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com
A RARE BREED OF

CAT
Leopard 37
Boasts Livability In A Seaworthy Package
story by peter swanson
photography by billy black

{ }
F rom kayak to megayacht, all boating is about connecting with nature and cementing
the bonds of family and friendship through shared adventure. The Leopard 37 power cat
relies on a rare formula to further that ideal. Designers of the 37 have created
extraordinarily livable outdoor spaces on a platform that can also cross oceans if need be.

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 charters, but none can equal the worldwide scale of
The Moorings, which celebrates its 40th anniversary in
business this year.
As far as ocean-crossing ability—and this is the
truly impressive part of the 37 story—every boat in
The Moorings’ B.V.I. fleet has been driven from South
Africa to Tortola on its own bottom. The 6,634-
nautical-mile voyage requires two stops for refueling:
the first at the remote South Atlantic island of St.
Helena and the second at Fortaleza in Brazil. The
entire trip takes more than 30 days.

Photos courtesy of Peter Swanson

Top left: The helm on the Leopard 37/Moorings 372 is nicely designed. Note the liferaft beneath the dash. Above left: Engine room
access is through hatches in the cockpit. Aft of the engines, there’s space for storage or a genset. Above right: David Rohr, Moorings
product manager, demonstrates the 372’s push-button dinghy davit system.

Confirming this notion of livability could hardly
be easier, because Leopard’s South African builder,
Robertson & Caine of Cape Town, is the exclusive
supplier of power cruisers to The Moorings charter
fleet. The Moorings re-brands the Leopard 37 as the
Moorings 372 PC (while offering the Leopard 47 as
the 474 PC).
So, for the price of a vacation, you can test the
veracity of what you read here by actually using
the Moorings 372 PC in the waters for which it was
designed: the Bahamas, the British Virgin Islands,
the Sea of Cortez, and other warm-water cruising
grounds around the world. “Try before you buy” is
such a sensible idea for any major purchase that many
trawler manufacturers and dealers have begun offering
Now this is not to say that the Leopard 37 is
designed for transatlantic passages. For these deliveries,
The Moorings adds about 400 additional gallons of
diesel in extra tankage and mans the boat with tough
young South Africans like skipper Piet Schepers.
Schepers reported having waves wash over him on the
flybridge during his first delivery and then flew back to
Cape Town in time to hop on the next 37 to Tortola.
Schepers is a good example of someone who suffers
from a malady I call sea-state amnesia.
Meeting the Moorings executive in charge of these
heroic deliveries puts the program in a somewhat
humorous perspective. His name is Anthony Steward,
and the brawny South African holds the distinction of
being the only person in history to have circumnavigated

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Looking aft, the nav station, electrical panel, and TV are to port. Note the wide sliding glass door to the cockpit.

the planet in an open boat. En route, Steward rolled
his 19-foot sailboat so many times that he says he lost
track of the number. Obviously, from this guy’s point
of view, crossing the Atlantic with hot running water
and two queen berths is about as challenging as taking
a bus tour of Civil War battlefields, so he offers his
captains an incentive.
“Whoever gets the boat from Cape Town to Tortola
and uses the least amount of fuel gets a bonus at the end
of the year,” Steward says.
The 37 is powered by a pair of 110hp Yanmars, but for
economy’s sake, Schepers says he operated only one at a
time at less than half throttle, averaging around 6 or 7
knots (though occasionally making up to 17 knots while
surfing down waves) and burning between 1.5 and
2.1gph of fuel. He says one skipper even tried “sailing”
the boat downwind and made 3–4 knots over the
ground even with the motors shut down. As the sailors
say: under bare poles.
DESTROYER TURN? NOPE
By the time you read this, 11 Leopard 37s will have
crossed the Atlantic using similar tactics. At the other
end of the scale, Leopard testing has shown the vessel is
capable of top speeds of more than 20 knots and a high
cruise of around 17, obviously sucking down the diesel.
My ride on the first 37 from South Africa also involved
crossing a famous body of water (famous for parties, that
is): Sir Francis Drake Channel, off the new Moorings
base on Tortola. Only the skipper was South African; the
other nine people aboard were members of the marine
press, and most of them had gathered on the flybridge
by the time I got my chance at the helm. With this
well-nourished band of brothers, we would not be

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 setting any speed records, since the 37, like most cats,
is a weight-sensitive creature.
“Everybody hold on,” I said. “I’m going to run ’er up
to full throttle, then put the wheel hard over.”
I needn’t have bothered with the warning. Even
with 1,900 lb. of weight aloft at 14 knots, our heel
in the turn was so insignificant, I can’t remember
whether we leaned to the inside, to the outside, or
not at all. The fact that we had 10 people on the
flybridge, even for a short period, says something
about the space. And the stability lesson was especially
important, because on this boat there is no lower
helm station.
John Robertson, who founded Robertson & Caine
in 1991 with his late partner, Jerry Caine, says the
flybridge steering takes into account the fact that,
unlike power cats made in France and other northern
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locales, the Leopard 37 is designed almost exclusively
for tropical waters or summer cruising in general.
“The biggest compromise we had to make was not
having an interior steering station,” Robertson says.
“In Europe, you have to have one, because it extends
the cruising season by a month.” Owners of Leopard
37s will likely add wrap-around Eisenglass curtains, if
not actual glass, for inclement weather.
The design of the vessel was a collaboration among
Robertson & Caine, The Moorings, and the design
house of architects Gino Morrelli and Pete Melvin.
According to Robertson, the idea was to create
a cruising and charter platform that emphasizes
enjoyment of fresh air while offering protection from
the rays of the sun—the “outside livability” mentioned
earlier. An elegant and very social flybridge is one
product of this thinking.
Above left: This view forward shows the galley to starboard. A raised settee lets diners enjoy the scenery. Above right: Stepping
down into the hulls, one finds identical cabins, each with a queen berth and head.

DESIGNED FOR DAILY CRUISING LIFE
The helm is to starboard and seats two. To port and
just forward of the molded fiberglass stairway is a cushy
shotgun seat that enables two more people to engage in
conversation with those at the helm. This is easy because
you aren’t competing with the sound of the engines, which
are quiet and far away. The loudest noises are the gargling
of prop wash and the breeze. Behind the helm is a wrap-
around settee for four while under way, or five once the
backrest for the helm seat is folded forward—a clever
feature. Flybridge footage aft lies outside the cover of the
hard top and can be dedicated to sunbathing or grilling.
Good design doesn’t necessarily grab you by the collar
and shout, “Look at me!” It reveals itself in small ways on
a daily basis. The Leopard 37s cockpit is another space
that is at once social and practical. A central upholstered
bench seat does double duty as a locker for lines and
fenders, and that’s it. Several journalists suggested filling
the void with a table. Indeed, a table is optional, but with
a dinette inside and a table on the flybridge, a third
seems redundant. Why have more tables than berths?
Instead, I envision this shaded area as a venue for
landing fish while under way and, with folding chairs
deployed, enjoying a cocktail at sundown. The
designated chef easily socializes with the group by
opening the big sliding glass door onto this “back porch.”
Here, too, Eisenglass curtains would make this area snug
against the rain or cold, although that’s not necessary

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 Leopard 37
$59,000 “BUYS” YOU A 37-FOOTER
UNDER OWNERSHIP PLAN
Though The Moorings has been in business since 1969,
it was all about sailboats until 2001, when it brought in its
first powerboats. Last year, the charter company began
phasing out all the monohulls in its power fleet, which is
now all cat. Two models are offered: the Moorings 372,
and her big sister, the 474.
Tui Marine is parent company to The Moorings, and
Steve Long is Tui’s yacht sales marketing manager. Long
says the powerboat market has been slow to buy into the
concept of Moorings ownership—although the economy
might have something to do with that.
For those not familiar with The Moorings’ highly
successful ownership program, here’s a quick summary:
After you buy a power cat through The Moorings, the
company offers it for charter, takes care of all maintenance,
and provides a guaranteed income that covers your
mortgage payment. Moorings owners are allowed use of
the vessel for up to 12 weeks a year. After five years, the
boat is turned over to you in very close to new condition,
except for engine hours.
The one hurdle is that buyers must fork over a “traditional
financing” down payment, which at the moment is
$59,000, according to Long.
But here’s the kicker: You don’t have to spend the
12 weeks on your own boat. You can use your time on
any Moorings vessel, power or sail, at any one of its
island locations, including the Mediterranean, Thailand,
or Polynesia. It’s an affordable way to see the world, and
at the end of it, you have your own boat in your home
cruising grounds.
—Peter Swanson
for charter work. The Moorings people pointed out
that the cockpit and saloon are on the same level, just
one step up from where one boards from a dinghy.
Thus, the 37 scores very well in the charter-world ideal
of “fewest steps from dinghy to cold beer.”
Access to the engine spaces is through hatches
in the cockpit sole. By monohull trawler standards,
engine access may not be great, but by catamaran
standards it’s not bad at all. For one thing, access is
not beneath a berth in one of the staterooms, as it is
on some cats; nothing mixes more poorly than greasy
mechanic hands and your sheets and pillows. Aft of
the engines, there is room for container storage or
a generator.
Speaking of cold beer, the 37 comes standard with
Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2009 © Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953) www.passagemaker.com
ine
& Ca
Rob ertson
Courtesy of
refrigerator and freezer drawers, which make sense on
any boat of any size, and they are located to port just
inside the galley, within easy reach of the cockpit.
Opposite is a three-burner gas stove, which I assume
could be upgraded to include an oven on an owner’s
boat. Cabinets are finished in teak. The lighting, both
natural and artificial, is superb. A bank of opening ports
forward provides ventilation. The centerpiece of the
space is a U-shaped dinette that seats four. There is a
stand-up nav station with an adjacent electrical panel and
VHF radio.
Under way, the interior spaces are sufficiently insulated
from the engines to allow conversation without having to
raise one’s voice. This is subjective, of course, but I lay on
one of the berths while the 37 was at cruise and found
the noise level well within my tolerance level.
FUN AND FUNCTIONALITY
Down in the hulls are mirror-image staterooms
consisting of a shaped queen berth and head. In contrast
to the 47, what you see on the 37 is what you get: two
equivalent staterooms. On the Moorings 474, you have a
choice of three or four staterooms, the former being more
sensible for a cruising owner, the latter more profitable for
chartering and thus more lucrative to an absentee owner.
My only point is that even if you purchase the 37 through
The Moorings, you will not be torn between these
competing advantages.
To me, the Leopard 37 would be best for two people,
who I envision might designate the heads as his and hers
and use one of the berths for stowage, to be cleared off
for occasional overnight guests.
Two mechanical features at either end of the vessel, in
 Leopard 37

my opinion, will make this boat especially enjoyable to

use. One predictor of how much fun people are likely to LEOPARD 37/MOORINGS 372 PC
have while cruising is the ease of dinghy deployment.
That’s why I am a huge fan of davits over boat decks LOA 36' 6"
for the dinghy. The Leopard 37 does one better, with a
LWL 35' 11"
stainless steel davit that raises and lowers the dinghy at
the push of a single button. Activate the electric motor, BEAM 14' 8"
unclip the forward lift line to the dink, unclip the aft line, DRAFT 3' 2"
start the outboard, and off you go.
DISPLACEMENT 15,183 lb. (full load)
Going forward to visit my other favorite feature is
accomplished easily by ascending steps from the cockpit BRIDGE CLEARANCE 22'
to the catwalks. Solid stainless steel rails line the walks FUEL 211 U.S. gal.
and foredeck to keep you safe.
Aboard the Leopard 37, you don’t deploy anchors via WATER 113 U.S. gal.
chocks on the foredeck, which would make that space HOLDING TANK 60 U.S. gal.
less fun and more industrial. Instead, you access the
GENERATOR 6kW Northern Lights
ground tackle through hatches closer to the center of the
deck, deploying the anchor with an electric winch and ENGINES Twin 110hp Yanmar diesels
snubbing it to a permanently installed bridle attached MAXIMUM SPEED 20 knots
inboard to the hulls. Ease of anchoring, like ease of
dinghy deployment, makes having fun easier because it CRUISE SPEED 8.5–14.7 knots

encourages spontaneous exploration while under way. RANGE AT CRUISE SPEED 600nm at 8.5 knots;

320nm at 14.7 knots

A POWER CAT FROM THE START
By the way, the step-like “brows” you see on the front
of the deckhouse are brilliant. First of all, they look cool.
And as seats or photography perches, they add further
outdoor livability and provide shade in the saloon.
About the construction of the boat. Robertson &
Caine has used the 37 to increase production efficiency
in ways that are typical of the automotive industry.
The hulls and connecting structure are molded as a
single piece, rather than three pieces joined together.
Because weight is an issue, the builder’s use of the
infusion method makes sense from an engineering
standpoint, not just to ensure cleaner air. The fiberglass
finishes are high quality, and the stainless work, which
is done in Vietnam, is superb.
Built from the start as a true power cat, as opposed
to a re-purposed sailing design, the boat’s 14.8-foot
beam is not so wide as to preclude docking at most
marinas that can handle trawlers. The boat does,
however, have that most cat-like of virtues: shoal
draft. When sailboats are crowding the anchorage, the
Leopard 37 will sit in relative isolation in the shallows,
and she’ll get into some hurricane holes when others
can’t—my favorite example being North Pond at
Norman’s Cay in the Bahamas, where the entrance
shoals to 4 feet at low tide. In other words, the 37
enjoys all the advantages of catamaran construction,
including superb close-quarters maneuvering ability
due to her widely spaced props.
DESIGNER Gino Morrelli & Pete Melvin
BUILDER Robertson & Caine
BASE PRICE $399,000 (approximate;
equipped and delivered to
The Moorings’ Tortola base)
•
For more information:
www.mooringspower.com
www.robertsonandcaine.com
Catamarans are not for everyone. Many monohull
devotees eschew cats’ funky use of space. On this side
of the Atlantic, they seem to have gained the most
acceptance among Canadians in general and French
Canadians in particular, as evidenced by their prevalence
during the annual migration down island. Nonetheless,
the class continues to gain traction in the North
American cruising population at large.
If you’re a cruising couple drawn to multihulls, consider
the Leopard 37 for your passages south. The boat’s
designers have thought long and hard about how to
make daily cruising life easier and more enjoyable, and
they’ve delivered a handsome craft that has proven gutsy
enough for ocean passages bigger than most of us will
ever undertake.

Reprinted with permission. Copyright 2009 © Dominion Enterprises (888.487.2953) www.passagemaker.com