Rapido 53XS – A Trimaran that Competes with… Catamarans, Norbert Cochin, Issue 199, Multihulls World, December 2024.
Below is an edited extract from the original article that appears on Multihulls World’s website.
At the Cannes Yachting Festival, Rapido Trimarans presented a new model derived from the 50, but this time much more habitable… The Rapido 53XS (which stands for Xtra Space) features an enlarged nacelle to provide a volume comparable to that of a cruising catamaran of the same size. We simply couldn’t resist testing this new boat!
…Until now, Rapido Trimarans, the brand created by Paul Koch, had made headlines in the fast-cruising trimaran microcosm with a first, particularly high-performance 60. The Rapido 50 and Rapido 40 have taken up this super-fast cruiser concept, but with folding arms to allow access to a “standard” marina slip…
But then a potential customer approached the shipyard with an unprecedented set of specifications: three double cabins – one of them panoramic – two bathrooms, and a large saloon, all without compromising speed, since the sailing schedule was to reach the Caribbean from Europe in just ten days! This is how Paul came up with the idea of transforming his folding 50 into a fixed 53XS. In practical terms, this means that the nacelle’s width is practically doubled, which is no mean feat!
It is only above the water that the hull flares out, providing a surface area of 320 square feet (30 m²) in the central area between the arms connecting the hull to the two floats…
Absolutely everything, from the rotating mast to the appendages, is made of carbon. Everything, including the front rail and every single storage drawer, is built by the shipyard using techniques derived from ocean racing…
The new Rapido’s weight-to-habitability ratio the best we’ve ever seen.
But the designers weren’t content to rest on their laurels and have reworked the entire anti-leeway plan to enhance performance while preserving on-board comfort. For example, the manufacturer has dispensed with the central daggerboard and its prominent well, which obstructs panoramic vision. Instead, curved, asymmetrical daggerboards nearly thirteen feet (four meters) long have been integrated into the floats…
This trimaran is as seductive as it is relevant: it combines the helming pleasure of a racing monohull, and the performance of one, the protection and privacy of a central cockpit, the flush-decked space of a nacelle equivalent to that of a large catamaran, and finally the draft of a Hobie Cat, or almost, to get close to the beach. This is the dream machine for a round-the-world trip.
- To read the full and unabridged article, click here.
- To visit the Rapido 53XS page on the website, click here.
