Beneteau First 210 Spirit

This sporty yet unsinkable little trailer-sailer by Jean-Marie Finot (Groupe Finot), Bénéteau’s preferred designer up to around 3Oft (9m), is a good introduction to cruising for dinghy sailors with growing families. Launched in 1992, nearly 900 were built. A big, powerful rig gives plenty of performance but she is also easy to control, thanks to good sail handling kit and twin rudders, which allow her to sit upright when grounded. The GRP-lined interior is cavernous but sparsely fi tted-out, with bunks for four. A fi xed-keel version, the Classic, was launched in 1993 and the model was further updated in centreboard form as the 211 in 1998.

LOA 6.2m (20ft 4in), LWL 6m (19ft 7in), beam 2.48m (8ft 1in), draught 1.8m/0.65m (5ft 11in/2ft 2in), displacement 1,100kg (2,240lb). Price guide: £12,000 to £17,000. YM Test report July 1995.