http://interestingsailboats.blogspot.pt/2014/10/mojito-888-voile-magazine-boat-of-year.html
http://interestingsailboats.blogspot.pt/2014/10/on-water-rm-890-versus-mojitomalango.html
After having won the Voile magazine boat of the year contest the interest in the Mojito went up sharply and the boat has been tested by the other main French sailing magazines (Voile and Voiliers and Bateaux) and looking how the boat sailed on both occasions I bet we will continue to hear nice things about the boat. First a video with the boat being tested by Bateaux (very light wind) and then 3 others from the Voile and Voiliers test showing the boat sailing in medium wind in several points of sail:
The interest on the Mojito seems to make revive the interest on the Malango 888, basically the same boat with a different cabin and we have a new test, surprisingly by a British Magazine. It seems that on the last years finally the British, that have a more conservative approach regarding cruising boats, seem to be interested on the light fast and seaworthy cruising boats derived from the Ocean solo racer's hull concept.
The test is from Sailing Today. I did not like other test made by the magazine but this one is made by a new tester and what they say about the boat corresponds to the information I got about it, reading other test sails. It seems a good test to me. They say about the boat:
"The boats are drawn by Breton naval architect Pierre Rolland, who favours a purposeful plumb bow, hard chines and a wide stern. The racing pedigree is immediately obvious, and in fact, the design is derived from a singlehanded mini Transat racer. And yet, the boat’s raison d’etre is to provide a sporty sail for cruising sailors...It’s all about the pleasure of sailing,..
The techniques used to build the Malango are decidedly modern. Vacuum infusion spreads the resin evenly through the layers of fibreglass and honecomb-cell felt for the minimum weight.
..it’s worth noting a key feature of the boat, and one of its chief concessions to cruising: the transom includes a deep 2.1m recess which perfectly accommodates a 2.4m dinghy. Being low to the water, the cut out for this dinghy garage doesn’t intrude on the stern cabin, but forms part of the structure of the stern berth.
.. we scoot upwind at an easy 7 knots, heading some 40° off a true wind of 13 knots. Reaching up and down off the beach at nearby Port-la-Forêt, dodging waterskiers, we settle into a 7.8 knot lope and we hit 9 knots surfing back downwind flying the 75m2 symmetrical spinnaker. Although this is a sporty boat, she’s very well behaved, reluctant to broach (you can really feel the chine digging in aft) and therefore easily handled by one."
The genoa is on a furler and the sheeting point is controlled not by a traveller (keeping the side decks clear), but by the increasingly fashionable light eye on a Dyneema strop – a barber-hauler which can be pulled closer to the centreline or slacked off.
Verdict: At a touch under 30ft, the Malango 8.88 ..she has the heart, soul and the capabilities of a larger cruiser.... Her lithe, sporty lines and muscular performance mark her out from the many gaffer-likes produced in Britain – we simply don’t have an equivalent to the Malango that I’m aware of. She’s fast, but stable and easy to handle, making her good for family cruising or outings with friends. She’s been designed to a firm cruising brief, with the ability to dry out easily on sand – perfect for her native Brittany and with a few modifications – renewables, watermaker, extra electronics – she’d make a capable, but cosy, bluewater cruiser. That’s why she’s able to make a European Category A rating and indeed one of the 11 boats built so far has crossed the Atlantic to the Caribbean".
http://www.sailingtoday.co.uk/boats/big-boat-review/melango-88-8-review-test/They also have made a video of the test:
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