| Devon Catamarans Proudly present The Ingeluli range of sports / cruising catamarans |
In the African bush the cheetah – Ingeluli in Zulu – is the smallest but fastest of the “Big Cats”. Off the coast of South Africa the Ingeluli 30 has astonished owners of larger catamarans and monohulls by its impressive turn of speed. Uncompromisingly designed for sailing excellence, coupled with unparalleled comfort and safety, Ingeluli is setting new standards in affordable sailing exhilaration.
Support Ingeluli and the Ellen MacArthur Trust in theRound The Island Race on June 20th - see news pages
The Ingeluli being loaded to make her debut at the London Boat Show
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Making her Debut at the London International Boat Show at ExCel in January 2009, Ingleuli will be moored in Marina Berth D65. After the show she will be based near Southampton where she will take part in the MOCRA (Multihull Offshore Cruising and Racing Association) races and be available for demonstration sails.
The search for Ingeluli
“When I started looking for my own catamaran” says Devon Catamarans director David Orton “The late Rod Macalpine-Downie’s Iroquois was close to my ideal. Fast, comfortable, easily handled and affordable, and with a respectable racing record; there were just two problems: the age and condition of the boats available, and the unfortunate tendency of the cats to capsize if overpressed. Some boats even had a sort of marine airbag at the masthead which was supposed to inflate and prevent a capsize, but it did not always work and hardly inspired confidence.”
The search for a catamaran with the same qualities of speed, comfort and affordability but with greater safety took more than three years. “I pored over the dimensions and specifications of every catamaran that I could find: production boats, one-offs, prototypes and cats that existed only as plans. My wife Roberta and I inspected and test sailed every catamaran we could find in our range, to the frustration of many sales people and owners.
“Eventually we came across a cat that ticked all the right boxes, then known as the Rayvin 30, designed by Rajen Naidu in Durban.”
The design brief
The Rayvin 30, named for Rajen and his wife Vanissa, was born out of their own requirements for a safe and exciting family yacht. In their words:
“Having sailed on so many yachts all over the world we decided that catamaran sailing was by far the most comfortable. The only problem we had was that being a husband and wife team with two young children we found that any cat over 30 foot was a handful for the two of us and the size was daunting to begin with. Small manageable boats were too cramped and hardly performed under sail.
“It was with all the above in mind that we set about coming up with the Rayvin 30 concept. The boat had to be small, with large accommodation. It had to perform at the same pace or faster than the 45 foot cats, and it had to be able to point like a monohull. An attack angle to the wind of less than 40 degrees was a prerequisite. The first comments from our design team on our requirements were ‘impossible – unachievable – ridiculous’ but we stuck to our guns and the Rayvin 30 was born.
“On launching our first boat we were pleased that she more than met all the above criteria. She proved to be a very stable craft and is most forgiving in heavy winds and choppy seas. We feel we have struck the ultimate formula for short handed family sailing and the exhilaration of multihull performance all wrapped up in an affordable package.”
Speed with safety
The prototype catamaran soon established a reputation in local races for being unbeatable, so much so that her handicap was progressively increased. The wider hull spacing with 4.5 meters between hull centres, giving an overall beam of 5.5 meters (18 feet) gives a greater sail carrying ability and safety margin than any other production catamaran of this size. To date no Rayvin 30 or Ingeluli catamaran has capsized. “We know that some owners have carried full sail in force 6 or more” reports Rajen. “We would never advise that: it puts a strain on the boat and rigging and does not make you go any faster, but it does demonstrate the wide safety margin if you are hit by a sudden gust before you have time to reef.”
Rayvin into Ingeluli
David and Roberta Orton flew to Durban in January 2008 to visit the factory and take a test sail. Roberta’s opinion was vital, as the boat had to appeal not only to keen sailors but to partners and family. “I was impressed” said Roberta. “She is spacious and comfortable, and I particularly liked the galley and shower compartment.” During a fast reach across Table Bay in Cape Town David was itching to trim the sails for optimum performance. “I am sure we could have got another knot and a half out of her” he said later, only too conscious of his position as a guest.
Between the factory visit and the test sail the couple went on safari to Zulu Nyala game park. “This was our first visit to South Africa and we were bowled over by the wild life, particularly by the beautiful cheetah dams and their cubs. That evening we asked our Zulu Guides for the local name for Cheetah, and decided that we would call our yacht Ingeluli, or cheetah in Zulu.
Following the acquisition of the Rayvin Yachts factory by Proud Catamarans later in the year it was decided to adopt Ingleuli as the name of the whole range of 30 foot cats to celebrate the spirit of Africa.
The Ingeluli Range
Ingeluli is available in two hull options, the Ingeluli Performance Cruiser and the Ingeluli Sport. Both versions have the same cabin layout with three double cabins, a spacious saloon and Galley, and a separate heads compartment with holding tank. Each version can be supplied with a choice of two rigs and three possible suits of sails. Controversially for a performance orientated catamaran both versions have fixed Low Aspect Ratio (LAR) keels rather than daggerboards. “The advantage of daggerboards over LAR keels in a boat of this size is marginal at best” says David Orton. “LAR keels have greater hydrodynamic efficiency as they are in the hull midline where they are more effective at preventing leeway and cause less turbulence.”
The Ingeluli Performance Cruiser has twin Volvo 13 hp diesel engines which provide electrical and thermal power for a range of enhanced cruising equipment including hot water, refrigeration and other comforts, and is equipped for fast and luxurious extended cruising. Cabin heating, watermaker and freezer are among the available extras. It is anticipated that MOCRA (Multihull Offshore Cruising and Racing Association) will allocate separate handicap ratings for the Sport and Performance Cruiser variants.
The Ingeluli Sport is equipped for racing, day sailing and weekend sailing. She has twin Yamaha 9.9 high thrust outboard motors, and more basic cruising equipment. For more extended cruising a range of portable creature comforts is available from many suppliers and these can be removed to lighten the boat for racing.
Sail Choices
All sails for the Ingeluli range are supplied by Quantum. There are three categories: premium Dacron sails, midrange cruising laminates and high tech Fusion M sails.
Quantum’s Dacron sails are from Premium cruising cloth ensuring sails that are capable of giving sparkling performance and going the distance while still being very economical. The fabrics used are the best available and up to the task of dealing with the increased UV exposure and the rugged marathon of cruising. Quantum’s South African loft has a reputation for building excellent cruising sails that go the distance.
Quantum’s Cruising Laminate sails give you the best of both worlds when you are looking for a cruising sail which still will perform better than traditional Dacron fabrics. These off the shelf laminates are offered in a range of different materials to suit different budgets and are designed with the rigors of cruising in mind.
The sails on Ingeluli at the boat show are Fusion M sails built in Quantum’s state of the art facility in Cape Town. The laminate for each sail is custom made to suit the application. This cutting edge technology ensures a very light and shape stable sail by accurately distributing the materials. This ensures that excess materials are not carried in parts of the sail where the loads are smaller and that high load areas are not unable to carry the loads. This process allows a choice of materials to suit the application and budget from laminates using Polyester as the load carrying fibre to the use of aramids like carbon fibre. These sails are also available with taffetas as the outer layer providing toughness to a very high tech sail for those who want to cruise with these sails.
Mast and Rig Choices
Spars and rigging are by Southern Spars of Cape Town. Owners have the choice of the standard aluminium mast and boom of a high tech carbon fibre rig with either wire or PBO fibre standing rigging. The London Boat Show Ingeluli is the first to be fitted with the carbon mast and fibre rigging, giving a weight saving of 37 Kg, or 36.6%.
Affordable Choices
Prices for the Ingeluli range are expected to start from £130,000. As well as outright sales Devon Catamarans will be offering “Catamaran Tastings”: a full or half day on the water with a skipper to experience the thrills of sailing Ingleuli under the skipper’s guidance. The cost of the “taster day” will be deducted from the price if an order is placed.
In addition Devon Catamarans have a fractional ownership scheme which allows people to buy a share in their own Ingeluli with guaranteed sailing time, but without the worry of marina fees, maintenance and upkeep. The boats will be maintained by Devon Catamarans team of skilled boatwrights and kept in tip-top condition to maximise sailing time. Exhilarating sailing has never been more affordable.
