Designed in Finland, based in Finland and built in Finland, the new Quarken 27 T-Top is a fast weekender with a difference
SEE MORE mby.com/q27t
Following a succession of seriously impressive boats from Axopar, XO and Saxdor, the plumb-bowed weekender has begun to seem like a distinctly Finnish innovation. It doesn’t matter that most of these boats are built in Poland, thanks to their distinctively Scandinavian style, the brands themselves feel every bit as Finnish as salty licorice and the Moomins. Such has been their success, that European yards have now started to mimic it, so it’s good to see that the latest boat to arrive on the scene is not from an established European builder trying to shoulder its way into a lucrative new market but from a Finnish brand with authentic Finnish roots.
Established in December 2021, Quarken is the brainchild of industrial designer, Jussi Hurskainen, in collaboration with Osmo Roukala and Antero Sundeberg. Together, they bring with them valuable experience working on award-winning craft from the likes of Yamarin, Finnmaster, Husky, Grandezza and Saxdor. And happily, while Quarken is based in the Finnish region of Kvarken (and is in fact an Anglicised version of that place name), this is not just a Finnish boat in terms of its postcode. In stark contrast to the bulk of its competitors, Quarken boats are actually built in the Gulf of Bothnia, at the heart of Finland’s boat-building industry.
CLASS-LEADING COCKPIT
It’s not often you come across a deck arrangement as intelligently conceived as the Quarken 27’s. The boat is designed around a single Yamaha F300, which means there’s plenty of space at the back end for a wraparound swim platform with a secure central walkway ahead of the engine well. That means you can jump on at either side, steady yourself on the ski arch and make your way into the cockpit without having to clamber over any cushions. The deck furniture also makes great use of the aft space. An asymmetrical layout with a starboard transom gate enables the inclusion of no fewer than three aft-facing seats. Better still, these can be left intact without having to sacrifice any of the three forward-facing seats at the aft end of the cockpit. When you step into the cockpit, that ‘internal’ three-man bench links to a similar unit to port, creating a well-sized L-shaped seating section. If you slot in the central table, that creates a comfortable lunch space for six or seven – and if you reverse the two helm seats, with the yank of a knurled aluminium knob, the entire cockpit becomes a very sociable dining spot for up to nine.
You can also rig this same section as a huge sunbed that runs
