The second JP54, fast cruising carbon Verdier sailboat
The JP54 is a 16.45 m fast cruising sailboat designed byGuillaume Verdier on order fromJean-Pierre Dick, with interior layout by Stéphanie Marin. The first unit, The Kid (hull no. 1), was launched in 2010 in Auckland at Pachoud Yachts for the Absolute Dreamer team. This second unit is a sister hull launched in 2012, built to the same Verdier plans.
The concept: adapting an IMOCA for cruising
The JP54’s program incorporates technical choices from a 60-foot open ocean racing yacht — full carbon construction, hydraulic canting keel, ballast tanks — in a sailboat sized for short-handed offshore cruising. The draft reduces from 3.5 m (straight keel) to 2.5 m when the keel is canted to 50°, allowing access to shallow anchorages.
Technical specifications
- Designer: Guillaume Verdier
- Interior layout: Stéphanie Marin
- Hull length: 16.45 m (54 ft)
- Overall length (with bowsprit): 18.235 m
- Beam: 5.3 m
- Draft: 3.5 m (straight keel) / 2.5 m (keel canted 50°)
- Displacement: ~10.2 t
- Construction: full carbon (hull, deck, mast, boom)
- Hydraulic canting keel, twin rudders
- Sail area: 266 m² upwind, 434 m² downwind
- Water ballast: 1,000 L (for harbor maneuvers in shallow waters)
The rotating interior carousel
Verdier’s design feature: the galley, chart table, and saloon are mounted on a rotating carousel that also houses batteries and hydraulic actuators. The entire assembly can be heeled to windward, shifting ballast to leeward for improved stability and sail power.
Series status
The JP54 was developed by Absolute Dreamer, Jean-Pierre Dick’s offshore racing team. This unit is the second hull built; the first (The Kid) has since been renamedNotre Méditerranée — Ville de Nice and continues to race with Dick.
