Elite 326 Centerboard (Trunk)

Sailboat specifications

The Elite 326 is a 31’4” (9.55m) cruising sailboat designed by Harlé-Mortain (France). She was built between 1987 and 1999 by Kirié (France) with 335 hulls completed. The Centerboard (Trunk) version grants a minimal draft when the centerboard is lifted allowing beaching and easy access to shallow areas.

The Elite 326 has also been marketed as Feeling 326 and she is as well listed, on Boat-Specs.com, in Deep draft and Shoal draft version (see all the versions compared).

Elite 326's main features

Model: Elite 326
Version: Centerboard (Trunk)
Hull type: Monohull
Category: Cruising sailboat
Sailboat builder: Kirié
Sailboat designer: Harlé-Mortain
Sailboat range: Elite
Country: France
Construction: GRP (glass reinforced polyester):
- Hull: Single skin fiberglass polyester
- Deck: Sandwich balsa fiberglass polyester
Number of hulls built: 335
First built hull: 1987
Last built hull: 1999
Appendages: Centerboard : pivoting centerboard
Helm: Single tiller (helm wheel in option)
Rudder: Single spade rudder
Unsinkable: No
Trailerable: No
Former French navigation category: 2
Standard public price ex. VAT (indicative only): N/A €

Elite 326's main dimensions

Overall length: 32’ 6”9.9 m
Hull length: 31’ 4”9.55 m
Waterline length: 27’ 2”8.28 m
Beam (width): 11’ 1”3.37 m
Waterline beam (width): 8’ 11”2.7 m
Draft: 5’ 2”1.6 m
Draft when appendages up: 2’ 5”0.73 m
Mast height from D_WL: 42’ 8”13 m
Fore freeboard: 3’ 11”1.18 m
Mid-ship freeboard: 3’ 4”1.02 m
Light displacement (M_LC): 8047 lb3650 kg
Maximum displacement (M_LDC): 9744 lb4420 kg
Ballast weight: 3219 lb1460 kg
Ballast type: Cast iron interior ballast with glass-fiber/polyester centerboard
French customs tonnage: 9.31 Tx

Elite 326's rig and sails

Upwind sail area: 587 ft²54.54 m²
Downwind sail area: 994 ft²92.38 m²
Mainsail area: 213 ft²19.77 m²
Genoa area: 374 ft²34.77 m²
Solent area: 312 ft²29 m²
Jib area: 108 ft²10 m²
Stormjib area: 68 ft²6.3 m²
Symmetric spinnaker area: 782 ft²72.61 m²
I iFore triangle height (from mast foot to fore stay top attachment): 40’ 7”12.36 m
J iFore triangle base (from mast foot to bottom of forestay): 11’ 11”3.64 m
P iMainsail hoist measurement (from tack to head): 35’ 1”10.7 m
E iMainsail foot measurement (from tack to clew): 10’ 10”3.3 m
Rigging type: Sloop Marconi masthead
Mast configuration: Deck stepped mast
Rotating spars: No
Number of levels of spreaders: 2
Spreaders angle: 0 °
Spars construction: Aluminum spars
Standing rigging: 1x19 strand wire

Elite 326's performances

HN (French rating) iHN or "Handicap Nationale" is an empirical rating system used in France allowing various monohulls, of different sizes and designs, to race each other fairly. It is particularly suitable for cruiser and cruiser-racer. Therefore, by comparing these values, we can have an indication of the relative speed of 2 boats.: 17.0
Upwind sail area to displacement iThe ratio sail area to displacement is obtained by dividing the sail area by the boat's displaced volume to the power two-thirds. The ratio sail area to displacement can be used to compare the relative sail plan of different sailboats no matter what their size. Upwind: under 18 the ratio indicates a cruise oriented sailboat with limited performances especially in light wind, while over 25 it indicates a fast sailboat.: 248 ft²/T23.01 m²/T
Downwind sail area to displacement iThe ratio sail area to displacement is obtained by dividing the sail area by the boat's displaced volume to the power two-thirds. The ratio sail area to displacement can be used to compare the relative sail plan of different sailboats no matter what their size.: 419 ft²/T38.97 m²/T
Displacement-length ratio (DLR) iThe Displacement Length Ratio (DLR) is a figure that points out the boat's weight compared to its waterline length. The DLR is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement in tons by the cube of one one-hundredth of the waterline length (in feet). The DLR can be used to compare the relative mass of different sailboats no matter what their length: a DLR less than 180 is indicative of a really light sailboat (race boat made for planning), while a DLR greater than 300 is indicative of a heavy cruising sailboat.: 182
Ballast ratio iThe Ballast ratio is an indicator of stability; it is obtained by dividing the boat's displacement by the mass of the ballast. Since the stability depends also of the hull shapes and the position of the center of gravity, only the boats with similar ballast arrangements and hull shapes should be compared. The higher the ballast ratio is, the greater is the stability.: 40 %
Wetted area: 224 ft²20.84 m²
Righting moment @ 1° iThe righting moment is a moment (torque) that tends to restore a boat to its previous position after heeling. Its value corresponds to the torque needed to heel the boat for this angle. Higher the righting moment is for an angle, greater is the stability.: 625 lb.ft86 kg.m
Maximum transverse section: 11 ft²1.05 m²
Critical hull speed iAs a ship moves in the water, it creates standing waves that oppose its movement. This effect increases dramatically the resistance when the boat reaches a speed-length ratio (speed-length ratio is the ratio between the speed in knots and the square root of the waterline length in feet) of about 1.2 (corresponding to a Froude Number of 0.35) . This very sharp rise in resistance, between speed-length ratio of 1.2 to 1.5, is insurmountable for heavy sailboats and so becomes an apparent barrier. This leads to the concept of "hull speed". The hull speed is obtained by multiplying the square root of the waterline length (in feet) by 1.34.: 6.98 knots