Class CHeavy displacementCruiser/Racer

Dufour 35

Dufour · Umberto Felci · 1972

Updated

The Dufour 35 is a 10.49 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by Umberto Felci and built by Dufour, first launched in 1972. It races in Class C.

Dufour 35 - Umberto Felci - DufourP 11.02 mLOA 10.49 m

Length

10.49 m

34′ 5″

Beam

3.46 m

Draft

1.90 m

Displacement

6.4 t

Sail area

59 m²

This design does not carry a Race Edge. The speeds below still come from measured boats.

On the podium

Where a Dufour 35 finishes when she goes racing.

On the podium

16%

of 58 starts by 3 boats

Wins

3%

Wins3%2
Seconds7%4
Thirds5%3
Off the podium85%49

Read from 58 starts by 3 boats between 2020 and 2026, counting races with six boats or more.

Recent regattas

The latest events where a Dufour 35 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.

  • Greece"Πορος 2026"2026
  • Greece"Αγκιστρι 2026"2026
  • GreeceAegean Regatta2026
  • Greece32nd Cyclades Regatta - '262026
  • Greece"Μακης Πανταζης" - Αγκιστρι2026

Raced one we are missing?

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Round the buoys, or offshore

A short windward-leeward and a night at sea ask different things of a boat. Here is how this one does in each.

Round the buoys

—

Not enough data yet: 5 races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.

Offshore & coastal

19%

of these races end on the podium

47 races over 10 NM

Who she races against

The designs a Dufour 35 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.

This design aheadRival ahead
First 35 (Berret)54%ahead in 28 of 52 meetings, 41 races
Oceanis 39360%ahead in 28 of 47 meetings, 34 races
Atlantic 3165%ahead in 33 of 51 meetings, 31 races
First 31.750%ahead in 15 of 30 meetings, 30 racestoo close to call
Dufour 3065%ahead in 24 of 37 meetings, 25 races
First 45 (Farr)32%ahead in 8 of 25 meetings, 25 races
Dromor 2662%ahead in 21 of 34 meetings, 24 races
Elan 41030%ahead in 7 of 23 meetings, 23 races
Elan 4530%ahead in 7 of 23 meetings, 23 races
Gin Fizz74%ahead in 23 of 31 meetings, 23 races
Discovery 30084%ahead in 26 of 31 meetings, 22 racesalmost always ahead
First 285%ahead in 1 of 21 meetings, 21 racesalmost always behind
Sun Shine 3643%ahead in 9 of 21 meetings, 21 races
Elan 4050%ahead in 10 of 20 meetings, 20 racestoo close to call
Oceanis 42374%ahead in 14 of 19 meetings, 19 races
Hanse 315100%ahead in 18 of 18 meetings, 18 racesalmost always ahead
Dufour 32572%ahead in 13 of 18 meetings, 18 races
Moody 3489%ahead in 16 of 18 meetings, 18 racesalmost always ahead
Triton 48100%ahead in 22 of 22 meetings, 17 racesalmost always ahead
Bavaria 3624%ahead in 4 of 17 meetings, 17 races
Dufour 34 (Dufour)88%ahead in 22 of 25 meetings, 17 racesalmost always ahead
X-33212%ahead in 2 of 16 meetings, 16 racesalmost always behind
Carter 3756%ahead in 9 of 16 meetings, 16 races
Sun Odyssey 33.167%ahead in 12 of 18 meetings, 15 races
Sun Odyssey 4076%ahead in 13 of 17 meetings, 15 races
Dufour 39071%ahead in 10 of 14 meetings, 14 races
Salona 3754%ahead in 7 of 13 meetings, 13 races
Bavaria Holiday 3562%ahead in 15 of 24 meetings, 13 races
Nereis 3085%ahead in 11 of 13 meetings, 13 races
Optima 10117%ahead in 2 of 12 meetings, 12 races
Grand Soleil 39 (Jézéquel)67%ahead in 8 of 12 meetings, 12 races
Contest 25086%ahead in 12 of 14 meetings, 12 races
Melody91%ahead in 10 of 11 meetings, 11 races
First 3850%ahead in 9 of 18 meetings, 11 racestoo close to call
Sun Odyssey 34.264%ahead in 7 of 11 meetings, 11 races
Sun Fast 3745%ahead in 5 of 11 meetings, 11 races
Apollo 1255%ahead in 6 of 11 meetings, 11 races
Sun Odyssey 45.150%ahead in 5 of 10 meetings, 10 races
Gib Sea 31283%ahead in 10 of 12 meetings, 10 races
First 30 (Berret)40%ahead in 4 of 10 meetings, 10 races

Some of the boats it races against

How the Dufour 35 has fared against each of them, boat against boat on corrected time. Ordered by how often the two meet, not by who wins.

Dufour 35 vs First 35 (Berret)ahead 54% of 52 head-to-heads
Dufour 35 vs Atlantic 31ahead 65% of 51 head-to-heads
Dufour 35 vs Oceanis 393ahead 60% of 47 head-to-heads
Dufour 35 vs Dufour 30ahead 65% of 37 head-to-heads
Dufour 35 vs Dromor 26ahead 62% of 34 head-to-heads

Speed at every angle

The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.

36930°60°90°120°150°WIND8.2

Upwind VMG

4.57

40°

Beam reach

7.54

90°

Broad reach

8.17

135°

Downwind VMG

7.29

170°

Speed in knots at 20 knots of true wind. Green marks the angles that pay: the closest useful beat and the deepest run worth sailing.

Where it wins and where it pays

Every boat is judged against its own measurements — length, weight, sail area. The quicker those say it should be, the more it has to deliver just to break even. Going fast is not enough: it has to go faster than its own numbers promised.

It does most things without giving much away. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.

Where it gains

Its best ground is across the wind in a working breeze, where it outruns what it looks like on paper, and by a margin worth having. It holds that advantage cracked off as well, so the gain is not down to one leg of the course.

Where it pays

It falls short upwind in light air, giving away time it never gets back.

Above the line it delivers more than promised and gains on the fleet. Below, it falls short. Move the wind: plenty of boats sit on one side in the light and the other when it blows.

True wind
Upwind-0.14 kn
Beam reach+0.26 kn
Broad reach+0.13 kn
Downwind+0.09 kn

Full width is 0.4 kn either way.

At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.

How fast is a Dufour 35

Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.

Angle6 kn10 kn14 kn20 kn
Beat VMG2.783.904.544.57
52°4.295.886.566.68
60°4.586.156.756.91
75°4.776.346.947.24
90°4.896.527.137.54
110°4.996.657.338.05
120°4.846.577.348.17
135°4.426.227.178.17
150°3.835.696.847.86
Run VMG3.324.966.197.29

How they are set up

The range each sail spans across the fleet.

Mainsail21 m² – 30 m²
Headsail25 m² – 39 m²
Gennaker64 m² – 72 m²
Spinnaker89 m² – 93 m²

Roughly half carry a folding propeller. Crew weight is declared around 480 kg.

Rigging

Dufour 35 rig and sail dimensions

A Dufour 35 carries 12.21 m of mainsail hoist on a 3.94 m boom, a forestay 14.13 m above the deck. Typical figures across the 3 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.

Rig

Mainsail hoistP12.21 m11.02 – 12.55
Boom lengthE3.94 m3.76 – 4.13
Forestay heightIG14.13 m12.31 – 14.16
Fore triangle baseJ3.99 m3.66 – 4.03
Spinnaker hoistISP14.14 m12.32 – 14.16
Boom above deckBAS1.46 m1.44 – 1.52

Sails

Mainsail27.7 m²20.7 – 30.2
Headsail31.3 m²25.0 – 38.5
Gennaker67.8 m²64.2 – 71.5
Spinnaker91.1 m²88.9 – 93.4

The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 64 to 72 m² depending on bowsprit and set-up. Before ordering a sail, read the figure on your own measurement record rather than the typical one for the design.