Catalina 320
Catalina Yachts · Gerry Douglas · 1993
Updated
The Catalina 320 is a 9.75 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by Gerry Douglas and built by Catalina Yachts, first launched in 1993. It races in Class C.
Length
9.75 m
32′ 0″
Beam
3.53 m
Draft
1.39 m
Displacement
5.6 t
Sail area
61 m²
On the podium
Where a Catalina 320 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
2%
of 40 starts by 1 boat
Wins
0%
Read from 40 starts by 1 boat between 2018 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Catalina 320 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
6η Regatta Σαρωνικού2026- Τρίγωνο Καλλιθέας2026
- Κασίδι2026
- 8ο Κυπελλο Καλλιθεας2025
- Μέθανα2025
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
3%
of these races end on the podium
Who she races against
The designs a Catalina 320 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the Catalina 320 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
4.62
41°
Beam reach
7.61
90°
Broad reach
8.13
135°
Downwind VMG
7.26
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.
There is no obvious weak spot here. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is across the wind once the breeze fills, where it outruns what it looks like on paper, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short cracked off once it pipes up, 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 beam reach.
How fast is a Catalina 320
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 2.96 | 4.05 | 4.55 | 4.62 |
| 52° | 4.62 | 6.07 | 6.63 | 6.76 |
| 60° | 4.93 | 6.32 | 6.82 | 7.00 |
| 75° | 5.13 | 6.51 | 7.02 | 7.34 |
| 90° | 5.05 | 6.65 | 7.22 | 7.61 |
| 110° | 5.11 | 6.76 | 7.42 | 8.21 |
| 120° | 4.94 | 6.65 | 7.37 | 8.34 |
| 135° | 4.43 | 6.29 | 7.14 | 8.13 |
| 150° | 3.76 | 5.66 | 6.82 | 7.75 |
| Run VMG | 3.26 | 4.93 | 6.20 | 7.26 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 470 kg.
Rigging
Catalina 320 rig and sail dimensions
A Catalina 320 carries 11.53 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.19 m boom, a forestay 13.14 m above the deck. Typical figures across the 2 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 59 to 74 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.