The PredictWind A-Class Cat World Championships 2025 at Milford Cruising Club - Preview
by Gordon Upton 22 Oct 17:24 BST
8-16 November 2025
Darren Bundock, AUS 88, comes in fresh from his F18 Worlds win and will be keen to finally add the A-Cat crown to his bulging trophy cabinet © Gordon Upton /
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It's that time again. That time when the great and the good sailors of the World's most elegant catamaran class come together to battle for their World Championships, as the A-Class Cats comes to town.
This year they are gathering at the sailing Mecca that is Auckland Harbour. The Kiwis are a proud waterborne nation and their dominance of the sport over the years, results in many of their sailors being at the highest level.
The Class
We say 'Championships', because the A-Cat is a dual fleet class. Split into twin fleets and essentially the same basic box rule open design which dates back to 1956. The 75kg boat, 5.49m long, 2.3m wide and powered by no more than 13.94sqm of sail and with the main foils inserted from the top. The class voted to separate into two fleet categories since 2018, with separate handicap ratings, following the advent of the discovery that by utilising modern composite materials and construction techniques, the things can be made to fly. We now have the Classic category which is the original straight or constant curved foil design variant, but allowed only to fly one hull at a time. And the Open category allowing more elaborate board shapes designed to produce lift and allowing the whole boat to fly above the water on these foils. It has a similar power to weight ratio as an International Moth, resulting in similar straight-line speeds.
However, while the Opens are the super-sexy crowd pleasers, with their 35kt+ speeds, they do require huge physical fitness and borderline circus skills to sail at any performance level at all. The Classics though, being rather lovely to sail at their mere 20+kts and great fun in a very close competitive fleet, are the weapon of choice for over 2/3rds of the fleet and allows many of the older sailors to remain competitive. They also have the upper hand at the ends of the class legal envelope of 5-22kts, being lower in drag at the bottom end, and more controllable at the top end.
The Venue
The event takes place courtesy of the Milford Cruising Club in Auckland. This is one of a dozen or so Auckland sailing clubs and is based in the North of the city on the Wairau Estuary. With racing on the lovely waters off Castor Beach's golden sands, this club is just over 100 years old and has hosted many large events and championships in its past. It's lovely, elegant clubhouse, overlooking the marina in Wairau Creek, boasts a full restaurant for events and functions. The boats will live on the large lawn in front, and the launching areas are from a sandy beach, right onto the bay. And the smart money currently has the winds being towards the upper end, so watch this space.
The Event
Following in the wake of the spectacular boat numbers at the 2024 Worlds at PuntAla, the following year's event was always going to be a much quieter but more intimate affair. Coupled with the fact that New Zealand is not exactly near anywhere, or even on the way anywhere except Antarctica, travelling would always be the challenge. However, a successful Worlds isn't and shouldn't be judged purely on numbers of boats afloat. A huge fleet is no guarantee of good competition or racing, especially when a World title is up for grabs and more boats can sometimes mean more repairs on occasions. And more sailors can also mean more inexperienced sailors in trouble should conditions take a turn for the worst. How many rudder winglets were lost in that PuntAla beach break as sailors sometimes simply arrived en masse on the beach as they would do back at home because they knew no different safer techniques for surf?
This year we have 33 sailors registered in the Classic fleet and 22 in the Open. There may be a few local undecideds to add, but this looks like what we have on the two courses.
The Competitors
This year may lack quantity, but it certainly doesn't lack in quality! And even if the reigning Classic Champ, Gustavo Doreste-Blanco, Triple class World Champ Mischa Heemskerk and the Euro Classic fleet winner and double World champ, Scotty Anderson all absent, these fleets can still boast a bunch of Olympic and multiple Olympic medallists, a two-time ISAF Sailor of the Year, together with several different World Class and National champions and a former America's Cup skipper. A couple of containers of boats come from Europe, and one from the USA, together with a whole bunch coming over the Tasman Sea to join the 18 sailors in the Kiwi fleet.
The top of the Classic fleet, just on past achievements alone, must be Andrew Landenberger AUS 308. Landy is a triple Classic World Champ and one of those Medallist we mentioned. He will be on the new Scheurer G8, on which he had an input in designing. We will have a more detailed piece on this later. He's very quick and once ahead, is hardly ever caught again and he loves the rough stuff superbly and looks extremely comfortable whilst doing it. He will be accompanied by his son, Andreas AUS 300. 'Baby Landy' is also a fast lad, however, much of his time is taken running their huge Aussie cattle ranch, so practice opportunities can be hard to come by. On his day though, he can be as fast as dad. We also have Wayne Mercer. Wayne, a legend in the fleet, has built himself a new boat for the event. He is the designer of the Tool A-Cat but was no longer produced by him for several years, but he dug out the moulds to make one last boat for himself, before they were scrapped. Many are looking forward to seeing this piece of A-Cat history.
Then we have the Swiss Champion and Schuerer Team sailor Robin Maeder SUI 007. He is usually seen on the Open fleet, however, at these championships he'll be on the older G7 design, albeit with the latest design Classic boards. He's usually very fast, frequently top ten or so, but his foiling knowledge needs to be on the back burner for this fleet though, as if anyone who is spotted without one hull in the water, all hell could be brought down on them. Being the Schuerer guy, he'll probably be on hand fixing broken boats in a tent workshop, late into the night as at PuntAla, to save people's regattas. Not all heroes... as they say.
On the home classic fleet, we have John Kennett, NZL 277, Mike Drummond NZL 287 and Pat Ashby NZL 271. This trio have been dominating the fleet in recent times. Kennett, a true lightweight, sails a Drummond designed boat and is unstoppable in the light stuff, and no slouch in a blow either. Drummond has recently rejoined the fleet and sails a new Exploder Ad3 to chase the others, and Ashby is the 2025 Nat Classic Champ, who loves a breeze. Plus we have one of the two women in this event. Danielle Haylock NZL 252 is sailing her Tom Block built straight board boat, and can be expected to be seen pushing hard, even in the fruity stuff.
Up against them is the charging Ex-pat Scotsman, sailing under the Spanish flag. Micky Todd ESP 7 will be on his beloved Scheurer, and probably up near the front if he can manage it. He tends to do well at these long-range events and good at sneaking positions, so watch out. We also have a couple of US classic boats, Chris Bolton USA 148 and Michael Love USA 395. They will be the ambassadors for next year's event in St. Petersburg Fl.
The final Classic team is from Poland and the top Polish lad in this fleet will be the much-loved Jacek Noetzel POL 1. He is the father of the class in Sopot and has huge respect everywhere. He transferred from Open to Classic a couple of years back, regained his MoJo and has retained his great trademark 'Pufferfish' expression when things get dicey. This is the man Landy will be watching out for the most. He is a rocket, especially if the conditions get rough and lumpy, as at his home. If the wind gets up, watching them both battle it out will be a thrill. I hesitate to call it with those two.
Over on the Open fleet, their 22 boat start could be a masterclass in high end foiling skills although the windier conditions could well give them a decent workout keeping the thinks on the planet's surface. Looking at them, I could pick out maybe 6-7 sailors capable of winning if things went their way. Although, with back-to-back World titles under his belt, Kuba Surowiec, POL 41, has got to be looking for his third crown and has a killer instinct. His boat prep second to none, and if he gets into the zone, and the Sopot-like lumpy conditions arrive, he'll have a wry grin that says it's going OK. His light wind skills are also crucial and his ability to get foiling earlier than most have been race winning on several occasions. But chasing him are a few sailors that could spoil his day. Darren Bundock, AUS 88, has been runner up at PuntAla and has never been outside the top 5 in all the A-Cat Worlds he has raced. He could be on a roll too and the two-time Olympic medallist is fresh off winning the F18 Worlds yet again, his 7th title in the class. However, only Ravi Parent, USA 76, has ever won both F-18 and A-Cat titles in the same year, so maybe he would like to equal that one? Bundy is obviously a brilliantly consistent sailor, he just keeps doggedly in there either defending his lead or chasing the next boat down. Could it be his year finally?
But they will have contend with Local Hero Dave Shaw NZL 270. For many years Dave has dominated the home Kiwi fleet, transitioning to foiling seamlessly from his days in Classics. But you'd be a fool to dismiss this laconic and laid-back guy. He has been inside the top dozen in every World championship he has raced, getting 2nd at Weymouth in 2019 behind Mischa. He is a huge danger to the rest and maybe home advantage can push him to clinch it for yet more NZL sailing glory? Another couple of home team players are David Haylock NZL 284 and Hamish Hall-Smith NZL 285. Hamish is a former National champ and has move up to a modified DNA F1, so has found a new gear. David has also upgraded, to a DNA F1x and he too has found a new burst of speed to close the gap amongst the top 3.
Then we have the Italian Open Champ Lamberto Cesari. He has been very fast of late. Since his Australian Nats visit and coaching period earlier in the New Year with the Aussie stars, he has been putting his tools together and has made a huge effort. Training hard too with his ITA colleagues in 'The Squad', he has developed some fast moves to steadily rise to challenge the established order. Runner up to Kuba at Riccione in the Euros back in June, he has beaten him twice in a couple of Garda regattas since, so Lambi is certainly in a good place mentally to give it his best shot at this one if he can do the big points.
The 2022 World Champ, the aforementioned Ravi, could be hoping for a good regatta too. He has been concentrating on the F18 recently as well but with mixed results, so maybe his A-Cat skills can be buffed up to his championship winning ways again? The reigning US Champion is certainly capable of pulling off a few hot finishes. Then we have the two Aussie battlers of Stevie Brewin AUS 4 and Adam Beattie, AUS 14. Stevie, the three-time World Champ, can always be relied upon to pull something special from the hat. Training partner to both Bundy and Adam, he knows their games inside out and his speed can be blistering at times. Adam is, if anything, quicker on his day than both. However, having a young family, he tends not to be able travel to as many bigger events as much as he'd like, so has to rely on his natural speed and talent. But this time he'll also be among familiar Aussie faces in the paddock, so maybe we could expect something special.
Snapping at the heels of the Glory Boys are a few who are capable of throwing in some interesting finishes. Michal Korneszczuk on POL 111 is another Sopot lad, so can take the fruity stuff in his stride as well. He finished top 5 in Riccione in the very challenging light airs. And the guy who pipped Michal for 4th was Emmanual Dode FRA 2. The French Open Champ is another sailor like Lambi and very focused. He too has trained very hard over recent years to hone his skills to progress up the ranks. Also, we have the US IACA President, Bailey White, USA 320. He is also capable of good finishes too. And this fleet also has a woman within its ranks too, in the shape of one of the most accomplished female sailors of all time, Carolijn Brouwer, NED 888, sails the A-Cat for fun and to keep the husband company on AUS 88, but given her past form in this class, she is more than capable of finishing in the top half of the fleet.
So there we have a few suggestions as who to look out for. Of course, others could come through and shake it all up. If the winds are higher, then expect the inevitable breakages as things can happen to any of them. But most will come back to shore experiencing classic Type II Fun and regale those who will listen.
The registration commences on the 8th Nov, with a 2 day warm up series on the 9th. Then racing starts in earnest on the 12th-16th November. This will be one to watch!