Farr 49
Cookson · Bruce Farr · 1999
Updated
The Farr 49 is a 14.90 m semi-displacement racing yacht designed by Bruce Farr and built by Cookson, first launched in 1999. It races in Class A.
Length
14.90 m
48′ 11″
Beam
4.28 m
Draft
3.07 m
Displacement
7.8 t
Sail area
156 m²
On the podium
Where a Farr 49 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
15%
of 20 starts by 1 boat
Wins
5%
Read from 20 starts by 1 boat between 2019 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Farr 49 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
- ORC World Championship2026
Regata dei Due Golfi (Lignano)2025- 52° Trofeo Bernetti Classe ORC2023
- ORC World Championship2019
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
20%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
—
Not enough data yet: 5 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Farr 49 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
TP 52 (Judel/Vrolijk) (6 meetings), TP 52 (Carkeek) (6 meetings), TP 52 (Farr) (6 meetings), Grand Soleil 46 (Carkeek) (6 meetings), Corel 45 (6 meetings), Neo 400 (6 meetings), Italia 9.98 (6 meetings), Farr 400 (6 meetings), First 40.7 (6 meetings), X-41 (6 meetings), X-3 (6 meetings), M 37 (5 meetings), Grand Soleil 44 (Polli) (5 meetings), J/109 (5 meetings), Corsa 915 (5 meetings), Cookson 50 (5 meetings), Solaris 36 (5 meetings), Melges 24 (1 meeting), First 36.7 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 40 (Paperini) (1 meeting), J/88 (1 meeting), Millenium 40 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 43 (Carkeek) (1 meeting), Arya 415 (1 meeting), IMX 38 (1 meeting), J/80 (1 meeting)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Farr 49 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
6.58
36°
Beam reach
10.93
90°
Broad reach
13.94
135°
Downwind VMG
10.73
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. Give it a fresh day and long legs and it delivers more than it promised; in a drifter it is working uphill.
Where it gains
Its best ground is cracked off when it blows, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage running deep as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
There is no condition where it falls away badly, which is worth something over a season of mixed weather.
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 1.2 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the upwind.
How fast is a Farr 49
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 4.65 | 5.99 | 6.37 | 6.58 |
| 52° | 7.05 | 8.51 | 8.86 | 9.14 |
| 60° | 7.41 | 8.76 | 9.17 | 9.51 |
| 75° | 7.67 | 9.00 | 9.62 | 10.16 |
| 90° | 7.56 | 9.02 | 9.93 | 10.93 |
| 110° | 7.30 | 9.21 | 10.31 | 12.16 |
| 120° | 7.13 | 9.23 | 10.61 | 12.95 |
| 135° | 6.44 | 8.82 | 10.41 | 13.94 |
| 150° | 5.39 | 7.89 | 9.39 | 12.39 |
| Run VMG | 4.67 | 6.84 | 8.15 | 10.73 |
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 1080 kg.
Rigging
Farr 49 rig and sail dimensions
A Farr 49 carries 19.45 m of mainsail hoist on a 7.10 m boom, a forestay 18.32 m above the deck and a 6.58 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 — 130 to 234 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.