Salona 38
AD Boats · J&J Design · 2011
Updated
The Salona 38 is a 11.46 m displacement racing yacht designed by J&J Design and built by AD Boats, first launched in 2011. It races in Class B.
Length
11.46 m
37′ 7″
Beam
3.58 m
Draft
2.07 m
Displacement
6.9 t
Sail area
84 m²
On the podium
Where a Salona 38 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
35%
of 68 starts by 13 boats
Wins
15%
Read from 68 starts by 13 boats between 2014 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Salona 38 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Aegean 6002026
Nurolbank Loryma Cup2026- 36th Marmaris International Race Week2025
ORC DH European Championship 2024 - La Duecento #302024
Tallinn Championship W/L2023
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
29%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
54%
of these races end on the podium
Better the longer it gets. Boats that settle into a groove and hold it gain ground once the course stops turning.
Who she races against
The designs a Salona 38 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Also met, too few times for a figure:
Dehler 36 (Judel/Vrolijk) (7 meetings), Esse 990 (7 meetings), Maxfun 35 (7 meetings), Bavaria Cruiser 45 (6 meetings), Archambault 35 (6 meetings)
Some of the boats it races against
How the Salona 38 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
5.27
39°
Beam reach
8.57
90°
Broad reach
9.40
135°
Downwind VMG
8.04
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 does most things without giving much away. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is running deep once the breeze fills, where it goes better than its measurements say it should. It holds that advantage across the wind as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.
Where it pays
It falls short cracked off 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 upwind.
How fast is a Salona 38
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.57 | 4.84 | 5.18 | 5.27 |
| 52° | 5.41 | 7.02 | 7.41 | 7.54 |
| 60° | 5.68 | 7.21 | 7.63 | 7.79 |
| 75° | 5.88 | 7.36 | 7.89 | 8.19 |
| 90° | 5.86 | 7.43 | 8.00 | 8.57 |
| 110° | 5.76 | 7.55 | 8.33 | 8.99 |
| 120° | 5.59 | 7.47 | 8.32 | 9.37 |
| 135° | 5.00 | 7.08 | 8.05 | 9.40 |
| 150° | 4.20 | 6.36 | 7.64 | 8.86 |
| Run VMG | 3.64 | 5.53 | 6.88 | 8.04 |
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 720 kg.
Rigging
Salona 38 rig and sail dimensions
A Salona 38 carries 14.29 m of mainsail hoist on a 5.50 m boom, a forestay 14.94 m above the deck and a 4.31 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 7 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 80 to 130 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.