Elan 45
Elan · Rob Humphreys · 2000
Updated
The Elan 45 is a 13.44 m displacement racing yacht designed by Rob Humphreys and built by Elan, first launched in 2000. It races in Class B.
Length
13.44 m
44′ 1″
Beam
4.16 m
Draft
2.09 m
Displacement
10.7 t
Sail area
95 m²
On the podium
Where a Elan 45 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
19%
of 63 starts by 2 boats
Wins
2%
Read from 63 starts by 2 boats between 2018 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Elan 45 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
32nd Cyclades Regatta - '262026- "Επιδαυρος 2024"2026
- "Μακης Πανταζης" - Αγκιστρι2026
- "Αιγινα2026
- 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: 2 races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
18%
of these races end on the podium
Who she races against
The designs a Elan 45 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the Elan 45 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
5.77
38°
Beam reach
8.92
90°
Broad reach
9.54
135°
Downwind VMG
8.35
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 one is at home going to windward. Windward-leeward courses give it more of what it is good at than a coastal race does.
Where it gains
Its best ground is to windward 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 on a reach as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short off the wind once it pipes up, 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 45
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.41 | 4.80 | 5.51 | 5.77 |
| 52° | 5.31 | 7.10 | 7.81 | 8.09 |
| 60° | 5.66 | 7.36 | 8.00 | 8.33 |
| 75° | 5.90 | 7.55 | 8.18 | 8.71 |
| 90° | 5.78 | 7.70 | 8.43 | 8.92 |
| 110° | 5.79 | 7.86 | 8.71 | 9.65 |
| 120° | 5.63 | 7.73 | 8.64 | 9.81 |
| 135° | 4.99 | 7.25 | 8.32 | 9.54 |
| 150° | 4.18 | 6.42 | 7.87 | 9.06 |
| Run VMG | 3.62 | 5.56 | 7.03 | 8.35 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. A bowsprit is standard across the fleet. Crew weight is declared around 940 kg.
Rigging
Elan 45 rig and sail dimensions
A Elan 45 carries 15.10 m of mainsail hoist on a 5.37 m boom, a forestay 17.13 m above the deck and a 6.02 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 3 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 125 to 163 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.