Este 31
Cantieri d'Este · German Frers · 1996
Updated
The Este 31 is a 9.53 m displacement racing yacht designed by German Frers and built by Cantieri d'Este, first launched in 1996. It races in Class C.
Length
9.53 m
31′ 3″
Beam
3.17 m
Draft
1.90 m
Displacement
3.4 t
Sail area
55 m²
On the podium
Where a Este 31 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
9%
of 32 starts by 3 boats
Wins
3%
Read from 32 starts by 3 boats between 2016 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Este 31 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2026- ORC World Championship2026
- Pasquavela - Inshore2026
- Campionato Invernale dell'Argentario - Coastal Race2026
- Vesuvio Race2025
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: 8 races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
13%
of these races end on the podium
Who she races against
The designs a Este 31 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
IMX 38 (7 meetings), Grand Soleil 37 (Carkeek) (7 meetings), Melges 32 (7 meetings), Dufour 34 (7 meetings), Mat 11 (6 meetings), X-37 (6 meetings), Grand Soleil 46 (Carkeek) (7 meetings), Comet 38 (Vallicelli) (6 meetings), Bolt 37 (6 meetings), Sun Fast 37 (5 meetings), Farr 40 (5 meetings), Este 39 (5 meetings), M 34 (5 meetings), Elan 310 (5 meetings), Cobra 33 (4 meetings), X-41 (5 meetings), Grand Soleil 40 (Polli) (4 meetings), Dufour 455 (4 meetings), Pogo 44 (4 meetings), Solaris 55 (4 meetings), First 40.7 (4 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Este 31 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
4.97
38°
Beam reach
7.97
90°
Broad reach
9.92
135°
Downwind VMG
7.85
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 earns its keep off the wind. A course with long free legs suits it better than a windward-leeward.
Where it gains
Its best ground is on a broad reach 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 downwind as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short on the beam 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 1.0 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the downwind.
How fast is a Este 31
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.49 | 4.64 | 4.91 | 4.97 |
| 52° | 5.27 | 6.61 | 6.88 | 6.98 |
| 60° | 5.53 | 6.78 | 7.06 | 7.21 |
| 75° | 5.72 | 6.92 | 7.34 | 7.59 |
| 90° | 5.85 | 7.06 | 7.52 | 7.97 |
| 110° | 5.89 | 7.30 | 7.92 | 8.64 |
| 120° | 5.75 | 7.28 | 8.13 | 9.15 |
| 135° | 5.18 | 6.97 | 7.93 | 9.92 |
| 150° | 4.38 | 6.38 | 7.35 | 8.75 |
| Run VMG | 3.79 | 5.53 | 6.63 | 7.85 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Roughly half carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 540 kg.
Rigging
Este 31 rig and sail dimensions
A Este 31 carries 11.99 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.21 m boom, a forestay 11.96 m above the deck and a 5.05 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 6 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 85 to 92 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.