Baltic 51
Baltic Yachts · C&C Design · 1979
Updated
The Baltic 51 is a 15.51 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by C&C Design and built by Baltic Yachts, first launched in 1979. It races in Class B.
Length
15.51 m
50′ 11″
Beam
4.65 m
Draft
2.51 m
Displacement
16.4 t
Sail area
139 m²
On the podium
Where a Baltic 51 finishes when she goes racing.
0
Wins
0
Seconds
0
Thirds
3
Starts
Not enough races yet for a percentage — these are the counts so far. We keep collecting results, so this will fill in.
Read from 3 starts by 1 boat between 2011 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Baltic 51 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2026- 151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2013
- 151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2011
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
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Not enough data yet: no races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
—
Not enough data yet: 3 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Baltic 51 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Met too few times for a figure:
Comet 45 (4 meetings), J/133 (2 meetings), X-332 (2 meetings), First 40.7 (3 meetings), Bavaria Match 38 (2 meetings), Grand Soleil 43 (Carkeek) (2 meetings), First 36.7 (2 meetings), Comet 41 (2 meetings), Salona 41 (1 meeting), Swan 42 (1 meeting), Farr 40 (1 meeting), Sun Fast 3200 (1 meeting), Dufour 45 (1 meeting), Elan 350 (1 meeting), Cookson 50 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 37 (Carkeek) (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 40 (Paperini) (1 meeting), First 35 (Farr) (1 meeting), Elan 333 (1 meeting), Dufour 40 (1 meeting), X-442 (1 meeting), IMX 40 (1 meeting), Comet 51 (1 meeting), Rimar 36 (1 meeting), Swan 54 (1 meeting), Centurion 40 (1 meeting), Elan 410 (1 meeting), Elan 40 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 39 (Maletto) (2 meetings), More 40 (2 meetings), Grand Soleil 44 (Polli) (1 meeting), Elan S4 (1 meeting), Elan 450 (1 meeting), Bavaria 41 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 46 (Lostuzzi) (1 meeting), Figaro 1 (1 meeting), Pogo 40 (1 meeting), Latini 52 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 46 (Carkeek) (1 meeting), Oceanis 43 (1 meeting)
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
5.72
39°
Beam reach
8.92
90°
Broad reach
9.58
135°
Downwind VMG
8.54
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.
This is a light-air boat. In the light it does more than its numbers promise, and gives some of that back when the wind arrives.
Where it gains
Its best ground is upwind in a strong breeze, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage running deep as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short on a broad reach when it blows, 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 0.6 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the upwind.
How fast is a Baltic 51
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.73 | 5.04 | 5.53 | 5.72 |
| 52° | 5.70 | 7.36 | 7.91 | 8.09 |
| 60° | 6.00 | 7.59 | 8.12 | 8.33 |
| 75° | 6.20 | 7.75 | 8.32 | 8.68 |
| 90° | 6.07 | 7.74 | 8.39 | 8.92 |
| 110° | 5.96 | 7.95 | 8.66 | 9.21 |
| 120° | 5.81 | 7.87 | 8.70 | 9.51 |
| 135° | 5.22 | 7.46 | 8.51 | 9.58 |
| 150° | 4.43 | 6.69 | 8.11 | 9.20 |
| Run VMG | 3.83 | 5.79 | 7.25 | 8.54 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 880 kg.
Rigging
Baltic 51 rig and sail dimensions
A Baltic 51 carries 18.00 m of mainsail hoist on a 5.20 m boom, a forestay 20.82 m above the deck. Typical figures across the 2 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails