It has long been observed that the main requirements of any boat are space, speed and low cost, and that while any two of these are possible in a particular boat, all three are not. However, if you are prepared to sail a boat that looks different, and requires a slightly different tacking technique, it can be done.

Harrys are definitely different! They are the least possible boat for a given length, which also makes them potentially the fastest and lowest cost.

“Once you sail a good multihull, you never want to go back to a monohull.

Once you sail a good proa, you find other multihulls somewhat limited”

— A quote from one of the guys who skippers Blind Date, a 15m/50′ harryproa

Harrys consist of two unequal, double ended hulls joined by a pair of beams. The rig and rudders are in the longer, slimmer hull which is always to leeward. The shorter, fatter hull contains the accommodation, galley, cockpit and other home comforts and is always to windward. To sail one, you need a rig and rudders that will go in either direction. Instead of tacking, you shunt. Release the sheet and when the boat stops, rotate the rig and rudders through 180 degrees. The stern becomes the bow and you sail off in the opposite direction. The crew does not have to move.

Proas and shunting are not new, Pacific islanders have been shunting their proas for thousands of years. What is new, is applying it to a western style boat, and placing the accommodation in the windward hull. When I started playing with proas in the 1990’s, this was considered impossible, as the experts were convinced it would have uncontrollable weather helm. My first harry was 12m/40′ and it sailed like a dream.

So why choose a Harryproa? Features that make harryproas superior to cats and tris:

SAFETY


No foredeck work, (or clambering up and around the cabin to get there), flogging sheets, out of control travelers, daggerboards or cases. Rudders that kick up in a collision, masts that bend and de-power in gusts, fewer fittings to break, no need to climb the mast to check it, and dinghy stowage and access from the bridge deck rather than from the stern all make harrys safer than conventional boats. Shunting is less effort than tacking or gybing and far safer, particularly in big seas/strong winds.

They are very safe and easy to sail. The crew sits in the sheltered cockpit on the windward hull, able to see most of the horizon, including the danger zone which is usually blanketed by deck sweeping genoas. They never have to venture outside the beams onto pitching, wet foredecks.

The full ends, no rocker, centralised weight and location of the crew makes for a much more comfortable ride. The skipper, crew and passengers are all able to sit together (on the same level), with very little effort and no movement required for gybes or tacks.

Sails on an unstayed rig can be hoisted, lowered and reefed on any point of sail in any wind strength. This is safer, and much easier than having to luff head to wind.  )They can be eased on any point of sail as there are no shrouds to wrap around.  In a squall, they can be sheeted on just enough to give control, yet still be instantly eased if required.    The unique features of the unstayed mast and proa configuration allow a float on a wand to sense when the windward hull leaves the water in a capsize or pitchpole.  This can be used to dump the sheet, regardless of whether it is cleated, tangled or wrapped around the crew's feet.

Shunting is not only easy, it is low stress and can be reversed at any stage. There is no chance of getting in irons, no flogging sheets or traveller cars to catch unwary fingers, no picking the right time or surfing uncontrollably down a wave.

In a person (or hat) overboard situation, the boat can be stopped in seconds and sailed back to them, then stopped again to get them onboard.

There are two types of capsize for cats and tris. Sideways, usually when an unexpected squall hits and no one is on the sheet and pitchpoling, when the boat surfs uncontrollably down a wave. On a harry, depowering in a squall is automatic as the mast bends, feathering the sail and lowering the centre of effort. This allows you to set enough sail for the lulls and let the rig de-power in the gusts. Conventional rigs are set up the opposite way and/or require constant attention to the sheets.

Downwind, the sails can be eased all the way forward to slow the boat in big waves.

More righting moment: Harrys typically have 60% of the total weight in the ww hull. Cats have 50%. So, a 3 tonne harry has the same righting moment as a 3.6 tonne cat or tri.

COMFORT

Harryproas are much less prone to pitching than cats as the rockerless hulls have very high prismatic coefficients (the ratio of volume in the ends to volume amidships) and all the weight is concentrated amidships, which is also the pitch axis and the location of the crew. The rig also has a lower centre of gravity than a stayed rig. Sailing upwind, the bows of the hulls tend to meet the waves at the same time. This results in a monohull like motion (without the heeling!) rather than the corkscrewing motion typical of a catamaran.

EASY TO SAIL AND MAINTAIN

Sailing a harry is a joy. Simple, self adjusting rigs, with minimal controls, no foredeck work, a sheltered steering position with near 360 degree views from where the sails can be seen and trimmed make harry sailing very easy. The sheet loads only alter the sail's angle of attack.  The leech tension is controlled by the wishbone boom.  Consequently, sheet loads are low.

SPEED

Speed is about light weight, sail area and minimizing drag. No superfluous structure and intelligent infusion means a Harryproa is about half the weight of a similar cat . Flexible masts allow more sail area in light wind, and self regulation in strong wind. You set enough sail for the lulls, not for the gusts. Drag is reduced as light boats have less wetted surface, 2 large rudders are much less drag than rudders, daggers and cases and a short hull has less aero and hydro drag than a long one.

More:

The original  cedar strip/fibreglass 15m cruising harry with 2 queen size bunks, 2 singles, galley, toilet shower, table for 6, sheltered cockpit and nav table weighs (ed)  less than 3 tonnes. A similar cat weighs twice as much. The result is that a much smaller rig and motors are required, the materials cost is almost halved and everything becomes smaller, lighter and cheaper. The latest boats are built from infused foam / ibreglass. The skins are lighter, stiffer, and there is less of them as the hulls have flat bottoms so can be lower and don’t need fitted floors and the frames and stringers associated with them.

The hulls each have a specific task and are designed accordingly. The lee hull supports the rig and rudders and is long and sleek to provide speed and pitch resistance. The windward hull needs no structure to support rigs, daggerboards and rudders, so can be much smaller and lighter with a much wider choice of layouts.

EASY TO BUILD

Intelligent infusion means precise material alignment, weight and location options with most of the conventional post moulding work included. e.g. doors and hatches, their openings and cut outs for locks and hinges; window rebates; male/female joins for self aligning assembly; rebates and landings for bulkheads and furniture; all edge finishing. These are all done at a nice height, with dry materials and no time stress. Then perfectly wet out and consolidated in 40 minutes. The next day they are demoulded and glued together, ready to paint. There is minimal grinding, sanding or fairing.

LOW COST

Labour is lower due to intelligent infusion. There are fewer materials in a lighter boat. Light boats have smaller rigs, motors and equipment for equal performance. Simplicity in the form of no headsails, spinnakers, daggerboards or stays and all the structure and fittings these require lower the costs further. With much less to maintain, running costs and lost sailing time are also lower.

The rig is unstayed and made from carbon fibre. This is about the same cost, weight and windage as a stayed alloy mast, but there are no chainplates, travellers, jib tracks, turning blocks, seagull strikers, spinnaker poles or all the beefing up and fasteners these things require. Instead, the area around the mast and between the beams takes all the rig, beam and leeway loads so is built very strong, and the rest of the boat, which has no rig loads, very light. By contrast a cat with forestay, sidestay and traveller loads has to be strong from fore beam to traveller, plus an immense main bulkhead to resist all the compression loads.

No daggerboards, keels or centreboards. Leeway is resisted by oversize rudders. This solves all the problems inherent in a bi directional boat and many of the problems of mono directional ones. The rudders kick up in a collision or grounding and can be raised for shallow water or downwind. There are no holes in the hull to grow weed, leak or be damaged in an impact. To quote Nol from Blind Date again:

“Upwind I usually sail with the rear rudder at less than a 5-10 degree angle. There is one point when you can feel the boat is hard as stone: no drift because of the rear rudder, hulls moving straight through the water. The front rudder is used only to make very small corrections. Sometimes minutes go by without any correction. It is like meditation.”

Very shallow draft. The 15m / 50’ter mentioned above draws less than 300 mm / 12”. The rudders will steer the boat at slow speeds at this depth.

No extra sails. The only sails required are the two mainsails on a schooner rig. These provide enough sail area for light air and downwind, while the auotmatic depowering of the rig keeps the upwind loads managable.

Very little metal. What fittings there are, are made from composites, usually carbon tow. The same material is used to make very stiff, strong and light beams, rudders, masts and booms. Tow is a very cheap form of carbon, which helps keep the costs down.

The lee hull is only for storage, so needs no internal finishing. Bunks and cockpit seats are included in the windward hull building process. Therefore they do not need to be built, bonded and tabbed in place.