Class 40 is a class of monohull

Monohull

rightA monohull is a type of boat having only one hull, unlike multihulled boats which can have two or more individual hulls connected to one another.-Fundamental concept:...

 sailboat

Sailboat

A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails. The term covers a variety of boats, larger than small vessels such as sailboards and smaller than sailing ships, but distinctions in the size are not strictly defined and what constitutes a sailing ship, sailboat, or a...

 is a yacht primarily used for short handed offshore and coastal racing. The class is administered by International Class 40 Association which is recognised by the International Sailing Federation

International Sailing Federation

The International Sailing Federation is recognised by the International Olympic Committee as the world governing body for the sport of sailing....

.

Background

The "Class 40" can be designed by anyone provided the boat fits within the measurement rule defined. This rule is takes the form of a box rule.

The association is responsible for defining and updating the class rules for the boats, and has the additional aims of co-ordinating events.

Class 40 monohulls were overnumbering all other boat classes during their first appearance in a world-class competition, the 2006 Route du Rhum

Route du Rhum

The Route du Rhum is a transatlantic single-handed yacht race, which takes places every 4 years in November. The course is between Saint Malo, Brittany, France and Pointe-à-Pitre, Guadeloupe, France...

, with 25 boats registered.

The Class 40 monohulls are high-performance racing boats, designed principally for single-handed

Single-handed sailing

The sport of single-handed sailing or solo sailing is sailing with only one crewmember . The term is usually used with reference to ocean and long-distance sailing, and particularly competitive sailing....

 or small crew offshore competition.

By their design, Class 40 monohulls sits nicely in size between boats such as Mini Transat 6.50

Mini Transat 6.50

Mini Transat 6.50 also known as Transat 650 is a solo transatlantic yacht race that starts in France and ends in Brasil covering over 4000 miles with a stop in the Madeira or the Canary Islands. The yachts are very small with respect to the race, and are sanctioned by the organization...

 and Figaro 2 to that of the Open 60 IMOCA.

World Championships

2009, Hamble Hamble Hamble may refer to:* The last frontier film location.* The River Hamble in Hampshire, England**Hamble-Warsash Ferry, a ferry service on the River Hamble* Hamble-le-Rice, a village on the river Hamble, close to the city of Southampton, England...	Concise Sailing Team	Clarke Offshore Racing	Desafio Cabo he Hornos Sailing Team
2010,	Tales Sailing Team	Mistral Loisirs-Pôle Santé Elior Sailing Team	Concise Sailing Team

External links

• Official web site of the Class 40 association
• ISAF Class 40 Microsite
• Charter – Express 40 offshore racing yacht
• - Akilaria.com - United States importers for the Akilaria Class 40 monohull
• - Akilaria.fr - Official french website for the Akilaria Class 40 monohull
• - Owen Clarke Design - Designers of custom and semi custom Class 40's, of which three sailing are racing in the USA, including the 2008 Class 40 world champion, 40 Degrees.