Inland Cat
Description
Overview The Inland Cat, designed by Norm Bell and John Larimore in the mid-1950s, is a classic one-design fiberglass catboat sailboat primarily associated with Lake George in northern Indiana (on the Indiana-Michigan border). This stable, heavy-construction dinghy was built using early polyester resin and fiberglass techniques, emphasizing durability and ease of handling for one or two sailors. With a Marconi (Bermuda) rig featuring a mast set far forward—typical of catboats—it's optimized for shallow inland waters, where its wide beam and retractable centerboard shine. Approximately 250–300 units were produced from the 1950s through the early 1970s by Bell/Larimore and a local boatbuilder, with the largest surviving fleet (20+ active boats) still racing weekly in "Gold" and "Silver" fleets on Lake George during summer regattas. Though not particularly fast, its forgiving nature and stability in heavy air make it a beloved local icon, often described as unsinkable and ideal for beginners or casual family sailing.
Construction Details
| Designer | Norm Bell |
|---|---|
| Length | 14.500 ft |
| LOA | 38.000 ft |
| LWL | 32.000 ft |
| Beam | 11.330 ft |
| Max Draft | 5.670 ft |
The standard boat dimensions
| i | 45.83 ft |
|---|---|
| j | 18.13 ft |
| p | 19.92 ft |
| e | 10.83 ft |
| p2 | 29.16 ft |
| e2 | 12.66 ft |
| i2 | - |
| j2 | - |
| I | J | P | E | P2 | E2 | I2 | J2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45.83 ft | 18.13 ft | 19.92 ft | 10.83 ft | 29.16 ft | 12.66 ft | - | - |
Documents
Blueprints
Sails
Inland Cat - MAINSAIL
| Luff | 19.958 ft - (6083 mm) |
|---|---|
| Foot | 10.875 ft - (3315 mm) |
| Leech | * 22.49 ft - (6855 mm) |
| Tack Angle | * 89.88 ° |
| Diagonal | 22.708 ft - (6921 mm) |
| Head (inches) | 4.5 in - (114 mm) |
| Area | * 111.97 ft² |
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Disclaimer. Boats are not all the same -- even when produced in the same factory of the same model. Sailrite does its best to publish accurate dimensions, but we often find it worthwhile to have our customers measure their boats carefully before we produce kits for them. You should take the same precautions, especially when the data is not from Sailrite. The information on this site is not guaranteed to be accurate. Sailrite offers this content as a service to our community, but takes no responsibility for the reliability of the data provided.