The Dehler 30 OD is a nice design but I really don’t know what to think about it. Not that the boat is not interesting, it is certainly a looker and it will be surely very fast and a lot of fun to sail. But what puzzles me is the market to which the boat is pointed, that seems to be an nonexistent one.
It is meant to be a One Design offshore solo or duo boat and that implies the existence of a class for racing, but will this boat manage to create such a class on a country where solo and duo racing is not very big? And with a boat that due to the liquid ballasts cannot be an inexpensive boat?
And even if they manage to sell enough boats to create a One design class and a championship of offshore solo or duo races how will the boat be transported to the races? The big beam makes it non trailerable and the absence of an engine with small autonomy and power (electric 4hp) makes the transport by sea difficult at least in what regards respecting a timetable.
Regarding other type of races it is difficult to know how the boat will perform. For IRC or ORC duo class, 30ft is a bit on the limit in what regards offshore races. Yes, of course, there are mini-racers, that are even smaller but the truth is that on the offshore IRC/ORC races that include a duo class the chosen boats are rarely smaller than 35ft.
There are two big amateur races for solo sailors, one coastal, the SilverRudder, other offshore, the Transquadra (transat). On the Transquadra there are some 30ft boats racing but most will chose a boat that will allow them to be among the first in real time and boats like the Sunfast 3600 or the JPK 10.80 were designed thinking about that race.
The Dehler 30 OD is just too small to be able to win that race in real time and less adapted than a Pogo 30 and besides the electric engine does not allow the production of electrical energy through an alternator (as with a diesel engine) and on longer races they need to produce energy for the instruments and autopilot.
Regarding this boat they talk specifically about the Silver Rudder, even if that one is a coastal and not an offshore race, but the SilverRudder is a relatively short race where there is no need of an interior since the sailors are full time at the wheel or rudder. It is not a handicap race but a race by boat length. This boat will be racing on the class Small (25.01 - 30.00 feet) against boats like the Farr 280 or the Soto 30 and I don’t think it has any chance to win.
The Dehler 30 OD is not a dual boat, a cruiser-racer, it has no conditions to suit for more than a spartan weekend cruise while other boats like the Pogo 30 can do long range cruising and boats like the JPK 9.60 can coastal cruise comfortably.
That’s true that it will be faster than any of these two but slower than true race boats like the Farr 280, Soto 30 or similar boats and almost for sure not as good in handicap racing as JPK or other top fast cruiser-racers designed specifically for IRC or ORC racing. And slower than the Pogo on a transat.
Some say that this could be the perfect boat for the new Olympic class of duo offshore racing but that is really a long shot and there are talks that the boat has already been chosen, the L30, certainly a less adapted boat for solo racing but having a huge advantage of having a smaller beam that makes it trailerable, having a lifting keel and a better cruising interior, with a true head.
With the Dehler it shares an electric engine, but more powerful, on a boat that is lighter with the advantage of including a hydrogenerator that will charge the batteries while sailing. It has also solar panels as an option.
Maybe I am wrong and there is a market for this boat, much will depend on the price but I do not believe that Dehler can make that boat cheaper than the L30 (75 000 euros), probably not even close.
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Now, if they chose to put a nice and comfortable light interior on the Dehler 30 OC, if they mount a small diesel engine and offer an option for decent tankage as well as a stand for an anchor on that bowsprit, then we are talking about a different ball game, about a dual boat that can be very interesting as a fast cruiser and a small offshore racer, a boat that I believe will interest a much bigger number of sailors.
I think there has been talk about a diesel range extender, but I can't find the source article
ReplyDeleteBeautiful design, and amazingly compact and sensible. Tjis may well be my next boat!
ReplyDeleteI was sailing on her last weekend and she is hot and fast as fuck! no doubt they will soon have an OD class available in Germany (there are already more than 20 confirmed pre-orders). Don#t forget its not only targeting for the silverruder and vegvisir, but also for Baltic 500 and other coastal races for single and double hand yachts.
ReplyDelete"And slower than the Pogo on a transat". Paulo, would you please elaborate a bit on that statement? I'm searching for my next boat and the Dehler 30 OD and the Pogo 30 are my two top candidates. I'm looking for the smallest boat possible to do the big races with (Fastnet, Middle Sea, Transquadra etc). Realtime performance matters more to me than handicap results :-)
ReplyDeleteWith that program I believe the best candidates are the JPK 10.30 and the Sunfast 3300.
ReplyDeleteThe Pogo 30 is not fast on the med (Middle Sea Race) and on the Fastnet it depends on the weather, it can be fast with the right conditions but even so I believe the JPK and Sunfast will always be faster in real time and much faster in handicap.
On the Transquadra the Pogo 30 has a better performance but the truth is that it never won being beaten systematically by the JPK 10.10. I am not sure but I think that the best result was a 3rd place and only once.
About the Dehler 30 od I do no have any results in what regards racing and I have many doubts that the boat will be as fast as many people think. I have few doubts that the JPK 10.30 or the Sunfast 3300 will be faster in real time even in optimal conditions for the Dehler, but of course they are bigger boats.
Regarding the Dehler 30 od I think you should wait some months, till the middle of next summer to see its comparative results while racing. I may be wrong and the boat may prove to be as fast as many think.
If you want a seaworthy boat well adapted to cruising and that you can have fun racing take the Pogo. You can cruise with the JPK 10.30 or the Sunfast 3300 but the Pogo has more potential.
If racing offshore is really what you want to do see if you can stretch your budget to any of the bigger boats (JPK or Sunfast) and if not I think that the better option is a slightly used JPK 10.10, a Sunfast 3200 or even a Figaro 2.
If you want to have fun doing one design races probably the Dehler 30 od is going to sell enough to have great one design races, at least in Germany.