First 31.7
Beneteau · Jean-Marie Finot · 1998
Updated
The First 31.7 is a 9.61 m semi-displacement racing yacht designed by Jean-Marie Finot and built by Beneteau, first launched in 1998. It races in Class C. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 20% of the designs it races against. It comes alive as the breeze builds, and gives time away in the light.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 20% of the boats it races against.
127th of 159 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 623 starts across 141 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
9.61 m
31′ 6″
Beam
3.21 m
Draft
1.93 m
Displacement
3.8 t
Sail area
53 m²
On the podium
Where a First 31.7 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
16%
of 623 starts by 62 boats
Wins
3%
Read from 623 starts by 62 boats between 2014 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a First 31.7 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
"Πορος 2026"2026
Lliga Creuers2026- "Αγκιστρι 2026"2026
4ª Golfo dei Poeti Cup2026- "Πανελληνιο Κυπελο ORCI 2026"2026
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound the buoys, or offshore
A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.
Round the buoys
15%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
16%
of these races end on the podium
Level across both. Plenty of designs fall away once the course gets long — a light hull that thrives round the cans can struggle through a night at sea. This one does not.
Who she races against
The designs a First 31.7 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the First 31.7 has fared against each of them, boat against boat on corrected time. Ordered by how often the two meet, not by who wins.
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
4.93
38°
Beam reach
7.94
90°
Broad reach
8.75
135°
Downwind VMG
7.51
170°
Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.
Where it wins and where it pays
Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.
It needs pressure to show what it can do. On a windy coastal course it is in its element; on a light-air windward-leeward it has to be sailed well to hold on.
Where it gains
Its best ground is off the wind when it blows, where it goes better than its measurements say it should, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage across the wind as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
There is no condition where it falls away badly, which is worth something over a season of mixed weather.
Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.
Full width is 0.4 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a First 31.7
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.19 | 4.39 | 4.86 | 4.93 |
| 52° | 4.87 | 6.36 | 6.85 | 6.98 |
| 60° | 5.12 | 6.55 | 7.03 | 7.20 |
| 75° | 5.29 | 6.70 | 7.24 | 7.60 |
| 90° | 5.21 | 6.79 | 7.35 | 7.94 |
| 110° | 5.18 | 6.90 | 7.67 | 8.44 |
| 120° | 4.99 | 6.80 | 7.64 | 8.86 |
| 135° | 4.46 | 6.43 | 7.39 | 8.75 |
| 150° | 3.77 | 5.79 | 7.01 | 8.18 |
| Run VMG | 3.27 | 5.03 | 6.34 | 7.51 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 450 kg.
Rigging
First 31.7 rig and sail dimensions
A First 31.7 carries 10.80 m of mainsail hoist on a 3.90 m boom, a forestay 11.79 m above the deck and a 4.10 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 112 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 49 to 84 m² depending on bowsprit and set-up. Before ordering a sail, read the figure on your own measurement record rather than the typical one for the design.