Switch is the new Italian foiler (4m) that flies at 30 knots (and scares the Moth)

It is called Switch the new foiler one design thought in Italy, 3.9 m long and 2.25 wide (with the “wings”), ultralight, full-carbon (29 kg is the weight of the platform), capable of flying at 3o knots of speed (at the carriers, 19 upwind) on its inverted T-shaped appendages and take off as early as 5-6 knots of wind.

Switch, has the new anti-Moth been born?

“The future is here“, he revealed to us. Peter Negri – the distributor of the new class in Italy and Europe – at the presentation of the boat that took place, simultaneously with the delivery of the first hull of the Italian fleet to the helmsman of Luna Rossa (and great foiling interpreter, on the Moths) Checco Bruni, at the Negrinautica store in the Milan area.

“The boat is affordable, it is very easy to transport, and we have already created the structured Switch class that will run the race circuit independently. For 2024, we already have four stages – plus an Italian championship-in the calendar, on Lakes Como and Garda. At the first leg we count on having 20 boats in the water, but the goal is much more ambitious“.

Is the anti-Moth, until now the queen boat of fast foiling but complex to operate and very little “one-design”, emerging? Perhaps.

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Switch, designed by two 27-year-olds from Italy

The boat, we said, was designed and engineered in Italy. Specifically, on the Trentino shore of Lake Garda, where the Ferrighi brothers, Gian Maria and Stefano, operate. They are two young designers (class of 1996) “stuck” with foiling, who worked in Australia for major design firms and then returned to their lake, one of the world capitals of fast sailing, and founded their own company specializing in composites, Garda Carbon Lab.

The goal of the Switch project-not easy at all-was to get a boat that was easy to use on the water and in “flight,” easy to handle (it fits in a box that you can put on top of the car, the mast unfolds in three pieces, the decks disassemble in a few minutes), that did not cost an extravagance (18,500 euros + VAT for the boat in the water, just over 21,000 euros + VAT with all transport accessories) and above all that it would guarantee a very tight monotype. All boats and their components, they assure from the Switch Class, chaired by laghé Luigi Buzzi, will be equal. No ifs or buts.

Developed in Italy, produced in Thailand

For the production, a “top player” from Thailand was chosen, Element Six Evolution, a shipyard already active in the production of Olympic boats such as ILCA (former Laser) and Nacra 17. “They have a ‘Buddhist’ approach to work that we really like“, reveals Negri, “things are done well and slowly, so build quality is assured“.

Flying on the Switch is simple (the “wand,” or bow batten controls the automatic adjustment of the center inverted-T foil in flight) and three sail planes are provided, making it easy to use from the very young to the very experienced. From 6.5 (Youth), 7.5 (Women) and 8.4 sq m (Men), with One Design Quantum Membrane Sail sails.

The 2024 regatta calendar

We come to the regatta schedule. These are the four Grand Prix Switch events scheduled for 2024:

• May 18-19 Malcesine (Lake Garda)
• June 15-16 Torbole (Lake Garda)
• June 27-28 Dongo (Lake Como)
• Sept. 14-15 Bellano (Lake Como)
• (tbd) Italian Championship

For info on the Italian Switch class and the boat: www.switchitalianclass.org

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