Platu 25
Beneteau · Bruce Farr · 1997
Updated
The Platu 25 is a 7.53 m semi-displacement racing yacht designed by Bruce Farr and built by Beneteau, first launched in 1997. It races in Sportboat. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 44% of the designs it races against. It is at its best in light air and struggles to hold that once it blows.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 44% of the boats it races against.
16th of 28 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 296 starts across 74 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
7.53 m
24′ 8″
Beam
2.58 m
Draft
1.59 m
Displacement
1.2 t
Sail area
34 m²
On the podium
Where a Platu 25 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
32%
of 296 starts by 46 boats
Wins
13%
Read from 296 starts by 46 boats between 2014 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Platu 25 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
National Championship for Keel Boats2026- Regatta Sozopol Sailing Cup2026
"Νικολαος Σαρικαβαζης 2026"2026
Trofeo Regularidad2026- Kypello Voreiou Aigaiou2026
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
27%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
32%
of these races end on the podium
Better the longer it gets. Boats that settle into a groove and hold it gain ground once the course stops turning.
Who she races against
The designs a Platu 25 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the Platu 25 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
4.75
37°
Beam reach
7.91
90°
Broad reach
10.34
135°
Downwind VMG
7.76
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. Give it a fresh day and long legs and it delivers more than it promised; in a drifter it is working uphill.
Where it gains
Its best ground is cracked off once it pipes up, where it outruns what it looks like on paper, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage downwind 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 1.8 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the upwind.
How fast is a Platu 25
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.39 | 4.46 | 4.69 | 4.75 |
| 52° | 5.09 | 6.20 | 6.44 | 6.57 |
| 60° | 5.33 | 6.34 | 6.64 | 6.84 |
| 75° | 5.46 | 6.48 | 6.98 | 7.33 |
| 90° | 5.44 | 6.54 | 7.19 | 7.91 |
| 110° | 5.47 | 6.81 | 7.58 | 8.49 |
| 120° | 5.32 | 6.70 | 7.85 | 9.26 |
| 135° | 4.79 | 6.37 | 7.45 | 10.34 |
| 150° | 4.02 | 5.92 | 6.92 | 8.92 |
| Run VMG | 3.48 | 5.19 | 6.27 | 7.76 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Most run a fixed propeller. Crew weight is declared around 400 kg.
Rigging
Platu 25 rig and sail dimensions
A Platu 25 carries 9.40 m of mainsail hoist on a 3.65 m boom, a forestay 9.17 m above the deck and a 3.47 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 95 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 34 to 53 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.