What’s she like to sail?

With the apparent wind topping out at 10 knots I’ll never know how she would cope in a blow, but even a pontoon sails in 25 knots and the Dehler would be a lot quicker and more fun. However I found the helm to be light (no surprises there) but responsive too. On the wind she made almost 5 knots, which in 6 knots true, isn’t too bad. Also, thanks to her narrow sheeting angle, she was able to point quite high. We freed her off a little and the log shot up to almost 6 knots in less than 8.5 knots apparent, all very respectable, more so because the only other boats on the water on our test day were engine-assisted.

There’s no seating aft of the helm but the side decks around the wheel are spacious enough to sit behind, astride or in front of the wheel, with the instrument pods to hand ahead of you. Slide forward and the mainsheet winches for the German mainsheet system are within reach.

For the rest of the crew the cockpit is comfortable, and the instrument pods make a curved backrest those sat aft. There is a cutaway on the inboard edge of the cockpit seats, which allows those sitting on the coaming to brace themselves with their heels.