Hanse Yachts - 10 minutes with Peter Hrones

For Peter Hrones of Windcraft Australia the driving force is clearly passion.

Passion for performance sailing boats.

Passion for great design.

And passion for build quality.

Once Peter starts talking about boats his face breaks in to a smile and his eyes shine.

Here's a man who clearly loves his work.

It all started when a very young Peter and his Dad built a Sabot sailing Dinghy.

They customised the little boat to fit into the cockpit of their 22ft Timpenny trailer sailor - (it had to be a Timpenny because Peter's Mum loved the self-tacking headsail).

Then every year the Hrones family drove North and spent a month cruising the Whitsundays, the faithful Sabot tender following along behind them.

Throughout his teens Peter became an accomplished sailor racing MJs and Flying 11s at Avalon Sailing Club. He then moved onto Etchels in the late 80's sailing out of RPAYC. Every weekend was a sailing weekend with Peter touring Australia extensively and competing very successfully.

He cut his teeth as a yacht broker in Palm Beach for 5 years before heading to Europe and having fun delivering Sigmas and Moodys.

The time in Europe opened his eyes.

It was clear to Peter that 1990s Australia lagged behind Europe in boat design and building.

More competition was needed and it seemed European imports could provide the answer.

Peter became a man on a mission.

On his second trip to the Northern Hemisphere he bought and hired a camper-van and scoured Europe, the USA, Canada and Africa looking at every boat building factory.

His formula was simple. Score each factory on key points... and choose the best.

We asked Peter what his key points are for choosing the best yacht.

'First and foremost design.

I must like the look of the boat. The shape of the hull has to excite me. The windows must let sunshine flood in. The keel and rig have to be right.

The cockpit space has to be big enough - Australians love to be outside.

And the interior space and layout has to be right too.

Australians want quality interiors with home comforts and decent headroom.

Next it has to be sailor's boat.

It has to handle and perform well. It has to be good quality, well engineered and well put together.

Of course price is important. The boat has to be competitive with the other brands out there.

Also, I have to know I can do business with the boat builder. I have to be as sure as I can be that they will deliver what they say they will on time. I want to know they will listen to the needs of the Australian market.

I want to deal with forward looking companies who are improving their product all the time.

And finally... when I step on board and walk inside I have to have an immediate heartbeat moment. A moment when my heart races because I know instinctively that the boat feels right.'

And Hanse yachts fit the bill?

'Yes. I realised that Northern Europe were building the best boats.

They were passionate sailors building sailors boats.

And for me Hanse yachts came out top of the lot.

The Hanse is a sailors boat. For me it handles like a big Etchel being a good racing boat that's speedy and responsive.

It's also well put together with a performance rig and good hull shape.

The keel and mast are positioned and designed to carry the self-tacking headsail. (Maybe the self tacker was what persuaded my Mum and Dad to buy the very first boat I imported - a Scanyacht 391!)

Hanse's can handle rough seas. They're possibly a little overbuilt - but that's OK especially for Australian conditions. They're built to cope fine in the unforgiving Baltic Sea. Heaps of Hanse's have crossed the oceans taking what nature inevitably throws at them in their stride.'

And how about Hanse as a company to deal with?

'They listen. They've listened to me about bigger fridges, separate showers and more opening hatches. Every year they ask me for my wish list of the 5 things I want to change the most. They move forwards all the time, improving and updating designs as they

And they deliver. They deliver beautifully engineered boats on time. They are a pleasure to work with.'

And how has the GFC affected Hanse Yachts?

'Hanse sold 110 yachts in 1999 (my first year with them) and have doubled this every year for 10 years until the GFC hit. The last 2 years have still been very positive for Hanse. They have sold 400-500 boats each year and bought out other brands like Fjord, Moody and Dehler who weren't able to survive the crisis. In short Hanse is still expanding.

By introducing Hanse to Australia Peter Hrones has brought us a performance yacht that handles beautifully and is easy to sail. And he's had his share of fun too!

Here's the Hanse yachts Peter has owned over the last 8 years

• Hanse 341hull #79 in 2002 called 'Hans Free'
• Hanse 370e hull #005 in 2005 called 'Hans on Deck'
• Hanse 400e hull #259, #321 and then eventually keeping #365 'Hans on Deck'. 2007-2009
• Moody 45DS hull #001-08/2009 'Cool Change'
• Fjord 40 Cruiser- #005 -2009/10 'Attitude'
• Dehler 35 - #183 coming 25th June 2010 'Coco'

It certainly seems that Peter believes in the product he sells!

Here's more information about the meticulous attention to detail in the building of Hanse yachts

A boat share in a Hanse yacht may cost less than you think. Give us a call on 02 9997 5344 and we'll tell you more.

Here's how our Smart Yacht Syndicates work and here's details of the boat shares launching soon.

Return from Hanse Yachts to Boat Share home