Formula 18

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Formula 18
F18
Class symbol
3 f18 downwind.JPG
Three F18s starting a downwind leg at the 2006 North-American Championship
Current specifications
Crew 1 skipper and 1 crew
Type Catamaran
Design Formula
LOA 5.52 m (18 ft 1 in) (maximum)
Beam 2.6 m (8 ft 6 in) (maximum)
Hull weight 180 kg (400 lb) (minimum)
Mast height 9.15 m (30 ft 0 in) (maximum)
Mainsail area 17 m2 (180 sq ft) (mainsail and mast combined area maximum)
Jib / Genoa area 4.15 m2 (44.7 sq ft) (maximum) 3.45 m2 (37.1 sq ft) (maximum for lightweight crews)
Spinnaker area 21 m2 (230 sq ft) (maximum) 19 m2 (200 sq ft) (maximum for lightweight crews)

The Formula 18 class, abbreviated F18, is a formula-design sport catamaran class. It was started in the early 1990s and quickly grew to a full-sized International Sailing Federation recognised class, with large racing fleets all over the globe. Before the turn of the century, the F18 class was attracting up to 150 boats and crews to their world championships. Since then, a limit has been placed on attendance (max 150), and therefore qualifier rounds for the world championships are held worldwide.

Currently the F18 class is serviced by 11 professional boatbuilders, each of which designed and builds their own boat for the class. Because the F18 class is a Formula class, any boat that adheres to the limited set of general design specifications may participate in all F18 races. This has led to a score of homebuilders and professional builders to design their own F18 boats and race them in this class.

Weight rules

The F18 class also uses an equalizing system to keep heavy crews competitive with light crews. Lightweight crews are required to sail with smaller jib and spinnaker sails, giving them less sail drive.

The class around the world

These F18 boats are equipped with asymmetric spinnakers, and as a result they require a skilled and physically fit crew to be competitive. However, many crews also use this catamaran for purely recreational sailing. Despite their heavy construction, the F18 boats are quite fast, and the skill level in this F18 class is second only to the Olympic Tornado class.[citation needed] Olympic catamaran sailors can often be seen participating in F18 racing.[citation needed]

The F18 class has full racing circuits in many places around the globe. Several thousand boats have been sold over the years. The F18 class is a fully respected member of the main international catamaran classes,[citation needed] alongside the A-cat, Tornado and Hobie 16. These four classes make up the top[citation needed] in a sports catamaran scene that contains tens and tens of sub classes. The F18 class had earned this position within a timescale of only seven years (1993 - 2000) and continues to grow.

The Formula 18 class was the first sports catamaran class to use the identifier "formula" and "F" in the name. In this respect, and in its government of boats, it is similar to the F1 car and motor racing. The success of the F18 class during the 1990s quickly led to a proliferation of other formula classes like the F20 and F16 classes. The identifiers "formula" and "F" were first well known in the early 1980s in relation to the bigger boats like the F40 catamaran, F60 trimaran, F28 and others. None of those classes, however, are classified as sports or beach catamarans. As an example, the F40 was 12 m (39 ft) long and required a full crew to race.

See also

External links

Active Formula 18 Sailing Groups and Clubs