X-99
X-Yachts · Niels Jeppesen · 1985
Updated
The X-99 is a 9.96 m displacement racing yacht designed by Niels Jeppesen and built by X-Yachts, first launched in 1985. It races in Class C. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 73% of the designs it races against.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 73% of the boats it races against.
43rd of 159 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 154 starts across 35 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
9.96 m
32′ 8″
Beam
2.99 m
Draft
1.80 m
Displacement
3.1 t
Sail area
61 m²
On the podium
Where a X-99 finishes when she goes racing.
On the podium
36%
of 154 starts by 15 boats
Wins
10%
Read from 154 starts by 15 boats between 2018 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a X-99 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
Andros Race 2026 - Eurobank Private Bank Cup2026- Friendship Regatta2026
Marstrand Big Boat Race2026
ORC/X99 Cup2026
Helsinki-Kotka Race2026
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
66%
of these races end on the podium
Offshore & coastal
11%
of these races end on the podium
Sharper round the buoys. Short courses reward acceleration and manoeuvring, and that is where this design makes its money.
Who she races against
The designs a X-99 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Some of the boats it races against
How the X-99 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
5.07
38°
Beam reach
8.10
90°
Broad reach
9.73
135°
Downwind VMG
7.90
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 needs pressure to show what it can do. 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 off the wind once it pipes up, where it goes better than its measurements say it should, 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
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 0.8 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the upwind.
How fast is a X-99
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.60 | 4.70 | 4.97 | 5.07 |
| 52° | 5.47 | 6.69 | 6.93 | 7.07 |
| 60° | 5.73 | 6.86 | 7.12 | 7.29 |
| 75° | 5.92 | 7.01 | 7.39 | 7.69 |
| 90° | 5.81 | 7.07 | 7.58 | 8.10 |
| 110° | 5.72 | 7.20 | 7.89 | 8.67 |
| 120° | 5.51 | 7.13 | 7.99 | 9.34 |
| 135° | 4.88 | 6.81 | 7.77 | 9.73 |
| 150° | 4.06 | 6.16 | 7.31 | 8.84 |
| Run VMG | 3.51 | 5.34 | 6.64 | 7.90 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 500 kg.
Rigging
X-99 rig and sail dimensions
A X-99 carries 12.50 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.50 m boom, a forestay 11.32 m above the deck and a 4.11 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 43 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 49 to 77 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.