New Boat Review: Excess 14

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I first saw Beneteau’s Excess brand of sailing catamarans in 2019 in Düsseldorf, Germany, with a room full of marine journalists, some of whom, like me, weren’t convinced of the brand’s vision. Most were perplexed, some got snarky. The models were based on modified Lagoon designs, and none of line made sense—not the marketing, positioning, or design.

But two years later, Beneteau revamped the brand’s management and messaging and launched the Excess 11, which was new from the keels up. Fast forward another two years and another from-scratch hull in the form of the Excess 14, which made its U.S. debut at the Miami boat show in February, and now it’s safe to say that the brand has evolved and is living up to its initial promise.

The design by VPLP naval architects leans on the firm’s ocean racing expertise. The hulls are asymmetrical, with hull sides that are fuller outboard and flatter inboard. This moves the center of buoyancy outboard for better stability and reduces interference drag between the hulls. The bridgedeck has been raised for better clearance, and the bows are inverted and free of the surface, which makes for more precise steering. By comparison with previous Excess models, the keels are thinner, and the rudders are 8 inches deeper for a better bite and higher pointing ability…

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