying the comforts of “home.”
Farr 50 Pilot House Yachts
Specifications
Length Overall 51’ 11”
Length of Hull 50’ 6”
Waterline Length 43’ 10”
Beam 15’ 5”
Draft Optional 6’ 6”
Displacement 37, 400 lbs.
Ballast 13, 200 lbs.
Fuel 145 gal.
Fresh Water 114 gal.
I 67’ 3”
J 20’ 4”
P 58’ 4”
E 20’ 4”
Mainsail Area 689 ft.
140% Genoa Area 915 ft.
Engine Yanmar 4JH3 73.6w 100hp @3800rpm
Latitudes & Attitudes Nov 2005