Yann Piart
-Owner of the FREYDIS 46' ANDANZA.
-I acquired our Freydis 46 in 2015, and my family and I have crossed the Atlantic twice, travelled nearly 25,000 miles and visited around fifteen countries. During these voyages, I have had the opportunity to sail on many other multihulls with a variety of qualities, from large, bulky catamarans to multi-million euro carbon fibre speedboats. Comparing it with our Freydis, I confirmed that my initial choice was the right one: it is the perfect boat in terms of layout for a family living on board, large enough to handle the sea but reasonable enough to manoeuvre with a small crew, with above-average performance without becoming a source of concern. On this last point, the debate is open, but there is always a compromise to be made between travel, equipment that allows you to be self-sufficient (or not), performance, autonomy and, finally, budget. It is an equation that everyone must adapt to their own situation and programme. For us, it was perfect, and we lived in almost total autonomy, without having to go to a marina for the last three years, and without ever feeling the need to. The perfect boat? No, of course not, because that would make for an implausible review! From our experience and encounters, anyone who claims to have a ‘perfect, problem-free’ boat is most likely moored in a marina. All skippers are more or less always tinkering with something or looking for a spare part. And we were no exception! But that's a minor detail, because the most important thing is the confidence we gradually built in Erik Lerouge's design and drawings, as well as in the strength and reliability of the vessel built by Tournier Marine. There is always maintenance and elbow grease required when setting off on a long cruise, and I think that's the price you pay for keeping a ship in good condition, ready to face (almost) any situation safely. But my confidence has never wavered, even when sailing solo at night, with winds of nearly 50 knots and numerous cargo ships and wind turbines around me. In my opinion, this is the most important lesson to take away from my experience.
Yannick PIART / Andanza / Freydis 46 de 2005
Letter to Tournier Marine
James et Lucy Stewart
-We finally arrived in Papeete, Tahiti, and returned to the sounds of a city after the tranquillity of the Tuamotu Archipelago.
Snow Leopard continues to perform beautifully (touch wood). Not only is she fast, but she is also very comfortable, even compared to other catamarans. The movement is much smoother, mainly due to the shape of the hulls, I think.
The speed of the Freydis is well known, but it continues to surprise us how we make these fast passages with ease and comfort. We crossed the 3,000 miles from the Galapagos to the Marquesas in 14 days with only two of us on board, and we were sailing very conservatively. The only boat we encountered that matched our 14-day time was a 90-foot crewed Swan! We then travelled the 540 miles from the Marquesas to the Tuamotus in 2 days, again with a crew of two.
So far, we haven't had any major problems with the boat. We had to replace the water pumps on both Volvo engines and carry out routine maintenance, but that's to be expected.
Snow Leopard has also proven to be very comfortable to live aboard, both at sea and in port. The high pod clearance keeps wave slaps to a minimum. Other catamaran owners we spoke to complained about constant pounding due to the shallow draught of their boats. Of course, we do get the occasional wave slap under the pod, but it's acceptable.
Because the Freydis' deck profile is so sleek, visitors to Snow Leopard are surprised by how much space there is in both the saloon and the hulls. All in all, we couldn't have chosen a better boat for this trip.
The platform rotating with the carbon mast is magnificent and attracts many admiring comments.
Firstly, I would like to thank Eric Lerouge for designing such a fantastic boat, and you and your shipyard for building Snow Leopard and for all the help and support you have given us throughout the project.
We continue to think of you all in Soubise. We hope everything is going well and we look forward to seeing you when we return to Europe.
Cordialement
Snow Leopard
Tahiti, French Polynesia
Seven years around the world aboard a Freydis 49′
Béatrice et José Lianès
-In 2004, we had our FREYDIS49' ‘Nan Fong’ built by the TOURNIER MARINE shipyard.
We were preparing to set off on a long journey. We were looking for a comfortable, sturdy and high-performance catamaran: the Freydis 49' Cruiser seemed like the obvious choice. Pendant cette parenthèse « extra-ordinaire » de 7 ans, il se révèlera être le partenaire idéal et participera grandement à la réussite de notre voyage partout autour du monde.
In all weather conditions, Nan Fong rose to the challenge, and we never doubted her remarkable seaworthiness and robustness for a second. In heavy weather, when the wind was blowing hard and the sea was rough, Nan Fong always felt extremely safe. Her fittings and construction are solid and reassuring. Freydis boats are seaworthy vessels that perform wonderfully at sea. Highly efficient when sailing close to the wind, they remain exceptionally comfortable and are light enough to spring into action at the slightest breeze. Nan Fong gave us some absolutely fabulous sailing moments!
With its shallow draught, it allowed us to access idyllic anchorages.
With its welcoming cockpit, it was often full to capacity at cocktail hour!
And with his dashing appearance, he stood out everywhere he went, attracting admiration and compliments, and often leading to wonderful encounters!
In short, Nan Fong has never let us down, and we have never regretted our choice. He is an integral part of the beauty and joy of our journey, and we are extremely fond of him. We cannot help but think fondly of the entire team at the shipyard who built us such a beautiful boat and made such a wonderful trip possible.
Béatrice et José
François Gourdon
-Owner of the FREYDIS 49' ATIKA.
-In 2009, after leaving a Privilège catamaran after five years of sailing in the Mediterranean and following various monohulls, the first of which was a magnificent Arpège, I was won over by the enthusiasm of FREYDIS owners and even more so by the passion of the builder himself, Philippe Tournier. We immediately shared this passion and set about designing a catamaran based on my ideas: technical and very fast thanks to its slim hulls, rotating mast and beautiful sails (square-topped mainsail, genoa, drifter, asymmetrical spinnaker, etc.), but at the same time classy with a luxurious interior that is not ostentatious.
ATIKA was born a year later, with anthracite grey hulls, a black carbon mast and an interior made entirely of cherry wood with white leather seating and brick red Alcantara benches and beds. This catamaran is a thing of pure beauty that does not go unnoticed when entering a marina.
But I was amazed from the very first sail by its manoeuvrability and speed, immediately reaching 15 knots and even 17. Regular surfing day and night in a transatlantic crossing at 20-22 knots. And even a peak speed of 30.7 knots in the Gulf of Lion under three reefs. But there, not being professionals, we got a bit scared, even though ATIKA stayed on track without ever broaching or luffing.
Fortunately, there are moments of calm with family, children and grandchildren, in Corsica, Morocco or the Caribbean under the coconut trees. And what a pleasure it is to enjoy an aperitif, sitting comfortably with glasses of pastis on the table, feeling the acceleration with every gust of wind, while the monohulls next to us heel over at 45° as they watch us desperately speed away...
In short, a beautiful catamaran, a little technical it's true, but it's the exciting aspect that appeals to every crew member, who are only too happy to discover this beautiful machine.
Aujourd’hui ATIKA attend sagement aux Canaries, dans une belle marina de Lanzarote, pour un été calme et un départ pour l’ARC le 25 Novembre pour Sainte Lucie, avec la ferme intention d’arriver premier des 34 catamarans déjà inscrits.
François GOURDON, owner and skipper of ATIKA.
PS: ATIKA has her photo under spinnaker at the Yacht Club de France surrounded by prestigious sailing boats.