Outbound 52: Bound for the Open Ocean

There are no limits to your cruising grounds when you’re aboard this blue water beauty. "Yacht Style" from our June 2008 issue. (Includes video)

May 8, 2008 - By Andrew Burton

Solid blue water burst onto the foredeck of the Outbound 52 and turned to foam as it rolled aft, proof that I'd failed to steer around another large, square Gulf Stream wave. The rest of the crew slid under the hard dodger, out of the spray. Lapses in helmsmanship notwithstanding, we were having fun sailing in the waves kicked up by the 17- to 20-knot northerly breeze blowing against the current. The boat was doing what it was meant to do: get where it was going quickly while giving its crew a comfortable ride.

The way the Outbound 52 was going through the water reflected the beliefs that builder Phil Lambert has developed over years of sailing his own boats: Cruising sailboats don't have to be slugs, and the ability to make fast passages is a safety factor in itself, allowing crews to sail around weather systems or make port before storms hit. An ex-racer, Lambert heads to sea not just for the entertainment of exploring new places but also for the plain and simple joy of sailing.

Lambert grew up in Southern California, then attended the U. S. Merchant Marine Academy at King's Point, New York, where he skippered one of the academy's offshore racing yachts. After he graduated, he spent a few years working as an officer on oil tankers before starting a career in yacht financing. Over the years, a boat concept took shape in conversations with a friend and colleague, Craig Chamberlain. Their racing backgrounds and some uncomfortable yacht deliveries gave them the idea that there was a need for an offshore cruising boat that was both fast and comfortable to be aboard. ..... http://www.cruisingworld.com/boats-and-gear/boat-reviews-and-previews/outbound-52-bound-for-the-open-ocean-21392106.html ....