Albin Ballad
Albin · Rolf Magnusson · 1972
Updated
The Albin Ballad is a 9.08 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by Rolf Magnusson and built by Albin, first launched in 1972. It races in Class C.
Length
9.08 m
29′ 9″
Beam
2.94 m
Draft
1.56 m
Displacement
3.4 t
Sail area
45 m²
On the podium
Where a Albin Ballad finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
43%
of 21 starts by 4 boats
Wins
33%
Read from 21 starts by 4 boats between 2015 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Albin Ballad was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Ναο Λαυρεωτικης-Ναο Αναβ.& Π Φωκαιας-Ναο Λεγραινων Αρσιδ2026- Νικος Γκρανιας 20262025
- Νικος Γκρανιας2024
- "Salty River 2024"2024
- Πατροκλος2024
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound the buoys, or offshore
A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.
Round the buoys
—
Not enough data yet: 1 race of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
44%
of these races end on the podium
Who she races against
The designs a Albin Ballad actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Oyster 37 (7 meetings), First 45 (Farr) (7 meetings), Elan 40 (7 meetings), Grand Soleil 43 (Design) (7 meetings), Sun Light 30 (7 meetings), Dufour 325 (6 meetings), Oceanis 393 (6 meetings), Sun Fast 37 (6 meetings), First 32 (6 meetings), Carter 37 (6 meetings), Sun Odyssey 40 (6 meetings), Oceanis 331 (6 meetings), Yca 29 (6 meetings), Sun Odyssey 42.1 (5 meetings), Hanse 315 (5 meetings), Dufour 38 (5 meetings), First 31.7 (4 meetings), Dufour 334 (4 meetings), Rush 31 (4 meetings), Comet 850 (3 meetings), Sunrise 35 (3 meetings), Sun Odyssey 36.2 (3 meetings), Dehler 34 (Stadt) (4 meetings), Dehler 38 (Stadt) (3 meetings), Bavaria Cruiser 33 (3 meetings), Sun Light 31 (3 meetings), First 305 (2 meetings), Comfortina 36 (2 meetings), Platu 25 (3 meetings), Bavaria 36 (2 meetings), X-332 (2 meetings), Atlantic 31 (3 meetings), Bavaria Holiday 36 (2 meetings), First Class 8 (2 meetings), Elan 33 (2 meetings), Ohlson 29 (4 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Albin Ballad has fared against each of them, boat against boat on corrected time. Ordered by how often the two meet, not by who wins.
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
4.38
40°
Beam reach
7.00
90°
Broad reach
7.63
135°
Downwind VMG
6.78
170°
Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.
Where it wins and where it pays
Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.
It does most things without giving much away. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is upwind when it blows, where it outruns what it looks like on paper. It holds that advantage off the wind as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short on a broad reach in a strong breeze, giving away time it never gets back. That is weight that has to be driven rather than released.
Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.
Full width is 0.4 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the broad reach.
How fast is a Albin Ballad
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 2.82 | 3.83 | 4.28 | 4.38 |
| 52° | 4.32 | 5.62 | 6.12 | 6.27 |
| 60° | 4.56 | 5.82 | 6.27 | 6.43 |
| 75° | 4.70 | 5.98 | 6.45 | 6.77 |
| 90° | 4.63 | 6.13 | 6.61 | 7.00 |
| 110° | 4.73 | 6.24 | 6.87 | 7.52 |
| 120° | 4.57 | 6.18 | 6.87 | 7.69 |
| 135° | 4.16 | 5.87 | 6.66 | 7.63 |
| 150° | 3.59 | 5.35 | 6.37 | 7.32 |
| Run VMG | 3.11 | 4.65 | 5.82 | 6.78 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Roughly half carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 400 kg.
Rigging
Albin Ballad rig and sail dimensions
A Albin Ballad carries 9.70 m of mainsail hoist on a 2.85 m boom, a forestay 11.31 m above the deck and a 3.87 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 7 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 53 to 69 m² depending on bowsprit and set-up. Before ordering a sail, read the figure on your own measurement record rather than the typical one for the design.