That´s the dream of any sailor, I´d say: head out to the sea, no matter how strong wind, no matter how high the waves. Hoisting your canvas and confidently beat your course away from the shore, out into the blue void. Isn´t this what we all dream of? What most of us would need to make this dream come true (apart from the time and the budget, but let´s talk about these negligibility another time) is … of course, the right boat to do it with. Looking at the pictures of the Pure 42 fully reefed doing exactly this, it seems we´ve found a very hot candidate.
I am following the Pure-story since it began. And if I am thinking about it more deeply, I am following the guy who is responsible for this for a much longer time as well. Mathias Schernikau´s backstory and his transformation from an aluminum yacht-owner to the founder and boss of a shipyard is one example of how your love for a certain product, your vision for business and your strive to develop can turn into a fascinating story. Again, all of which I am happy to look at as a kind of chaeron since it started.
A warm, sunny morning in November …
You may have followed the story of the Pure 42 and its new shipyard in Kiel on my blog. That’s why you know that it was all but certain if this boat would make it in time to Port Ginesta, the marina of Castelldefels, some 15 minutes by car from Barcelona airport. Just 8 weeks ago I visited the boat in its shed and … well, honestly, I had my substantial doubts facing the very raw build if the guys would be able to finish her. But, apparently: Here she was, moored in all her full beauty!
Why the hurry? The inception of this Pure 42 aluminum yacht had stirred so much interest in the professional boating scene that she was nominated for European Yacht of the Year 2026 right away: It´s something that rarely happens, since there were only renderings and plans available and a half-finished hull. But the editors-in-chief of the 12 biggest European sailing magazines agreed – as some insider told me, unanimously – that she´d be a formidable candidate. 8 weeks to go since then, lots of overtime, weekend work and stress at home!
Compact boat size – perfect maneuverability
But this hustle is all history now. I approach Urs Kohler of Pure Yachts who welcomes me warmly aboard. The yacht had been christened TOM KYLE, which, as they say, is a nod to the old name of her home port of Kiel. After the Yacht of the Year sea trials the shipyard decided to keep the boat in the water a bit longer to offer potential buyers the chance to see and sail her off the Spanish coast. Especially with winter coming in Northern Europe, fleeing the nasty wet and cold weather to Barcelona with 17, 18 degrees and sun was an invitation I couldn´t reject.
Together with me a sailing couple boards TOM KYLE at this wonderful Tuesday morning as well. A Scotsman and his Swedish wife, both keen sailors and aluminum yacht-skippers, looking for a new boat for their sailing adventures in the high North. The Pure concept may be perfect for this – rugged metal hull, variable draft and a fully enclosed deck salon boat concept. Pure´s idea is to offer a “go anywhere” yacht with a big emphasis on sailing capabilities and performance. A niche market, of course, but the plan isn´t to see vast amounts of units anyway, rather to make semi-custom boats with lots of freedom to decide and change. We don´t waste any time and cast off, upon Urs´ order I let go of the mooring line and the boat slowly steams away from the pontoon.
It´s a special occasion and location for me as well: Back in the day when I was still actively selling yachts, I had visited Ginesta quite a lot. Beneteau has their permanent sea trial base here and just by coincidence, TOM KYLE´s berth was located just right behind my former fellow colleagues. I waved and smiled, being greeted by good old friends. That said, I almost didn´t notice how smooth the yacht casted off: The Pure 42 is equipped with a retrievable bow thruster for narrow berths and marinas like these, but apparently the turning circle and legerity on the rudders were sufficient enough to master the task without its use.
Back in the cockpit, while steering, I checked visibility for the helmsman when maneuvering: It´s perfectly fine for normal sized people. The designer has apparently thought of this well. The coach roof of the deck salon is low enough to provide unhindered sight to the forward sectors, but is also high enough for granting full standing height when inside. By the way, an article with a detailed walkthrough of her interior will follow soon. While slowly steaming out of the marina, we took away the tarps of the mainsail and cleared the lines for hoisting our canvas: We were a bit in a hurry since weather forecast wasn´t that good for starting midday.
Light displacement aluminum: Performance boat!
There was a little swell, maybe a leftover of the pretty windy days just the week before (as you may have noticed on the first picture of this article) and for the first half a mile or so we had to steer right into it. Little, nasty and sharp ripples which on many boats cause a very unpleasant rocking and slamming, some flatter hulls may even have been significantly slowed down even by those little bastards. Not so the Pure 42, that just went over these pretty much unperturbed.
Now it was time to hoist the main. The couple asked to do it, after all they had come here to see if this boat might fit their needs, so Urs agreed. With him at the mast foot and her pulling the halyard in the back, it was a matter of mere seconds to get up the 50 square meters of laminate into the wind. The Marechal full carbon mast (a brand of Z-Spars comes with an auxiliary winch up there in front, mainly used to fit the Halyard Lock system for the Genoa and Jib halyards.
TOM KYLE is equipped with a full set of X-Drive high performance laminate sails by UK Sailmakers. The Carbon Offshore-laminates look very nice – and they do drive the boat instantly. Here seems to be quite an intimate connection between Pure and UK, the same that I have seen on other yachts designed by Berckemeyer Yacht Design. In our case, the X-Drive Carbon Offshore variant that promises both high performance-life by keeping its shape long term, but also stiffness and high performance especially in demanding wind conditions. Just a side note, but the black Taffeta layer matched just perfectly the overall style and color-code of the yacht.
As said, the square top main on the 18.20 meters high mast comes with 50 square meters of sail area. On the forestay, the yacht may either be driven by a 46 square meter overlapping Genoa (which we went for since wind was well below 10 knots that day) or a 24 square meters Jib/Staysail on a self-tacking track, the one you may have noticed right on the first picture of this article. It took the couple with a little help of Urs just under a minute to get up the sails. And the the magic happened.
Once put in the wind and sheeting in the sails, she instantly heeled a bit and sprung to life. Which is amazing because there was only so much wind! We sheeted her in and put her upwind to a hard close-hauled point of sail. And she marched on. I took notes to not forget it, my notebook says maximum TWS 8.7 to 9 knots, generating an of AWS 13 knots and a speed over ground of stunning 6.3 to almost 7 knots! And here it comes: 27 degrees AWA … I think this is pretty amazing, even though Urs admits that the instruments might not have been calibrated to perfection.
Performance, yes. Ease of cruising? Sure!
Because, lets be honest: When cruising, speed is a factor, but not the deciding one. I might do an article about people´s obsession with maximum speeds and their real life utilization of boats, which is driving them a lot slower. When underway, a high average speed is welcome, of course, but all those “performance skippers” overly exaggerate the implications of max speeds. That said, having a boat that has the ability to sail quick even in very light winds, is definitely a plus. Because these are the conditions most of us would sail in, right?
Urs took his time to fine trim the sails. The Pure 42 offers the usual options in this respect: Track and sheet leads for the Genoa, the usual single sheet-trim for the Jib if hoisted. As for the mainsheet, TOM KYLE sports a German Mainsheet System which, in combination with boom vang offers quite good trimming options. If customers want, the shipyard could fix a mainsheet traveler on the coachroof for having the complete trimming tools, Urs confirms. I personally think unless you are owning an all-out racer and actually do race, for a cruiser it´s too much.
This is a nice occasion to talk a bit about the nicely orange-painted coach roof. It gives the Pure 42 her distinct line and signature shape, together with the inverted bow, the highly recognizable integrated aluminum bow sprit and nice “drop” of the panoramic windows as seen from the side. This rooftop is GRP-laminated with different synthetic foam core inlays, it´s production is quite elaborate (and probably worth an own article). Customers can order these in all colors of the rainbow, another feature of all boats of this family I´ve seen so far. By fixing the mainsheet to the roof, a significant part of sheet mumble in the cockpit is prevented.
Perfect hull shape for fast and smooth sailing
I would have wished for 5 to 8 knots of true wind more, but I guess you´ll have to work with what you get. Nevertheless, the already mentioned nasty short waves, the leftover of the wild and windy past week, created an interesting test-pattern for the boat: Will the forward advance created by this little puff be enough to keep the boat driving or will we eventually die down by the ever slamming little steep bastards? If you know how … no!
“She needs speed first”, Urs tells me, veering off to a little more than 40 degrees. I could feel her heel increasing and so did her speed. As she was confidently making over 6 knots, he sharply pointed upwind again and for quite some time the boat kept her speed, not being impressed in any way by the little waves which tried to slow her down. Only if pushed too hard upwind, she´d eventually slow ever so slightly until it was time to bear away again. That´s interesting, I thought, giving credit to the formidable hull design which is apparently also optimized taking all sorts of wave patterns into account.
After having spent a few minutes on at the bow, I relocate to the back and put myself right next to the aft mainstay. The hull design is probably able to plane at the right speed, even now at this relatively low velocity the tear-off edge creates almost no vortexes, I can´t hear any gurgling, just a nice Swoosh. Promising. Credits also to Jachtbouw Foulmer for the absolutely spotless build! The edges, the seams, the cleats … this is how an aluminum hull should look like!
A closer look into the cockpit
Being in the cockpit already, let´s take a closer look at the layout and ergonomics. As stated earlier, the Pure 42 is meant to be a fast passage maker. That’s aid, she´s a boat for your perfect vacation, hence, no lines are within the cockpit´s lounge- or guest area. All of these are diverted back to the two working winches which are placed in the coaming right next to the steering wheel and console. You will see on the picture below how nicely lines, jammers and part of the winch are integrated and kind of “lowered” into the backrest/coamings.
If this was my boat, I´d go for cockpit cushions for my old aching back for sure, which raises the question how to deal with the two nice and large recesses for winch handle, smartphone and stuff which are integrated into the backrest. Surely, you need some stowage for all the things in the cockpit, it would be interesting to see how such a solution can work out. On the other hand, not having too many cockpit cushions will save a lot of hassle setting them up and, most of all, find a place to store these.
As for the sailing side, the Pure 42 comes with two steering wheels on a double rudder. On starboard side the Diesel helm throttle is fitted, both consoles come with a chartplotter and secondary displays. As for electronics, Pure offers two packages: The high grade performance package with NKE instruments and fittings (as fitted to TOM KYLE) or a more cost-attractive Raymarine version. This set-up would not just save budget, but can be connected with a performance aluminum mast. Urs also indicates that customers may also choose whatever they want in terms of electronics: “We are not married to either of these brands, if you like to get B&G or Garmin, go for it, no problem!”, he states.
How fast is the Pure 42 on different points of sails?
With this nice smooth sailing day going on for a while now, the fuss of casting off and sailing settles down a bit. I ask the guys to start sailing on all points of sail so that I can write down the numbers for this article. As said, we started pointing upwind at around 30 degrees AWA, making 6.3 to occasional 7 knots in a mere 9 knot puff. Now, let´s try a bit more … as just in this moment the wind started to die down ever so slightly, accompanied by a pretty unstable wind pattern. Anyway, let´s squeeze out what ever we can!
On a nice beam reach, which we achieved effortlessly with a slight knack on the wheel and the ease of the sheets, TOM KYLE accelerated a bit more. I could hear it. Now, with wind having gone down to a meager 7 knots TWS, at 90 degrees TWA at any rate the yacht managed to sail at 5.8 to 6.0 knots, which is a testament to her light displacement and sail-area-ratio. The Pure 42 comes with a displacement of just 9.8 tons, of which a staggering 3.3 tons being the ballast. Driven by 99 square meters of sails, her specs match those of the Dehler 42 for comparison. Compared with the smallest Allures (another aluminum-boat), it´s even more impressive: This boat is more than one meter shorter, but displaces nearly 11 tons, sporting 82.5 square meters of sails.
It´s very difficult to find another boat to which the Pure 42 can be compared to. As you can see with my Dehler and Allures examples, it´s even hard to find a yacht in 42 feet anymore! It seems like most manufacturers ignore this very size and “jump” directly from 40 to 45 nowadays. Even if you find a 42-footer to compare her to, her stand-alone feature will become even more apparent: There simply is no dedicated performance-aluminum boat or brand on the market right now. You may either find your quick boat made of GRP or other composites or you´ll go for a bluewater-cruiser that is optimized for comfort, not specifically speed.
This is the chance for Pure Yachts, trying to attract sailors looking for a boat that combines the advantages of aluminum with the capabilities of a performer. Boats designed by Berckemeyer Yacht Design are well know for their power and performance, I´ve had the pleasure to acknowledge this myself when trying out a BM 50 a few months ago. Same for the Pure 42: Although planing is not advertised all too aggressively by the shipyard, all indicates toward a highly capable and fast boat for TOM KYLE as well.
I would have loved to check downwind and steering capabilities as well and also try out the one line reefing system, but the wind apparently didn´t gave permission. Having sailed for quite some time now on a North-Easterly course, we came nearer and nearer to Barcelona airport with all the noisy planes dashing by overhead. As forecasted, a moisture-rich dark warm front was approaching from the West, bringing rain and no wind with it, so I found it more important to try out the boat myself than to collect data.
At the helm
At first let´s take a detailed look at the position of the helmsman aboard the Pure 42. Having said that we of course acknowledge that most of the time whilst sailing the autopilot will be in control anyway, but maybe it´s time now to chase that one yacht still in front of you or you really attend a regatta, which with this boat is a no brainer. In fact, Urs has taken part in the Silverrudder Challenge with TOM KYLE´s bigger sister ship by the same designer, and earned line honors this year with GORRE, the 49-feet sistership attending the Baltic 500 race.
A helmsman can sit down on the steering seat, which also serves as entrance into the large stowage and maintenance area underneath the deck. This seat is very comfortable and wide, is fitted with SeaDek like the rest of the boat and, maybe with a little cushion, can easily become your most favorite place aboard. “I show you my specialty”, Urs says and points to a jammer at the rainling: “I don´t want to show off, but this is kind of my invention …” He pulls the string and takes out some of the tension of the railguard.
Now he sits down on the outside coaming, right on the ship´s hull, and puts the weight of his body to the back against the now much more loose railing. Comfortably held back by a cushion and a net making a little backrest, he signals absolute delight: “This is a position you can sit in and steer the boat for hours!”, he confirms and tells us that he was steering the 49-footer this way during the single handed Silverrudder regatta. Apart from the fact that my slim-ass bottom would need a cushion underneath as well, it looks amazingly cozy! And also – perfect not just for helming, but also trimming the yacht.
Urs is positioned right between the working winch, which now is in front of him, the trim main and/or for sail, but he has also the big Gennaker-sheet winch to his side. Depending of how big of a man you are, your knees may be able to wedge in between the steering console, adding extra safety even in rougher conditions. The view to the front of the ship is hence perfect. Showing how easy controlling the boat has become, Urs turns the wheel that is comfortably placed between his legs.
In terms of helmsman´s ergonomics the Pure 42 cockpit is exemplary. Short ways to any jammer and line, winches reduced to the minimum and full single-handed capabilities. I find it always amazing and interesting to really see and feel, how much of a change a nicely designed cockpit indeed is. And how many boats lose so much of their appeal and practical purpose when designers not fully engage in coming up with a properly designed cockpit: This also divides a good designer from a bad one, because, a boat with poor cockpit ergonomics can be really annoying and in worst case, become unsailable. Just look at the picture above, how clean and neat the cockpit is during sailing. Amazing!
Trying out the Pure 42 myself
Urs hand me the wheel and I position myself behind it. I am standing tall at 1.86 meters body height. As you can see on these POV shots, the view onto the display of the chart plotter and secondary instruments is a bit obstructed by the wheel. This is okay in my opinion since the only time you really have to look “permanently” onto the map is when you enter an unknown marina or shallow waters, by leaning over, that´s okay.
Controls and switches you need more and if so, faster, are placed to the right hand side to increase reaction time. The auto pilot control for example is located to the right hand side, as sometimes you need to switch it on or off very quickly. On the other hand, the chart plotter, only needed for safely approaching a harbor, can be put on the left as it is needed fewer times and can also be operated by the left hand. Deliberately or not, I like the allocation on the panel.
On the picture above you see what I see, this POV-shot has been made showing the exact perspective my eyes had when standing behind the wheel. As you can see, the forward sectors are perfectly visible, as well as most of the other side of the ship. This is also thanks to the large deck saloon windows giving way to the opposite ship´s side. As I mentioned earlier in this article, I am sure that best possible view for the helmsman was a planned choice by the designer.
We “practice” some tacking and gybing as long as the wind was still there. What I found very interesting and amazing was the sheer liveliness and quick reaction time the Pure 42 had on the rudders. This is partially due to the shipyard´s decision to have a relatively unusual reduction ratio from steering wheel to the quadrant: TOM KYLE needs 1.5 turns on the wheel from hard port to hard starboard, many (if not most) other boats have up to 2.5 turns. This is much more advantageous the more wind and boat speed you will have to deal with: A few days ago, as Urs tells me and as you can see on the picture below, wind was up to 18 and over 20 knots – everyone at the helm praised the accuracy and sensitivity of the steering setup of TOM KYLE.
This very direct and fast steering also works better for the motor or the auto pilot, which needs fewer turns and “likes” a brisk approach. That said, any maneuver you are doing with the Pure 42 is real fun! The boat turns surprisingly quick, even in such comparatively dull sailing conditions. Again, this will be an advantage when racing and surely comes handy for the active-oriented sailor. I was able to sense and find the wind-edge even in our low wind conditions, only minor corrections on the wheel needed. Truly, a boat for the active skipper.
Let´s hoist the Gennaker!
As we were veering off and – facing the unpleasant weather that was coming – setting the course back home into Port Ginesta, I would finally get my downwind leg to check the speed capabilities of the Pure 42. Wind was down to 6 knots at best, with frequent puffs going down as much as 5 and even 4 knots, we looked at each other and smiled: “Well, let´s get out the Gennaker and try what we can do!” In such low wind conditions, it surely would have taken us a eternity to get back.
With the Code 0 still ready to go up, Urs and the Scotsman quickly stowed away the bright yellow sails bag and hauled up on deck the proud Gennaker. Kudos to Pure as they went for the simplest and – in my opinion – safest way to having a Gennaker delpoyed: By sock. I have some sailing friends and also ex-clients of mine who went for a furling gennaker, some even for remote controlled electric furling gennakers, who are desperate about the hustle and susceptibility to failure. I am a huge fan of Gennaker-socks!
The Pure 42´s light wind wardrobe features a 110 square meters Code 0 sail and a mighty 160 square meters Gennaker. Both, of course, provided by UK Sailmakers. The Gennaker´s tack was connected to the line in a matter of seconds, halyard went up and so did the sock. Fitting for a showboat like TOM KYLE, our metal-grey Nylon blister matched the color code of the yacht, crowned by a nice logo print. Again, fitting and hoisting of the Gennaker was a matter of only a few minutes. An impressive demonstration of how easy light wind sailing is, if you skip the fancy stuff and focus on the real things.
I am still amazed of the fact that seeing a Gennaker unfold, watching how it is filled with air and instantly brings back speed into a boat is making me so happy! Really, these colorful blisters are huge “happy pills” for sailors! And I cannot understand why so many still don´t get one for themselves, falsely thinking that Gennaker sailing is difficult or even dangerous. The opposite is the fact, as I could see immediately after we had it on aboard this boat. We were sailing a lot quicker now …
Easy handling and trimming
The UK Sailmakers Nylon Gennaker comes in 0.9 to 1.5 oz graded cuts, lighter in less stressed areas, heavier in areas with more pressure. Likewise, the Code 0 aboard the Pure 42 is made from Mylar/Aramid CZ 60 with a strengthened luff with Vectran. Both will be sheeted via the large Andersen winches mounted at the rear end of the boat´s cockpit, running through a block that is permanently fitted on the coaming.
Again, gybing and handling a Gennaker is something you should learn step by step, starting in low winds and working your way up to the higher wind speeds. We all, I guess, have our stories with Gennakers in the water, entangled with keel or rudder blades, but that´s something every skipper will learn to master over time. Urs gybed TOM KYLE shortly after the blister was up in the wind and it worked just as fine: The trick is to get the sheets right and not to waste time by being overly careful.
Performance-wise I noted in my book that on our way back in the dying down wind of under 7 knots we made between 4 and 5 knots. It´s not all too impressive, I know, but performance will increase manifold when wind is over 10 knots. Also, we could have optimized out course in relation to the now with us rolling short waves a bit more, but I guess we all only wanted to reach the pontoon before the rain would start to make us wet – the clouds, paired with fog, were pretty close now.
The numbers are awesome …
… they indeed are! The Pure 42 lives up to my highest expectations, I must say. What the sleek, perfectly built and lightweight hull promised, the finished boat is now proving almost effortlessly. Urs will have sent me a lot more pictures the guys have made in the week before I arrived, clearly showing the yacht managing much higher wind speeds and waves, effortlessly overtaking (even much bigger) other yachts in the “European Yacht of the Year”-competition.
Looking back on what the couple and I were able to experience during our almost half day sea trial, I must say that I am deeply impressed. Honestly, I´d never expected anything else because from what I know and having experienced myself on similar boats, nothing less that a powerful, quick and beautiful sailing experience is what you get when opting for such a design. I can only cross all of my fingers for the Pure 42 to win the prestigious price they have been nominated for!
If this is the case, we will get to know during upcoming Boot Duesseldorf boat show, which will take place in a few months. There, by the way, TOM KYLE will be presented as well. Traditionally in mid-January, the winners and the categories of the best yachts, crowned by the editors-in-chief of the biggest European yachting magazines will be announced. Appearance, the numbers, the feel and the impression this boat made on me, even though this year EYOTY-competition is pretty dense, would justify a win. So, let´s be patient.
Of course the wind did not had the perseverance and only one or two miles after we set course back home, it died down completely. So we took it down and started the engine. Again, number which might be of interest for you: At some 1.500 rev the boat was steaming along with 5 to 6 knots, at 2.300 revs we reached 7 knots. So depending on the urgency, even in a calm the 56 horsepower of the Yanmar Diesel engine will bring you back home quickly. A nice side note are the 400 liters of fuel (in two tanks), which is quite a nice supply: An Oceanis 40.1 for example only sports 195 liters.
Heading home: Sorting my impressions
A few minutes later the rain set in. Still some miles to go, we were lucky that the front did not bring any gusts nor wind. Instead, a dense and very unpleasant downpour soaked our clothing immediately. Whilst fitting the fenders to the railing and readying the boat for berthing, I already started to think about what my “verdict” of this yacht may be. Of course, I am biased: You may know about my passionate love for these yachts. Also, personally, I regard 42 feet as a perfect size for a boat that is sailed by a couple, small family or single handed. Why opt for a bigger yacht? This size perfectly manages to weigh in volume, waterline (hence: speed), running costs and of course the initial upfront budget needed to get one in the first place.
Which brings us to the only downside of this whole thing: The said budget needed to get one. A Pure 42, though fully equipped and sail-ready, starts at some 900.000 Euros exVAT. Urs emphasized that their options list on the other hand is pretty short, meaning that a Pure 42 really is sail-ready. But a million bucks … is a million bucks. I don´t like to talk about prices and budgets all too much, you know it: Boats are luxury products and very expensive. One million for a 42-footer? Well, I know myself what semi-custom and one-off really means, it´s truly a boat made especially for you. This is what no series production boat can ever offer.
And so you may be looking forward to the upcoming article fully dedicated to the Pure 42 interiors. For now I sort the 150 or so pictures I took from her saloon, cabins, bathrooms and amenities and prepare the follow up article, which is due for publishing in a few days. You may bridge the waiting time while browsing through the building progress-articles of the Pure 42 and sign up for the free monthly NO FRILLS SAILING newsletter here.
Thanks Urs and the Pure-team for this wonderful day aboard TOM KYLE! By the way, if you want to see and sail her, contact the shipyard, because the yacht will remain in the water after returning to Kiel/Germany in a few days. This is the best way to truly experience what she can do – becoming one with the sea.
Connected articles you might find interesting as well:
42 – the answer to everything!
From a pencil sketch to a live-sized mock-up
Under a lucky star: Work in progress at the Pure 42