Elan 333
Elan · Rob Humphreys · 1998
Updated
The Elan 333 is a 10.03 m displacement racing yacht designed by Rob Humphreys and built by Elan, first launched in 1998. It races in Class C. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 52% of the designs it races against. It is at its best in light air and struggles to hold that once it blows.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 52% of the boats it races against.
77th of 159 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 76 starts across 41 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
10.03 m
32′ 11″
Beam
3.43 m
Draft
1.91 m
Displacement
5.0 t
Sail area
62 m²
On the podium
Where a Elan 333 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
4%
of 76 starts by 15 boats
Wins
0%
Read from 76 starts by 15 boats between 2011 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Elan 333 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Aegean 6002026
151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2026- Campionato Nazionale d'Area - Isole Sicilia e Sardegna2026
- Trofeo Rotta dei Florio2026
- EST 1052026
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
5%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
3%
of these races end on the podium
Level across both. Plenty of designs fall away once the course gets long — a light hull that thrives round the cans can struggle through a night at sea. This one does not.
Who she races against
The designs a Elan 333 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
First 45 (Briand) (7 meetings), Elan 380 (6 meetings), Elan 410 (7 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Elan 333 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
5.04
38°
Beam reach
7.95
90°
Broad reach
8.68
135°
Downwind VMG
7.61
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 design is even-tempered. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is to windward when it blows, where it does more than its size and sail area promise.
Where it pays
It falls short off the wind in a strong breeze, 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.
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 Elan 333
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.29 | 4.48 | 4.93 | 5.04 |
| 52° | 5.00 | 6.49 | 6.93 | 7.07 |
| 60° | 5.27 | 6.68 | 7.10 | 7.29 |
| 75° | 5.48 | 6.83 | 7.30 | 7.63 |
| 90° | 5.42 | 6.92 | 7.41 | 7.95 |
| 110° | 5.40 | 7.04 | 7.70 | 8.34 |
| 120° | 5.22 | 6.96 | 7.69 | 8.67 |
| 135° | 4.67 | 6.63 | 7.48 | 8.68 |
| 150° | 3.92 | 6.00 | 7.14 | 8.20 |
| Run VMG | 3.40 | 5.21 | 6.51 | 7.61 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 570 kg.
Rigging
Elan 333 rig and sail dimensions
A Elan 333 carries 12.29 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.50 m boom, a forestay 12.78 m above the deck and a 4.32 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 36 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 57 to 85 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.