Dehler's Rich History of Innovation, Quality and Performance


	Return to Home		1963 Dehler's first sailboat, the innovative and high-quality Winnetou dinghy, is launched. It is followed immediately by the Pfeil S, a high-performance dinghy that led to the foundation of the Dehler factory in Freienohl, in the Sauerland region of Germany. The facility has remained in the same location ever since, and incorporates Research & Development, prototyping, administrative and production sections into four dedicated buildings.
			1965 The Varianta, named for a variable interior, is launched and firmly establishes Dehler as an innovator in the sailing mainstream. 4,250 are built. 1969 The first Optima is developed, the 27-foot 83 model. The Optima formula would be continuously expanded in future years and would set the theme for all Dehlers since: rugged sailboats that are equally adept whether racing or cruising.
			1973 The Delanta 75 is introduced, furthering the dual-purpose Dehler ethos. Timschal became World Champion in the Quarter-tonner class. 1976 A Dehler-built 470 wins the Olympic gold medal in Montreal, becoming the most sought-after boat in the class. 2,000 are sold.
			1977 The Sprinter range is aimed at the burgeoning IOR classes. The Sprinta Sport, a Quarter-tonner, would become the largest IOR one-design class in history. Today, they continue to sail at the front of regattas and will often have 30-boat-strong one-design sections in major European regattas.
			1982 The first DB (Dehler-Beilken) is introduced. The Dehler DB1 is a racey yacht developed specifically for regattas, and succeeded in sweeping the board in virtually every race they were entered. 1984 The DB2 is launched as a refined and optimized version of the DB1. Positron sweeps the Three-Quarter-tonner World Chamionships. The Optima 101 is developed directly from the the DB, incorporating a cruising interior and cockpit, and simplified sailplan into the successful DB hull. The Optima 101 remains a highly sought-after boat.
			1986 The Optima 101 evolves into the Optima 106, and it can still keep up: in 2004, Froschkonig was German Sailing Champion
			1988 The Dehler 36 CWS arrives with a real innovation: the Central Winch System. Each and every sheet and halyard was led to a single winch, leading to ease of handling that was simply unheard of. Continuously refined and implemented on a number of Dehlers, CWS is a feature of today's Dehler 41 and 47. 1990 In cooperation with the German Sailor's Association, Dehler returns to its dinghy roots by introducing a modern, high-performance training dinghy to the market. 600 Teenys would be built.
			1995 The Dehler 33 is introduced in three variations from cruise to full competition. It is the first Dehler designed by Judel/Vrolijk (with interior by Matteo Thun) and one of the first production designs to embrace the wholesome intentions of IMS. It is an astoundingly successful collaboration of designers and builder. In Competition form, it would become the first German Sailing Champion, and is often found in the top spots today.
			1995 The first-generation Dehler 41 Deck Salon is launched, heralding the acceptance of new trends by a yard that was used to producing sporty yachts. She is full of innovations beyond the all-weather comfort of the pilot-salon. In 2000, the second-generation 41DS is launched and continues to set the standard by which this style of yacht is measured.
			1999 The Dehler 39 wins the German National Chamionships, IMS World Championships and countless other regattas right out of the box, and heralds an entirely new market segment! Although flattered by the imitations from other builders, Dehler would launch a refined and faster version, the 39SQ, in 2005. The winning continues.
			2004 The largest Dehler to date is launched. The Dehler 47 has the performance and accommodations of larger boats, while being easy to singlehand, qualities that were once mutually exclusive.
			2006 Following the purchase of Dehler by enthusiastic sailor Wilan van den Berg ("I liked the boats so much, I bought the company") in 2005, the Dehler 44 leads Dehler into a new era of high-performance dual-purpose yachts by designers Simonis-Voogd.