Class BDisplacementCruiser/Racer

Bavaria 50

Bavaria · J&J Design · 2000

Updated

The Bavaria 50 is a 14.63 m displacement racing yacht designed by J&J Design and built by Bavaria, first launched in 2000. It races in Class B.

Bavaria 50 - J&J Design - BavariaP 16.70 mLOA 14.63 m

Length

14.63 m

48′ 0″

Beam

4.66 m

Draft

2.01 m

Displacement

14.8 t

Sail area

142 m²

This design does not carry a Race Edge. The speeds below still come from measured boats.

On the podium

Where a Bavaria 50 finishes when she goes racing.

Not enough data yet to show how this design finishes. It has not been found in the race results we have collected so far.

Recent regattas

The latest events where a Bavaria 50 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.

No regattas found yet.

Raced one we are missing?

Report a regatta

Round 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

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Not enough data yet: no races over 10 NM carry a published distance.

Who she races against

The designs a Bavaria 50 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.

Not enough data yet to say who this design races against. No result we have collected puts it on the water beside another design we track.

Speed at every angle

The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.

36930°60°90°120°150°WIND10.1

Upwind VMG

5.70

41°

Beam reach

9.20

90°

Broad reach

9.87

135°

Downwind VMG

8.41

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 on the beam in moderate air, where it goes better than its measurements say it should, and by a margin worth having.

Where it pays

It falls short cracked off when it blows, giving away time it never gets back. That is a displacement hull working to its designed speed.

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.

True wind
Upwind-0.05 kn
Beam reach+0.28 kn
Broad reach+0.20 kn
Downwind+0.04 kn

Full width is 0.4 kn either way.

At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.

How fast is a Bavaria 50

Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.

Angle6 kn10 kn14 kn20 kn
Beat VMG3.534.915.475.70
52°5.567.418.028.24
60°5.997.718.268.50
75°6.307.928.508.88
90°6.217.948.629.20
110°5.988.138.959.84
120°5.878.048.9310.07
135°5.247.588.669.87
150°4.396.678.149.25
Run VMG3.805.787.188.41

How they are set up

The range each sail spans across the fleet.

Mainsail52 m² – 60 m²
Headsail85 m² – 88 m²
Gennaker167 m² – 175 m²

Roughly half carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 530 kg.

Rigging

Bavaria 50 rig and sail dimensions

A Bavaria 50 carries 16.85 m of mainsail hoist on a 5.30 m boom, a forestay 18.19 m above the deck. Typical figures across the 2 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.

Rig

Mainsail hoistP16.85 m16.70 – 17.00
Boom lengthE5.30 m5.00 – 5.60
Forestay heightIG18.19 m18.10 – 18.27
Fore triangle baseJ6.00 m5.90 – 6.10
Spinnaker hoistISP18.35 m18.20 – 18.50
Boom above deckBAS1.90 m1.90 – 1.90

Sails

Mainsail55.9 m²52.1 – 59.7
Headsail86.3 m²85.0 – 87.5
Gennaker170.8 m²166.5 – 175.1