5 POWER CRUISERS
Beneteau Swift Trawler 47
Capt. Jackson Willett spied the latest weather report and nonchalantly read aloud the detailed summary: “Southwest wind 15 to 20 knots. Waves 8 to 10 feet, with a wind-driven swell of 8 feet at 8 seconds.” He took a last sip of his joe, stood up and declared, “Gonna be sporty!” With that, we made our way to the Beneteau Swift Trawler 47 and prepped for the run heading offshore into the Pacific.
I had first seen the 47 at the Ft. Lauderdale boat show snarled in among her siblings and the many temporary quays. Her salty looks beckoned us to throw off the lines and chase the sunset and when the opportunity arose several months later, we jumped at it. The Power & Motoryacht team was thrilled to be the first journalists aboard for the kickoff leg of Beneteau’s Swift Pacific Adventure, a near-400-mile journey from Seattle to mid-coast Oregon.
After loading up gear and sundries, Digital Director John Turner and I went over the 47’s systems—including the brand’s intuitive Ship Control interface where essentially all onboard functions can be monitored—with Willett and some of the Beneteau crew.
On the first day’s leg, the three of us spent the bulk of the time on the flybridge, taking shifts at the centerline helm and opening the optional ($7,080), electrically retractable flybridge bimini for warmth—the cool air off the 50-degree water kept things chilly.
A favorable outgoing tide and 2- to 3-foot seas equaled a 22-knot cruise at 2600 rpm. I used the opportunity
