New Listing – 2005 Contessa 32

*** OFF MARKET ***

Very rare opportunity to purchase a new-generation Jeremy Rogers built Contessa 32. Benefiting from a substantial 2020/21 refit at the Jeremy Rogers yard and now ready for new adventures.

FURTHER BROKER’S COMMENTS:

‘AGAMEMNON’ (previously ‘OLIVIA’) offers a very rare opportunity to purchase a modern-day classic, not only being one of the second-generation Jeremy Rogers built Contessa 32s, with many modern enhancements over the legendary original design, but one which has also benefited from a comprehensive refit back at the Jeremy Rogers yard in 2020/2021. She has subsequently had further updates carried out whilst she was in Scandinavia in 2023/2024, where she had been cruising with her current owner and his family.

Like all Contessa 32’s, ‘AGAMEMNON’ is perfectly suited for both family cruising and racing, with an active one design fleet present in the Solent. The CO32 has also proven itself to be a hugely capable bluewater cruiser with many sisterships undertaking serious offshore adventures.

Sadly, due to work commitments and a growing family, the time has come for ‘AGAMEMNON’ to find her next custodian. Ashore and back at the Jeremy Rogers yard in Lymington, ‘AGAMEMNON’ is prepared for onward sale and is ready to go, offered at a fraction of the cost of a new build project and her owner’s own investment in her.

Her specification highlights include:
• Pale blue topsides finish
• Coppercoat antifouling system
• Beta Marine 25hp engine with Featherstream 3-bladed feathering propeller
• Hydrovane self-steering
• New rudder bearings.
• Lithium-Ion service batteries
• Solar panel
• 220vAC shorepower
• Pressurised hot & cold fresh water
• Holding tank
• Garmin instrument package with radar, chart plotter, VHF and AIS
• Raymarine evolution autopilot
• New Force 10 stove, gas supply pipe with CO2 & gas bilge alarm.
• Dickinson Newport solid fuel heater
• Eberspacher diesel fired hot air cabin heating system
• Fridge with 12vDC compressor
• Corian counters in saloon and heads
• LED internal lighting
• Teak interior with latest-style vertical slatted saloon joinery
• Tidesmarine low-friction mainsail track system
• Selden rod vang
• Mechanical backstay adjuster
• Lewmar self-tailing winch package
• Sanders Dacron mainsail and genoa
• North asymmetric with snuffer
• Quick electric anchor windlass with Rocna anchor
• Sprayhood with additional framework for cockpit tent

RECENT REFIT HIGHLIGHTS:

2023/2024 JAKOB JENSENS BADEVAERFT, COPENHAGEN:
• New coppercoat.
• Clean fuel tank, fit Wema tank gauge in nav station.
• Anchor swivel.
• New North Sails asymmetric spinnaker in snuffer (fits onto same U-bolt that genoa is tacked to, with 60cm dyneema tack strop).
• Replace sprayhood.
• New compass (Contest 130).
• Stainless tubing fitted for cockpit tent (can be removed if desired/ project completed with roll of fabric in boat).

2020/2021 JEREMY ROGERS:
• New teak planking in saloon (to achieve same look as some of the new build Contessas).
• New cushions and upholstery throughout boat.
• Newport Dickinson solid fuel stove with bespoke stainless backing plate.
• New Corian worktop in galley.
• New Isotherm fridge.
• New Rheinstrom Y3 heads.
• New red/white LEDs in Nav station and saloon.
• Pressurised hot/cold water to galley with mixer tap (in addition to foot pumped fresh and salt water).
• New automatic bilge pump (Gulper type) in bilge.
• New cockpit-facing window for quarter berth.
• New Beta 25hp diesel engine – currently less than 300 hours (there is an existing aquadrive installed by
• the prior owner).
• New Darglow 3-bladed feathering prop.
• New shaft and seal.
• 20l calorifier that links to galley plus new cockpit shower with hot/cold mixer.
• New Mastervolt lithium-ion battery system (2x 12/1200 batteries) and controller, plus
• mastervolt battery status display in Nav station.
• 3x new Garmin displays in cockpit (GMI 20), plus 12” Garmin chartplotter in Nav station.
• USB charger in nav station.
• New Raymarine Evolution autopilot.
• Garmin VHF 215i plus AIS 800.
• Wired unit set for VHF in cockpit (as well as at Nav station).
• Panoptix forward looking sonar.
• Solid state Garmin radar plus scan strut mast mount.
• GWind transducer bundle.
• Tidesmarine track for mainsail.
• New standing and running rigging.
• New Rocna 15kg anchor plus 50m chain (with chain markers) – previous owner fitted electric windlass (with remote).
• Refurbish (sand) exterior teak.
• Varnish tiller.
• New “cranked” stanchions in cockpit.
• New Sanders Sails cockpit tent (never used).
• There is a locker full of miscellaneous equipment in Lymington Yacht Haven from the prior owner, including [hydrovane] self-steering system.

OWNER’S COMMENTS:

‘AGAMEMNON’ is a very special CO32. Built in 2005, she was one of the last constructed under the supervision of Jeremy Rogers. I purchased her in 2019, she underwent an extensive refit at Jeremy Rogers Limited in the winter of 2020/2021. Full work schedules are available on request.

Post-refit, I then sailed her to the Baltic and where she stayed for two winters before sailing her back to Lymington Yacht Haven in 2024 for a minor refurb from the Jeremy Rogers team.

‘AGAMEMNON’ turns heads wherever she goes and I will be sad to part with her. Aside from the crossing to the Baltic and back, she has been lightly used for summer cruising on the fjords of Denmark. She has been a massively confidence-inspiring boat, with a unique interior, and optimized for easy short-handed long-distance cruising. Minor works planned for 2024 included replacing the Taylor’s paraffin stove with a new gas system and which has since been completed. She blasted back from Copenhagen to Lymington in six days straight earlier this summer, proving her worth as a highly capable cruising yacht.

I have decided that with a growing family that sadly, ‘AGAMEMNON’ is no longer suitable for my family’s needs and hence I have decided to sell her.

CONTESSA 32 HISTORY:

In the early ’60s, J. Rogers was already building cold-moulded Folkboats. He met with D.Sadler who at that time was a customer of his and put for the first time a masthead rig on his folkboat. This was like a revelation as the new rig performed very well. The idea of building a 26-footer with the shape of a Folkboat slowly found its way and gave birth to the famous Contessa 26. The CO26 was designed by D.Sadler and launched in 1966. It was a great success and a lot of those were ordered and built by J.Rogers in Lymington. Then the need of moulding a bigger boat came along. The IOR criterias of the ’70s were slowly changing and D.Sadler reshaped the long keel of the CO26 into a semi-long keel with skeg. That was the beginning of a new era for a faster design, which turned out to be extremely efficient upwind.

The Contessa 32 was exhibited at the 1971 London Boat Show and in 1972 won the prize as “Boat of the Show”. The demand was so high that the builder couldn’t keep up and there was already a two year waiting list ! At the end of the 1970s the Rogers company in Lymington was employing 200 people. The collaboration in between Rogers and Sadler ended in the ’70s but the Contessa 32 had become famous.

Very quickly she proved herself during the sadly famous Fastnet Race 1979 when CO32 Assent was the only boat to finish in her category out of 58 boats. Seaworthiness is probably the main characteristic to remember when talking about the CO32.

PRESS REVIEW:

“The Contessa 32 is one of the most successful cruiser racers of the last 30 years – and it’s easy to see why. She’s a joy to sail on the wind, quick on a reach, and well set up for spinnaker work downwind. With a dry weight of over four tonnes, a deep forefoot leading to a long fin keel and a skeg-mounted rudder, she’s a solid sea-boat that will see you through all seasons of offshore sailing. All that and she’s still winning races on handicap.

The deep cockpit felt very safe, and the proper gunwales made working on deck feel secure. The grabrail attached to the aft edge of the sprayhood made stepping onto the slightly narrow sidedecks easy…

She is heavier and slower on the helm than a fin-keeler with a balanced spade rudder, and she needs 12 knots or more to really get going. But all of that pales into insignificance when you’re at the helm. She’s made to sail and she does so beautifully, cutting through the waves in a way that makes you want to let her keep going. Given a chance, she’ll eat up the sea miles, whether that’s around the cans or crossing the North Sea to Norway.

She manoeuvres predictably under engine in port. With the rudder immediately aft of the prop you have instant control when going ahead. Astern, it is a fact that she will walk to port and so as long as you work with that, you’re fine. A solid anchor and plenty of chain mean Charlotte can anchor almost anywhere with confidence and her low-windage hull shouldn’t be prone to sailing around

her anchor. While the hull shape limits living space below decks – anyone over 6ft tall will have to stoop slightly – there is a surprising amount of stowage. There’s space to sleep six, and Alan’s had nine for dinner around the large fold-out saloon table before, but living on board with a full crew would be a bit cosy. The galley gives plenty of space to whip up hot meals for your crew in port or at sea. She is a comfortable and homely boat inside, with some of the old charm that you no longer get from sitting in a tupperware box.

It’s hard to imagine many crews for whom a Contessa 32 wouldn’t meet a good number of their criteria. She’ll take you to Greenland and back without any qualms. She’ll happily potter out for a daysail or a weekend away and give you somewhere to get away from it all. The next weekend, she’d be just as happy racing around the

Isle of Wight and would still have a chance of winning. She’s a true sailing boat and built for mile after mile of satisfying cruising, and solidly built – she will look after you in pretty much anything.”

Article taken from Yachting Monthly Magazine 2014

2005 Contessa 32 ‘AGAMEMNON’ for sale – Asking POA UK VAT paid – full details here

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