Description
The Hunter Xcite (built 2003–2008, ~1,200 hulls) is a rotomolded polyethylene single-handed high-performance dinghy designed by Glenn Henderson as Hunter Marine’s direct answer to the Laser but with far more comfort and forgiveness. At 13 ft 9 in LOA with a 5 ft 6 in beam and an all-up weight of just 145 lbs (hull ~130 lbs), it is built from tough twin-sheet thermoformed plastic with a closed-cell foam core — virtually indestructible and unsinkable.
It carries a fully battened 88 sq ft mainsail on an unstayed two-piece carbon-fiber mast that steps in seconds, an optional 35 sq ft roller-furling jib (total upwind ~123 sq ft), and a 120 sq ft asymmetrical spinnaker on a retractable sprit. The rig is deliberately lower and fatter than a Laser’s for easier handling, yet the boat still planes early and is capable of exciting speed in 12–20 knots. The cockpit is huge and self-bailing, with high coamings and hiking straps; the kick-up rudder and swing centerboard (6 in up / 3 ft 6 in down) make it beach-launch friendly.
Marketed as “the Laser you can sit in,” the Xcite became a huge hit with adult recreational sailors, sailing schools, and resorts who wanted Laser-like speed without the punishment. It is still actively raced in one-design fleets in the Midwest and Southeast, and because the plastic hull shrugs off decades of abuse, good used examples remain plentiful and very affordable today — widely regarded as one of the best “grown-up” performance dinghies ever mass-produced.
