gc32 catamaran

RACE.FLY.LIVE EXPERIENCE THE GC32 CATAMARAN

• SPECIFICATIONS
• 12.00m Length (overall)
• 10.00m Length (hull)
• 6.00m Width
• 2.10m Max Board Draft
• 1.60m Max Rudder Draft
• 16.50m Mast Height (above beam)
• 6.60m Bow Sprit Length
• 975kg Total Boat Weight
• 55.30m2 3DI Raw Northsail Mainsail
• 19.02m2 3DI Raw Northsail Small Jib
• 24.17m2 3DI Raw Northsail Big Jib
• 88.00m2 3DI Raw Northsail Gennaker

GC32 Racing

Foiling GC32 Catamarans Prepare for Mar Menor Grand Finale The GC32 foiling catamarans are one week away from entering into combat for a fourth and final time in 2021 with the GC32 Mar Menor Cup which runs from 3rd to the 7th November. This grand finale represents the first time the flying multihulls have visited Spain’s famous 170km² salt water lagoon located near Cartagena […]

Foiling gc32 catamarans prepare for mar menor grand finale, by tash on 27 oct. 2021.

The GC32 foiling catamarans are one week away from entering into combat for a fourth and final time in 2021 with the GC32 Mar Menor Cup which runs from 3rd to the 7th November. This grand finale represents the first time the flying multihulls have visited Spain’s famous 170km² salt water lagoon located near Cartagena on the Costa Calida, within the Autonomous Community of Murcia.

The event is being hosted by the Club Náutico Lo Pagán with the support of the Turismo Region Murcia, the Autoridad Portuaria de Cartagena and the local municipalities of San Pedro del Pinatar, Cartagena, San Javier and Los Alcázares.

The outcome of the GC32 Mar Menor Cup will decide the overall winner of this ninth season of the GC32 Racing Tour.

At present the favourite to take the title is Alinghi, the team of two time America’s Cup winner Ernesto Bertarelli. With Arnaud Psarofaghis helming, the Swiss team won the two opening events of the season in Lagos, Portugal and last month were on track to defend their GC32 World Championship title in Villasimius, Sardinia, until it was unexpectedly prised off them by Red Bull Sailing Team on the last leg of the last race.

GC32 World Championship – Villasimius 2021

Nonetheless on the leaderboard going into the Mar Menor event Alinghi holds a solid three point lead over second placed Red Bull Sailing Team.

The team most strongly on the ascent in 2021 has been another from Switzerland, Christian Zuerrer’s Black Star Sailing Team. Helmed by New Zealander Chris Steele, they came close to winning the second event in Lagos at the end of July. “We made a big step forward this year and I hope we can continue,” said Zuerrer of their prospects next week. “We are still on the podium, but like at the Worlds, you can have a good day and be in front or have a bad day and be at the back. We are definitely looking forward to Red Bull and will do our best.” 

As the season has progressed the standard has raised across the entire fleet to the extent that all of the teams taking part are capable of winning races and since Alinghi’s run-away debut to the season [in Lagos] all the events have been ultra-close.  “For me it makes for interesting racing when you are close together and everyone can beat each other,” continues Zuerrer. “Hopefully, that will help attract other owners and other teams.”

Other teams to watch are Frenchman Erik Maris’ Zoulou, which neatly bookended their GC32 World Championship winning the first and the last races. Showing ever increasing potential is Nicolai Sehested’s Danish team on Team Rockwool Racing while American Jason Carroll’s Argo team comes race fit to Murcia having just set an extraordinary new race record for the Rolex Middle Sea Race aboard the team’s MOD70 trimaran.

The majority of the GC32 teams have not sailed or raced on the Mar Menor before. However being near-locked, separated from the Mediterranean by a 22km long sandbar ranging in width from 100 to 1,200m, means that the lagoon can provide not just the optimum windy, flat water conditions but also high salinity water enabling the flying catamarans to achieve their highest speeds approaching 40 knots.

Zuerrer personally has sailed on the Mar Menor only once before, on a foiling Moth and for fun, not racing, but acknowledges that it is a perfect venue for foiling boats. The team which has the most experience of the lagoon is Alinghi, which has previously spent most of a winter training here.  “It was really flat and we had good wind,” advises Alinghi’s Yves Detrey. “I have never seen anything this flat before. It is really good.”

Racing will take place out of San Pedro del Pinata on the Mar Menor’s northern corner where the GC32 Mar Menor Cup is being hosted by the Club Náutico Lo Pagán.

The event is part of the Spanish celebrations marking the 500th anniversary of the circumnavigation of Ferninand Magellan, that was completed by Spanish navigator Juan Sebastián Elcano.

Reducing risk to keep crews and equipment safe on board the GC32

Rockwool’s lagos gc32 masterclass, top conditions expected for this week’s gc32 lagos cup, third consecutive gc32 racing tour overall victory for swiss team, black star win gc32 worlds nail biter.

c/o GC32 Event GmbH Gartenstrasse 4, 6302 Zug, Switzerland Email: [email protected]

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GC32 CIRCUIT: FULL SPEED AHEAD

Pro & amateur-helmed teams merge on gc32 flying catamaran circuit.

While the America’s Cup may have migrated to foiling monohulls, foiling catamarans remain very much alive and kicking with the GC32 and the GC32 Racing Tour. This year the circuit absorbed the GC32 teams from the Extreme Sailing Series including Alinghi, Red Bull Sailing Team and Oman Air and with at least ten boats now regularly competing, and entries from afar afield as Australia, Argentina, and the USA, the GC32 Racing Tour is back firing on all cylinders.

North Sails has supplied GC32 teams with their one design sail wardrobe since the first examples were launched in 2012. At the time Laurent Lenne and Andrew Macpherson were conceiving the boat with designer Martin Fischer, they worked hand in hand on the sail plan with Gautier Sergent at North Sails France.

Then, as now, the sail plan hangs off a ‘classic’ catamaran rig with a rotating wing-section tube with a substantial section – 320 x 140mm – to allow luff tension to be maintained, with a single diamond and shrouds leading aft to each hull. Forestay and gennaker attach to a tubular bowsprit that extends forward from the mast step.

A wing, like those found on the America’s Cup catamarans, was never seriously considered, partly due to their logistical headaches, but mainly because the boat was conceived to be attractive both to pro and owner-driver teams. While the typical catamaran rig described might take a little getting used to for say a Melges 32 team, it is much less daunting than a full wing. Besides, the primary focus for new crews is learning how to use the foils and make the boat fly. Fortunately for its size, the GC32’s foils are large, and this makes it surprisingly easy to ‘fly’ the boat and promotes stability with very little impact on speed. Reaching, the boats have been known to touch 40 knots.

The GC32 has just four sails – 55.3 sqm mainsail, 24.17sqm J1, 19sqm J2, and a 88sqm gennaker. Fairly early materials evolved from 3DL to RAW 3Di in carbon, same for the gennaker.

“The biggest development has been with the gennakers,” says sailing legend Bruno Dubois, former head of North Sails France and North Sails Europe VP. Dubois was in Villasimius, Sardinia for the first event of the 2019 GC32 Racing Tour, managing the CHINAone NINGBO team, skippered by New Zealander Phil Robertson and with a crew otherwise identical to that of China’s Sail GP F50.

An influx of America’s Cup teams to GC32 between San Francisco and Bermuda saw some using their gennakers in light conditions upwind – now common practice. Dubois explains: “The gennaker has a pretty straight exit and you can see people sailing upwind with the luff flogging, but they are using roughly 80% of the sail area. You don’t point as high, but it can get you out of trouble. As soon as it is flogging too much, typically in 7-8 knots, they roll it and go to the J1. That flogging, and when you furl upwind is when the gennaker, takes a beating.”

Teams are permitted five sail buttons annually, the fifth being for a spare gennaker. Typically top teams replace their sails annually, however, teams dipping into the circuit with chartered boats – like CHINAone NINGBO – round up secondhand sails from other teams. In Villasimius the Chinese were using a two year old main and gennaker. “I am surprised how nicely they’d held their shape,” said Dubois. “They are hi-tech sails but seem to go from season to season with no real problems.”

After a small hiatus last year over how the GC32 Racing Tour and ESS might unite, now this is resolved, the circuit for flying catamarans in which you don’t need an Olympic medal to steer, is on the ascent again. It is run by an active Class Association, with a familiar industry figure Christian Scherrer managing it. The Class received World Sailing recognition in 2017 and is now allowed to hold World Championships, the second of which takes place in Lagos, Portugal over 26-30th June .

“The good thing with the GC32 is that it has its own niche between the small foiling boats and the big ones,” concludes Dubois. “That is why it is so attractive to both private owners and pro teams or America’s Cup or SailGP teams who want to train between events as we are. The boat is so forgiving – we have three Chinese on board out of five crew and it is the perfect opportunity for them.”

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Yachting World

• Digital Edition

Extreme Sailing Series move to super-light GC32 foiling catamarans for 2016 season

• Harriett Ferris
• August 25, 2015

The Extreme Sailing Series organisers OC Sport has announced a switch of racing platform from the Extreme 40 to the GC32 catamaran for the start of the 2016 season

Scroll down for video

The Extreme Sailing Series will now be held on foiling GC32 catamarans , as the competition moves to foiling yachts as part of a long-term strategy.

The series, which celebrates its tenth season in 2016, will introduce the fleet of foiling GC32’s in time for the next run of events in 2016. The competiion is currently held on Extreme 40’s.

The super-light GC32 foiling catamarans can reach speeds of almost 40 knots and the 2016 season will again feature professional and brand-backed sponsored teams racing at iconic venues as diverse as Saint Petersburg, Cardiff and Sydney. Yachting World Racing Editor Matt Sheahan sailed the GC32 early this year and was ‘hooked’ in just one sail. Read his report here.

The switch to foiling will also bring forward a refresh of the Extreme Sailing Series format, which will now incorporate Pro-Am racing on short courses, and open water racing where venues permit, as well as its original format of sailing close to shore in it’s successful ‘Stadium Racing’ concept.

A GC32 foiling catamaran racing in the Round the Island Race, 27 June 2015 , Bullitt GC32 Racing Tour. © Sander van der Borch

Related: The foiling phenomenon- everything you need to know about the move to foils

Related: Profile of the GC32: the cat that learned to fly at 30 knots

Today’s announcement of a switch to GC32s from the start of the 2016 season is part of a longer term commitment by OC Sport and The Great Cup BV (builders of the GC32s), as Laurent Lenne, CEO of the company behind GC32s, summarised: “Together we aim to develop the GC32 as a global and accessible class for both professional teams of all levels and private owners wanting to experience high speed big boat foiling and racing.”

The foiling GC32 catamaran marks a move away from the exisiting Extreme 40 fleet pictured below.

The Extreme 40 catamarans in Cardiff Bay for Act 4 of the Extreme Sailing Series 2015. Photo: Mark Lloyd

OC Sport has ordered a number of GC32 boats to ensure availability for teams considering entering the Extreme Sailing Series 2016.

For more information on the Extreme Sailing Series, visit www.extremesailingseries.com

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• Marketplace
• GC32 Hall of Fame

Submit your entry

Welcome to the gc32 marketplace.

At our Market Place you can submit listings directly to the GC32 community, be it a boat for sale or charter, gear you wish to sell or if you’re seeking a crew position. Simply follow the link and fill in the form. Your listing will be displayed after our approval. You also will get a link to your listing by email – by clicking this link you can remove the listing whenever you like. Please contact the Class office if you have any further questions.

Boats for sale or charter

Wanted Early or damaged GC32

Wanted – early or damaged GC 32

[email protected]

GC32 Team France for sale € 180,000

The winning boat of the GC32 Racing Tour 2016 and 2018 is now for sale. For more details see below.

Veronique Rolland Phone: +33 6 33 67 50 30

[email protected]

GC32 Gunvor for sale € 200,000

The GC32 Gunvor is for sale. Almost like new. More details in the link below. Contact Stu Bettany for more information.

Stu Bettany +64 21 372 322

[email protected]

GC32 for sale or charter € 145,000

Complete package – ready to race. Please follow link below for more information.

Sébastien Rogues Tel : +33 6 63 43 04 14

[email protected]

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Parts for sale

GC32 spare parts stock list OC Sport for sale Sale price discounted by 20%

Details see link below. Contact Mary Spradbery for more information.

Mary Spradbery +44 7975 785827

[email protected]

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Age: 35, Height: 5’7”, Weight 65 kg. World, European and National Champion in various dinghy classes.

Mobile: UK +44 (0)7538857571

[email protected]

Tristan Hutt

Age: 28, Height 6’, Weight 71 kg. 18 foot skiff double European and five times National Champion.

Phone: +44(0)7834 667844

[email protected]

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