Hunter Impala
Hunter · David Thomas · 1978
Updated
The Hunter Impala is a 8.50 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by David Thomas and built by Hunter, first launched in 1978. It races in Class C.
Length
8.50 m
27′ 11″
Beam
2.79 m
Draft
1.74 m
Displacement
2.4 t
Sail area
42 m²
On the podium
Where a Hunter Impala finishes when she goes racing.
Not enough data yet to show how this design finishes. It has not been found in the race results we have collected so far.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Hunter Impala was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
No regattas found yet.
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
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Not enough data yet: no races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
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Not enough data yet: no races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Hunter Impala actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Not enough data yet to say who this design races against. No result we have collected puts it on the water beside another design we track.
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
4.68
37°
Beam reach
7.22
90°
Broad reach
7.75
135°
Downwind VMG
6.86
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 is an upwind boat first. 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.
Where it pays
It falls short cracked off 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 upwind.
How fast is a Hunter Impala
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.13 | 4.25 | 4.60 | 4.68 |
| 52° | 4.73 | 5.98 | 6.30 | 6.42 |
| 60° | 4.95 | 6.11 | 6.44 | 6.60 |
| 75° | 5.09 | 6.22 | 6.61 | 6.92 |
| 90° | 5.00 | 6.30 | 6.72 | 7.22 |
| 110° | 4.92 | 6.32 | 6.95 | 7.66 |
| 120° | 4.72 | 6.22 | 6.88 | 7.90 |
| 135° | 4.21 | 5.94 | 6.66 | 7.75 |
| 150° | 3.59 | 5.44 | 6.39 | 7.35 |
| Run VMG | 3.11 | 4.75 | 5.92 | 6.86 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Roughly half carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 510 kg.
Rigging
Hunter Impala rig and sail dimensions
A Hunter Impala carries 10.21 m of mainsail hoist on a 3.51 m boom, a forestay 9.50 m above the deck. 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 — 40 to 50 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.