Farr 280
Premier Composites · Bruce Farr · 2014
Updated
The Farr 280 is a 8.69 m planing racing yacht designed by Bruce Farr and built by Premier Composites, first launched in 2014. It races in Sportboat.
Length
8.69 m
28′ 6″
Beam
2.86 m
Draft
2.11 m
Displacement
1.7 t
Sail area
50 m²
On the podium
Where a Farr 280 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
11%
of 18 starts by 1 boat
Wins
0%
Read from 18 starts by 1 boat between 2021 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Farr 280 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
66. Yil Donanma Kupasi2026- The Presidential 7th International Yacht Races Çanakkale Cup2026
- Republic Cup 2025 Offshore Race2025
- Bosphorus Cup2025
- Sportboat European Championship2021
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
0%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
—
Not enough data yet: 2 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Farr 280 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Donovan GP 26 (6 meetings), Corsa 915 (6 meetings), Cheese 6.5 (6 meetings), First Class 7.5 (6 meetings), Skippi 650 (6 meetings), Peterson 25 (6 meetings), Swan 42 (6 meetings), JPK 11.80 (6 meetings), Rodman 42 (6 meetings), First 45 (Briand) (6 meetings), Mat 12 (6 meetings), Sinergia 40 (6 meetings), Elan 410 (6 meetings), Mat 122 (6 meetings), Jv 56 (6 meetings), X-35 (3 meetings), First 34.7 (4 meetings), Corby 29 (2 meetings), Mat 10 (4 meetings), Elan 340 (6 meetings), First 35 (Farr) (2 meetings), Grand Soleil 40 (Paperini) (2 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Farr 280 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
5.36
36°
Beam reach
9.46
90°
Broad reach
12.49
135°
Downwind VMG
10.41
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 is a boat that wants breeze. On a windy coastal course it is in its element; on a light-air windward-leeward it has to be sailed well to hold on.
Where it gains
Its best ground is running deep when it blows, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage cracked off as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short upwind once the breeze fills, giving away time it never gets back.
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 2.6 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the broad reach.
How fast is a Farr 280
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.69 | 4.88 | 5.19 | 5.36 |
| 52° | 5.58 | 6.91 | 7.27 | 7.54 |
| 60° | 5.86 | 7.11 | 7.58 | 7.91 |
| 75° | 6.04 | 7.33 | 8.07 | 8.63 |
| 90° | 6.26 | 7.49 | 8.41 | 9.46 |
| 110° | 6.28 | 7.88 | 9.00 | 10.33 |
| 120° | 6.17 | 8.01 | 9.32 | 11.32 |
| 135° | 5.52 | 7.63 | 9.54 | 12.49 |
| 150° | 4.63 | 6.75 | 8.37 | 12.02 |
| Run VMG | 4.02 | 5.85 | 7.25 | 10.41 |
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 550 kg.
Rigging
Farr 280 rig and sail dimensions
A Farr 280 carries 11.62 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.07 m boom, a forestay 11.31 m above the deck and a 4.99 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 2 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails