POGO 44 ON TEST
WITH THIS FAST CRUISING 44 COMBINING WICKED PACE, FIRST CLASS HANDLING AND COMFORT, HAS THE INNOVATIVE FRENCH YARD PRODUCED THE MOST REFINED POGO YET?
With wicked pace, first class handling and comfort, has the innovative French yard produced the most refined Pogo yet?
Bearing away around the Îles de Glenans off the south Brittany coast we unfurl the gennaker and accelerate smoothly from 8 knots to 11, with occasional bursts reaching 13 knots. There’s no noticeable hump to get over when we start planing – instead there’s just a smooth and consistent acceleration as we quietly leave the stern wave well behind.
Although the apparent wind is still well forward of the beam this is not a white knuckle ride. There’s only three of us on board, we’re not on a raceboat, and are miles away from the edge of control. Quite simply, the Pogo 44 is unlike any other pure cruising yacht of its size.
This is the latest model in the yard’s five-strong range of ultra-fast cruisers that it has been quietly refining for the past three decades. Unlike most performance cruisers they are designed without regard to type-forming rating rules for racing. They are therefore significantly lighter than most, yet have tremendous stability that helps confer an enormous power/weight ratio.
The unusually long centreboard is an integral part of the concept. When lowered the Pogo 44 has a colossal 3.10m (10ft 2in) draught, placing the ballast very low down and therefore reducing the amount of lead required. The yard says this saves around 650kg, or roughly 10% of displacement, relative to a fin and bulb keel of conventional draught. Yet raising the centreboard reduces draught to just 1.38m (4ft 6in) – an important benefit for cruising.
This is one of many features that exemplify the insight, experience and knowledge that has gone into creating an extremely well thought out design. Equally, of the 200plus boats I’ve sailed, none have as many comfortable helm positions as the Pogo 44. The most obvious is sitting outboard, on the side deck aft of the coamings while steering with the tiller extension. It’s a secure and comfortable location with good visibility.
However, it quickly becomes clear the tillers are angled inboard, allowing the driver to sit on the aft end of the cockpit benches, holding the tiller itself. This is the favoured position of Pogo’s founder Christian Bouroullec and benefits from protection from the coamings while being closer to the shelter offered by the optional sprayhood. The rig is well aft in the boat, so there’s a clear view of the headsail luff, even though you’re sitting well inboard, while the cockpit table is perfectly placed to use as a very substantial footrest.
DESIGNED FOR HANDLING
Sailing downhill in a big breeze you could stand between the tillers, steering with one of the extensions, poised to make big course changes when necessary. My favourite, however, is outboard on top of the coamings, which are shaped to maximise both comfort and security.
Few boats this size have tiller steering, but it’s entirely appropriate for the Pogo 44. The rudders are high aspect and very efficient, so the helm is light and beautifully balanced. An advantage of very light displacement is a general reduction of loads, so it’s easy to forget that, despite having enormously more volume, this boat is 300kg lighter than a J/122. Twin wheels are offered.
Hull shape is typically Pogo, with a flat run aft and very little rocker. Waterline beam is relatively narrow aft, but the aggressive chines dig in quickly when the boat starts to heel. The full bow sections are moderate by today’s standards and this is not a radical scow bow design.
When fully lowered the centreboard provides an impressively efficient deep fin for sailing close-hauled, so upwind performance is better than might be expected from a design that many assume is optimised for reaching. Sailing upwind, with the first reef in the main and full headsail, the boat performed flawlessly in a wind over tide chop with gusts towards 20 knots, holding a respectable angle and averaging 7.5 knots. Thanks to the massive stability it proved very docile even in gusts, with a comfortable level of heel that doesn’t make the wide cockpit feel precarious.
Inevitably there was some slamming where the sea state was at its most confused, but this was not a violent boat-stopping motion, more a gentle bounce that rarely reduced speed significantly.
‘Of the 200-plus boats I’ve sailed, none have as many comfortable helm positions as the Pogo 44’