Yacht Feature- Hallberg-Rassy 372 with aft cockpit

by Des Ryan on 20 Mar 2012 Hallberg-Rassy is one of those brands that are legendary for cruising sailors - strong enough to do the job of crossing oceans, well-built enough not to leave you with a difficult repair in a remote location, and fast enough to get you out of harms way much of the time when bad weather is coming. The Hallberg-Rassy 372 is all of those things in an aft cockpit boat.

The company is best known for its centre cockpit boats, but the truth is that more than half of all Hallberg-Rassy's have an aft cockpit. This newest, the Hallberg-Rassy 372 is the largest aft cockpit Hallberg-Rassy built. The aft cockpit HR 372 is in every aspect all-new and is not based on the well-known centre cockpit Hallberg-Rassy 37.


So what's the difference between the Hallberg-Rassy 37 and the 372?

The 372 is only a few centimetres longer, is 5 cm wider and has a fuller transom. The canoe body is slightly shallower and the keel slightly deeper and lighter. The aft and mid sections of the hull are flatter and the bow section sharper. The sheer line is more pronounced. So she is a fast and elegant boat.

Sail Plan:
The mast is 1.05 m taller. it's made for easy handling, with its greater mainsail and only slightly overlapping genoajib. There is an option of self tacking jib. A powerful backstay tensioner is fitted as standard.

The rig has triple swept-back spreaders, the top shrouds go out to near the toe rail and the lowers are positioned to the superstructure for easy passage on deck. An optional gennaker is flown between the masthead and a removable bowsprit.

Frers’ speed prediction diagram says the new Hallberg-Rassy 372 will even be faster than the HR 40, which is recognized as a fast yacht.

Cockpit:
The aft cockpit is generous with a large steering wheel. The steering is directly linked, halyards are hidden under the coach roof and are handled by two winches on the cockpit coaming, not on the exterior chart tables. This solution makes it possible to achieve Hallberg-Rassy typical Push Button Sailing with optional electric halyard and control winches, without disturbing the interior, even with a traditional non-furling mainsail.

Deck layout:

There are five large deck hatches, all flush mounted so that the glass is in level with the coach roof. The opening deck hatches to the toilet room and the aft cabin are milk coloured, to allow light but no view into the cabin.

The bow remains clear with a couple of neat innovations. The genoa furler has an under deck mounted drum to get clean deck lines, and, if you install an electric anchor windlass it is mounted under the deck.

Interior:
Below deck is roomy and bright. Two deck hatches allow a good amount of light into the saloon. The galley is big, U shaped and seagoing. Both sofas in the saloon are a full two metres long.

The roomy head is equipped with a wet locker and has a separate shower. The forward cabin is extremely large and generous.

The v berth is 210 cm long, 68 cm wide at the foot end and 202 cm in the aft end. There is a seat, two hanging lockers and two vanities in the forward cabin.

The aft cabin also has a comfortable and unusually wide double berth.

Engine:

The engine is a 42kW/55HP with an estimated range under engine of appx. 845 nautical miles at 2/3 gas, 6 knots.

...and how does she sail?
The Norwegian yacht magazine 'Seilas' featured a test of the Hallberg-Rassy 372 and said:

'The Hallberg-Rassy 372 sails so well that many people will have to revise their view of the well-known Swedish sailboat brand. The sailing performance is impressive. We keep 7 knots boatspeed against the choppy seas coming towards us. The boat is moving remarkably smooth through the confused waves. We are making good speed, and the cockpit stays totally dry. After half an hour of hard tacking, we can bear away and get a broad reach towards the archipelago of Väderöarna, located about 30 nautical miles to northwest. The boat is surfing along in eight-nine knots, with no problems for the helmsman to keep her on course. We take out the reef and increase the speed to 11.5 knots.

'Hallberg-Rassy 372 is a fast and fun sailing boat, without sacrificing all the live-aboard comforts.'