The Cape 26, the smaller sister of the Cape 31, is under construction at Cape Performance Sailing in Cape Town.
County Wicklow-based designer Mark Mills confirmed that the first boats have already been sold and fleets are forming in Europe.
Built in South Africa, the Cape 26 is designed as a high-performance, trailerable and container-friendly one-design.
As Afloat reported in March, the boat measures 7.8 metres on deck, with a beam of 2.55 metres and a lifting keel that reduces draft to 0.4 metres for launching.
Its displacement is just over one tonne, with a sail plan including a 26 m² mainsail, a 16.6 m² jib and an 80 m² asymmetric spinnaker.
The hull and deck are constructed from e-glass with epoxy sandwich laminate, while the foils and rig are carbon.
According to Cape Performance Sailing, the design allows crews of four to compete in strict one-design racing with no hiking.
The price is listed on the web at €118,750 before tax, excluding sails, engine and trailer.
Cape Performance Sailing has stated that the new class is intended to be shipped worldwide in 40-foot containers.
“Momentum is building for the new design,” the builder said when announcing that hull number two had been sold.
