- Price: from 11,000 euros
- Built from 1985 to 1990 in 60 copies
The very thin hulls set the tone: priority to speed! For comfort, we'll see after... This is in a few words the summary of this model with a strong character.
The story of the Corneel 26 is firstly that of two men, Gildas Cornic and Eric Bruneel (who later launched the Neel trimarans). Corneel is the contraction of their names... After a first 18-foot catamaran, of which about a hundred were distributed, the two friends developed a lively and fun day boat catamaran in 1985, the Corneel 26, with Jean-François Fountaine and Michel Joubert. The following year he is awarded the title of Boat of the Year.
This catamaran, which can be dismantled, seduces by its simplicity: fittings at the foot of the mast, no boom or daggerboards. With its fixed wings that limit the draft to 70 cm, the Corneel 26 can come to beauty and even run aground during a tide.
Exceptional performance
Tuck in and go! The Corneel 26 glides along without restraint and does not take long, as long as the breeze exceeds 15 knots, to relieve her hull to windward, or even to take her off completely! The sandwich construction glued under vacuum and with biased fabrics, which offers rigidity and light weight - less than a ton on the scale - is of course not foreign to this spirited behaviour
All the regulars of the machine are unanimous: the 26 sails relatively safely on one leg. But be careful not to get overwhelmed by the machine: a few Corneels have capsized... Listening, we keep it in hand!
An even more justified advice for the Sport version. With its wing mast and 8 m2 more sail area, the 26 becomes downright sporty. The S (Sport) version offers one to two extra knots at all paces.
Suitable for summer weather
Ultra simple, the deck plan offers an efficient deck fitting with just two blockers fixed on the aluminium beams at the foot of the mast. The solid cockpit, despite the relative protection of the two hulls, is copiously rinsed by the sea spray in a good breeze. It's worth pointing out that sailing aboard the Corneel 26 is certainly always exhilarating, but it's more suited to summer weather.
The very low inertia of the boat forces the crew to keep a lot of canvas to be able to turn and pass easily through the chop. The outboard motor and its tilting chair suspended under the gondola - it is equipped with an anti-brown deflector - will take over the sails in calm conditions.
Rustic interior comfort
The accommodation is extremely simple: two single berths in each hull with a mini sailing area on the port side and a kitchenette on the starboard side. A few trunks and that's it.
We're still surprised by the height of the barrots. 5'10" isn't ridiculous. Enough to consider cruising in coastal raid mode. The large cockpit and the trampoline, at anchor, prove to be perfect areas for lazing around. You can put up a Queschua-type tent. The yard even had its own canvas shelter originally.
In 1988, aware that its model was missing a square and a double berth, Fountaine-Pajot launched the Love version with a central nacelle. Either a 1.90 by 1.35 m tatami convertible into a square, sheltered in a funny bubble, rather disappointing from an aesthetic point of view. These models, given their greater habitability and the intimacy offered by the three distinct living spaces, have nevertheless enjoyed some success and remain popular today.
The diagnosis of Bateaux.com
Thanks to a very simple construction and the absence of daggerboards, the hulls will cause you no worries. The same applies to aluminium beams, mast profiles that do not seem to be subject to electrolysis. On the other hand, some details need to be reviewed:
- the sloping candlesticks of the first versions were certainly comfortable when rappelling, but they were hung up and then bent
- the original bar linkage and the quality of finish are more than summary
A repair job within the reach of an amateur, which can be completed by replacing the fittings - and of course the sails.
The advantages
- Robust structure
- Drawing always pleasant
- Excellent performance
Disadvantages
- Candlesticks, rudder linkage and finishes to be reviewed
- Can capsize in good breeze
- Aesthetically failed Love version
But what is he missing?
Slightly wider berths and real back skirts.
The equivalent today?
Not much... manufacturers are now interested in much larger units. Even Aventura, a specialist in small catamarans, no longer produces its Aventura 20, 23.5 and 28. On the other hand, on the small trimarans' side, Astus, Tricat, Corsair and Quorning (Dragonfly) are very present!
