Hanse 461e

I hate that headline. However, if you are to test out an outstanding equine, I suppose you'd have to take it to reasonable track, would you not?

I mean it's hardly worthwhile taking Phar Lap to Birdsville for a workout; nor would it be ideal taking Gunsynd to the Bong Bong Picnic Races. And so it is with boats. No good testing a lovely yacht when it's raining and cold and there's no breeze. Better to get the horse onto a good course.

In this case our metaphoric hay-burner was the new Hanse 461e. Obviously, with a new-to-market cruising thoroughbred, we'd be silly not to test it in its natural environment, wouldn't we? So in the depths of June, we packed our bags and headed for the sunnier climes of the Whitsundays to put the Hanse through its paces. Or so we thought.

On arrival at the Hamilton Island airport, it was raining and blowing its guts out from the sou'east. Not a pretty sight. There was nothing for it but to head to the yacht club to assess our options.

We decided that I should go down to the boat with our representative from the importer, Windcraft, and take a few shots and get shown over the boat to fully familiarise myself with it before we went out - probably the next day. The rest of our contingent could stay up at the yachtie out of the wind and rain.

DESIGN LINES
The Hanse 461 is described in its marketing brochures as a 'ship of contrasts' and I suppose that in many ways I'd have to agree.

It contrasts in that it is an elegant boat in more ways than one. Its lines are sleek and look efficient - it doesn't look out of proportion; it's clean and neat with no clutter on the decks and all the lines leading under the cabin top. Below it is modern and ergonomic. A break from the traditional yacht design. It is a yacht that's easy to sail; you could happily cruise with the family, or by contrast entertain corporate guests on board. I could imagine some comfortable business deals being negotiated in the broad cockpit over a fruity sauvignon blanc... yet it's a fast and powerful yacht that would not be disgraced in an ocean race.

 With a three-spreader rig of 20m (65ft 6in) and a mainsail area of 67.5sqm and an optional 105 per cent genoa of 56.5sqm, this is one powerful yacht. The standard headsail rig is Hanse's trademark self-tacking jib of 48.3sqm which itself is no tiddler and gets the big 461 along surprisingly quickly.

Deck gear is all race quality. Harken winches in the cockpit (one electric for the halyards), Harken tracks and sheetblocks with needle-roller bearings for reduced friction, big chainplates that form part of the structure of the boat and even retractable mooring cleats for'ard, aft and amidships that don't disturb the lines of the boat nor the shape of your toes.

For its size, the 461 is surprisingly easy to sail. It's a big lump of a boat with a beam of 4.47m or 14ft7in and a displacement of 1900kg light of which 3440kg is ballast.

However, with the self tacking jib and the electric halyard winch it can be sailed by a couple with no trouble. Single-line reefing makes reducing sail easy, too.

ON DECK
Stepping aboard the 461 can either be via the fold-out swim platform on the transom or the gates in either side of the lifelines amidships. Once there, it's a stroll fore or aft on the broad teak decks.

The twin-wheel helm station sports comprehensive instrumentation at each wheel and a central binnacle for the plotter. The sheets and halyards lead back to the primaries which are set back on the coamings and can be reached by the helmsman at a pinch for one-up sailing.

The jib comes standard on a Harken furler and the main is in lazyjacks and a boom bag, further easing the setting of sail. There are three fold-out pegs on the mast for climbing up to attach the halyard and reach the zip on the boom bag.

The cockpit sports a fold-out table that has no fiddle rails and is best used at anchor but there's plenty of room for six in the cockpit and ample storage. Under the helmstation is a designated liferaft locker that can also take your dive gear or watertoys when the raft isn't there.

There are handy storage boxes for the halyards and sheets which replace the traditional sheet bags and further reduce the clutter on deck. A nice touch and further evidence that a lot of thought has gone into the look and functionality of the deck and cockpit layout.

Moving forward I noted the tracks for the genoa and the wide expanse of the foredeck which has plenty of room for lazing in the sun or working the kite.

A large anchor locker opens to reveal a swing-out arm for raising or lowering the anchor keeping the deck uncluttered while sailing - an electric anchor winch is, of course, standard.

LUXURY BELOW
As mentioned, the interior is contemporary with light and a semi-open plan adding to the feeling of space.

The interior designers at Hanse have again added to the contrasts of the boat with a somewhat classical feeling coming from the mahogany joinery, yet the geometric shapes and modern layout give a real contemporary feel.

Similarly, the fittings in the heads and galley are certainly modern and have a European look.

The galley in the test boat was to port with all the necessary gear for gourmets at sea. A two-burner gimballed stove with oven, twin stainless steel sinks, a stainless steel front-opening fridge plus a top-opening fridge and stacks of storage are just part of the picture. The galley is open and airy and easiliy worked either at sea or at anchor.

Cappuccinos and fine wine replace port and cigars for sure. The layouts can be mixed and matched with the choice of either two, three or even four cabins and varying saloon layouts. Standard fare is two heads, a large galley and comfortable seating in the saloon for up to eight.

The test boat had a three-cabin layout but I'd like to see the two-cabin with the big queen-size bed in the aft cabin. This layout offers a bit more bench space and storage in the galley too.

The nav station is opposite the U-shaped lounge/dining setup and is unique in that it doubles as a two-person coffee table with comfortable arm chairs. The chairs are on tracks so that they can be moved around and secured into different positions. The cupboard to port lifts up to reveal navigation instruments and radios and there's a handy vertical storage system for your paper charts.

The electronic package from Windcraft includes a Simrad autopilot, wind instruments, VHF, and GPS plotter with repeater in the cockpit.

The standard battery setup is unique to this market with three house batteries and one dedicated starting battery each of 80AH.

The forward cabin is very roomy and comfortable. The bed is offset to starboard with storage to port and hanging lockers forward. There are also lockers lining the hull beside the bed. An opening hatch provides ventilation.

 The big ensuite is forward again with electric loo with holding tank standard and a shower stall. It's all very contemporary with modern fittings and an airy feel.

There is another larger bathroom on the starboard side opposite the galley again with an electric head and a larger, walk-in shower stall with seat.

The aft cabins offer headroom for changing and plenty of storage for your gear. The portside one is larger with the starboard side giving away a bit of space to the bathroom.

The engine is tucked neatly under the companionway stairs and is mounted very low in its well-insulated compartment. Access is from either side or the front for servicing. It's a substantial Yanmar 4JH3-TCE of 75hp swinging a three-blade folding prop. It's interesting to note that for our market, a Maxpower retractable bowthruster is standard, further adding to the short-handed appeal of this boat.

Also notable is the water storage system which comprises four tanks that can be individually isolated via well marked shutoffs under the floor in the saloon. This means safe and positive monitoring of your water when cruising. All the tankage systems seemed to be over-engineered in stainless steel and very well secured in the boat.

ON THE TRACK
We took the Hanse out in typical trade-winds of around 18-23kts of breeze. We put the first reef in and were running the self-tacking headsail. The boat powered up quickly and felt immediately like a big boat. It found its preferred angle of heel and stayed there, carving the growing slop as we charged out of the passage into the open waters.

As the seas rose, the Hanse wasn't fazed. It's a dry boat with high freeboard and a lovely motion. There was no slamming and it was clearly a boat that liked these kinds of conditions. At around 35 degrees, we were powering upwind at better than six-and-a-half knots of boatspeed. The helm was light and very responsive through the tacks.

I did find myself looking for a foot chock to lean against as we heeled over - a small matter to rectify.

 With the self-tacking headie and the electric winches (one is standard but the test boat had two), she was a dream to throw about. The mainsheet hand can ease and sheet-on at will - all at the press of a button. We didn't even have a winch handle on deck!

We eased sheets and at around 60 degrees the boatspeed rose immediately.

Downwind, the self-tacker isn't optimised so it's best to keep the breeze at, say 120-140 to keep the headie filled. At 10-plus knots we were eating up the miles and very comfortable.

The cockpit can easily handle six or more crew while plenty more can laze on the broad decks. Simplicity is the name of the game and I found myself relaxing and soaking up the ambiance rather than having to concentrate on sailing what is, in anyone's terms, a pretty big boat.

In the market of fast cruisers, there are few things that really matter and they seem to be clean lines, simplicity, lots of room and fast passages. If this is the criteria then the Hanse 461e is right up there with the frontrunners.

The 461e has all this and the added benefit of an interior that is a break away from tradition. If you like that then the rest of the 461e should fall neatly into place.


HIGHS