SVN solovelanet

79 SVN Solovelanet Global by Maurizio Anzillotti T he comparison between the Sun Odys- sey 490 and the Oceanis 46.1 is between two ranges of two big shipyards.On the one hand we find the latest generation of Jeanneau boats, which ranges from the entry-level Sun Odyssey 410 to the Sun Odys- sey 490, the model that we are examining in this article. On the other hand, there is the latest gene- ration of Bénéteau yachts, currently consisting of just two models, the Oceanis 46.1 and the Oceanis 46.1 here analysed. Two innovative boats, each of them cutting-edge in her own way, and both meant to exert a significant impact on the future produc- tion of all industrial shipyards.Both of them, and that's a rare thing these days, offer really new fea- tures, like what has been done by Rob Humphreys with the Elan 310, the first series production boat with a chine in the hull, or by the Felci firm with the opening transom of the Dufour 405 that transfor- med into the bathing platform. Jeanneau For Jeanneau, Philippe Briand has redesigned cir- culation in the cockpit, starting from the observation that walking from the cockpit to the deck is not very easy. In traditional boats you have to put your feet on the cockpit bench, step over the coaming and reach the side deck, all this while keeping your head bent to avoid hitting the bimini top. Briand has sol- ved this problem by creating ramps which, starting from cockpit floor level, slowly rise up to deck level. An effective solution, that had never been seen in any boat except in some American fisherman.We at SVN have tried it on both the Sun Odyssey 410 and the 490, and found out that this solution significan- tly improves circulation in the boat. Another innovation is a system created to tran- sform the cockpit bench into a large sundeck thanks to a mechanism that folds down the backrest until it is level with the bench, thus crea- ting a big sun lounger. Other differences concern the boat's philosophy. Jeanneau decided to create a boat equipped with traditional deck gear, where using the sails is considered a primary activity. Therefore, this boat does not have the roll-bar that we find on Bénéteau models, and keeps the two winches on the deckhouse, in addition to the two in front of the helm.

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