Helia 44: Improvements to the Helia 44

[Helia 44]

Hello Friends,
Helia 44 here, ex Owner of AVALON.....

She is sold... WHAT?

Two months ago, a Broker from Multihull Solutions, Kelvin, brought us an offer we could not refuse.. She was really not suited for us anymore, as my Wife is a bit crippled up and needed a center console big bench seat with back rest, dinghy, and the Helia could not carry that big of a dinghy...

Something like 47,000 views, and something like 134 posts on this Thread, and now it comes to an end. Helia 44, with all its improvements, was sold to an extremely appreciative new Owner about two months ago..

So, we gave up on Yachting, and then the UNBELIEVABLE happened, the same great enterprising Broker Kelvin at Multihull, brought us a SABA 50...
The ONLY SABA 50 in Australia, and owned by a Fabulous Person that has made it the most outrageously equipped private yacht I have ever seen in my 40 years of yachting... WE JUST COULD NOT SAY N,N,NNNNNNO.... YES WE WILL TAKE HER... !!!

It has to be the Work of the Lord, it is even more outrageously equipped than AVALON!! Anyway, Thank you to all of those that gave us encouragement, we thought it was all over, and now we are back, bigger than ever, BIGGER THAN BEN HUR, as they say in Australia... !!!


What do I do now?? Change my Name on this Forum????

[Brav]

Congrats, and pics.. or it didn't happen..

[FlyTheCoop]

Congrats! Did you buy Serenity? That was the boat that we did a test sail on in Airlie Beach a few years back. I heard she was for sale. Great boat but too big for us! We love our Helia.

[Helia 44]

Hello Fly the Coop,

Yes, I bought Her. I saw Serenity first at the Gold Coast City Marina where She was being commissioned. Look, I owned the Helia 44 in Australia, from 2014 to 2018, and did all the improvements in this Thread so yes I loved my Helia 44 as well...

However: My Wife has a bad back, needs three spinal fusions or this new Surgery coming, and in on maintenance with Cortisone and other meds and Physio and so on.. We love cruising around in a dinghy, but She needed a bigger one and a bench seat with a backrest and so on. Also, I like to be able to carry over 1000 litres of diesel and water, and bigger equipment. My Helia 44 had no hope of a bigger center console dinghy and the equipment I wanted on board. She just did not have the reserve buoyancy that I desired for spares and extra equipment and so on...

Now, a week on Serenity, I have to tell you that She is NOT too big. I single handled the Helia alone, I raced the Helia alone for fun, and I cruised it alone to short hauls, and the Saba is really NOT too big. In fact, I have had Her out in moderately bad weather, because I want to get her home and do some modifications and the weather is just wrong for going south this time of year. It is predominantly S.E. Trades and squalls right on the nose. You would normally be going north this time of year not south.. And here is the main difference from the Helia: I left in bad weather to catch a short 36 hour window of moderate to calm, and battled meter and a half of seas on the nose and 22-25 knots of wind for the first 18 hours. The Saba has a longer waterline, and is heavier, and cuts through that weather that would have been rough for the Helia. The Saba 50 is more "Sea Kindly"...

Now there are a lot of subtle improvements to the rig that also makes her easier. More power winches, more aids to the main, bigger furling, a lot of things. All in all, I would say no, massive more luxury and room for plenty of equipment, and 20 improvements to the Helia. No, I am sorry, be happy with your Helia 44 as She is a very nice cruiser, but in every respect, everywhere I use the Saba, She is a major improvement in refinery, space, sailing, room for service in the engine rooms, everywhere. No, She is not too big, in fact She feels safer and travels better. I might be the only person to have personally owned both a Helia 44, and a Saba 50, I am 66 years old and here to tell you the Saba travels better. One of the biggest differences is the added ability to kick her stern around in a marina, as the rudders are aft of the props where the Helia 44 had the rudders in front of the props so you could not kick the prop wash off the rudders to kick the stern over as well. The Saba 50 docks up and maneuvers better... Sorry, but that is noticeable..

I am going to improve the rigging, to have two large Furlers on the prodder, and reinforce the prodder (bowsprit so to speak) with the second furler and the spinnaker block in front of it for the Aso.... Just like I did on the Helia, the front furler will be for a huge Screecher to use in lighter air....

I will have more if you are interested, in the new Topic I have started like this one only with the Saba:
"Improvements to the Saba 50"