Elan 36
Elan · Rob Humphreys · 1997
Updated
The Elan 36 is a 10.69 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by Rob Humphreys and built by Elan, first launched in 1997. It races in Class C.
Length
10.69 m
35′ 1″
Beam
3.52 m
Draft
1.91 m
Displacement
6.3 t
Sail area
66 m²
On the podium
Where a Elan 36 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
0%
of 11 starts by 1 boat
Wins
0%
Read from 11 starts by 1 boat between 2021 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Elan 36 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Regatta Sozopol Sailing Cup2026- Fair Play Cup2021
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: 5 races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
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Not enough data yet: 3 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Elan 36 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Platu 25 (6 meetings), Farr 30 (6 meetings), First 36.7 (6 meetings), Bavaria Cruiser 36 (6 meetings), Apollo 12 (6 meetings), Italia 9.98 (5 meetings), Grand Soleil 42 (Carkeek) (5 meetings), Melges 24 (5 meetings), Farr 40 (5 meetings), First Class Challenge (5 meetings), Salona 40 (5 meetings), Farr 45 (5 meetings), Bavaria C45 (5 meetings), Dufour 35 (5 meetings), Bavaria 37 (3 meetings), X-41 (3 meetings), UFO 28 (3 meetings), Bull 700 (3 meetings), Bavaria Cruiser 45 (3 meetings), Sun Odyssey 40 (3 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Elan 36 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
5.13
38°
Beam reach
8.04
90°
Broad reach
8.96
135°
Downwind VMG
7.38
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 its best work before the breeze fills in. Early-season racing and morning breezes play to its strengths; once it pipes up the fleet comes back to it.
Where it gains
Its best ground is off the wind in the light stuff, where it goes better than its measurements say it should, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage upwind as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short on the run 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 broad reach.
How fast is a Elan 36
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.21 | 4.45 | 4.99 | 5.13 |
| 52° | 4.96 | 6.51 | 7.07 | 7.23 |
| 60° | 5.25 | 6.72 | 7.25 | 7.44 |
| 75° | 5.45 | 6.89 | 7.43 | 7.79 |
| 90° | 5.55 | 7.15 | 7.59 | 8.04 |
| 110° | 5.67 | 7.30 | 7.98 | 8.64 |
| 120° | 5.53 | 7.23 | 7.99 | 9.03 |
| 135° | 4.95 | 6.89 | 7.74 | 8.96 |
| 150° | 4.17 | 6.19 | 7.28 | 8.23 |
| Run VMG | 3.61 | 5.36 | 6.39 | 7.38 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Roughly half carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 570 kg.
Rigging
Elan 36 rig and sail dimensions
A Elan 36 carries 13.41 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.39 m boom, a forestay 14.46 m above the deck and a 4.46 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 5 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 86 to 110 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.