phrf ratings for sailboats

Average PHRF Rating

Average ratings are taken from data compiled by the United States Sailing Association, published annually. PHRF stands for "Performance Handicap Racing Fleet," and its ratings are used to determine the relative speed potential of any given class of yacht.

200 to 300 High Above 300 Very High

An initial handicap rating for a new class design is assigned based on the boat's critical dimensions, its similarities to other rated yachts, the designer's speed predictions, and other such theoretical data. Observations of actual racing performance are then used to adjust the design's rating from time to time. What is rated is the boat itself, not the skill of its crew or its gear. Thus, a skilled crew using new sails and gear may be able to sail, say, a J/24 faster than its rating would indicate.

The handicaps are given in seconds per nautical mile around a race course. For example, a J/24 (page 294, average PHRF 174 seconds per mile), racing on a ten-nautical-mile course against a Dufour 24 (page 287, average PHRF 240 seconds per mile), would give the Dufour a handicap of 66 seconds per mile, or 660 seconds for the ten miles. Thus, even if the Dufour finished the race as much as 660 seconds (11 minutes) after the J/24, the Dufour would still tie the race.

For more on the PHRF system, see http://www.ussailing.org/phrf.

Not every sailboat has a PHRF rating; where none has been found, the expression "NA" (for "Not Available") is used in this guide.

Maximum Speed (also known as hull

This is calculated using the formula: Speed = 1.34 x VLWL.

That is, the theoretical maximum speed of a displacement hull (as opposed to a planing hull , which obeys different hydrody-namic rules) is approximately 1V3 times the square root of its waterline length. Above that speed, the waves a displacement hull makes, which are induced by the boat dragging a hole in the water along with it as it plows forward, become so large that the boat expends all additional increments of motive power trying to climb out of its hole. Planing hulls can escape that fate by climbing out of their holes and skimming the water's surface.

Hull shape and wave conditions sometimes alter the 1.34 factor a bit, but basically 1.34 is the applicable factor in most cases.

Continue reading here: Motion Index

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Readers' Questions

What is the phrf rating for a standard f 27 trimaran sailboat?

The PHRF (Performance Handicap Racing Fleet) rating for a standard F-27 trimaran sailboat is typically around 72 seconds per mile. However, it is important to note that PHRF ratings can vary depending on the specific boat's configuration and modifications, as well as regional variations and updates to the rating system. It is recommended to consult with local racing authorities or PHRF organizations for the most accurate and up-to-date rating for a specific boat.

What is the phrf of a range of 26 sailboat?

The PHRF (Performance Handicap Racing Fleet) rating for a Range of 26 sailboat can vary based on factors such as the specific configuration, equipment, and modifications made to the boat. It is best to consult with the governing PHRF organization or rating authority in your region to get the most accurate and up-to-date PHRF rating for the Range of 26 sailboat.

What is the prf rating of a dufour 39 for sale?

Unfortunately, this information is not available. The PRF rating is typically determined by the yacht's condition, age, and style.

What is the handy cap racing prfrating for a j122e?

Unfortunately, there is no universal handicap rating for the J/122e. The rating is set by individual racing organizations and can vary greatly.

How to interpret sailing race ratings?

Sailing race ratings are used to compare the performance of different boats in a sailing race. Ratings are typically assigned by a governing body such as US Sailing and are based on a boat's characteristics such as size, type, and design. Generally, the higher the rating, the faster the boat is expected to perform in a race. Ratings can vary from boat to boat, so it is important to understand how the ratings are calculated. Ratings can be divided into two types: handicap ratings, which are based on the boat's expected time to complete a specific racecourse, and performance ratings, which measure the boat's performance relative to other boats in a race. By understanding how ratings are calculated, sailors can compare the relative performance of different boats.

How are PHRF ratings adjusted?

PHRF ratings are adjusted by modifying the base rating using a variety of race and course handicapping factors. Factors include the type of boat, its length, weight, sail area, crew, and location. The Sailboat Racing Association of the Bay (SRA) typically adjusts PHRF ratings on an annual basis based on the results of the past year's races.

What does phrf mean in the sailing world mean?

PHRF (Performance Handicap Racing Fleet) is a handicapping system used in yacht racing that adjusts a boat's finishing time based on their size and shape. The purpose of this system is to provide a level playing field, so that boats of all sizes and designs can compete against each other.

What does a phrf rating of 190/0.8784 mean for a J24 sailboat?

A PHRF rating of 190/0.8784 for a J24 sailboat means that the boat's handicap, compared to the other boats in the competition, is 190 seconds, with a correction factor of 0.8784. This means that if the boat finishes one leg of the race in a certain time, then it will be given extra time on other legs to make the overall time for all legs the same as the time for the boat with the lowest handicap.

How to read the phfr ratings?

The PHFR ratings are a type of credit rating scale used by the Philippine Federation of Credit Rating Agencies (PFCRA). The ratings range from AAA to D, with AAA being the highest score and D being the lowest. Ratings of AAA to BBB are considered to be investment grade, meaning that investments in these entities are considered to be relatively safe, with a low risk of default. Ratings of BB to D are considered to be non-investment grade and carry a greater risk of default.

What is a good phrf rating?

A good PHRF rating is typically considered to be between 80 and 120, with lower numbers being faster boats and higher numbers being slower boats. Ratings lower than 80 are considered very fast, while ratings higher than 120 are considered very slow.

How does the sailing PHRF handicap rating work?

PHRF stands for Performance Handicap Racing Fleet, and it is a handicapping system used to level the playing field among different types of sailboats so they can race each other. PHRF ratings are assigned by the PHRF governing body, which reviews sailboat specifications and other factors to assign a numerical rating to the boat. This rating is an adjustment factor applied to the boat’s elapsed time in the race to equalize the performance of different types of boats against each other. A lower PHRF rating indicates a faster boat, while a higher rating indicates a slower boat. In a race, the boat with the lowest adjusted time, taking into account its PHRF rating, is the winner.

What is a good PHRF handicap?

There is no single answer to this question, as PHRF handicaps are determined by the sailing conditions and type of boat in each individual race. Generally, boats with a lower total sail area and lighter displacement have a better PHRF handicap. Different boat classes will also have different standard PHRF handicaps.

How does rating of 171 boat's rating mean in sailing?

Rating is the handicap system used to level the playing field in yacht and dinghy racing. A rating of 171 in sailing indicates that the boat is slower than average in a particular type of race. Generally, boats with a higher rating will do better in light wind conditions, and boats with a lower rating will do better in stronger wind conditions.

Is there a country wide data base for phrf ratings sailboat?

No, there is not a countrywide database for PHRF ratings for sailboats. Each sailing organization determines its own PHRF ratings. You can contact your local sailing organization or club to find out what their PHRF ratings are for sailboats.

What is the phrf rating on a tartan ten?

The Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) rating for a Tartan 10 is usually around 178. This rating is based on the boat specifications, its design, and its performances on the racecourse.

What does a phrf sailing rating of 222 mean?

A PHRF (Performance Handicap Racing Fleet) sailing rating of 222 means that the boat has a handicap rating of 222 seconds per mile. This means that the boat should usually be able to sail a mile in 222 seconds or under to win a race.

What is a good phrf sailboat ratings?

The PHRF (Performance Handicap Racing Fleet) sailboat rating system is a handicapping system used to level the playing field in competitive sailing events. It assigns each sailboat performance ratings based on factors such as hull and sail design, weight, and other variables. The goal of this rating system is to allow boats of different designs to compete against each other successfully and fairly.

What do phrf ratings mean?

PHRF (Performance Handicap Racing Fleet) ratings are a handicapping system used in sailboat racing. The ratings are used to compare the relative performance of different boats so they can race against each other competitively. Each boat is assigned a rating number that is used to adjust the boat's finishing time. The higher the rating, the slower the boat, and vice versa.

What is phrf in sailing?

PHRF (Performance Handicap Racing Fleet) is a handicap system used to level the playing field for sailboat racing. It assigns a numerical rating to each boat based on its measurements, sail area, and other factors, which is then factored into the boat’s finishing time. PHRF handicaps are used in many sailing competitions, allowing boats of different sizes to compete against each other on an equal footing.

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Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (PHRF) ratings are based on the speed potential of the boat, determined as far as possible on observations of previous racing experiences. It is the intent of PHRF handicapping that any well equipped, well maintained, and well sailed boat has a good chance of winning. Handicaps are adjusted as needed on the boat's performance so that each well sailed boat has an equal opportunity to win. This is the fundamental concept. PHRF ratings are not intended to reflect skipper and crew capability. Ratings are not adjusted to encourage a poor or careless skipper, and conversely, no rating adjustment is made to penalize proficiency. Intensity of competition and the influx of new and aggressive sailors require each skipper to maintain consistently high performance in order to place well.

PHRF ratings are expressed in seconds per mile to be deducted from elapsed time to produce corrected times. The higher rating indicates the slower boat. PHRF time allowances are not related to other systems.

PHRF assumes that a boat is equipped to race. It does not attempt to rate a partially equipped boat, or a boat which differs from others in its class, in that it is unusually heavy, out of balance, or has unusual windage (as from a dingy on davits). However, if the basic hull and rig differ from others in its class, it will, of course, be rated uniquely. PHRF of the Chesapeake does not rate boats using both symmetrical and asymmetrical spinnakers at the same time. A choice of asymmetrical, symmetrical, or both types of spinnaker shall be made at time of application or renewal and may be changed once during the sanctioned racing season.See Standard Sail and Equipment Specifications

It is the responsibility of Organizing Authority (OA) or the Race Committee (RC) to set forth in the events Notice of Race (NOR) or Sailing Instructions(SI) the appropriate Safety Standard for the local race and weather conditions. The final burden and responsibility for safety rests on the skipper of each yacht.

A Yacht with a Cruising Class certificate can race under that certificate in a regular PHRF Class. However a Yacht with a regular PHRF certificate cannot race under that certificate in a Cruising Class because the OA have no way of determining if the yacht complies with the additional Cruising Class requirements especially Sail Area to Displacement and sail material construction.

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The Rating Game: PHRF Explained

Racing in a One-Design fleet is the easiest and, all things considered, the most up-front methodology. In a One-Design class, you know what place you’ve finished in as soon as crossing the line. This competition also tends to be closer due to the similarities of the boats. After all, everyone in the field is exploiting the same boat’s abilities.

More often than not, however, we find ourselves racing against a mixed bag of boats. Cruisers, sport boats, big boats, small boats, how do we really know where we stand?

Some boats are lighter and faster than others, some are better off the wind, and some excel in lighter conditions. At the end of the day though, we still need to figure out where we finished. How did we do?

Here’s where a handicapping system comes into play – and because those systems can be a bit arcane, it’s important to know how they work. The most common and popular system is PHRF, which stands for Performance Handicap Racing Fleet. It’s fairly simple and inexpensive, making it ideal for the casual and serious racer alike.

There are many different handicapping systems that suit a wide variety of needs. They will fall into one of two main categories; performance-based or measurement-based. PHRF is mainly performance-based. A handicap for a particular boat begins with a base number that has been determined by observing individual designs over a period of time to determine how they stack up against other designs.

Your boat may be different than that “base” boat, so a qualified handicapper will review your application to determine how your boat may differ. For example, you might have smaller sails, or a fixed or a feathering propeller. In any event, to attain your proper handicap you must join your regional PHRF organization – they need to size you up and set up a fair field.

The number you are ultimately assigned represents an amount of time in seconds. Pretty simple, the lower your number, the faster you have been rated. At the end of the race, the elapsed times for each boat are fed into a scoring system and calculated along with each boat’s handicap, and voila, we have our results!

These are often posted after a certain amount of revelry has already taken place, which brings us to the first of the flaws in the system. Suspicion!

If you’re realistic, you’ll look at your results and simply say, “We just have to do better next time.” Or maybe you won, in which case there’s no suspicion. The system seems to be performing as it should. But there is always a certain element of doubt, especially in a performance-based system like PHRF.

If you find yourself having consistently poor finishes, human nature dictates that one of your concerns will be whether your boat has the right handicap or not. A good thing about PHRF is that you do have the right of appeal.

OFFSHORE RACING CONGRESS

The ORC (Offshore Racing Congress) rule is a reasonable, measurement-based alternative to PHRF and is showing up in many sailboat racing events throughout the Pacific Northwest. The real strength of the ORC system is that from the measurement data on a particular boat, ORC produces one base number, the General Purpose Handicap (GPH). Here, it also lists additional rating numbers that take into account the type of race course (buoy or distance) being raced and current weather (light, medium, or heavy wind) conditions.

Developed in the late 1960s, ORC brought us the International Offshore Rule (IOR) and International Measurement System (IMS) rules which later evolved into the ORC rule and is available in four different products: ORC Club, ORC International (ORCi), ORC One Design and ORC Superyacht.

The ORC Club certificates do not require verified measurements. But as the system is set to default on the least flattering rating, the more measurements that are provided, the more accurate the rating. ORC Club certificates are intended for club-level racing.

ORC International (ORCi) is based on measurements taken of the owner’s boat by a US Sailing Official Yacht Measurer. These certificates are intended for use in World Continental, Regional, and National level races.

ORC One Design are configured for a specific class and all data is based on One Design Class rules. No measurements are required provided that the boat is compliant with its Class measurements.

And finally, there is the ORC Super Yacht which is a product reserved for those boats that are exceptionally difficult to handicap. This may include boats that have displacement ranging from 50-600 tons and have huge discrepancies involving the yacht type.

Gaining in popularity, ORC is used in over 70 countries worldwide, with more than 10,000 certificates issued, making it a viable alternative that is here to stay

While handicaps are sometimes adjusted for an entire fleet of One-Design boats, more often than not, it is up to you to provide your reasons, submit your appeal and wait for the handicapper’s council of your regional association to decide. Often the result can be disappointing, and you go back to being suspicious.

It’s important to understand how a handicap is determined. It is based on the optimum scenario, that your boat has a clean, freshly painted bottom, crispy new sails, all equipment operates smoothly and efficiently, and of course, you and your crew are expert sailors.

Before you let your suspicions get away with you, it’s important to ask yourself “Have I really prepared my boat the best that I can, and am I sailing to its handicap effectively.” Sorry to be honest, but most of the time that answer is “No.”

Another flaw is that PHRF has not kept up well with the advent of newer, lightweight designs since its inception in the early 80s. We’ve all been out there and had that feeling that everything is going great—the boat feels good, the crew are happy, the skipper is feeling large—until we round the top mark, the sport boats skip up onto a plane, and they’re gone!

To add insult to injury, the sport crews end up with the best seats in the bar at the end of the race. The best we can hope for is that they haven’t eaten all the nachos too!

Really the sport boats should be racing in a One-Design division on their own, which would undoubtedly be their preference too. However, most of the time there are not enough numbers to allow for that, so they get lumped in with mom, dad and the kids in the Catalina 30.

Over time, improvements have been made to the system to address some of the issues that have been identified. In the early going, the calculation of your corrected time for a race was based on a “Time on Distance” model (ToD). This method did not account for issues like a dying wind or a change of current during a race. It also relied on race organizers measuring the distance of the course accurately.

Eventually the “Time on Time” model (ToT) was developed. Instead of calculating by the course distance, results are calculated by a time correction factor.

Simply put, this method addresses some of the shortcomings of the ToD method, and experts will tell you that ToT is the fairer approach.

For most boat owners, PHRF is a simple and inexpensive, if slightly flawed, way to allow us to go out and have some fun racing. If you understand its shortcomings and manage your own expectations appropriately, it is all most of us require for racing. On a different level, there is the issue of how race managers, clubs, and event organizers apply PHRF.

Most of us started out by joining in our club’s beer can race program. There we have a mix of casual and novice racers mixed in with the local rock stars. It can be a little deflating for those less experienced to never reach the podium, so it’s important that clubs themselves come up with a way to keep the newbies engaged. After all, they might become the rock stars of tomorrow, and everyone needs a little glory moment from time to time to hold their interest. Within the confines of your own club racing program there are options.

You can assign your own club-level handicaps to account for experience or lack thereof. Even better, you can use a golf-style handicapping system where individual handicaps change after every race based on how well each boat is performing. This is not at all difficult to do and US Sailing, which owns PHRF, has an excellent dissertation on their website on how to do this effectively.

It is most important that once you leave your club and venture out into larger regional events, you must have a valid handicap obtained through your regional PHRF organization. You’ll also need to maintain the currency of that handicap by keeping up with your annual membership dues.

Unfortunately, it has become an all too common practice at some events to allow entry to boats that do not possess a valid handicap. Instead, the regatta gives them an arbitrary handicap. More entries mean more revenue for the regatta. I get that, but arbitrary handicaps, given often by one person who has only a modest understanding, circumvent the proper handicap assessment your regional authority can provide. The arbitrary handicap may be well off the mark and gives an unfair advantage or disadvantage. That erodes confidence in the fairness of the formula.

Imagine yourself as a longtime PHRF member racing in a regional championship that you’ve put energy and effort into, only to lose to a boat that just showed up and was given an arbitrary handicap! It will not give you a warm, fuzzy feeling about the regatta and you may not return next time. Event organizers beware! You could be chopping yourselves off at the knees!

US Sailing, as the owners of PHRF, sanction individual PHRF organizations to assign handicaps within their area. There are about 60 PHRF fleets in North America and US Sailing allows for a certain amount of autonomy between fleets to allow for local variations in racing conditions and such.

In the Pacific Northwest up to the early 1990s, there was only the PHRF-NW serving the entire Pacific Northwest region. This became an issue around that time.”

Some influential sailors in British Columbia grew dissatisfied with PHRF-NW, not entirely without reason, and split off to form PHRF-BC. At the time, only the mainland BC clubs went with them. The clubs on Vancouver Island elected to stay with PHRF-NW. This was due in large part to the concerns about how the split could negatively affect the popular Swiftsure Race, which originates in Victoria each year.

Over time the two organizations drifted apart in their approaches. Some boats had much different handicaps in one fleet than in the other, which became a big problem where the two systems collided at regattas like Round the County. Increasingly, the sailing community insisted on greater fairness, which led to normalization of handicaps.

Events would identify themselves as either PHRF-NW or PHRF-BC regattas and boats from one fleet had their handicaps adjusted to match those for similar boats in the host fleet. Needless to say, this is a time consuming and entirely thankless task for regatta organizers. It’s also very likely that various regattas have lost some racers altogether due to dissatisfaction with this issue.

Want to learn more about the various sanctioning bodies? Look no further.

PHRF NW phrf-nw.org

PHRF BC bcsailing.bc.ca/PHRF/

ORC www.orc.org

The responsibility for resolving this problem does not rest with the individual racer or with the event organizations either. This issue rests solely with the two PHRF organizations to resolve through a harmonization of the two systems.

So what should “harmonization” look like?

There is no reason not to have two PHRF fleets, one for either side of the border. Individual member applications and appeals can be better served this way. Each organization can assess their own dues model. Individual racers can choose which fleet to join, provided that the playing field is level across the region.

Underlying the two organizations should be a collaborative process to address issues common to the entire region. The methodologies of arriving at a boat’s handicap should be the same in both PHRF fleets and there should be a common handicap database. Each organization continues to conduct handicapper’s council meetings, but there should be at least one joint annual conference between the two to ensure they are serving together the interests of PHRF racers in the Pacific Northwest.

I’m happy to say there appears to have been some movement in this direction, but much work remains.

The moral of the story is that PHRF will always, and should always, have a place in our racing community. Even with the ebb and flow of different systems of measuring variations between boats, PHRF remains one of the simplest and most economical approaches to keeping things fair and fun for a wide spectrum of racers.

Ultimately, the goal should be promoting fair and equitable racing and encouraging the overall health of the sport we love.

Read the print version on Issuu

John Abel is a World Sailing, International Race Officer living in Victoria. He has experience in many sailing venues around the world at all levels of the sport. He is a past President of BC Sailing, past Vice-President of Sail Canada and will be the Principal Race Officer for Point Roberts Race Week.

Tournament Time!

Priorities + consensus = legislation, you may also like, row, row, row your boat…, the x factor, shape shifters, the inside track, speakers of the house, wild, wild westport, big things, small packages, state of the art, sunset over the equator, into the blue.

You completely leave out the fact that, for better or worse, a single number rating system applied to boats of very different types will tend to favor one or another type in different conditions and with respect to different courses. There are so many variables involved in thinking about how to fairly rate a boat, that it gets overwhelming very quickly. PHRF tends to be accepted as working pretty well over an enormous range of boats and skill levels, especially for the amount of effort (and expense) it requires, both on the part of the boat owner, and race committee.

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Performance Handicap Racing Fleet of Southern California

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16 Cheap PHRF Racing Sailboats

• By Bill Brockway, Kurt Hoehne, Tony Bessinger
• Updated: April 18, 2019

The cheapest way to race is on someone else’s boat. But if you have dreams of thrusting the silver urn aloft at the awards banquet while praising your crew, you’ll have to buy your own ride. The one thing standing in the way, you say, is the expense. But with handicap racing , you don’t have to spring for a big-ticket racer. There are many competitive and cheap sailboat designs you can buy and campaign for the cost of a new sport utility vehicle.

The most popular rating rule in the United States is the Performance Handicap Rating Fleet. So, if you’re interested in buying a used boat, and want plenty of opportunity to race, it not only makes sense to buy one from a manufacturer that fits your budget, but also performs well under PHRF rating. You want a sailboat that rates well in your region, but you don’t want to sail a dog. A simple, but effective way of measuring a boat’s abilities without sailing it is to determine its sail-area-to-displacement ratio. On most boats, the SA/D ratio usually works out to be between 14 and 30, with higher numbers representing lighter, faster boats. Cruiser/racers have ratios between 16 to 20, racer/cruisers have ratios greater than 20, and high-performance racers have ratios 24 and above. A SA/D calculator can be found at

Thanks to the Internet, searching for one of the best PHRF boats is more fun than work, but to narrow down your search we’ve tapped our resources to find 16 of the best racing sailboats that shouldn’t be overlooked.

Assuming you happen to have enough room in your household budget for a good-sized car payment, you might consider the following scenarios: 1. You could buy a new Chevy Tahoe for $36,000, and with zero down and zero percent financing over 36 months, you’d pay $1,000 per month. When you’re all paid-up, you’d still have the car, but you’d be no closer to tiller time. 2. You could keep your old beater and buy a PHRF racer for $26,000. Put down 10 percent, finance it at 7.75 percent over 10 years, and for roughly $280 per month, you’d be the one calling the shots.

Boat loan: Base price for the boat = $25,857 – $2,585.70 (10 percent down payment) = $23,271.30 @ 7.75 percent for 10 years = $279.28 per month

Before you go blazing off to your nearest yacht broker, consider that used boats may require a few structural or equipment upgrades. The list can be quite extensive and range from new sails and electronics, to a professional bottom job, to new running rigging; there’s always something that you need or want to buy before you get on the water with your new boat. Using an average $5,000 upgrade budget estimated by boat owners on Sailing World’s online Racing Forum, let’s add that to the purchase price of a 27- to 35-foot boat and recalculate the payment using a slightly lower 7.5 percent rate. Most lenders change their rates if you borrow more than $25,000. There’s a useful boat loan calculator online at http://www.iamfinancing.com/Boats.html

Upgrades: Base price $25,857 + 5,000 upgrade = $30,857 – (10 percent down payment) 3,085.70 = total amount financed $27,771.30 @ 7.5 percent for 10 years = $329.65 per month

That’s still not too bad, but we’re not done yet. You need to consider seasonal operating expenses: mooring fees, insurance, race fees, maintenance and repair, launching, hauling, and storage. And, of course, most of these fees are concentrated in a five- or six-month racing season. Using a moderate operating budget of $6,000, we add it all up.

Operating costs: Annual racing budget = $6,000 ($500 per month) + 329.65 (loan payment) = $829.65

All of the above pricing information was culled from participants on the SW’s online Forum () who discussed their own favorite, affordable PHRF racers, and provided real budget numbers. What follows is a list of 16 budget racers with estimates of the first year’s average monthly budget. This includes: purchase price, upgrades typical of the individual design, and a moderate seasonal operating expense, determined to be one new sail per year with some professional labor. High-end expenses would include new sails every year and maintenance by a yard. The bare-bones budget doesn’t include any new sails and expects the owner to do all the maintenance.

We solicited info on boats whose characteristics make them competitive in handicap racing while staying within our new SUV budget guideline. Many of these boats have established one-design class racing opportunities that may, in your eyes, make them more valuable. But remember that more racing usually means a bigger operating budget. We also acknowledge that there may be less expensive ways to finance the boating lifestyle but we think these are fairly realistic expenses gleaned from experienced racers.

B-25 C&C 27 Mark V C&C 35 Evelyn 32-2 J/27 J/29 J/30 J/35 Martin 242 Pearson Flyer Pearson 30 Olson 30 S2 9.1 Santana 20 Santana 30/30 Ultimate 20

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NC PHRF Ratings

Base rating report.

The NCPHRF has compiled a listing of base ratings for boats that have been rated in the Bay Area. These base ratings represent boats in their standard configuration and have been assigned in accordance with the current NCPHRF Rules and Guidelines. Individual ratings for some boats may have been adjusted based on their particular configuration.

For information on adjustments to NCPHRF Base Ratings, please refer to the  NCPHRF Rules & Guidelines .

Base Ratings

  Complete List

  Most Recent Changes List

NC PHRF Current Certificate Holders

In addition to the Base Rating report, the NCPHRF has available the listing of boats with a current NCPHRF certificate. The listing of current boats is available as a PDF; it can be searched for a particular boat by clicking using the search function of the PDF viewer.

CURRENT RATINGS

  2024 Certificate Holders (as of 03/26/24)

  2023 Certificate Holders (as of 11/30/22)

Downwind Ratings

Starting in 2010, the NCPHRF Committee introduced Downwind Ratings . These are ratings that only apply to races that are historically downwind events. As downwind performance is strongly affected by length, downwind sail area, displacement, and wetted surface, downwind ratings can vary significantly from standard ratings. A  Downwind Rating FAQ is available  here . Actual Downwind Ratings for boats that have current certificates can be found on the NCPHRF Current Certificate Holders reports above.

In 2013, The NCPHRF Committee changed the way in which Downwind Ratings are displayed. PHRF downwind is an entirely different system than normal PHRF ratings. The only connection is that the ratings are ratified by the same NCPHRF Committee. The downwind number represents a typical “speed” a boat would be expected to sail in seconds-per-mile on a predominantly downwind course*. Before 2013, this number was shifted to appear more like a normal PHRF rating; but the Committee felt this shift created confusion, rather than reducing it. We have eliminated this shift in order to emphasize that PHRF and PHRF-DW are conceptually different systems.

* in a rather slow race; in a fast race (windy conditions), a boat can be expected to sail to a number about 20% lower.

DW RATINGS FAQ

  Downwind Rating FAQ

RATING FORMS

  NCPHRF Application

Rating Appeal Form

Hawaii Ratings

The YRA administers PHRF Certificates for boats based in Hawaii.

HAWAII RATINGS

2024 HI PHRF Certificate Holders (as of 03/26/24)

2023 HI PHRF Certificate Holders

Multihull Ratings

NCPHRF only rates Monohulls. If you are looking for information on multihull ratings please visit the  Bay Area Multihull Association .

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PHRF Ratings Explained

• Thread starter Nicholas
• Start date Apr 5, 2006
• Forums for All Owners
• Ask All Sailors

How accurate are PHRF ratings? My first thought is that they are caclulations that put different vessels on some equal playing field for times over a race course. How can anyone properly come up with a number that works...I mean really?Comments  

They can't I am involved in club racing with the only reward monthly bragging rights. However, the competition can get pretty intense with PHRF's the deciding factor in most race standings.For the last year or so there has been a lot of debate about the PHRF numbers assigned to various boats.I have concluded that assigning PHRF numbers is a fluid process and can only be done under the cover of darkness by the Wizards of PHRF Fudgery.  

A great equalizing factor is to subtract 6 seconds from the first place boat's PHRF rating, 3 seconds for 2nd, and 1 second for third for subsequent races. This adjustment helps to prevent the same boats from winning race after race and gives others a shot at trophies.  

PHRF There's also some local variation. On Lakes St. Clair & Huron, we rate 126 (C&C 35 Mk 1) and on Lake Erie we're 123. Also, adjustments can be made after a rating has been assigned if a boat wins too often.The newest trend seems to be IRC http://www.ussailing.org/offshore/irc/ There's some secret formula in a box in Ireland - you hire a boat measurer to come out and measure a bunch of stuff, they send it in, and you get your number back. Each boat has to be measured, so the numbers can be different even between boats in a one-design class.PHRF works on the total mileage of the course, IRC works on elapsed time. We'll see what happens this year in the Port Huron-Mackinac Race.  

PHRF Reliable Comparison? I have had a PHRF number of 174 on my Hunter 28.5 since new in 1986. It is important to note that that base rating on the Chesapeake bay assumes a folding prop, a 155% max Genoa, sails in good condition and presumably a clean faired bottom. Sailing against other boats in similar condition with similar equipment and presumably similar crew ability, we've sailed enough close races to consider the 174 a fair rating. Any similar deep draft 28.5 that has sails in mediocre condition, a roller furler, a fixed prop,or a mediocre bottom job will,in my experience, not sail to the 174 rating. A lighter boat (say a J24 at 168-174 will be stronger in light air; while a heavier boat like an Alberg 37 (PHRF of 174)will be stronger in heavy air.  

Moody Buccaneer

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PHRFulator noun | pərf-jʊ-leɪ-tə r | a tool for performing calculations based on your sail boat's PHRF rating.

• Instructions

PHRF is a handicapping system that uses the perceived speed potential of a yacht as the basis for a handicap. This handicap is used to determine a winner when different types of sail boat to race against each other, much like a golf handicap for a group of different skilled golfers.

In essence when sailing in a PHRF race your are actually racing against the clock. In order to know if you're winning during a race you have to know everyone else's PHRF rating and then measure the time difference between the sail boats at a known distance from the start line - not an easy task.

All too often sailors have to wait at the Yacht Club until the Race Committee publishes the results in order to find out who won.

PHRFulator, a PHRF Calculator, allows you to build a table of sail boats with different ratings and calculate the time between them at various distances from the start line.

• Simply click on the + button on the bottom left to create a new sail boat
• Enter the information for the sail boat. It must have a name and/or a sail number as well as numeric PHRF rating (can be +ve or -ve)

• Click add , or press ENTER, and the sail boat will be inserted into the table sorted by rating

• The most recent sail boat created is always the selected boat.
• Simply click on a sail boat to select it and the waypoint times will be updated for that sail boat.
• how far in front a competitor should be ( a negative time, shown in red )
• how far behind a competitor should be ( a positive time, shown in green )
• based on the distance specified by a waypoint, e.g. 10.0 nautical miles

• Click on the current distance the column header.
• Enter a new distance and hit ENTER.

• The times for all the sail boats at that waypoint will be updated based on the new distance and the selected sail boat highlighted in blue .
• If no sail boat is selected simply click on a sail boat in the table to recalculate the times based on that sail boat.
• Click on black + at the top right, next to the last waypoint.

• To change the waypoint distance click on the new waypoint column header.
• If no sail boat is selected simply click on a sail in the table to recalculate the times based on that sail boat.

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Lake Michigan Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (LMPHRF) is now Midwest Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (MWPHRF)!

LMPHRF and the handicapping portion of Detroit Regional Yacht Racing Association (DRYA) have combined to form MWPHRF.

Midwest Performance Handicap Racing Fleet (MWPHRF) is a not-for-profit corporation serving individuals who competitively sail cruising/racing monohull  boats primarily in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. MWPHRF also services sailors from other regions of the country and sailors from certain Canadian Yacht Clubs. MWPHRF is a handicap certificate issuing organization and does not sponsor, organize or manage competitive sailing events.

MWPHRF attempts to fairly handicap monohull and multihull racing/cruising sailboats for competition with minimal expense to the owner. MWPHRF may not provide a handicap if it is unable to obtain accurate information to assess the boat's speed potential or the boat does not meet minimum safety standards.

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