First 33.7
Beneteau · Jean Berret · 1996
Updated
The First 33.7 is a 9.80 m displacement racing yacht designed by Jean Berret and built by Beneteau, first launched in 1996. It races in Class C. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 24% of the designs it races against.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 24% of the boats it races against.
121st of 159 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 42 starts across 11 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
9.80 m
32′ 2″
Beam
3.33 m
Draft
2.10 m
Displacement
4.7 t
Sail area
61 m²
On the podium
Where a First 33.7 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
5%
of 42 starts by 8 boats
Wins
0%
Read from 42 starts by 8 boats between 2012 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a First 33.7 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Klaipėda ORC European Championship2026
Trofeo Regularidad2026
Jonica 652026- Trofeo TARAS2026
- Lithuanian ORC Championship2026
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
7%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
—
Not enough data yet: 6 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a First 33.7 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Farr 30 (7 meetings), Farr 39 (7 meetings), Dehler 34 (Judel/Vrolijk) (7 meetings), Figaro 1 (7 meetings), More 40 (7 meetings), First 260 (7 meetings), Grand Soleil 40 (Paperini) (6 meetings), Grand Soleil 343 (6 meetings), J/112 (5 meetings), Grand Soleil 37 (Carkeek) (5 meetings), Vismara 46 (5 meetings), Swan 42 (5 meetings), Landmark 43 (5 meetings), Archambault 40 (5 meetings), Sun Fast 3600 (5 meetings), Comet 38 (Finot) (5 meetings), Elan 380 (5 meetings), Grand Soleil 47 (5 meetings), Dufour 34 (4 meetings), Canard 41 (3 meetings), Grand Soleil 50 (Judel/Vrolijk) (7 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the First 33.7 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
5.02
38°
Beam reach
7.96
90°
Broad reach
8.60
135°
Downwind VMG
7.53
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.
There is no obvious weak spot here. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is to windward once it pipes up, where it does more than its size and sail area promise.
Where it pays
It falls short on a broad reach when it blows, giving away time it never gets back. That is a displacement hull working to its designed speed.
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 upwind.
How fast is a First 33.7
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.29 | 4.49 | 4.93 | 5.02 |
| 52° | 5.01 | 6.47 | 6.91 | 7.05 |
| 60° | 5.27 | 6.65 | 7.09 | 7.27 |
| 75° | 5.43 | 6.79 | 7.29 | 7.65 |
| 90° | 5.32 | 6.85 | 7.39 | 7.96 |
| 110° | 5.25 | 6.95 | 7.66 | 8.35 |
| 120° | 5.06 | 6.86 | 7.64 | 8.67 |
| 135° | 4.55 | 6.50 | 7.42 | 8.60 |
| 150° | 3.86 | 5.87 | 7.05 | 8.13 |
| Run VMG | 3.34 | 5.10 | 6.40 | 7.53 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 500 kg.
Rigging
First 33.7 rig and sail dimensions
A First 33.7 carries 11.70 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.45 m boom, a forestay 12.84 m above the deck and a 4.38 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 21 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 62 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.