Yachting Monthly - November 2015

ABOVE: The veneer

inside is lovely to

see especially on a

racer cruiser Her cockpit layout means you can race fully crewed or cruised two-up

BOATS & EQUIPMENT

NEW BOATS

Graham Snook looks at a selection of yachts from this autumn’s European boat shows

56 http://www.yachtingmonthly.com NOVEMBER 2015

w1Da 33

Italia

Yachts

12.98

As innovative new cruisers go, the w1Da

(Wonder, geddit?) takes some beating. At

3500kg, with her aluminium trailer, she’s

within the towable limit if your vehicle is

up to the job. She has a shock-absorbing

Like the rest of

the Italia yachts

range, the IY12.98

is a lightweight,

high-performance

yacht, designed to be raced and then

cruised with the minimum of effort. She has

a carbon sub-frame bonded into the hull for

weight-saving strength and to spread the

load of the T-keel beneath. Below decks,

horizontal wood grain dominates, with

the teak veneers wrapping continuously

around units, doors and bulkheads. There

are stylish, yet practical steel grabrails at

the L-shaped galley half-bulkhead and

around the pedestal of the saloon table. Her

chart table slides forward to use, or aft to

make the saloon larger. In her aft quarters

are two double cabins. Opposite there’s a

heads compartment, while forward of the

U-shaped saloon is a large V-berth with an

PHOTOS: ITALIA YACHTS

Price €369,690 inc VAT (Around £267,990) LOA 12.98m 42ft 7in LWL 11.10m 36ft 5in

Cabins Three Beam 4.16m 13ft 8in Draught 2.2m 7ft 3in Displacement 7,950kg 17,527 lb

Contact Grabau International Te l +44(0)1590 673715 Website http://www.grabauinternational.com

en suite heads and shower compartment.

On deck there’s a full-width, fold-down

transom for use when cruising, but it’s also

removable when she’s in race mode. Her

twin wheels are far outboard, made possible

by cut-outs in the cockpit coaming. The

mainsheet winches are just forward of the

wheels, so within reach when you’re seated.

Forward of the cockpit is recessed stowage

for the sprayhood.

Who would she suit?

A keen racer who also likes to cruise at

speed, with touches of luxury below decks.

Price £146,000 inc VAT LOA 9.88m 32ft 5in LWL 9.48m 31ft 1in

Cabins Two Beam 2.89m 9ft 9in Draught 0.4m/1.93m 1ft 4in/6ft 4in

Displacement 3,000kg 6,614 lb Contact w1Da Experience

Tel 01753 892015 Website http://www.w1Da.com

lifting keel and can float in just 40cm of water.

She’s intended to be two things in one hull:

a one-design offshore racer and a practical,

fast cruiser. Her hull shape is interesting, too:

a full-length chine and rounded underwater

sections with brick-height bilge bulges to

keep the hull clear of the ground. Her rudders

have turbocles – lumps on the leading edge

similar to those found on

the flippers of humpback

whales – which reduce

drag and increase the

angle of attack it’s

possible to obtain before

the rudder stalls.

If that weren’t enough,

she claims to have

zero emissions, using

a retractable 6kW rim-

driven electric motor,

which doubles as a

hydro-generator. She also

has solar panels and two

wind turbines going into lithium batteries

in a secured waterproof compartment.

These, it’s planned, will make her self-

sufficient – even with hot and cold water,

a 7Kw shower, a two-burner induction hob

and a microwave/grill/fan oven.

Who would she suit?

Environmentally conscious sportsboat

racers who want to cruise, while retaining

the advantages of trailer-sailing.

She has and electric rim drive, combined with a hydro-generator

Bilge bulges

make her hull

unconventional

GRAPHICS: W1DA EXPERIENCE