The A class and history

The A-Class and a bit of History
About the A-Class
A-Class catamarans are the fastest single handed racing boats in the world.
Most other racing classes are one-design whereas the A-Class is a development class and as a result it has become a pure high-tech boat.

The combination of the use of modern materials such as Carbon and Aramide in the serie production of both hulls and masts, as well innovative sail craft design from some of the best designers in the world, the A-Class Catamaran has been able to push the boundaries to the point where it is considered as Formula One amongst all sailing craft. Speeds exceeding 24 knots are already recorded, as is superb handling, all due to sailors continuing to take advantage of the very few design limitations placed on this class. Design aspects such as hull and sail shape as well as mast length and shape are unrestricted. Only the basic measurements of maximum hull length, maximum beam, maximum sail area and minimum weight must adhere to certain limits.

In 1956, the "A-Division-Catamaran-Class" was orignally founded in England by the former "International Yacht Racing Union" as a free construction class. 50 years on it is going strong and stands proud as one of the oldest and most active catamaran classes in the World.
Due to a minimised construction protocol with adherence to length, width, sail area and minimum weightit has been possible for the numerous designers to develop a boat of outstanding performance.
This led to the fact that the A-Cat as a multihull has become a pure high-tech boat and is now considered as the fastest and most sophisticated single handed racing dinghy around.
Modern materials are being used for production of the hulls and masts, a potential of development which has been recognised and approved by modern industries, whereas others are still satisfied using glass-fibre hulls and aluminium masts.
The A-Cat has consistently proved itself in the international scene whereby the World and European championships are frequented by some of the most famous sailors in the world.However, its always taken the dedication of a pure A-Class sailor to win the Championships. This demonstrates the high level of performance within the class and it leads to amazing numbers of entries for such events. The International A-Class Rules allows up to 100 entries to each event which results in each country needing to sail pre-selection events.