Background

Key points of the Class 40 Box Rule

Box rule 12.19m max  LOA  * 4.5m Max beam * 3m max draft. Mast height (maximum hoist) 19m max above the water.

Must comply with OSR cat. 1 and ISO EN 12217 stability rules.   No Carbon or other exotic fabrics, pre-preg, etc,  other than for the spars.

Water ballasted max 1500 ltr symmetrically distributed. Fixed keel.

Minimum accommodation requirements including 4 fixed berths and plumbed or chemical toilet.

Minimum displacement 4500kg in the defined minimum load condition.

The result of the inclining test must be between 220kgf and 320kgf, measured on a strop at the mast band at 90 degrees of inclination.

Sail area limited to 115 sq/m upwind and 250 sq/m downwind.   8 sails maximum, of which only two of the fore and aft sails may be made of any fabric.   Spinnakers may be of nylon material only.

Full details of the rule can be found on the Class Association website

Aims of the class

Class 40 aims to provide fast but affordable forty footers by limiting exposure to exotic materials, prohibiting swing keels and restricting water ballast.   In order to keep the costs down, carbon fibre is banned in the hull construction,  titanium fittings are also banned and all but two of the maximum of 8 sails must be made from woven or laminated polyester and nylon for spinnakers. 

However, whilst hi-tech construction methods are not permitted, with a minimum weight of 4,500kg and 115 sq m of white sail area, 120 sq m of asymetric spinnakers flown from a stayed carbon bowsprit, these boats are very fast.  Furthermore, the rules require a minimum of four berths to be fitted which means that the Class 40 can be used for fully crewed racing as well as single or double handed events.

The class has developed as an affordable solution for offshore sailors wanting to move up from Classe Mini 6.5. The gap between the Minis and the IMOCA 60s is substantial, particularly given the high construction cost of these bigger offshore racers, and the need for a well funded and sponsored campaign to have much chance of success.  

'The aim is to more closely define the scope for designers and builders in order to limit the cost of the boats and make them affordable to a much wider group of sailors. In this way the association believes that it will be possible for the class to grow in much the same way as Classe Mini. That is to say, with a mixture of sponsored and non-sponsored series produced and prototype one-off boats. Class 40 is intended to be a 'broad church' with some sailors wanting to race predominantly offshore in classics such as the Route de Rhum and Transat races. Others meanwhile will determine to stick to mainly coastal and inshore events that already exist or future events to be run by the class association.' (Steve Card)

Extraordinary growth rate

Since we started this website, Class 40 has grown significantly, with possibly 60 boats on the water by the end of 2007. There were 32 entries for the Transat Jacques Vabres, by far the largest class, and it is attracting sailors both moving up from the Mini and from Open 60s.

This is a phenomenon which has few parallels in yachting history. In the early days of IOR, quite a few designs went on to be more or less successful production boats, and of course there have been many successful one designs. But Class 40 is probably unique in its focus on shorthanded sailing, in a tightly controlled formula.

Whereas other rule driven developments have been taken up by major manufacturers in the past, Class 40 has been driven by the sailors, from the bottom up. The growth in the class is unprecedented in a number of other ways, partly on account of the number of designers and boat builders involved, and partly due to the availability of many good sailors from circuits like the Figaro, Mini, and the Open boats.  

At present, we estimate that there may be up to 10 sets of moulds and probably at least twice as many designs available.  Owen Clarke have had 3 different versions of their design built, the Express 40 from moulds, Fujifim, and the Jaz 40. The LC 40 (Cariberia) has two boats on the water and a third in build. In addition a number of other one-off boats have been built. This diversity is good news both for the class and for customers, and has brought in new talent which can only be good for the sport. As French sailors have held a pre-eminent position in shorthanded, long distance racing over many years, it is no surprise that the take up for Class 40 was and remains predominately by French skippers and French sponsors. However, there are a number of new entrants to the class from across the world, and it is to be hoped that sponsors will come forward to support them.  

IMPORTANT- this is not the official website of the Class 40 Association.  (see Contact page for details on the Class Association ).   We would encourage all to have a look at the official website but we're sure you'll also find a lot of useful information here on the new Class 40 racing yachts.