The Lagoon 37 is a French

catamaran A Formula 16 beachable catamaran Powered catamaran passenger ferry at Salem, Massachusetts, United States A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a multi-hulled watercraft featuring two parallel hulls of equal size. It is a geometry-stab ...

sailboat A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails and is smaller than a sailing ship. Distinctions in what constitutes a sailing boat and ship vary by region and maritime culture. Types Although sailboat terminology ...

that was designed by Van Peteghem/Lauriot-Prevost as a

cruiser A cruiser is a type of warship. Modern cruisers are generally the largest ships in a fleet after aircraft carriers and amphibious assault ships, and can usually perform several roles. The term "cruiser", which has been in use for several hu ...

and first built in 1991.

Production

The design was initially built by

Jeanneau Jeanneau is a French boatyard in Les Herbiers, in the Vendée département, which has produced yachts since 1957. It was founded by Henri Jeanneau, a hardware store owner, who began by producing power boats. Jeanneau specializes in monohulls, ...

in France, through a new division,

Lagoon catamaran Lagoon catamaran is a brand of twin-hulled boats that are designed and produced in Bordeaux, France. The company began in 1984 as a specialist multihull offshoot of Jeanneau, a volume monohull constructor. Jeanneau was subsequently purchased in 1 ...

, which later became part of Construction Navale Bordeaux (CNB) and then the Beneteau Group. In the United States it was produced by

TPI Composites Pearson Yachts was a sailboat manufacturer founded by Everett Pearson and Clinton Pearson in 1956. One of the first fiberglass sailboat manufacturers, they grew rapidly during the 60s and 70s, while also developing and designing new boats. Howe ...

. A total of 41 boats were built between 1991 and 1998, but it is now out of production.

Design

The Lagoon 37 is a recreational catamaran, built predominantly of

balsa ''Ochroma pyramidale'', commonly known as the balsa tree, is a large, fast-growing tree native to the Americas. It is the sole member of the genus ''Ochroma''. The tree is famous for its wide usage in woodworking, with the name ''balsa'' being ...

-cored bi and triaxial cloth

fiberglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass (Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass cloth ...

, with isophthalic resin. It has a 7/8 fractional

sloop A sloop is a sailboat with a single mast typically having only one headsail in front of the mast and one mainsail aft of (behind) the mast. Such an arrangement is called a fore-and-aft rig, and can be rigged as a Bermuda rig with triangular sa ...

rig. The hulls have

raked stem The stem is the most forward part of a boat or ship's bow and is an extension of the keel itself. It is often found on wooden boats or ships, but not exclusively. Description The stem is the curved edge stretching from the keel below, up to ...

reverse transom A transom is the vertical reinforcement which strengthens the stern of a boat. This flat termination of the stern is typically above the waterline. The term was used as far back as Middle English in the 1300s, having come from Latin ''transvers ...

s with steps to swimming platforms, twin internally mounted spade-type

rudder A rudder is a primary control surface used to steer a ship, boat, submarine, hovercraft, aircraft, or other vehicle that moves through a fluid medium (generally aircraft, air or watercraft, water). On an aircraft the rudder is used primarily to ...

s controlled by a

wheel A wheel is a circular component that is intended to rotate on an axle Bearing (mechanical), bearing. The wheel is one of the key components of the wheel and axle which is one of the Simple machine, six simple machines. Wheels, in conjunction wi ...

and fixed fin

keel The keel is the bottom-most longitudinal structural element on a vessel. On some sailboats, it may have a hydrodynamic and counterbalancing purpose, as well. As the laying down of the keel is the initial step in the construction of a ship, in Br ...

s. It displaces and carries no ballast. The boat has a draft of with the standard keels. The boat is fitted with twin British

Perkins Engines Perkins Engines Company Limited, a subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc since 1998, is primarily a diesel engine manufacturer for several markets including agricultural, construction, material handling, power generation, and industrial. It was establis ...

or Japanese

Yanmar is a Japanese diesel engine, Heavy equipment, heavy machinery and agricultural machinery manufacturer founded in Osaka, Japan in 1912. Yanmar manufactures and sells engines used in a wide range of applications, including seagoing vessels, pleasu ...

diesel engine The diesel engine, named after Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which ignition of the fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to mechanical compression; thus, the diesel engine is a so-call ...

s, for docking and maneuvering. The fuel tank holds and the fresh water tank has a capacity of . The design has sleeping accommodation for six people, with two central cabins and a cabin in the port pontoon, each with a double berth. There is a central salon with an eight-seat U-shaped settee. The

galley A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by oars. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft, and low freeboard (clearance between sea and gunwale). Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be used ...

is located in the port pontoon, amidships. The galley has an island configuration and is equipped with a three-burner stove, an

ice box An icebox (also called a cold closet) is a compact non-mechanical refrigerator which was a common early-twentieth-century kitchen appliance before the development of safely powered refrigeration devices. Before the development of electric refrige ...

and double sinks. The

head A head is the part of an organism which usually includes the ears, brain, forehead, cheeks, chin, eyes, nose, and mouth, each of which aid in various sensory functions such as sight, hearing, smell, and taste. Some very simple animals may ...

is located aft in the starboard pontoon and includes a shower. For sailing downwind the design may be equipped with a symmetrical

spinnaker A spinnaker is a sail designed specifically for sailing off the wind on courses between a reach (wind at 90° to the course) to downwind (course in the same direction as the wind). Spinnakers are constructed of lightweight fabric, usually n ...

. The design has a

hull speed Hull speed or displacement speed is the speed at which the wavelength of a vessel's bow wave is equal to the waterline length of the vessel. As boat speed increases from rest, the wavelength of the bow wave increases, and usually its crest-to-tro ...

of .

Operational history

In a review Chris Caswell stated, "probably the biggest surprise to monohull sailors is that the Lagoon 37 doesn't give up any windward ability. With a pair of NACA-shaped fin keels, our 37 sailed just as high as several modern monohulls, made a steady nine knots in the 18-knot apparent wind, and tacked through 90 degrees. Off the wind, of course, the cat was quick and the speedometer showed bursts as high as 15 knots without any effort." In a ''Sailing Magazine'' review,

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Robert Perry wrote, "the Lagoon 37 appears to be a clean and refined cat with careful attention paid to styling. You certainly cannot base this appreciation on the profile of the cat alone. In profile, without any indication of the tremendous beam, almost any cat will look very high and top-heavy. But if you can view the Lagoon from about 30 degrees off the bow, the height of the house is diminished and you have a handsome, if somewhat spacey-looking, boat."

References

{{Jeanneau Catamarans 1990s sailboat type designs Sailing yachts Sailing yachts designed by VPLP Sailboat types built by Jeanneau Sailboat types built by Pearson Yachts Sailboat types built by Construction Navale Bordeaux Sailboat types built by Lagoon Catamaran

Production

Design

Operational history

See also

References