kinetic 54 catamaran price

An elegant and powerful bluewater cruising catamaran with high-tech systems that make it comfortable for doublehanded sailing

W hen Bob Hayward, a successful American real estate developer, film studio co-founder and farmer, couldn’t find the perfect cruising catamaran, he had one built at Phil Harvey’s South African boatbuilding yard, the builder of Gunboat catamarans among others. The yard was for sale when Hayward decided to jump into business with yard manager Leon Scheepers, and the pair retained the yard’s skilled boatbuilders and staff. Hayward’s Simonis Voogd Yacht Design was launched as the Kinetic Catamaran 62 in 2019.  

“The whole idea for the next cat was to include everything you charter a cruising cat for, a bigger saloon, a large aft deck and a smaller forward sailing cockpit, creating three zones that connect up brilliantly for beautiful indoor-outdoor living spaces,” said Bob Hayward, who now adds owner of Kinetic Catamarans to his list of descriptives. “The key is that it can be sailed solely by a couple.”

Kinetic Catamarans again turned to Simonis Voogd Yacht Design for a 54-foot catamaran that could be easily sailed doublehanded. The KC54 Hull No. 1 made its debut at the U.S. Sailboat Show in Annapolis to much fanfare, and I couldn’t wait to take this performance cat for a test sail.

The details

It’s evident at first glance that this svelte cat, with narrow hulls and a high bridgedeck clearance, it is not your usual bloated floating condo with two hulls. Built entirely of epoxy vacuum-infused carbon fiber and corecell construction, the KC54 displaces 35,825 pounds, and 49,500 pounds fully loaded for cruising. That’s about 20,000 pounds lighter than most other cruising cats of its size, and that weight savings translates into speed.

Buyers have the option of different interior layouts, and for sailors looking to race, a larger sailplan and high-performance C-boards that can fly the windward hull improve the already good performance. The test boat was set up with the cruising rig and furling boom, with cap shrouds that eliminate the need for a backstay. The mast is stepped on the coachroof and compression post. 

Employing one of the few low-tech systems on the boat, the daggerboards are controlled by a line-drive system, but that is by design.

“This boat is made for bluewater cruising, so if you hit something, the line breaks not the board,” Hayward said. “It’s a simple fix to re-rig and get sailing again.”

Many features come standard, including the North 3Di Endurance sails, which Hayward said stand up best to the higher loads. 

The forward cockpit is all about efficiency when sailing, and it is just a step away from the inside steering station, making this area the command center. All halyards and sheets are led to this cockpit, with two electric Harken winches and the mainsheet on a captive winch.

“Having this setup is key for doublehanded sailing,” Hayward said. “You can trim any sail from any of the three helms.”

With all sail controls located in the forward cockpit and the traveler on the coachroof, the aft cockpit is all about living space. The L-shaped dinette can seat eight people in comfort. Built into the aft rail are an electric grill and drink refrigerator. A dropdown swim platform bridges the two transom steps, which have lazarettes for gear and a wet locker.

“I have this all set up for fishing on my boat, including a live well,” Hayward, who owns KC54 hull No. 3, said. 

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Multihull Review: Kinetic 54

Luxury high-end cruising cats with high-performance DNA have occupied an established if somewhat rarified niche in the sailboat market ever since Peter Johnstone launched the first Gunboat in South Africa just over two decades ago. Kinetic Catamarans is an interesting new player in this field. An American company also building boats in South Africa, it launched its first model, a 62-footer, in 2019. The company’s latest offering, the slightly smaller Kinetic 54, designed to appeal to active sailing couples, is a highly attractive, thoughtfully designed craft that snagged a nod from SAIL as Best Large Multihull in our 2022 Best Boats compilation.

Design & Construction

As is de rigueur for boats of this type, the design and construction of the Kinetic 54 tips straight out of the world of go-fast racing. Its hulls are narrow and svelte, with sharply angled wave-piercing destroyer bows. The bridgedeck is set high to reduce resistance from passing seas and is cut back toward the middle of the boat, with only a light forward crossbeam and a central longeron carrying headstay loads. Construction is at the cutting edge of lightweight strength—all carbon everything, including interior furniture, cored with foam and vacuum-infused with epoxy resin. Even the toilets on this boat are built of carbon fiber.

That said, there are also some important variations on the theme. Where daggerboards are normally favored so as to maximize performance to windward, Kinetic offers centerboards, which are much less vulnerable in groundings (with daggerboards as an option if an owner prefers). Also, like many modern performance cats, the Kinetic 54 boasts a forward working cockpit just ahead of the cabinhouse, but has its carbon mast-mounted outside the cockpit aft, with the maststep set on the very forward end of the coachroof.

The heart of the boat systems-wise is a sophisticated 24-volt C-Zone distributed power system designed by Cay Electronics of Rhode Island. This automatically balances high loads and feeds juice to a bank of lithium batteries from a large coachroof solar array, a DC genset (which fires up on its own as needed) and high-output engine alternators. It includes online diagnostics that allow for detailed remote tech support.

The Kinetic can be controlled from three different helm stations. The primary station is inside at the front of the bridgedeck saloon just behind the working cockpit. From here you can easily access the winches and running rigging by stepping through a nearby forward-facing door and also operate engine controls, navigation electronics and board controls. A large moon-roof directly above the wheel allows you to easily keep an eye on mainsail trim.

The other two wheels are aft, one at the back of each hull, with full sail controls and a B&G multifunction display at each station. The Jefa steering system linking the three different stations is segregated with clutches, so that only the wheel being used is actually connected to the rudders. When the autopilot is engaged, no wheels are connected. The break-default mode, which engages automatically when anything goes amiss, connects all wheels to the rudders. All sail controls, including the furlers, and the board controls are push-button powered systems, with load sensors to prevent over-tensioning and breakage.

Unlike many catamarans with aft decks dominated by long mainsheet travelers, the Kinetic’s traveler is mounted atop the back of the long coachroof, with a nicely curved track that carries sheet loads more efficiently. This saves lounging guests from accidentally tangling with the mainsail controls and creates a convenient space for an outdoor electric grill and fridge. It also allows for a unique fold-down transom that connects the back ends of the two hulls and transforms the rear of the boat into an immense swim platform spanning its entire breadth.

Accommodations

As we’ve come to expect with modern catamarans, the Kinetic is available with two basic layouts: a four-cabin/four-head plan with double berths in the back and front of each hull; or a three-cabin/three-head plan, where one hull is given over to a vast owner’s stateroom. The most important space, as on any cruising cat, is the bridgedeck saloon. On the Kinetic this truly does have wrap-around views of the outside world, thanks to the absence of the mast forward. The galley is to starboard, with an electric Miele induction stove and oven (gas is optional), a three-drawer Vitrifrigo fridge system, loads of storage and a very useful island. A dinette and settee are to port, and the nav station is forward, just to the right of the inside helm station.

Finish quality throughout is superb. Though the furniture is all foam-cored carbon to save weight, it is mostly covered with attractive wood veneers. The joinery includes hardwood inserts for fastener attachments and on the corners. The countertops are fine thin-milled ceramic porcelain. A range of treatments can be selected when you order the boat.

I sailed the boat on Chesapeake Bay off Annapolis in about 10 knots of true wind in sumptuous circumstances. There was a large party of prospective buyers and journalists aboard, and we were feted with wine and delicious hors d’oeuvres throughout our excursion. Despite these distractions, I did spend some time focused on the boat’s performance.

Our test boat was equipped with the standard North 3Di sails and rig. This features a fixed carbon Marstrom mast supported by fiber stays and an in-boom mainsail furler. A taller racing rig is also available, as is a rotating mast, which will broaden the range of wind angles at which the in-boom main can be deployed and retrieved. For Luddites who like to actually handle their sails, a conventional main can be specified if desired. However, I suspect the builder will discourage this. The Kinetic is designed to be a push-button boat.

In spite of the very moderate breeze, at no point during our sail did we experience single-digit speeds. We ranged easily up to a 40-degree apparent wind angle under a full main and a solent jib, accelerating the apparent wind to 20 knots apparent and the boat up to 14 knots over the ground. Bearing away with an A-sail flying at angles varying from 85 to 125 degrees we moved along nicely at 12 knots. Sailing a deep broad reach, we still managed to maintain 10 knots.

Steering the boat I found a bit more friction in the system than I expected, but this was not intrusive. As with any cat, it took me a little while to get the feel of the boat. But once tuned in, I found the helm was quite responsive, and I had little trouble finding a groove and staying in it.

Under Power

Auxiliary power is provided by twin 80hp Yanmar diesels turning a pair of three-blade Gori props on saildrives. We easily maintained 10 knots of speed running both engines at 2,100 rpm. At 2,600 rpm our speed rose to 12 knots, at a cost, I was told, of two gallons of fuel per hour per engine. More economically, we could move at 8 knots motorsailing under the mainsail with just one engine turning at 2,250 rpm. The fuel came from two 132-gallon tanks, one in each hull, that are inter-plumbed, so go-juice can be transferred between them. (The water tanks are similarly arranged.)

As for close-quarters maneuvering, this is handled by a Dockmate remote joystick system that can put the boat most anywhere you want controlling the engines alone. For even more agility, a drop-down bow thruster can be specified.

At a price point this high, you expect to get a superb vessel, and the Kinetic 54 certainly delivers! It is as well thought out as any luxury performance cat on the market and has several unique features that should make it attractive to buyers looking for boats of this type. 

LOA 54ft 2in LWL 53ft 6in Beam 27ft 8in Draft 4ft 6in (boards up); 10ft 6in (boards down) Displacement 35,825lb (light ship) Sail Area 1,593ft 2 Fuel/Water (gal) 264/264 SA/D Ratio 23.45 D/L Ratio 104 Engine 2 x 80hp Yanmar diesel (saildrive) Designer Simonis Voogd Yacht Design Builder Kinetic Catamarans, Knysna, South Africa, kineticcatamarans.com U.S. Office Bow, WA, 310-308-8422 Base Price $3.1 million

MHS Summer 2022

Author:  Kraken Sailing

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Kinetic 54 Carbon Catamaran

Why the Kinetic 54?

We enjoyed the Leopard 48 and 50 for a combined total of 7 years. In that time, we sailed from Fort Lauderdale, Florida through the entire Caribbean, through the Panama Canal, north to San Francisco, California and all the way back! During the COVID years, we took another spin around the Caribbean and sailed up to the Northeast of the US. These were incredible journeys on a fantastic vessels.

After two Leopard Catamarans we determined we were ready to take the leap and order a lightweight, carbon fiber, performance catamaran. We discussed this with our friend Alex Simonis, one of the designers of the Leopards. He and his partner were working with a new manufacturer and designed a luxury performance catamaran that incorporated the forward cockpit layout that we love so much. This is what lead us to the Kinetic brand, which is a small yard in Knysna, South Africa that manufacturers only two of these vessels per year.

We are very excited to begin sailing in the Caribbean winter season of 2023. We anticipate a learning curve on this special design but we are looking forward to the challenge!

Below is a link to the Kinetic 54 website.

https://www.kineticcatamarans.com/kc54

Yachting World

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Turbo multihulls: a new generation of performance cruiser

• Sam Fortescue
• May 12, 2022

A new breed of luxury fast multihulls are seducing wealthy sailors with a need for speed, Sam Fortescue reports on the rise and rise of this latest breed

“People sail for fun, and no one has yet convinced me that it’s more fun to go slow than it is to go fast,” said visionary multihull designer Dick Newick in the last century. “We all want high performance with comfort and low cost. Since the three cannot be combined in one vessel, priorities must be established and compromises made.”

Now, Newick may belong to another generation, but his observation is as true today as it has ever been. This time round, though, buyers have the money to park the cost issue. A new cohort of boatbuilders like Gunboat, HH and Kinetic are mining a rich (if narrow) seam of demand for high-end cats that go like rocketships and offer genuine comfort, if not outright luxury.

Gunboat is the trailblazer here. Launched in 2002, the now iconic brand weathered stormy waters before being taken over and moved to France by the Grand Large Yachting group (which also includes Outremer).

Its range has now stabilised at 68ft, 72ft and 80ft – much larger than it typically built in the past. But it has reached the size limit for this business model, according to managing partner Benoit Lebizay. “Beyond 80ft, you go into full custom,” he says.

HH Catamarans emerged 10 years later, building boats from 44ft to 88ft in Xiamen, China, with the same contractor that once used to build Gunboats. And Kinetic is more recent still, with construction in South Africa and design by the renowned Simonis Voogd.

Kinetic’s KC62 is built for speed, yet with ease and real comfort. Photo: Dale Staples

“When we started, we had to make a real threshold decision,” says Kinetic founder Bob Hayward. “Are we trying to make this a hull-flying lightship that’s a bit of a spartan cruiser, or are we really a fast performance cruiser that you race?”

Research among Gunboat skippers convinced him of the latter, because the market was commissioning boats with lots of bells and whistles. “Once you start putting the creature comforts on board, they come out heavier than the lightship aspiration,” he adds.

Kinetic has launched one 54-footer and a 62, with three more boats in the pipeline for delivery this year. “I definitely think this is a growing market, but not a mass market,” Hayward adds. “The more these boats get out there, and people see how accessible they can be, I think they’ll grow even further.” You only have to be overhauled once by a fast cat to understand the appeal.

Lebizay at Gunboat takes a similar view. “We remain niche players,” he says. “I’m not talking about building 20 boats per year – five or six is about as much as we can do. But the more we splash boats, the more we create momentum in the more experienced part of the fleet.”

Olivier Racoupeau has drawn more than his fair share of two-hulled boats over the years, but he says the market is changing. “We see a significant improvement in the number of requests for performance cats,” he tells me.

The Gunboat 68 is appealing and fast yet supremely comfortable. Photo: Michel Dupre

“In the past, they were looking for the volume and the lifestyle – more like performance cruisers. Now we see people coming to us to have much more fun sailing. They want to have daggerboards to improve the performance and are happy to keep the volume and the length of the hull reasonable.”

All about the kilos

Like every catamaran in this performance category, Gunboats are built in a high-quality carbon layup to maximise strength and stiffness while minimising weight. That means vacuum infusing prepreg materials for a precise and even distribution of the epoxy resin throughout the structure of the hull.

Looking into a little HH66 luxury. Photo: Billy Black

“We take technology from the racing end of sailing and from aircraft,” says Lebizay. “The furniture on board is in Nomex with veneer on top – the same design as the builder of the Falcon planes. It’s like a 5-star hotel room, but a fraction of the weight.”

The result is boats that will exceed wind speed in light airs and top out at 25 or 30-plus knots. If your yacht can manage 6 knots in a five-knot zephyr, it’s going to keep you sailing some 80% of the time, and long before a production cat has even removed the sail cover.

It’s a principle starkly illustrated by the all-carbon speed machine that is the Ice Cat 67. “In 5 knots of wind you can do 7 knots with the Code 0,” says Ice Yachts founder Marco Malgara with audible satisfaction. “And in 20 knots you can do 15-16 knots. It’s an amazing feeling.”

There are two 67s in the water and a new 72 is in build. Like most of these performance cats, Ice’s boats use lifting daggerboards to provide lateral stability and better windward ability – the 67 can manage 35° true wind angle. It takes the draught from a go-anywhere 95cm down to a hardcore 3m.

Ice Yachts has form with its 67, but this new 72 in build is a much bolder, more contemporary and powerful design with a stunning interior

“It’s a fully automated system and you have a joystick so you can control it wherever you are,” says Malgara.

Kinetic cats have Antal line drivers to hoist and lower centreplates, which pivot aft into the hulls. There’s also an option for faster daggerboards and even curved C-boards. Just like the furling boom and self-tacking jib, the key to this system is simplicity for short-handed sailing .

It’s true of the HH cats, too, with their captive winches, hydraulics and smart deck planning. “I can be off the mooring, sails up and doing 20 knots within four minutes,” says highly experienced HH commissioning manager Chris Bailet of the HH66 .

Although you won’t necessarily find it in the handbook, some of these boats allow you to fly a hull for a real buzz if you feel so inclined. “I love the challenge of keeping the boat with the windward hull flying,” says serial boat-owner Irvine Laidlaw of his Gunboat 68 , Highland Fling 17 .

Beating Comanche? Tosca’s owner enjoying a bucket list moment at the Transatlantic start. Photo: PKC Media/Tosca

It’s a feature that veteran ocean racer Alex Thomson was more reluctant to employ during his recent RORC Transatlantic Race on the Gunboat 68 Tosca . They aimed for a heel angle of 10-13°, no more, and used the UpsideUp warning system to see when they had to ease the sheets.

“Occasionally there was air under the hull, but that wasn’t the objective for us,” says Thomson.

HH catamarans are also equipped with UpsideUp, and it’s one of the first systems that owners are taught to use. “We can have the mainsheets on a release based on the angle of heel, pitch and cap shroud loads,” says Bailet. “Anything on a hydraulic, like the mainsheet, or captive reels like a staysail, can ease. The lines on the winches are not eased on the system, however. You’ve got to have at least a little bit of awareness.”

More than the speed

Of all these brands, Kinetic is probably the closest to the cruising end of the spectrum. Its cats have a coachroof-stepped mast, for instance. “That requires extra infrastructure and with it some weight, but it buys us a bigger salon and a forward cockpit that doubles as a leisure zone,” says Hayward. “We did things like the drop-down swim platform – that costs us 80kg in weight.”

Technology can mitigate to some extent. So, the large 360° windows on the KC62 are glazed with chemically-strengthened glass. This provides better protection than standard glass, but measures 10mm thickness instead of 16mm. “That saves us around 200kg,” adds Hayward.

Comfortable double cabins with plenty of clothes stowage and en-suite shower rooms are standard features on all these boats, as are saloons lined with lavish upholstery and peppered with designer tables and stools for comfy lounging. In terms of the finish, expect lots of bare hull with a smattering of fine veneer cabinetry, plenty of glass and the latest appliances.

HH88 in build has an enclosed flybridge. HH is in talks with another client about a custom 115

Where the boats differ is in the details. The Kinetic 54 has helm stations on each quarter, and another one inside, plus a cosy forward cockpit with access from the saloon. “Once you’ve had a forward cockpit, you’ll never go back,” enthuses KC54 owner Randy Smith. “We’re constantly walking through it for mooring and anchoring, and it lets the wind blow through more than any porthole could.”

The Ice Cat 72 is big enough to have dedicated crew quarters with its own access, and you can decide whether you want a well-specced galley in the saloon, or down in a hull. It can be totally customised, but the feel is everything you’d associate with luxury Italian design.

“We aim to unhinge the traditional concept that associates the boat with a sea lifestyle,” comments design partner Lucio Micheletti.

Gunboat 68 shows its performance credentials. Photo: Gilles Martin-Raget

With its internal helm station, the Gunboat 68 frees up a lot of aft real estate for sophisticated lounging. There’s space for up to six cabins, including a big master, and a forward cockpit. The 80 offers more of everything, while the new 72V is something of a gamble for the brand – a fast boat which has a flybridge. It’s streamlined compared to production cats, but there’s room enough up top for a bank of flexible sofa/sunbeds, a low table and a flybridge helm station.

Flexible platform

Meanwhile, HH prefers twin bulkhead helming positions on its standard HH66 layout, although its customisation programme runs to other options. The fifth hull in the series has MOD70 -style steering from a bucket seat out on the starboard quarter, with a wheel in the saloon for protected helming. Either way, there’s a forward working cockpit for handling lines.

The hull flying HH66 number four Nemo showing these cats can be wild, racing at the Caribbean Multihull Challenge. Photo: Edward Penagos/Sint Maarten YC

With low volumes and high prices, serious customisation is the name of the game. Fastidious attention to boat weight means that clients’ choices can be fully costed out in terms of speed. “Each yacht is unique and offers the ability to shift the pendulum toward comfort or performance,” says Seth Hynes, president at HH. “The larger you go, the more you can achieve both.”

To illustrate the point, there is an HH60 currently being built with hydraulic J-boards and a rotating carbon mast. In a neighbouring bay is the first HH88 , which will have an enclosed flybridge with a hot-tub that can be drained into a tank positioned low down in the boat.

The new KC54. Photo: Tyrone Bradley

Meanwhile, Gunboat is embarking on the build of a fully pre-preg 80 for Irvine Laidlaw, pushing performance even further. “The 68 is an excellent boat, but it is not a full-on racer,” says Laidlow. “Cruisers do not understand the massive difference between a racer and cruiser, with tremendous emphasis on weight and performance. I have zero interest in dishwashers, hydraulic bathing platforms and flat screen TVs.”

It’s a tricky balance to walk for Gunboat, which does not see itself as a pure racing brand. But it is proving a useful challenge. “The more sophisticated the client, the more demanding they are, pushing us into exploring new avenues,” says Lebizay.

Gunboat and Kinetic favour forward cockpit for views and ventilation.

“On 80-1, the brief is to be able to lift the centreboards at 20 knots boat speed. They have at least 5m in the water, and the side force is in tens of tonnes. It tells you what kind of system we need to develop.”

Who is buying these boats?

If technology is one of the drivers behind the performance cat scene, so is money – lots of it. A Gunboat 80 or an HH88 will set you back north of $10m, so it is not a proposition for your average yachtie looking for a bit more of a thrill.

Buyers are often seasoned racers, according to Lebizay at Gunboat. “Most of these guys have had maxi programmes or other racing programmes. One of our owners was the owner of a SailGP team; another one has a GC32 team and another, a Volvo 70 programme.”

They’re looking for the benefits of the boats’ comfort without sacrificing much speed. Irvine Laidlaw, now 79 years old, sums up his move from monohulls succinctly: “I felt that, getting older, that moving around in a large racing monohull was getting too difficult. I helm but like to take 10 minutes off in every hour to keep me fresh.”

The first of the new HH60s is for a colourful Frenchman

Then there are owners like Randy Smith, who experienced the frustration of production catamarans, while loving the comfort. “In less than 10 knots of wind, or closer than 70°, we couldn’t sail. We had a big, comfortable cruising boat, but it was no good for sailing. That’s what started this search. We wanted centreboards and better sail area, but we didn’t care if it was made out of carbon.”

Buyers of the sub-60ft catamarans generally want the privacy that an owner-operator setup can provide. “These are guys that have the money to do bigger boats, but they don’t want anyone else on board,” says Bailet at HH. They range from sports stars to successful business leaders, but they all have something in common, he says: “There’s no compromise. They’re not going to get a slow boat. Most of those guys [opt for] a forward cockpit, with the wind in your hair like driving a Nacra 18, having a rip.”

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Kinetic Catamarans is a US company that manufactures its catamarans in Knysna, South Africa. There’s a real ecosytem for fast cats in that part of the world ( Balance Cats are another brand in this market). That’s down to the fact that the early Gunboats were manufactured in the country.

The company is run by Bob Hayward, a successful US real estate developer, film studio co-founder and farmer and Leon Scheepers, a highly experienced South African boatbuilder.

The Kinetic brand was launched in 2019 but the shipyard has a huge amount of expertise. It was founded by Phil Harvey, who built the early Gunboat 62s (Tribe and Safari) with Scheepers managing the shipyard (Harvey Yachts).

Hayward was having a custom 60ft carbon catamaran built by Phil Harvey when he told him he wanted to make ours his last boat. Hayward decided to continue the story.

Hayward took over, made Scheepers a partner, kept the shipyard’s highly skilled staff and switched from full custom to semi-custom boats.

Hayward’s boat became the Kinetic’s KC62 and the designers, the Dutch- South African firm Simonis Voogd, were retained to design a smaller model: the KC54 .

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