This isn’t a cruiser. It’s a strict one-design racer: ultralight, built entirely in carbon, and capable of lifting onto inverted T-shaped appendages at remarkable speed.
Design, Construction, and Transport
The Switch is an ultralight, full-carbon boat with a platform weight of just 29 kg. It fits into a box that can be carried on top of a car. The decks come apart in a few minutes, and the mast separates into three pieces, making the boat as much a piece of transportable sporting equipment as a traditional sailboat.
Production takes place at a Thai yard that already builds Olympic boats. The class is chaired by Luigi Buzzi, while Pietro Negri distributes the new class across Italy and Europe.
With its wings extended, the Switch is 2.25 meters wide. That gives it the beam footprint of a much larger dinghy, even though the hull is less than four meters long.
Rig and Foiling Performance
The Switch can take off in as little as 5–6 knots of wind, fly at 19 knots upwind, and reach a top flying speed of 30 knots.
A wand—described as a bow batten—controls flight by automatically adjusting the center inverted-T foil while the boat is airborne. Period reporting described flying the Switch as simple rather than a skill reserved only for experts.
The class provides three sail plans, each scaled to a crew category:
- 6.5 square meters for Youth
- 7.5 square meters for Women
- 8.4 square meters for Men
All are built as One Design Quantum Membrane Sail sails to keep the fleet level.
Class and Ownership
The distributor describes the Switch as very easy to transport and part of a structured class with its own independent racing circuit.
For 2024, the calendar included four stages plus an Italian championship on Lakes Como and Garda. That schedule points to a committed one-design program rather than a lone experimental prototype.
According to the launch coverage, the boat did not cost an extravagance, positioning it as an accessible entry to foiling rather than a superyacht toy. The strict sail-plan assignments and class-run circuit mean owners buy into a rulebook, not a customization project.
The Verdict
The Switch One Design is a serious attempt to make foiling more accessible within a disciplined one-design framework. Its Italian engineering lineage and production at a Thai yard experienced in Olympic-class boats lend it credibility. Automatic foil control and a low takeoff threshold also reduce the skill barrier that often surrounds high-speed foiling.
Its purpose is narrow and clear, however. The Switch is a compact racing machine, with no provision for cruising or accommodation and little scope for owner-led modification.
Pros
- Full-carbon, 29 kg platform that disassembles and fits into a car-top box
- Takes off in 5–6 knots and reaches 30 knots, with automatic foil adjustment
- Structured, independent class circuit, including a 2024 Italian championship
Cons
- Strict one-design rules leave no room for owner-driven modification
- Its 3.9 m length and foiling focus rule out cruising or accommodation use
