Dufour 41
Dufour · Umberto Felci · 2022
Updated
The Dufour 41 is a 12.00 m heavy displacement racing yacht designed by Umberto Felci and built by Dufour, first launched in 2022. It races in Class B. Across the measured fleet it goes better than its own numbers promise, ahead of 42% of the designs it races against. It comes alive as the breeze builds, and gives time away in the light.
Goes better than its own measurements promise, and does it better than 42% of the boats it races against.
54th of 92 in its class.
This design has been found in real race results — 3 starts across 3 events — not only in measurement files.
Length
12.00 m
39′ 4″
Beam
4.30 m
Draft
2.10 m
Displacement
10.0 t
Sail area
86 m²
On the podium
Where a Dufour 41 finishes when she goes racing.
0
Wins
0
Seconds
0
Thirds
3
Starts
Not enough races yet for a percentage — these are the counts so far. We keep collecting results, so this will fill in.
Read from 3 starts by 2 boats between 2016 and 2018, counting races with six boats or more.
Recent regattas
The latest events where a Dufour 41 was on the start line, named as the organisers publish them.
151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2018- Regata dei Cinque Fari2017
- 151 Miglia - Trofeo Cetilar2016
Raced one we are missing?
Report a regattaRound 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
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Not enough data yet: no races of 10 NM or less carry a published distance.
Offshore & coastal
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Not enough data yet: 3 races over 10 NM carry a published distance.
Who she races against
The designs a Dufour 41 actually lines up with, most often first. The bar shows how those meetings ended.
Met too few times for a figure:
Tripp 40 (2 meetings), Grand Soleil 40 (Paperini) (2 meetings), Genesi 43 (2 meetings), Xp 38 (1 meeting), Comet 12 (1 meeting), Solaris 36 (1 meeting), Stag 38 (1 meeting), Este 31 (1 meeting), First 47.7 (1 meeting), First 40 (1 meeting), Sun Fizz 40 (1 meeting), First 50 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 39 (Maletto) (1 meeting), IMX 38 (1 meeting), Azuree 40 (1 meeting), Elan 450 (1 meeting), X-41 (1 meeting), Sun Odyssey 42 (Lombard) (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 46.3 (2 meetings), Dufour 36 (1 meeting), First 42 (Farr) (1 meeting), Hanse 350 (1 meeting), IMX 40 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 43 (Maletto) (1 meeting), Cobra 33 (1 meeting), Baltic 39 (1 meeting), Sun Fast 40 (1 meeting), J/105 (1 meeting), First 36.7 (1 meeting), Hanse 370 (1 meeting), Hanse 370e (1 meeting), X-452 (1 meeting), Sun Fast 37 (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 50 (Judel/Vrolijk) (1 meeting), Sun Odyssey 49 (1 meeting), Selection 37 (1 meeting), X-332 (2 meetings), Dehler 39 (Judel/Vrolijk) (1 meeting), Grand Soleil 45 (Judel/Vrolijk) (1 meeting), Comet 45 (1 meeting)
Speed at every angle
The shape of this design's speed, drawn from the measured fleet. Pick a wind and watch it stretch.
Upwind VMG
5.44
40°
Beam reach
8.80
90°
Broad reach
9.50
135°
Downwind VMG
7.88
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.
This design is even-tempered. It rewards preparation and crew work more than it rewards picking the right day.
Where it gains
Its best ground is on the beam in moderate air, where it does more than its size and sail area promise, and by a margin worth having.
Where it pays
It falls short upwind in the light stuff, 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.
Full width is 0.6 kn either way.
At 10 knots this design makes back more than its rating asks on the beam reach.
How fast is a Dufour 41
Boat speed in knots, by true wind angle and wind strength.
| Angle | 6 kn | 10 kn | 14 kn | 20 kn |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beat VMG | 3.15 | 4.47 | 5.23 | 5.44 |
| 52° | 4.95 | 6.73 | 7.60 | 7.90 |
| 60° | 5.30 | 7.05 | 7.82 | 8.18 |
| 75° | 5.55 | 7.28 | 8.02 | 8.59 |
| 90° | 5.71 | 7.66 | 8.38 | 8.80 |
| 110° | 5.83 | 7.81 | 8.65 | 9.62 |
| 120° | 5.67 | 7.68 | 8.58 | 9.81 |
| 135° | 5.08 | 7.23 | 8.27 | 9.50 |
| 150° | 4.27 | 6.41 | 7.75 | 8.80 |
| Run VMG | 3.70 | 5.55 | 6.75 | 7.88 |
How they are set up
The range each sail spans across the fleet.
Nearly all carry a folding propeller. A bowsprit is standard across the fleet. Crew weight is declared around 810 kg.
Rigging
Dufour 41 rig and sail dimensions
A Dufour 41 carries 15.70 m of mainsail hoist on a 4.75 m boom, a forestay 16.30 m above the deck and a 5.25 m bowsprit. Typical figures across the 18 boats measured under the current VPP, with the range each one spans.
Rig
Sails
The spinnaker spreads widest of all — 103 to 123 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.