"Hägar the Terrible" is a feared Viking chieftain, his trademark bearskin, horned helmet and red beard. Together with his crew, the grumpy Norwegian regularly sets sail with his ship to conquer treasures.
Anyone telling the story of the carbon fibre sloop "Hägar V", built by Adria Sail in Fano, simply has to point out the parallels with the comic figure invented by Dik Browne. The owner of the extremely sporty Harry Miesbauer design is clearly a fan of the lovable Viking leader, who fights the most difficult "battles" within his own four walls - as the 420 square metre gennaker impressively demonstrates. His wife Helga has her own ideas and wears the trousers at home. The extent to which there is a connection between these details cannot be established. The fact is, the "Hägar V" owner, who lives in Bolzano, Italy, is also interested in conquering treasures - albeit in the form of regatta trophies. As the Roman five in the name reveals, the 20-metre sloop with the fast lines of yacht designer Harry Miesbauer from Upper Austria is not his first yacht.
The idea for "Hägar V" was born during a night watch
In terms of sailing, the designer and owner have a long sporting history. They have often sailed against each other (49er, Finn), together (Melges 24) and together across the Atlantic. "This project started during a night watch at the Rolex Middle Sea Race a few years ago," summarises Harry Miesbauer, who gained his design experience with both Luca Brenta and Mani Frers and has been running two of his own studios in Vienna and Como since 2007. "During that night, the owner and his captain philosophised intensively about what the perfect yacht should look like and put their ideas down on paper."
The ice maker and washing machine can be quickly removed to switch from cruising to racing mode
The new boat should have a length of around 65 feet, attract attention, look sexy, sail fast and agile, have good all-round performance, be seaworthy and also be able to be sailed with a small crew in offshore races, be light, have a functional interior that offers sufficient comfort for family trips, and heavy items such as the washing machine and ice maker should be easy to remove for conversion to regatta mode.
Few surprises inside, but many remarkable details
The detailed composition with the specific wishes of a committed owner - a combination that every designer dreams of. Harry Miesbauer was awarded the design contract and the work began. "We took our time and didn't make many decisions lightly," says the designer. "In order to work out the perfect interior layout, I went on board the old 62-foot ship together with the owner couple and the captain, and we anchored in a bay off Porto Cervo for four days. We were only allowed to disembark when we were all completely satisfied with the layout," continues Miesbauer, looking back happily.
The layout surprises with many details, less so with the space planning. The owner's cabin is located in the bow and has a decentralised double bed on the port side as well as a narrow berth opposite. The navigation corner and the large galley open to the saloon are located aft. The XL dining table positioned behind it can be folded down in the centre, leaving more space below deck for stowing sails or moving around during passages and regattas. Robust handrails are present everywhere on board, a clear sign of an owner with plenty of regatta and offshore experience. Three guest cabins occupy the stern, in which all seven beds can be adjusted to various heeling angles. Behind this is a lazarette with space for a 3.40 metre long tender. "In order to realise a maximum lightweight interior, the wall and ceiling panels were created as a carbon sandwich on a honeycomb core," reveals designer Miesbauer, who designed the hull lines of the yacht model called Scuderia 65 in accordance with the globally standard IRC measurement formula.
Impressive figures, impressive ship
The "Hägar V" team ordered the construction of the racer/cruiser, which displaces just 18 tonnes, from Adria Sail in Fano. The yacht builders led by shipyard boss Maurizio Testuzza are familiar with the production of fast customised formats, and several Wallys have been built in their halls. The Italians laminated the hull and deck of the Scuderia 65 as a carbon sandwich using the vacuum infusion process, while the Miesbauer team optimised the structural calculations together with Giovanni Belgrano, who was heavily involved in the construction of Team New Zealand's America's Cup racer.
Sail load factor 6.1 in race mode, 4.50 metres draught: the values are impressive, as are the lines and performance
For weight reasons, the owner opted for a mast and boom package from Southern Spars in combination with standing rigging made of ECsix cables from Future Fibres. Two sets of sails from OneSails in Verona provide propulsion, in cruising mode with a moderate Bermuda rig (245 square metres, upwind) and for racing with a flared fathead mainsail and a total of 259 square metres. Instead of a dragon's head on the bow as on Hägar's Viking boat, a bowsprit just under two metres long stands out on the southern fast sailer, on which a 420 square metre gennaker is set, which ensures roaring surfing interludes. The necessary righting moment is guaranteed by a hydraulic lifting keel, which increases the draught from 2.95 to 4.50 metres.
"Hägar V" was built to win Mediterranean regattas
"Hägar V" was created with a clear focus on competing in the offshore classics in the Mediterranean such as the Giraglia, the Rolex Middle Sea Race, the Aegean 600 or Capri Sailing Week and sailing home with trophies. But the Covid-19 pandemic thwarted their plans.
The regatta debut was finally celebrated with a line honours victory in the 200 nautical mile Adriatic race La Duecento from Caorle via Grado and Susak back to Caorle. The owner was visibly satisfied: "This was the perfect race to test the boat in race mode. The light wind start was tough, but as the wind picked up we were able to pull away from the rest of the field and cross the finish line in first place with a big lead." The Aegean 600 was won by "Hägar V" after IRC and ORC over all. It remains to be seen whether Scuderia 65 will soon be as feared on other regatta courses as Hägar the Terrible is by his enemies. In any case, the start was promising.
The designer of the"Hägar V"Harry Miesbauer
Born in 1966, Harry Miesbauer is an engineer and qualified yacht designer who initially worked in the electronics industry before switching to the yacht industry. The Austrian worked for Frers in Milan and for many years for Luca Brenta's design office, which made a name for itself with the design of the Wally yachts. Most recently, Miesbauer was the leading yacht designer and partner at Brenta before setting up his own office. The Scuderia 65 is his most ambitious boat to date. Current projects range from cruisers/racers of various sizes to a 75-foot explorer.
Technical data "Hägar V"
- Torso length: 20,05 m
- Waterline length:18,60 m
- Width: 5,51 m
- Depth: 2,95-4,50 m
- Weight: 18,0 t
- Sail area for wind cruising:245,0 m²
- Sail area on the Wind Racing:259,0 m²
- Sail carrying capacity Cruising/Racing:5,9/6,1
- Engine (Volvo Penta): 111 kW/150 hp
