Review of Boothbay Challenger

The hull is made of fibreglass. Generally, a hull made of fibreglass requires only a minimum of maintenance during the sailing season.

The boat is equipped with 1892.0 liter fresh water capacity.

The Boothbay Challenger is equipped with a ketch rig. A ketch rig is generally considered easier to handle, because the sails are smaller, and because it can sail on most points to the wind with one sail completely taken down for repair or while reefing. The sail configuration of a ketch allows for better comfort and stability when sailing downwind or on a broad reach.

CentreBoard

The Boothbay Challenger is equipped with a centreboard keel. A centreboard keel is a pivoting lifting keel, allowing to sail both coastal and inland waters.

The keel is made of lead. Compared with iron, lead has the advantage of being 44% heavier, which allows a smaller keel and hence less water resistance and higher speed.

The boat can enter most marinas as the draft is just about 1.62 - 1.72 meter (5.31 - 5.61 ft) dependent on the load. See immersion rate below.

Boothbay Challenger may be equipped with a Perkins 6.354 diesel engine at 115 hp (85 kW). Calculated max speed is about 6.9 knots.

The fuel tank has a capacity of 1514.0 liters (399 US gallons, 333 imperial gallons).

What is Capsize Screening Formula (CSF)?

The capsize screening value for Boothbay Challenger is 1.60, indicating that this boat could - if evaluated by this formula alone - be accepted to participate in ocean races.

What is Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed?

The theoretical maximal speed of a displacement boat of this length is 8.6 knots. The term "Theoretical Maximum Hull Speed" is widely used even though a boat can sail faster. The term shall be interpreted as above the theoretical speed a great additional power is necessary for a small gain in speed.

The immersion rate is defined as the weight required to sink the boat a certain level. The immersion rate for Boothbay Challenger is about 386 kg/cm, alternatively 2166 lbs/inch.
Meaning: if you load 386 kg cargo on the boat then it will sink 1 cm. Alternatively, if you load 2166 lbs cargo on the boat it will sink 1 inch.

What is L/B (Length Beam Ratio)?

The l/b ratio for Boothbay Challenger is 3.87.

What is a Ballast Ratio?

The ballast ratio for Boothbay Challenger is 22%.

What is Displacement Length Ratio?

The DL-ratio for Boothbay Challenger is 349 which categorizes this boat among 'heavy cruisers'.

SA/D (Sail Area Displacement ratio)
Indicates how fast the boat is in light wind:
- Cruising Boats have ratios 10-15
- Cruiser-Racers have ratios 16-20
- Racers have ratios above 20
- High-Performance Racers have ratios above 24
Sail-area/displacement ratio (SA/D ratio): 17.18

When buying anti-fouling bottom paint, it's nice to know how much to buy. The surface of the wet bottom is about 78m² (839 ft²).
Based on this, your favourite maritime shop can tell you the quantity you need.

Note: If you use a paint roller you will need more paint than if you use a paintbrush.

If you need to renew parts of your running rig and is not quite sure of the dimensions, you may find the estimates computed below useful.

This section is reserved boat owner's modifications, improvements, etc. Here you might find (or contribute with) inspiration for your boat.

Do you have changes/improvements you would like to share? Upload a photo and describe what you have done.

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If you have any comments to the review, improvement suggestions, or the like, feel free to contact us. Criticism helps us to improve.