The production of seaworthy catamarans has a long tradition in South Africa. The Leopard brand is best known for the use of its boats as charter boats at The Moorings and Sunsail, whose boats were even sailed to their delivery harbour on their own keel in the early days, no matter where it was. Other boats that have become famous beyond the African continent are the St. Francis and Maverick catamarans and, of course, the small Wildcat models.
Another manufacturer that has its headquarters in the USA, but is nevertheless taking up the important catamaran legacy and manufacturing in South Africa, is the company founded in 2013 Balance-Catamarans. With boat sizes ranging from 44 to 75 feet, the shipyard has a wide range of boats and its catamarans are specially designed for use as owners and optimised for blue water cruising.
Your Balance 482 model is Nominated as "European Yacht of the Year 2023" and so we were able to scrutinise the boat during test sailing off Barcelona.
Particularly interesting in comparison to the usual large series catamarans was the consistent focus on long-distance cruising. From the very first step on board the Balance 482, you get the feeling that you are on board an "SUV of the seas". The centreboards, the Seadek deck covering and the pragmatic, seaworthy and rather unconventional layout below deck create the impression that both the shipyard and the designers have put a lot of thought into the design. The entire ship appears extremely stable and of high quality for rough use, but at the same time has an elegant and sporty appearance.
You can read the full test report on the Balance 482 in one of the next issues of YACHT.
