Wednesday, January 26, 2011

J/Newsletter- January 26th, 2011

J/111- the ultimate sailng boat- racing at Key West "Sleek, Slippery, Sexy Style"
(London, England)- That's a delicious description of a boat, isn't it?  According to Toby Hodges at Yachting World during his recent video boat test review of the J/111, Toby described the 111 as "sleek, slippery, sexy style" unequalled in any boat her size range.  He and Paul Heys further described it as "the turbo-charged 2011 version of the J/105- the first keelboat to start the modern trend in 1991 to sport an easy-to-use fractional rig, sprit pole and spinnakers with the ability to plane". Toby's video boat test is on Yachting World's boat test site.  He also did a great interview of J/UK Dealer Paul Heys, commenting on the development of the 111, its meaning to the UK and European markets and its potential for strong one-design fleet development. Enthusiasm continues to build with over 60+ boats sold and one-design fleets forming on the Solent and in France.   J/111 YW boat test- Toby Hodges      J/111 Interview- Paul Heys   Sailing photo credit- Tim Wilkes.

J/Sailing Calendar 2011Sail Into '11 With J/Calendar
Get Organized All Year!
(Newport, RI)- Enjoy spectacular images and gorgeous scenery of J's sailing around the world all year long.  Get organized now and get your 2011 J/Sailing Calendar !  The 2011 J/Calendar features photos of flying J's slicing and dicing waves or just cruising past  spectacular scenery.  The large format and expansive calendar gives you lots of room to scribble, notate and make plans for the upcoming year!  Time to get it all organized and rolling now!  We ship everywhere-- EuropeUK/ IrelandAustralia/ NZUSA/ Mexico, Canada.  For more 2011 J/Sailing Calendar information.

J/Sailing News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

As the first month of 2011 comes to an end, it's amazing to think that virtually simultaneously, two very large and significant sailing events took place at the same time at the opposite ends of the planet.  Indeed, the sun never did set on J sailors worldwide 24x7 this past week! Key West Race Week is a reunion of sailors who love to sail in the near postcard perfect sailing conditions it can offer and they make a Woodstock-like migration down to the end of Florida's Keys every third week of January.  Similarly, halfway around our little green and blue planet, the boys and girls Down Under beat a similar Woodstock-like path to Geelong in Victoria for the Audi Victoria Week.  Not sure who has more fun or who has the better venue.  However, since it's Australia Day at the end of "Vic Week" it's clear our Ozzie J/24 friends have an epic sailing celebration on the Melbourne waterfront the likes of which we've never seen in America.  That's a fact.  Just prior to Vic Week, the J/24s sailed their J/24 Australian Championship..  Read on!  The J/Community and Cruising section below have more interesting, and heart-warming, stories this week.  Check them out!  More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page!  Below are the summaries.

Regatta & Show Schedules:

Jan 22-30- J/22 BOOT Show- Dusseldorf, Germany- Hall 17-A58- http://www.boot.de
Jan 27-30- San Diego Sailboat Show- http://www.bigbayboatshow.com/
Feb 3-6- Halifax Sailboat Show- Halifax, Nova Scotia- http://www.halifaxboatshow.com/
Feb 9-11- J/24 Pan-Am Games Trials- Tampa, FL- http://www.diyc.org/
Feb 12-16- J/24 Midwinters- Davis Is YC, Tampa, FL- http://midwinters.j24d10.org/
Feb 17-21- Miami Boatshow- Miami, FL- http://www.miamiboatshow.com/
Feb 18-20- SW NOOD- St Petersburg, FL- StPYC- http://www.sailingworld.com
Feb 24-26- J/22 Midwinters- Davis Is YC, Tampa, FL- http://www.diyc.org
Mar 9-11- J/30 Mardi Gras Midwinters- New Orleans, LA- http://j30.us/blog
Mar 10-12- Bacardi Miami Sailing Week- Miami, FL- http://www.miamisailingweek.com/
Mar 13-Apr 17- Warsash Spring Series- Hamble, UK- http://www.warsashspringseries.org.uk/
Mar 18-20- SW NOOD- San Diego, CA- http://www.sailingworld.com
May 10-14- J/24 Nationals- Dallas, TX- http://j24texas.com/

For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.

J/111 Kontiki V crew- winning Key West Race WeekJ Sailors Love Sailing Key West
J/111 KONTIKI V Wins Class
(Key West, FL)- A large contingent of J sailors certainly had a wonderful time sailing in this year's Key West Race Week.  With great turnouts in the two strong J one-design classes, the J/80s and the J/105s, everyone was sure to have a wonderful time in nearly perfect Key West conditions.  The six J/24s that showed up in PHRF 3 were wondering where the rest of their buddies were from points north, east and west were hiding! Next time, come on down all!

The sailing was simply wonderful, hard to believe it's possible for the Caribbean trade winds and weather patterns to serve up five straight days of nearly postcard, chamber of commerce conditions when the rest of the world is getting blasted by massive snow storms and extreme cold.  Competitors may have wished for some days of more epic winds, bashing and crashing into ginormous waves, but one can hardly argue with benign 5-18 knot breezes from the ESE to SSW quadrants with plenty of sun!  We even had FOG one morning down in the Keys-- how weird is that?

J/105 winner- Brian Keane from Boston, MAFor the J/105s sailing their J/105 Midwinter Championship, it was obvious Brian Keane's team on SAVASANA were not only dialed up for speed for the week but were dialed into the wind as well.  Sailing to double bullets (for total of six!) on Friday simply sealed the deal for Brian's team to win by 15 points with a 1-6-8-1-1-2-4-1-1-1 tally over second place finisher Damian Emery's ECLIPSE with a 4-8-1-4-5-1-7-3-5-3 record; it was perhaps one of the largest margins of victory ever in a Key West J/105 class win. Third was WASABI sailed by Adam Rosen and Jeff Marks with 55 points with a 3-3-9-3-3-9-10-6-7-2; they started strongly but the "wheels fell off the shopping trolley", as they say, to fall back from an early series lead.  Fourth was four time Key West J/105 class winner Tom Coates on MASQUERADE just one point back with a 2-1-2-10-13-13-2-5-3-5 for 56 points; another early regatta leader that crashed mid-week.  Fifth was Gerrit Schulze sailing very well on MAX POWER with 58 points, their 10-4-7-2-4-7-1-8-11-4 was inconsistent but showed flashes of brilliance!!  Overall, it was a close finish and great regatta for the top five boats overall.

J/105 one-design fleet racing at Key West 2011For you sailing and racing fans, you can track and review each race to see who and made what decisions going around the race course by looking at KATTACK Tracking System, you can rehash it all on their archives at http://www.kattack.com.

For example, in Race 10, why would WASABI ever give up the right in the last 400 yards into the first windward mark and lose their first place!!  Watch it here-- awesome lesson in what happens on the race course, no "sea stories" and "hand waving tactics" here!

J/80 winners Glenn Darden and crew at Key West 2011For the J/80s sailing their J/80 Midwinter Championship, it was another strong fleet with some excellent competitors, it took that magic combination of keeping your starts clean, getting an early clear lane, avoiding the corners on the first beat and playing the packs to your advantage.  There was no question that Glenn Darden and his team sailing LE TIGRE from Fort Worth Boat Club in Texas were in a class by themselves, winning 2 of the last three races (5 total 1sts!) and taking home the big glass crown without a challenge from any of the other teams, winning the J/80 class by 11 points with a 1-1-2-1-2-2-1-1-12/zfp for 23 points.  Second was Jeff Brown's team from San Diego's J/WORLD SAN DIEGO TEAM, showing their tail-feathers to the rest of the J/80 fleet, getting two seconds in the last two races and posting a score of 6-3-5-6-3-3-3-2-2 for 33 points, nearly as consistent on the leader board as Darden's team. Sailing one of their best regattas in awhile was Mike Sudofsky on BOB DYLAN third with a 7-8-3-5-5-1-7-5-1 for 42 points, fourth was Chris Bulger on GOOSE from Buzzards Bay sailing to a 2-2-10-4-6-7-9-3-6/zfp for 49 points and fifth was Nigel Brownett and Ron Buzil on VAYU 2 posting a 5-6-1-8-1-5-4-6-14/zfp for 50 points.

J/44 White Gold rounding windward mark at Key WestFor Division 1 course, IRC 2 Class saw an enormous fight for who would get the podium honors for third place.  At the end, it was Jim Bishop's WHITE GOLD finishing fifth after getting an uncharacteristic score of 5-8 on the last day, sailing to a 3-2-2-2-8-6-3-6-5-8 for 45 points, just 3 disappointing points from third overall!  Peter Cunningham from Cayman Islands Sailing Club seemed to finish on a happy, strong note, getting a 2-4 on the last day to finish 6th sailing the chartered J/122 GAMBLER/ POWERPLAY to a 2-5-7-4-6-5-8-4-2-4 for 47 points, just 5 devilish points from third (other than the overall winner, the J/122 had the best record over the last 3 races amongst their whole fleet).

J/111 Kontiki V sailing upwind at Key West Race WeekThe PHRF A Class was an extremely competitive regatta throughout the entire week, easily the closest "delta" for any of the fleets sailing off Key West, with many races for win/place/show determined by mere seconds amongst the top five.  Tied going into the second to last race were the new J/111 KONTIKI V sailed by Jim Sminchak's SAIL Best Around Buoys winners from Cleveland and Bill Sweetser's famous J/109 RUSH.  The last race was certainly a cliff-hanger, made even more so when KONTIKI V snagged a crab pot and stopped (!!), then crossed tacks with RUSH within 100 yards of the weather mark and in a cross-tacking J/109 RUSH sailed by Bill Sweetser sailing downwindsituation, took advantage of it to jump into the regatta lead.  KONTIKI V stretched into a comfortable lead to get a 2nd to RUSH's 5th.  Jim's team sailed a smart, conservative regatta to get a very consistent 2-2-3-2-1-2-5-3-2 record for 22 points.  Not to be outdone at all, the champion RUSH team sailed a very strong regatta to get 2nd overall with a 1-1-2-4-4-3-4-1-5 score for 25 points.  Fourth was Doug Curtiss's beautiful J/124 WICKED sailed by Rodney and Alan Johnstone on the team to a 4-4-5-3-2-4-2-4-4 tally for 32 points.

J/24 sailboats- the ultimate one-design sailing boatThe J/24s still rule! 35+ years and going strong. It was pretty clear this fleet of six hard-care J/24 sailors were going to have a lot of fun.  Yes, they had a small fleet this year sailing within PHRF 3, but who cares? It's Key West, you can't not have fun sailing in clear baby blue-green water, 72 degree temps and clear blue skies and 5-18 knot winds and enjoying the amazing night life!  And, a fun time this group had, made even more so by a wonderful host and lover of sailing in general, a beautiful blond Swede gal called Evalena, more about her in a second.  In the racing category, BLAH BLAH BLAH sailed by Mark Milnes won the J/24 "class" with a 3-3-3-3-3-2-3-3-4 record for 27 points.  They were followed by Evalena Worthington on FREYA in second who sailed to a 6-4-4-4-5-4-5-4-5 score for 43 points.  Rounding out the podium in third was Matt Mullan on FLYING WASP, getting a 4-5-6-6-4-6-4-5-3 tally for 54 points.  OK, now for Evalena.  She and her husband came across the Atlantic many blue moons ago on a schooner to Key West. But, they never left! Then, they decided to open a bar?  You may all know it well-- the very popular Schooner Wharf Restaurant & Bar where the Farr 40 class normally parks themselves in front of every year!  Next year, Evalena wants to extend a special invitation to ALL J/24s to show up and be guests of The Schooner Wharf- "A Last Little Piece of Old Key West"- and determine the J/24 "Knot & Shot Contest Winners" (who can resist that invitation?!).  Learn more about  Eva and Schooner Wharf here.  Read more about her story below in the J/Community section. Sailing photo credit- Tim Wilkes.

For more Key West Race Week sailing results.  For more of the SAIL Magazine J/111 BAB Team and Adam Cort's coverage and blog.    One of KONTIKI V's crew, Nick Turney from North Sails, wrote a blog of his experience at Sailing World.

Finally, "friend of J/Boats", Doug Moy from New York and Manhattan YC member, applied his videography and editing skills to a series of daily videos, you can see them at these YouTube links.  Day 1Day 2Day 3Day 4.

J/95 sailing at Key West with Trudie Hicks at helmJ/95s Shine At Key West
(Key West, FL)- For the first time ever, a group of J/95s gathered together to go out and have some fun bashing and crashing "around the cans" in a regatta.  The three J/95s decided to participate in PHRF 2 and had an entertaining series sailing against each other and the rest of their PHRF competitors.  What was most interesting was to see the enthusiasm these sailors had for sailing their boats in windward-leeward races in a boat that was originally designed to be a shoal-draft performance sailing boat!  The J/95s performance was quite remarkable considering the conditions at Key West are way, way less than ideal for a keel-centerboard boat.  In fact, conventional wisdom says that a sailboat in this configuration is not supposed to go upwind in a steep, in-your-face 2-3 foot chop where the bow gets tossed around often times violently by cross-chop.  All three PHRF boats that beat them were all deep, narrow keel boats (Cape Fear 38, C&C 37, Ben First 42), and next in line in the standings were the three J/95s!  Pretty remarkable performance for a shoal-draft performance cruising boat!

J/95 shoal performance cruiser sailing Key WestLeading the charge amongst the J/95s was veteran Key West sailor Ed Palm from Naples/Detroit sailing his STILL CRAZY to a 4-3-5-4-4-5-5-6-2 record for 38 points; proving in the last race with a 2nd place that a well-sailed J/95 can even beat deep-keel boats given half a chance!  Second in the J/95s was Terry Mckenna who brought his boat down from CANADA to sail FINN to a 7-8-4-3-5-4-4-3-3 record for 41 points; were it not for their slow start (due to teething problems), Terry and crew may have been top J/95 and their record amongst the fleet, again, proves it's possible to take a great keel-centerboard design and give the deep keelers on a windward-leeward course a run for the money!  Third was Trudie Ficks from Naples, FL sailing her lovely boat SEVENTH HEAVEN to a 6-4-7-5-6-7-6-5-7 score for 53 points.  It may be a toss-up as to who had the most fun sailing their J/95 at Key West, but our betting is on Trudie for  having a ball, "thanking heaven" that she had the time and opportunity to sail Key West for the first time in her life and be "blessed" with a wonderful crew and warm weather!  Sailing photo credit- Tim Wilkes.   For more J/95 sailing information.

J/24s sailing upwind in Sydney, AustraliaDEATHSTAR Wins J/24 Australian Nationals
(Sydney, Australia)- A strong turnout of sixteen J/24s were hosted by Middle Harbour YC in a wide variety of sailing conditions for this year's J/24 Nationals Down Under.  It was very competitive.

The first day was a challenging one for most of the fleet, especially interstate boats who aren’t used to the 2m swell and shifty light winds. Race 1 was convincingly won by Nev Wittey on SAILPAC who led from start to finish, closely followed by John Crawfords’ INNAMINKA, skippered by his nephew, Robert Crawford and third place went to DEATHSTAR skippered by Sean Kirkjian. Defending National champion, Sean Wallis came 4th on LUNATIC ASYLUM. Race 2 saw Neville Wittey win again, very closely followed by Sean Kirkjian with Sean Wallis only 9 seconds further back. The third race of the day was  abandoned after a wind shift and was then re-run, this time seeing Sean Wallis take honours over Neville Wittey and Ace, sailed by David West coming third.

The second day started with similar wind conditions to  Day 1 – flukey 15 knots easterlies, tending north for the third race of the day produced difficult helming conditions for skippers.  Nev Wittey took out race 4 from Sean Kirkjian, with a convincing two and a half minute win. Robert Crawford sailing INNAMINKA came in a close third after DEATHSTAR.

Ron Thomson sailing KICKING BOTTOM had his best race of the series so far, with an impressive 4th, just 6th seconds behind INNAMINKA.  Race 5 produced an exciting finish between Sean Kirkjian and David West with only 1 second separating first and second.  Robert Crawford scored another third, only 10 seconds behind the winner.  Peter Stevens on CODE VIOLATION had his best race so far, to finish fourth.  Race 6 was a black flag start after a general recall, unfortunately seeing series leader Nev Wittey over the line, as well as MADDER N BADDER.  The two Seans, Kirkjian and  Wallis battled for first and second throughout the race.  Simon Grain helming  MAKE MY JAY finished third -their best race so far!  Today’s black flag has caused major change in overall placings in the regatta with yesterdays series leader, Nev Wittey dropping back to third and Sean Kirkjian moving up the placings to first.

The third day started with similar conditions to the last 2 days and race 7 saw a fine downwind tussle between Sean Wallis on LUNATIC ASYLUM and Neville Wittey on SAILPAC on the last leg – with Sean Wallis just taking the honours by centimeters.  Sean Kirkjian followed with third on DEATHSTAR.  Race 8 saw a slight wind increase and some boats changing down to jibs for the first upwind leg.  This time Sean Kirkjian finished first with a nice lead, after using his genoa for the whole race. SAILPAC came in 2nd again, followed by Sean Wallis in third.  The top 3 boats all scored 4 points each today.  It appears that the championship is between Sean Kirkjian and Neville Wittey but we will see what day 4 brings.  INNAMINKA, steered by Robert Crawford, first time sailing on a J/24 took 2 fourth places today and are running 4th overall after a consistently good week.

The fourth and last day was breezier than the rest of the week, with all boats carrying jibs today!  Race 9 saw Sean Kirkjian come out early and take the lead, with Sean Wallis in second and Nev Wittey in third.  Race 10 saw the same result, leaving no doubt that Sean Kirkjian was the first person to win his fourth J/24 Nationals – DEATHSTAR was hard to beat this week and out of 10 races, had 5 wins.

Congratulations to all competitors for some great racing this week, and for the efforts of 5 interstate boats making the trek to Sydney.  Thanks to MHYC for hosting a great regatta and for all those involved in making  this event a huge success.  Please also support Nicole at www.sailingimages.net   – she did a great job catching all the action on camera this week.   Full J/24 Australian Nationsl race results are available here.  For more J/24 Australian Nationals sailing information.

J/120 sailing upwindJ/120 Wins Boat of the Year
(Charleston, SC)- John Keenan reports that after a long, hard fought campaign all year in 2010, their well-prepared, beautiful J/120 ILLYRIA managed to win a number of major races in the Charleston Ocean Racing Association and win the coveted Boat of the Year honors.  The two major events they won overall were first, the Offshore Challenge Series and, secondly, the PHRF Championship Series.  Congratulations to John and crew on a job well done!  Keep up the great sailing for next year!  You can see more results and information about Charleston Sailing here.   Sailing photo credit- Priscilla Parker

J/24 Pacemaker winning Audi Victoria Week J/24 classJ/24s at Audi Victoria Week
PACEMAKER Claims Top Prize
(Geelong, Vic, Australia)- David Suda and his PACEMAKER crew proved too good for all the Sandringham Yacht Club entries they faced in the J24 competition at Audi Victoria Week, winning the week of sailing with a score card that included five wins in the nine race series.

With the pressure well and truly off, Suda finished a great week of sailing on Corio Bay with a pair of second places today to win the series from Hugo Ottoway’s VICE VERSA by a handy six points.

"I thought on Sunday ‘we’re not going to win this’, but then we turned the corner and got three wins, so that helped us a lot," an incredibly happy David Suda said on realizing he’d won.

J/24 support team at Audi Victoria WeekSuda told how he and Ottoway could not make it to the J/24 Nationals, so both were determined not to miss Audi Victoria Week. "I really wanted to win against him (Ottoway) in Geelong, so it’s pleasing for my crew to do that," he said. (Note- we can see why, here's his support team to the right!).

Suda, who has been at Audi Victoria Week for the past eight years, said today, "we’ll definitely be back and we’ll be encouraging a few more J’s to come."

Simon Grain (MAKE MY JAY) finished third overall with a win in Race 8, four points behind Ottoway, while Kirsty Harris steered HYPERACTIVE to a win in the final race for fourth overall.

J/24s sailing in Geelong, Vic, Australia at Audi Victoria WeekThe competition was always going to be rife, but it was not unexpected to find David Suda (PACEMAKER) and Hugo Ottoway (VICE VERSA) at the top end of the fleet.

Today’s conditions on flat-water Corio Bay emulated those of two days ago; light and shifty 7-9 knot breezes initially from the north, but moving more around to the east throughout the day in the Royal Geelong Yacht Club series.

Beating Suda’s five wins from seven races, with a worst score of third place coming into today’s races, was always going to be a big ask. Suda set a high bar with his well-named PACEMAKER, even for Ottoway, who has had to play bridesmaid all week, apart from taking out the opening race.  Full sailing results for Audi Victoria Week     Audi Vic Week video- see Geelong Highlights with interview of David Suda, J/24 class winner on PACEMAKER.

J/Community

What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide

J/24 sailing by Eva Worthington at Key West* J/24 sailor Evalena Worthington- Key West co-owner of the famous Schooner Wharf- is hoping more J/24 sailors and friends show up next year!  The Schooner Wharf has always been one of the most popular hangouts for sailors participating in the annual race week off Key West. Walk the dock in front of the Schooner Wharf around 4 p.m. any day this week and you will a rainbow of colors as the place is packed with crew members sporting their various team uniforms.

That is the type of scene Evalena Worthington envisioned when she sailed into Key West aboard an 83-foot wooden schooner named Defiance. Worthington and future husband Paul met while delivering schooners and decided to settle in the Conch Republic and open a bar.

Worthington, a native of Sweden, is competing in Key West 2011 aboard the J/24 FREYA. She has sailed in the regatta many times before, but is skippering an entry for the first time in three years.

“I love race week and having all the sailors in town,” Worthington told the Key West Citizen. “I love to sail, love to race and it’s just fun to participate in an international event.”

Worthington and her four-member crew of Key West locals performed well this year in PHRF 3. Like so many other competitors at Key West 2011, Worthington’s team heads straight to the Schooner Wharf after a long day of racing to enjoy green bottled beer, blender drinks, Mount Gay rum and live acoustical music.

“It’s fun to be part of this event and have Schooner Wharf be part of the camaraderie that race week brings to Key West. I like having the sailors at the bar sharing the stories of the day.”

* David Waldo, manager of The Waterfront Center sent J/Boats a nice note regarding their efforts to build up their offshore sailing program and recent donation of J/105 ANDIAMO:  "The WaterFront Center is excited to announce the addition of a new boat! Thank you to J/Boats, J/News and the J/105 Class website and many unmentioned individuals for your help in our search and purchase; without it an announcement adding a J/105 to our fleet would not have been possible. After many months of research, an even longer search, and some anxious moments, a J/105 - Andiamo (‘Let’s Go’ in Italian) owned by a local racer was generous to partially donate her to the WaterFront Center (WFC) at the end of 2010. Andiamo brings with her a whole new category of sailing to the WFC and a lot of excitement!  The J/105 class was introduced to sailors around the world in 1992 as the first modern day keelboat with bow sprit and asymmetric spinnaker. Today, the J/105 is the most successful one-design keelboat class over 30' in the USA. It is a forgiving performance boat that is easy to sail, with a simple layout, great performance, a large cockpit, and predictable handling characteristics. This boat is fun and fast! With the addition of Andiamo the WFC is excited to have the opportunity to develop upon our current offerings to youths and adults. We are going to increase offerings for overnight cruises to neighboring harbors, learn-to-sail basics on larger keelboats, and other adventures of all types and sizes. As a completely fresh offering, giving the WFC greater exposure to the sailing community, Andiamo is available as a racing charter to sailors competing in regattas near and far. We are excited about the demand already shown for these programs and we now have a chance to fill that need with an exceptional boat!  WFC’s 2011 sailing season is already off to a great start. Who wants to go sailing, now!?"  You can reach David at ph# 516-922-7245 or learn more about their program at http://www.TheWaterFrontCenter.org

Pearson Pilings supported house on the water* Recently, J/Boats former builders Mark and Everett Pearson started into a new business fabricating high-tech, highly engineered pilings.  Jeff Johnstone said, "Mark told me a funny story of making a pitch to a Texas company and the turning point in the bid process (which he won over two other companies) was not the price, quality, etc.  -  it was that the client was a former J/24 sailor who made the connection that Mark and Everett were the same family involved with J Boats."  Here is the Pearson Family's newest success story:

Many of you know that Everett Pearson was responsible for building the line of J-Boats since its beginning days.  Everett, in fact, has often been referred to as the “father of production fiberglass boatbuilding.”  Everett’s son, Mark, later joined him, and over a period of 27 years (through 2004), they built nearly 10,000 J-Boats! 

Pearson Pilings supported pier and dockBut did you know that Everett and Mark continue to be leaders in the composites industry?  Today, Pearson Pilings is the leading supplier of fiberglass composite pilings for the home building and marine construction industries.  Pearson’s innovative pilings have been proven to be stronger than wood, steel or concrete pilings, and they won’t ever rot, rust or crumble.  They are also eco-friendly because they contain no harmful preservatives that can leach into the earth or water.

More and more owners of waterfront homes and commercial marinas are specifying Pearson’s composite pilings for new construction of their piers and docks or to replace their existing structures.  With a product life cycle of at least 100-years, owners will never have to worry about replacing their pilings again.

In addition to the marine construction industry, structural engineers, architects and homebuilders have discovered the benefits of building above-grade structures on Pearson Pilings.   Waterfront homes and beach houses can now be built on foundations with pilings designed to better withstand the forces of severe, high storm surges.

Pearson Pilings was formed in 2004 and is headquartered in a 35,000 square-foot factory in Fall River, Massachusetts. It sells and ships its pilings from coast-to-coast and to the Bahamas. 

If you or your business has a need for these innovative products, or if you know of a construction project that could benefit from using them, the Pearsons would  appreciate your inquiry or referral.  For more information about the company and its pilings, visit www.pearsonpilings.com or call 508-675-0590


The J Cruising Community

J cruising directions- roll the dice and go!  Sailing to anywhere, anytime!J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers.  Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.

* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand.   Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/

* Prolific writers, Bill and Judy Stellin, sailed their J/42 JAYWALKER around the Mediterranean and Europe and back across the Atlantic for nearly three years.  Their blogs/journals can be found at- http://blog.mailasail.com/jaywalker.  The earlier journals have been compiled into two self published books which can be found at: http://www.blurb.com.  Search for "SEATREK: A Passion for Sailing" by Bill Stellin or William Stellin."  Fun reading when rocking back in a chair watching your storm-lashed windows take a beating in the gale roaring outside and listening to the crackle of a roaring fire.  It is winter "down under" you know.  The Argentineans are freezing.

J/130 sailing ARC Rally arrives Portugal- leave a message on the sea wall!* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary will have just finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.

* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between.  Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins??  Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).

SALACIA, the J/160 owned by Stephen and Cyndy Everett has an on-going blog describing some of their more amusing experiences (http://www.salacia1.blogspot.com).  


-  Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun).  Check out there recent travels- now past Fiji!

Featured Boats

J/122 SKYE- racer cruiser one-design sailboat from Chicago, Lake MichiganJ/122 SKYE- Triple Mac Race Winner For Sale

Possibly the best equipped and fastest short-handed 40 foot racer-cruiser in the world! SKYE is the Chicago-Mackinac Race Winner in 2008 (fully crewed) and the 2009 and 2010 Double-handed winner overall!  This IRC-friendly 40 footer offers a perfect, completely furnished interior with all the canvas protection covers for the bright-work while racing.  As a fresh-water boat it has been immaculately maintained to "Bristol" condition.  It features two flip-up pilot berths in the main cabin and gimbaled LPG stove/oven.  The B&G 3000 system includes a Garmin 3210 chart plotter, three 20/20s on the mast, lots of readouts everywhere, plus a Hercules H3000 autopilot system  with the H3000 gyro- an awesome short-handed sailing system! Sail inventory is all North Sails 3DL carbon, including 2 mains, 6 jibs, Code 0 and 2 spinnakers (Norlite runner and AirX reacher)- blue and white colors.  Hull is white with double-blue boot-stripe and white racing bottom paint.  For more info call Richie Stearns at Stearns Boating- ph- +1-847-404-2209 or email- rich@stearnsboating.com.

About J/Boats

Started in 1977, J/Boats continues to lead the world in designing fun-to-sail, easy-to-handle, performance sailboats that can be enjoyed by a broad spectrum of sailors.  The International J/24 has become the most popular recreational offshore keelboat in the world with over 5,400 J/24s cruising the waves. Today, there are 13,000+ J/Boats, ranging from the International J/22 to the J/65 and ranging in style from one-designs to racers, cruisers to daysailers and, of course, the ubiquitous J sprit boats- J/Boats' innovation in 1992 for easy-to-use asymmetric spinnakers and retractable carbon bowsprits (J/80, J/92, J/95, J/105, J/109, J/110, J/120, J/122, J/130, J/133, J/125, J/145, J/160).

J/Boats has the best track record in sailing for innovation and design as evidenced by:  15 Sailing World/ Cruising World Boat of the Year Awards in 14 years; 2 SAIL Awards for Industry Leadership; 2 American Sailboat Hall of Fame Designs (J/24 & J/35); and the three largest ISAF International One-Design keelboat classes (J/22, J/24, J/80).

Counting crew, every year there are over 100,000 friends to meet sailing J's, populating the most beautiful sailing harbors and sailing the waters of 35+ countries around the world.  Sailing is all about friends.  Come join us and expand your social network everywhere!    For more information on J/Boats.


Read Kimball Livingston's SAIL update on the J/Boats story- A Band of Brothers.

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

J/Newsletter- January 12th, 2011

J/111 one-design sailboat- sailing in Miami Key WestJ/111 and J/108 Florida Debut
SAIL Key West Reception
(Key West, FL)- Remember, please don't hesitate to get out of the cold, the snow, the rain out west and come on down and take a peek at two of the latest 35+ footers to debut in the J stable of fun, fast, easy-to-sail boats.  SAIL Magazine, in concert with its industry partners NORTH SAILS and HARKEN, are hosting a reception for sailors interested in taking a closer look at the J/111- KONTIKI V's electric royal blue and candy red color scheme looks spectacular on the water.  With North Sails latest carbon wardrobe with brilliant candy apple red spinnakers and Harken's latest sailing equipment, the 111 will turn heads anywhere it goes. The event will be held on Saturday, January 15th at 5:00 pm at the Galleon Resort Marina- free beer, wine and munchies!

In addition to the 111, CrossCurrent Marine's Craig Crossley will feature J's newest shoal-draft performance cruiser- the J/108. It's all happening down at the Galleon Resort Marina in Key West.  Please join us.  For more information please call J/Boats at ph- 401-846-8410 or email info@jboats.com.  More J/111 sailboat information is here.  And, J/108 shoal-draft performance sailboat information can be found here.


J/111 one-design offshore sailboat- the ultimate sailing racerJ/111 Star of London Show
(London, England)- The crowds are flocking to J stand #H69 to see the IRC giant-killer J/97 as well as the hot new J/111 speedster-- the latest one-design racer/cruiser.

Louay Habib from boats.com did an introductory review of the 111 at the London show, please view it here on boats.com.

J/Sailing Calendar 2011Sail Into '11 WIth J/Calendar
Get Organized All Year!
(Newport, RI)- Enjoy spectacular images and gorgeous scenery of J's sailing around the world all year long.  Get organized now and get your 2011 J/Sailing Calendar !  The 2011 J/Calendar features photos of flying J's slicing and dicing waves or just cruising past  spectacular scenery.  The large format and expansive calendar gives you lots of room to scribble, notate and make plans for the upcoming year!  Time to get it all organized and rolling now!  We ship everywhere-- EuropeUK/ IrelandAustralia/ NZUSA/ Mexico, Canada.  For more 2011 J/Sailing Calendar information.

J/Sailing News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

2011 has started off with a bang, both good and bad.  For starters, our hearts go out to members of the J sailing community in Australia affected by the extraordinary flooding taking place in areas like Brisbane.  We offer our best wishes and pray all is well with those J families and friends.  Also taking place Down Under are the Australian J/24 Nationals off Sydney and hosted by Middle Harbour YC.  In Europe, the Italians and Spanish are dialing up the heat again on the J/80 class and are sailing their winter series events and the J/22s had their fun NOEL Cup before Christmas.  Over in the Americas, J sailors are getting ready to roll in the annual winter festival in Florida known as Key West Race Week with fleets of J/80s and J/105s racing one-design along with several top J's racing in the handicap fleets.  Warming up on both coasts are events like the San Diego YC New Year's Day Race and Two Gates Invitational out West.  East saw the completion of the Lauderdale YC's 160nm Lauderdale-Key West Race, the classic "feeder" race for Key West Race Week.  Read on!  The J/Community and Cruising section below have more interesting, and heart-warming, stories this week.  Check them out!  More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page!  Below are the summaries.

Regatta & Show Schedules:

Jan 17-21- J/80 Midwinters- Key West, FL- http://www.j80.org
Jan 17-21- J/105 Midwinters- Key West, FL- http://www.j105.org
Jan 17-21- J/95 Midwinters- Key West, FL- http://www.jboats.com/j95
Jan 17-21- Key West Race Week- Key West, FL- http://www. premiere-racing.com
Jan 27-30- San Diego Sailboat Show- http://www.bigbayboatshow.com/
Feb 3-6- Halifax Sailboat Show- Halifax, Nova Scotia- http://www.halifaxboatshow.com/
Feb 9-11- J/24 Pan-Am Games Trials- Tampa, FL- http://www.diyc.org/
Feb 12-16- J/24 Midwinters- Davis Is YC, Tampa, FL- http://midwinters.j24d10.org/
Feb 17-21- Miami Boatshow- Miami, FL- http://www.miamiboatshow.com/
Feb 18-20- SW NOOD- St Petersburg, FL- StPYC- http://www.sailingworld.com
Feb 24-26- J/22 Midwinters- Davis Is YC, Tampa, FL- http://www.diyc.org
Mar 9-11- J/30 Mardi Gras Midwinters- New Orleans, LA- http://j30.us/blog
Mar 10-12- Bacardi Miami Sailing Week- Miami, FL- http://www.miamisailingweek.com/
Mar 13-Apr 17- Warsash Spring Series- Hamble, UK- http://www.warsashspringseries.org.uk/
Mar 18-20- SW NOOD- San Diego, CA- http://www.sailingworld.com
May 10-14- J/24 Nationals- Dallas, TX- http://j24texas.com/

For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.

J/105 ultimate one-design sailing family boat sailng to Key WestJ/105 Wins Key West Race!
Bond's LOKI Flies Around the Keys!

(Key West, FL)- The 36th Annual Fort Lauderdale to Key West Race was another classic, fast race; taking advantage of a strong front blowing east over the Bahamas Banks leaving in its wake a strong NNE wind flow.  David Bond's J/105 LOKI made the most of it to win PHRF A and 4th in PHRF Fleet Overall.

Started on Wednesday, January 12th, the international fleet of 29 boats had teams hailing from Hong Kong, Greece, the Netherlands, Canada, and several states outside of Florida.  Amongst them were a smattering of fun-loving J sailors who happen to love this mad dash around the edge of the Keys against the fast-flowing Gulf Stream.  Included were Frank Kern's (a.k.a. "the commodore") famous J/120 CARINTHIA from Bayview YC, Grosse Pointe Park, MI; another J/120 TAMPA GIRL sailed by Bill Terry from Davis Island YC, Tampa, FL; and local favorites from Miami, FL, David Bond sailing his J/105 LOKI.

The early indicators were for a powerful cold front to wash over Florida and leave trailing in its wake a powerful Northeaster of 20-25 knots blowing the fleet down around the Keys to Key West.  It was not to be.  Dawn on Wednesday greeted the fleet with a beautiful NNE breeze that slowly clocked Eastward in the 10-15 knot range and built back up again towards Wednesday night/ Thursday morning for a fast dash into Key West.  No records were broken despite earlier lofty expectations.  While the big boats finished the course in just over 11 hours, well shy of the 10 hour record, the middle of the fleet benefitted from solid breeze and better wind angles to take all top overall spots.  As expected, most of the fleet hugged the Florida coastline and the Keys to stay out of the fast-flowing, northbound Gulf Stream current.  Hot gybing angles were the rule of the day and those who played them smartly did well.

In addition to the J/105 LOKI winning class, Frank Kern's J/120 CARINTHIA sailed another solid race to get 4th in PHRF Class A and 12th overall.   Sailing photo credits- William Spruance.  For more Lauderdale-Key West Sailing results.

J/24 sailing school in AustraliaSAILPAC Leading J/24 Australian Nationals
(Sydney, Australia)- A strong turnout of sixteen J/24s are being hosted by Middle Harbour YC in a wide variety of sailing conditions.  So far, the racing amongst the top three has been very competitive.

On the first day, January 10th, the fleet was sailing in very challenging conditions, especially out-of-town boats who aren’t used to the 2m swell and shifty light winds. Race 1 was convincingly won by Nev Wittey on SAILPAC who led from start to finish, closely followed by John Crawfords’ INNAMINKA, skippered by his nephew, Robert Crawford and third place went to DEATHSTAR skippered by Sean Kirkjian.  Defending National champion, Sean Wallis came 4th on LUNATIC ASYLUM.  Of note, the crew of three Pacific Sailing School boats that are sailing in this years Nationals include SAILPAC, STARPAC and PACATACK (picture above).

On Day 2 the fleet started with similar wind conditions to Day 1 – flukey 15 knots easterlies, tending north for the third race of the day produced difficult helming conditions for skippers.  Nev Wittey took out race 4 from Sean Kirkjian, with a convincing two and a half minute win. Robert Crawford sailing INNAMINKA came in a close third after DEATHSTAR.  Ron Thomson sailing KICKING BOTTOM had his best race of the series so far, with an impressive 4th, just 6th seconds behind INNAMINKA.

At this stage after day 2, the fleet leaders are SAILPAC's Neville Wittey with a 1-1-2 record for 4 points in first.  Second on a rebound roll is Sean Wallis' LUNATIC ASYLUM with a 1-3-4 score for 8 pts.  Third is DEATHSTAR sailed by Sean Kirkjian with a 4-2-3 tally for 9 pts.  Lying fourth is ACE skippered by Dave West with a 3-6-9 for 18 pts.  And rounding out the top five is WAVECUTER II's Graeme Thorburn with a 5-8-6 scorecard for 19 pts.  For more J/24 Australian Nationals sailing information.

J/105 ulitmate sailing one-design boat off San Diego, CAJ/105 WINGS Wins New Year's Regatta
(San Diego, CA)- Over the New Year's weekend, San Diego hosted their annual New Year's Day Regatta, a fun, easy-going event to usher in the New Year off the sunny, southern California coast.  Managing to avoid the big crushes at the starts and the numerous mark-roundings, Dennis and Sharon Case racing their J/105 WINGS  won Division 3, beating 17 boats competing in their division, including J/80s, Etchells, Olson 34s and Columbia 50s.  Finishing third was Fisher/ Dagostino's J/105 VIGGEN and fifth was Larry Boline's and Bob Kyle's J/105 JET STREAM.

In Division 4, the J/27 BLACKADDER sailed by David Cattle finished second just behind a Star boat sailed by World Champion George Szabo!  Not too far off the pace was Bob Noe's J/30 MAD HATTER in sixth.

In Division 2, Kenyon Martin and crew were having fun enjoying one of their first sails on the new J/111 "THREE", finishing sixth and just behind them in ninth was John Laun's CAPER.  For more New Year's San Diego sailing information.  Sailing photo credit- Dennis St. Onge/ dawoody.com

J/22s one-design sailing- racing offshore France in windHUET Wins J/22 NOEL Cup
(Nantes, France)- Just before the Christmas Holidays, the J/22 class in France has a wonderful event where any kids participating get a chance to meet St. Nicholas in the evening.  Fun time, sweet event.  On the water, the winner was Patrick Huet, sailing his J/22 EUROPEAN HOMES (yes, same company that sponsors Pichu Torcida's J/80 s ECC VIVIENDAS in Spain).  Second was Clair Pouteau's SOFFE, third was Emmannuel Bollore's DELFINA, fourth Fabrice Chaierc's J'M and rounding out the top five was Vincent Goeusbet's JROUETTE.  More J/22 NOEL Cup sailing results.

J/109 racer cruiser sailboat- sailing off Long Beach, CAJ/109 ELECTRA 2nd In Two Gates Invite
(Long Beach, CA)- The Two Gates Invitational was held last Sunday under sunny skies with temperatures in the high 50s while the top East Coast sailing venues are dealing with snow, ice and highs in the low to mid twenties. Not necessarily considered warm, but balmy weather compared to the rest of the country.

Over the 13.2-nautical mile course Tom Brott from Seal Beach YC and his crew aboard the J/109 ELECTRA ended up second in PHRF B Class.  More than 25 skippers brought their boats and crew out for this traditional race that gets its name from the course they sail. Beginning inside Long Beach Harbor, the boats exit the harbor through the Port of Long Beach entrance known as Queens Gate. They sail outside the breakwater up to Angels Gate, the Port of Los Angeles entrance, and enter Los Angeles Harbor. From, there they sail back down to weave in and out of the breakwater finishing back in Long Beach.

J/80 Spain- one-design trophy winnersJ/80 ECC VIVIENDAS Wins ImpreDigital Trophy
(Santander, Spain)- Ending the year in 2010 for the final race, the local J/80 fleet in Santander races a fun regatta that basically takes them up and down the beautiful Santander waterfront, using government marks and set marks to keep the fleet moving up and down the coastline in full view of spectators walking along the waterfront and the gorgeous beaches.

The start and finish of the event is run by the RCMS, they set up the windward mark off to the southwest. The J/80 fleet made two very entertaining laps of the course, with the fleet very tight and position changes all the way past the mark set off the steps of beacon. The closeness of the race course along the coast of the Cantabrian bay enabled many walkers to enjoy the spectacle of the race, with more than 25 boats and 100 sailors competing. The snow-capped green peaks south of the bay, matched by the white sails of the J/80s on the sparkling blue-green water, simply added a spectacular touch to the extraordinary afternoon.

J/80 ECC Viviendas- one-design is ultimate sailing- the winning sailboat in SpainThe race itself was very close.  In the end, Pichu Torcida sailing ECC VIVIENDAS won with a total of 6 pts.  Second was yet another World Champion, Ignacio Camino and Armando Gutierrez on NEXTEL ENGINEERING with 8 pts. Third was Alberto Padron and Jose Miguel Oriol on MABLE with 9 pts.  Rounding out the top five was SLAM RACING sailed by Tony Diaz-Alejandro in fourth with 10 pts and fifth was renowned sailor Jaime Piris on FONESTAR.  All agreed it was a great way to end the year for the 28 J/80s racing the final regatta of the year.    For more J/80 Spain ImpreDigital Trophy sailing information.

J/80 one-design sailing in ItalyJ/80 OLJ SPIRIT-HATAMURI Winning Italian Winter Championships
(Tigullio, Italy)- The J/80 Italian class continues to grow and enjoy racing on their spectacular lakes as well as in gorgeous offshore venues like Sardinia and San Remo.  This year's Winter Championship is taking place in the Gulf of Tigullio.

"Today the wind conditions have enabled the smooth running of two races really exciting, we are very happy with the technical level achieved.  We're also assured all 39 boats are happy with the racing and the quality of the course. What will happen in the next three days? Who knows, we expect potentially six more races with the possibility of other movements in the championship," commented Franco Noceti.

After the first weekend, the J/80 OLJ SPIRIT-HATAMURI is in first, skippered by Federico Raiola.  Currently, they are followed by JOCONDE'S Massimo Zunino in second and in third is JENIALE, sailed by the Extreme Sailing Team.

The last three events of the Gulf of Tigullio Winter Championship will be Sunday, Jan. 23, Feb. 6 and Feb. 20.  For more J/80 Winter Championship sailing information.

J/Community

What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide

J/30 one-desing offshore cruiser racer off New Orleans on Gulf of Mexico* J/30 Class Co-President Dave Erwin produced a beautiful video summarizing the joy, fun and great sailing experiences he's had with family and friends aboard their J/30-- see it here.  Nicely done!  And, full-on testimonial to the fact that "class" is all about people and sharing those experiences together in a way in which everyone is having a ball, not the few.  J/30s continue to attract more newcomers into their class, pretty awesome for "son of J/24 #2"!!  We can only say, keep up the good work Dave and Bill Kneller- Co-Presidents of the J/30 Class.  Check out some of the latest happenings in the J/30 class and their forums.   http://j30.us/blog/
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* HIT THE MARK- J/24 Australian Class December news- a keep'ah.  How to recruit crew.  Find one you like, toss them over your shoulder and drag them down to the boat.  Simple, huh?  Read some more amusing anecdotes about how the J/24 class is having fun with their renovated, rebuilt, retro J/24s Down Under.  With the Australian J/24 Nationals finishing up this week, they're all looking forward to another strong turnout for a one-design class start at the famously cool event- Audi Victoria Week down in Geelong-- join them for some more fun in the Ozzie sun! Get your copy of the J/24 HIT THE MARK newsletter here.
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J/30 sailing in Pacific Cup offshore sailboat race* J/30 FRICTION LOSS sailed last year's Pacific Cup 2010- a 2,000nm+ dash from San Francisco to Hawaii.  Three friends. Nice shots.  J/30 surfing all the way home to Diamond Head and Waikiki doing 10 to 15 knots the whole way under spinnaker, gybing on the shifts....way cool.
One noteworthy accomplishment was that they were second in class- again, belated congratulations to Shawn Ivie and crew aboard their J/30 FRICTION LOSS.  View their Pacific Cup video here.
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Dr Laura- famous radio talk show psychologist- sailing J/100, J/125 and J/105J/125, J/105 and J/100 owner Dr. Laura Schlessinger from Santa Barbara, CA shared some of here experiences with Newport Harbor YC this past week as a participant in the 2011 Cabo Race. Dr. Laura Schlessinger - who is based in Santa Barbara, CA - might be best known as a nationally syndicated American talk radio host. However, she has the sailing bug big time.  While having been largely committed to buoy racing, she first ventured offshore nearly a year ago in a similar race to Cabo on her J-125 (Warrior), winning overall in both ORR and PHRF. Here she comments on the experience:
" I did the Cabo race purely for the adventure. I had never been out on the open ocean and simply wanted the experience. By the end of the first day and one-half, I was cold, damp, exhausted and generally miserable. I clicked my heels but couldn't get back to Santa Barbara. Then, on the second and one-half day I got with the rhythm of it and can't tell you enough how much I absolutely loved it: huge turtles, whales, dolphin, the horizon with no land and no other boats - it was just amazing!

We followed the progress of all the boats on the computer and we were well behind our competition for most of the race. Ultimately - I didn't care that much because we all were having such a fun time with each other and with the elements. I would guess that if the amount of laughter aboard a boat won a trophy - we'd get it. On the last day I woke up from my four hour down-time to find zero wind. I did see a shark fin and wouldn't let anyone swim! We'd gone way out to sea and were totally becalmed. I decided I was the "wind witch" and would bring wind any moment now. They all scoffed at me - until I pointed to some tiny cat paws on the surface of the water growing larger in diameter. Suddenly, we started to take off.

The best part of the entire experience was that night when we were coming into Cabo. I was driving (that's my job) through the moonshine on the water.  It was so beautiful I was crying. Believe it or not, I turned to my crew and suggested we forget the finish line and just keep sailing. I meant it - as strange as that may sound. I got voted down, so over the finish line we came. From the day I suggested we do that Cabo race, I never considered the possibility of winning. I just wanted the adventure. And this year, we are doing the Cabo race to qualify for Transpac-- talk about an adventure!"  Read more about Dr. Laura's experiences here.
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J/22 family sailing boat- the ultimate little sailboat for kids, girls, boys, parents* Featured in Scuttlebutt this past week was a wonderful article by J/22 owner Matthew Princing called, "Putting the Family Back In Sailing".  As Matt begins describing his experiences in sailing, "There are many articles and books floating around about the state of sailing today. They discuss the decline in our sport by various demographics and point towards influences like the economy, access to sailing and perception.

The economy is certainly and issue, especially in the Midwest where my family lives and sails. We are somewhat challenged by the fact that we are a blue collar area and we have lost a record number of well paying jobs which limit our spendable income. Boats unfortunately are quiet easy to put on the back burner and become deemed not a priority (this is blasphemy to a true sailor but it happens). Our sailing clubs in turn suffer due to lack of members and income coming in that drives our sailing programs so access to sailing suffers. There is a whole generation of kids out there that haven't had the chance to try sailing; to me that is a shame.

Perception of sailing has never really been stellar. Many uneducated journalists have mistakenly reported that sailing is a sport of the rich, the elite. This of course couldn't be farther from the truth. Are there wealthy sailors, yes there are but on the same side of things there are many more middle class sailors and quite a few that would be considered poor by many standards. You certainly don't have to be wealthy to afford a very nice sailboat.

My belief is that we need to put the fun and the family back into sailing. It starts with me. I will do what I can. These two go hand in hand and we can raise the next generation of sailing families.

I grew up the son of a power boater, floating condo kind of situation. We were a very small minority at a predominantly sailing club. It wasn't long before my brother and I were sailing and soon the whole family.

I bought my first boat about a month before I graduated college. I was bitten by the Lightning (www.lightningclass.org) bug by a family friend that let me sail an old woodie off his beach. I bought the first of four Lightning's (so far) that spring and joined the local fleet in Bay City, MI. That was 1991, I am still there. Why? Friends and family. We have fun. The Lightning class is very family oriented as are other classes we participate in like the J/22 Class (www.j22usa.com). We have made lifelong friends in both classes and plan our schedules to meet up with our friends somewhere on the regatta scene or at fleet races.

I wasn't the "family" sailor though; I was probably part of the problem. I drove my family away from sailing early on due to a competitive streak that was relentless and perhaps a short fuse. Age has mellowed me but also increased my desire to sail and be surrounded by my family."   Read more about Matthew's experiences here.

The J Cruising Community

J cruising directions- roll the dice and go!  Sailing to anywhere, anytime!J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers.  Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.

* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand.  A recent update from Bill and Kathy- "Hello, all!  We have safely arrived in Opua, New Zealand from Tonga. It was a remarkably fast passage. Some statistics: Time: 6 days, 3 hours.  Total distance: 1023 miles.  Distance sailed: 1020 miles.  Distance motored: 3 miles.  Average speed: 7.0 knots.  Fuel used: 3 gallons (12 hours of engine idling for power generation).  Best memory: sailing into the Bay of Isles, hand steering in 25 knots of breeze, watching the sun rise behind us, lighting Cape Brett up in a warm red glow. Next is New Zealand!" Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/

* Prolific writers, Bill and Judy Stellin, sailed their J/42 JAYWALKER around the Mediterranean and Europe and back across the Atlantic for nearly three years.  Their blogs/journals can be found at- http://blog.mailasail.com/jaywalker.  The earlier journals have been compiled into two self published books which can be found at: http://www.blurb.com.  Search for "SEATREK: A Passion for Sailing" by Bill Stellin or William Stellin."  Fun reading when rocking back in a chair watching your storm-lashed windows take a beating in the gale roaring outside and listening to the crackle of a roaring fire.  It is winter "down under" you know.  The Argentineans are freezing.

J/130 sailing ARC Rally arrives Portugal- leave a message on the sea wall!* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary will have just finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.

* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between.  Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins??  Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).

J/160 land tender- 1944 vintage Willies Jeep!!SALACIA, the J/160 owned by Stephen and Cyndy Everett has an on-going blog describing some of their more amusing experiences (http://www.salacia1.blogspot.com).  
A recent excerpt- "Stephen and Ross were enthralled by Roger's "Willies 1942 WW2 American jeep". Both boys took it for a burn and one is now at the top of Stephen’s wish list. When Roger was restoring it he was delighted to find a genuine WW2 American Hard hat under the back seat...."

-  Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun).  Check out there recent travels- now past Fiji!  A recent excerpt- "Things Unplanned Run Amuck in Tahiti- Boats have feelings, don’t you know?  They do not like to be left alone, unattended and seemingly unloved.  This is a fact of which both The Captain and The First Mate are well aware, but given their lifestyle, they have no choice.  Avante must go it alone every once in a while, and they know they eventually will have to deal with nautical hurt feelings and the consequences which follow."  The rest of the thread is both humorous and quite educational- many lessons learned!

* Long-distance cruising communications advice for those who wish to be connected beyond a cell phone/ WiFi connection (10 miles) anywhere on the planet- try SailMail.com- a remarkable SSB communications network good for up to 5,000 Nautical MILES of connectivity! How cool is that!  Founded by renowned superstar navigator Stan Honey and friends, here's good info for long-distance datacomm fanatics.  Stan says, "SailMail has worldwide coverage, but as with any HF propagation, you have to be knowledgeable about selection of which station to use, what time of day, and what frequency.  The only holes in coverage worldwide would be a very noisy marina where battery chargers on nearby boats prevent SailMail use.  In those situations most folks use WiFi or GSM anyway, and use SailMail when they are at sea, or in most remote anchorages.  There is lots of information on the website at www.sailmail.com about SSB choice and modem choice.  The Icom M802 radio and AT140 tuner are currently the best choice."

Featured Boats

J/122 SKYE- racer cruiser one-design sailboat from Chicago, Lake MichiganJ/122 SKYE- Triple Mac Race Winner For Sale

Possibly the best equipped and fastest short-handed 40 foot racer-cruiser in the world! SKYE is the Chicago-Mackinac Race Winner in 2008 (fully crewed) and the 2009 and 2010 Double-handed winner overall!  This IRC-friendly 40 footer offers a perfect, completely furnished interior with all the canvas protection covers for the bright-work while racing.  As a fresh-water boat it has been immaculately maintained to "Bristol" condition.  It features two flip-up pilot berths in the main cabin and gimbaled LPG stove/oven.  The B&G 3000 system includes a Garmin 3210 chart plotter, three 20/20s on the mast, lots of readouts everywhere, plus a Hercules H3000 autopilot system  with the H3000 gyro- an awesome short-handed sailing system! Sail inventory is all North Sails 3DL carbon, including 2 mains, 6 jibs, Code 0 and 2 spinnakers (Norlite runner and AirX reacher)- blue and white colors.  Hull is white with double-blue boot-stripe and white racing bottom paint.  For more info call Richie Stearns at Stearns Boating- ph- +1-847-404-2209 or email- rich@stearnsboating.com.

About J/Boats

Started in 1977, J/Boats continues to lead the world in designing fun-to-sail, easy-to-handle, performance sailboats that can be enjoyed by a broad spectrum of sailors.  The International J/24 has become the most popular recreational offshore keelboat in the world with over 5,400 J/24s cruising the waves. Today, there are 13,000+ J/Boats, ranging from the International J/22 to the J/65 and ranging in style from one-designs to racers, cruisers to daysailers and, of course, the ubiquitous J sprit boats- J/Boats' innovation in 1992 for easy-to-use asymmetric spinnakers and retractable carbon bowsprits (J/80, J/92, J/95, J/105, J/109, J/110, J/120, J/122, J/130, J/133, J/125, J/145, J/160).

J/Boats has the best track record in sailing for innovation and design as evidenced by:  15 Sailing World/ Cruising World Boat of the Year Awards in 14 years; 2 SAIL Awards for Industry Leadership; 2 American Sailboat Hall of Fame Designs (J/24 & J/35); and the three largest ISAF International One-Design keelboat classes (J/22, J/24, J/80).

Counting crew, every year there are over 100,000 friends to meet sailing J's, populating the most beautiful sailing harbors and sailing the waters of 35+ countries around the world.  Sailing is all about friends.  Come join us and expand your social network everywhere!    For more information on J/Boats.


Read Kimball Livingston's SAIL update on the J/Boats story- A Band of Brothers.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

J/Newsletter- January 5th, 2011

J/111 one-design sailboat- sailing in Miami Key WestJ/111 and J/108 Florida Debut
SAIL Key West Reception
(Key West, FL)- Come on down and take a peek at two of the latest 35+ footers to debut in the J stable of fun, fast, easy-to-sail boats.  SAIL Magazine, in concert with its industry partners NORTH SAILS and HARKEN, are hosting a reception for sailors interested in taking a closer look at the J/111.  You also get a chance to meet and chat with the SAIL Best Around Buoys winners, Jim Sminchak and crew from Cleveland, OH.  The event will be held on Saturday, January 15th at 5:00 pm at the Galleon Resort Marina- free beer, wine and munchies!

The SAIL Best Around Buoys 111, KONTIKI V, has arrived in Miami, FL (photo above) and is heading down to Key West to be sailed by Jim's Cleveland J/105 "Team it".  The electric royal blue and candy red color scheme look spectacular on the water.  With North Sails latest carbon wardrobe with brilliant candy apple red spinnakers and Harken's latest sailing equipment, the 111 will turn heads anywhere it goes.

In addition to the 111, CrossCurrent Marine's Craig Crossley will feature J's newest shoal-draft performance cruiser- the J/108 along with its siblings, the J/95s that were introduced in 2009.  It's all happening down at the Galleon Resort Marina in Key West.  Please join us.  For more information please call J/Boats at ph- 401-846-8410 or email info@jboats.com.  More J/111 sailboat information is here.  And, J/108 shoal-draft performance sailboat information can be found here.


J/111 one-design offshore sailboat- the ultimate sailing racerJ/111 London & San Diego Show Debut
(London, England/ San Diego, CA)- Be sure to wander down to the London show January 7-16th and see the  new J/111 along with her fast IRC sistership, the J/97- the new "Terminator" in European IRC sailing events.  As part of it's debut in Europe, the J/111 ARABELLA experienced a fast launch in challenging weather in order to prepare for her maiden voyage a few weeks ago.  Remember?  Snow.  England.  Trains. The M1 and M25 gridlock.  It was miraculous that ARABELLA sailed at all in the last weekend of the Hamble Winter Series race.  Nevertheless, a few kindred spirits and hardy souls persevered to get her rolling.  Kudos to the team.  And, on hand to witness and video the proceedings on and off the water was Richard Langdon, a renowned British yachting photographer.  Recently, he published a nice video on the J/111 in conjunction with YACHTING MONTHLY magazine, check it out here on Vimeo.

For those of you in the Americas who wish to escape some unseasonably cool weather and want to get a close look at the J/111 that has been creating a lot of buzz in SoCal, be sure to check out the San Diego Sailboat Show January 27-30th-- schedules and links for both events are below.

J/Sailing Calendar 2011Heaven In '11- The J/Calendar
Give The Gift That Lasts All Year!
(Newport, RI)- Impress your friends and families with spectacular images and gorgeous scenery 24x365 all year long.  Give them the 2011 J/Sailing Calendar and watch them break out into a huge grin and wonder why they're not sailing a J with you!  Whether you are a cruising, racing or armchair sailor, these stunning sailboat photographs will transport you to wonderful sailing experiences in exotic places worldwide. The 2011 J/Calendar features more photos of flying J's slicing and dicing waves around the world.  Or, just cruising past some of the most spectacular scenery this little "green" planet has to offer.  For those who love the sailing lifestyle, it's the ultimate sailing gift for your friends and family.  Get them now before it's too late for the Holidays!  The large format and expansive calendar gives you lots of room to scribble, notate and make plans for the upcoming year!  Time to get it all organized and rolling now!  We ship everywhere-- EuropeUK/ IrelandAustralia/ NZUSA/ Mexico, Canada.  For more 2011 J/Sailing Calendar information.

J/Sailing News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

"Happy New Year" to the J sailing community!  Here's to a 2011 that is full of hope, peace, love, happiness and, with a bit of luck, prosperity and success for all.

The memories of sailing in '10 are fading fast...except for those who sailed and persevered in that extraordinary post-Christmas (Boxing Day) event called "the Hobart Race".  A race that embodies all the best and worst in sailing (cruising or racing), brutal conditions, spectacular vistas, fabulous nights of stars shining in the crystal clear midnight skies, surfing for hours on end down the Tazzie coast (sunset on Tasman Is above).  The Hobart in some ways is analogous to one's trip through life, full of ups and downs, but perseverance pays off in the end for those who seek the ultimate result- to succeed in life.  And, perhaps for many the promise of the New Year may bring "heaven in '11"?  We sure hope so, the world hopes so.

Thinking of the significance of '11, the 111 is on a roll, approaching 60+ boats for happy, enthusiastic owners around the world.  In addition, many J sailors are gearing up for a variety of events in the first quarter of the year, starting with Key West, then St. Pete, Charleston, and others.  Out West its San Diego, Long Beach, Santa Barbara and San Francisco.  The Midwinters for the J/80s, J/105s and J/95s are shaping up to be fun events at Key West, including a half-dozen intrepid J/24s!! Far, far to the East, China is continuing their J/80 Winter Series.  Down-under in Oz and Taz, J/24 teams are frantically preparing for their J/24 Australian Nationals.   Read on!  The J/Community and Cruising section below have more interesting, and heart-warming, stories this week.  Check them out!  More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page!  Below are the summaries.

Regatta & Show Schedules:

Jan 7-16- London Boatshow- London, England- http://www.londonboatshow.com
Jan 10-14- J/24 Australian Nationals- Sydney, OZ- http://j24australia.com.au/
Jan 17-21- J/80 Midwinters- Key West, FL- http://www.j80.org
Jan 17-21- J/105 Midwinters- Key West, FL- http://www.j105.org
Jan 17-21- J/95 Midwinters- Key West, FL- http://www.jboats.com/j95
Jan 17-21- Key West Race Week- Key West, FL- http://www. premiere-racing.com
Jan 27-30- San Diego Sailboat Show- http://www.bigbayboatshow.com/
Feb 3-6- Halifax Sailboat Show- Halifax, Nova Scotia- http://www.halifaxboatshow.com/
Feb 9-11- J/24 Pan-Am Games Trials- Tampa, FL- http://www.diyc.org/
Feb 12-16- J/24 Midwinters- Davis Is YC, Tampa, FL- http://midwinters.j24d10.org/
Feb 17-21- Miami Boatshow- Miami, FL- http://www.miamiboatshow.com/
Feb 18-20- SW NOOD- St Petersburg, FL- StPYC- http://www.sailingworld.com
Feb 24-26- J/22 Midwinters- Davis Is YC, Tampa, FL- http://www.diyc.org
Mar 9-11- J/30 Mardi Gras Midwinters- New Orleans, LA- http://j30.us/blog
Mar 10-12- Bacardi Miami Sailing Week- Miami, FL- http://www.miamisailingweek.com/
Mar 13-Apr 17- Warsash Spring Series- Hamble, UK- http://www.warsashspringseries.org.uk/
Mar 18-20- SW NOOD- San Diego, CA- http://www.sailingworld.com
May 10-14- J/24 Nationals- Dallas, TX- http://j24texas.com/

For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.

J/44 white gold/ gold rush sailing to windwardStrong J Fleet @ Key West
(Key West, FL)- This year's Key West Race Week has another strong showing of J's across all three race courses.  With nearly 130 boats participating, the 45 J's represent the largest brand at the event for at least the tenth year running, with 35% of the keelboat fleet.  The large J one-design classes include the J/80s (16 boats) and the J/105s (15 boats).  Also stronger this year are a half-dozen J/24s sailing one-design in PHRF 3 class!

Leading the charge amongst the big boats will be the J/122 GAMBLER in IRC Class 2, sailed by Peter Cunningham, a long-time J owner and J/22 sailor from the Cayman Islands Sailing Club.  Giving them a run for the money will be a familiar name to long-time J sailors, Jim Bishop racing his fast J/44 WHITE GOLD.

In the PHRF Class 1 division, it will be strong competition amongst a trio of well-sailed J's-- the new J/111 KONTIKI V sailed by the SAIL magazine Best Around Buoys team led by Jim Sminchak from Lakeside YC in Cleveland, OH; the spectacular graphics and colors of 2010 Block Island Race Week winning team on the J/124 WICKED, skippered by Doug Curtiss from New Bedford YC in South Dartmouth, MA and having aboard designers Rod and Alan Johnstone; and the North American and Key West Race Week champion J/109 RUSH, very well sailed by Bill Sweetser and crew from Annapolis YC in Annapolis, MD.

J/95 shoal-draft performance sailing cruiserThe J/95s will have their first one-design type competition at this year's Race Week.  A trio of them have showed up from across North America.  The long-distance award surely must be Terry McKenna from Prince Edward Island, Canada sailing FINN.  Also sailing will be Trudie Ficks from Cudjoe Key, F on SEVENTH HEAVEN and Ed Palm from Grosse Pointe Woods, MI/ Naples. FL sailing USA 18.

Perhaps the most heart-warming and surprising growth is the participation of the J/24s in this year's event.  Six of them are sailing, 3 from the Keys fleet and 3 from Newport, RI!  Amazing.  They will certainly have a lot of fun and building on the heritage of the J/24 being the original inspiration for Key West Race Week back in 1978!

The J/80s have a solid turnout with a number of very strong teams.  Sure to factor into the leader board will be past World Champion Glenn Darden on EL TIGRE, regional champions Chris Bulger on GOOSE and Jeff Brown on J/WORLD SAN DIEGO.  Sure to factor into the scrum will be the Spanish team TEC with Konstantin Jacoby sailing Jay Lutz's World Champion boat as well as Bruno Pasquinelli on TIAMO.

Finally, the J/105s are enjoying a competitive renaissance with several top teams headed south for more fun in the sun.  The competition amongst this fleet of fifteen boats will be as tough as any North American Championship.  Leading the charge after several years absence will be four-times Key West 105 champion Tom Coates on MASQUERADE.  Fellow Key West Champion Brian Keane on SAVASANA will be giving Tom a run for the money, as will Block Island Champion and 105 East Coast Champion Damian Emery on ECLIPSE, Chuck Millican and Dave Brining from Bermuda racing ELUSIVE, Ken Colburn on GHOST, Travis Weisleder on LUCKY DOG, 105 Class President Bernie Girod on ROCK & ROLL and Bill Zartler on SOLARIS.  Let the games begin, that will be a tough class to win.  For more Key West Race Week sailing information

J/133 Patriot- sailing Rolex Sydney-Hobart race under sailJ/133 PATRIOT "Loves" Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race
When Finishing Just Makes You A Winner!
(Hobart, Tasmania)- This year's 66-year Hobart Race was one of the more "classic" editions in recent years because of the heavy weather and rough seas that boats and their crews encountered - a hallmark of this well-known 628 nautical mile ocean race.

The race started December 26th with a 'Southerly buster' during the first night, with the fleet of 87 starters encountering winds that reached 40 to 50 knots. Those gale-force winds and the resulting ginormous seas took their toll and saw a steady stream of boats retire due to steering damage, torn sails and engine problems, and for one unlucky yacht, a dismasting. After two days, 18 boats were forced out of the race, retiring because of the adverse weather conditions and resulting damage to boat and equipment.

Following that, boats and crew had to contend with getting across the notorious 100 nautical mile wide Bass Strait. By the race end, winds lightened somewhat and boats at the back of the fleet had trouble getting enough wind to get up the ten-mile stretch of Derwent River to the finish line in Hobart.

As one sailor said with a twinkle in his eye, "The fourth day was the most fantastic day on the water we've ever spent. The wind was perfect. The weather was perfect and in that night every star in the sky was out. It was spectacularly beautiful."

sailing off Tasmanian coastline- Enjoying the best and the worst amongst the fleet was Tony Love's J/133 PATRIOT.  They were 29th boat to finish of 89 starters, were 2nd IRC 3 Class by just 45 minutes.  Their River Derwent dash was slow going with light headwinds in the early stages while boats behind and offshore were sailing in surfing conditions.  PATRIOT was winning IRC Class 3 on corrected until just 10 miles before hitting Cape Pillar and the famous Cathedral Rock formation.  Many a Sydney-Hobart Race has been won or lost on both line honors and handicap honors due to the capricious weather experienced sailing north up the River Derwent from Storm Bay...where winds often go 360 degrees every hour.  It's a spectacular backdrop of high cliffs, 4,500 foot high mountains to the small, picturesque towns along the eastern and western shores.

For starters, getting 2nd in IRC Class 3 in the grueling 2010 Sydney-Hobart 628 nm race is only telling a part of the story.  Tony Love and crew's adventure started when they first bought their J/133 PATRIOT from its American Midwest freshwater owners.  They got it delivered to Sydney on a ship, trucked it north and prepared it for this year's race in their home port of Brisbane- only 600 nm north of Sydney!

J/133 Patriot sailing upwind off Australia going to Hobart, TasmaniaAfter a few weeks, it was clear that Tony and crew had gotten a handle on sailing PATRIOT.  Sailing out of their home club, the Royal Queensland Yacht Squadron, Tony's team had been achieving outstanding race results.  The latest series running over 12 races saw Tony finishing first on IRC, with individual race results of 5 1sts, 3 2nds, a 3rd, 4th and 5th.  Not bad since he has only owned the J/133 for less than a season.  Tony has commented that he loves the fact that he is able to comfortably cruise the J/133 after the racing crew has jumped off.  Testament to this is that following on from the grueling 628nm Sydney-Hobart race, Tony and his family will be sailing from Hobart to cruise the spectacular Freycinet Peninsula on Tasmania’s east coast, enjoying its pure white beaches and turquoise seas, the spectacular Wine Glass Bay and Bay of Fires, one of "Lonely Planet's" Top 10 regions in the world.

Now, back to the race and what happened this year and the fascination of "just doing it."  The start was spectacular with 87 yachts taking part with a close reach out of Sydney Heads.  Crews settled in for the night knowing there was a southerly buster heading up the coast to meet them, and hit them it did-- big time!  Some yachts reported 45-50 knot gusts, and the seas built to 4-5 metres.  The southerly winds hammered the crews, ultimately causing 18 yachts to retire.  The J/133 PATRIOT, virtually "fresh-out-of-the-box" forged her way through the rough conditions until the southerly abated.  At that point, the "jumping off" point is just southeast of the Australian seaside town of Eden--- appropriately named for many a Hobart crew seeking shelter or safety after getting "busted" in the Straits.  At the time, PATRIOT was easily leading their IRC 3 Class and were in contention for top 5 IRC honors.

sailing past Tasman Island going to HobartAs one competitor noted, "The real action didn't commence until 24 hours into the race. A trough following the front produced winds of 35 knots plus on the coast and up to 50 knots in Bass Strait. These were the "classic" Hobart conditions everyone was expecting. Wet, cold and yet brilliant sunshine, the kind of thing sailing photogs love. Airborne maxis, underwater IOR boats and cruiser racers with two reefs and a storm jib slugging away; still doing hull speed. Contrary to popular belief, this is also perfect cruiser/racer weather. As the big boats slow to conserve, the little boats get bullied by the large and erratic seaway, and we keep plugging away under reduced sail with very little stress on the boat and crew. In these conditions we can exceed our polars and over the next 12 hours we steal a march on our direct competition."

blowing a gale off Tasmanian coastlineRolex photographer Carlo Borlenghi flew over the fleet at lunchtime on Monday and reported seeing yachts with triple-reefed mains, some with storm headsails or racing bare-headed (no sails). He said that in a decade of covering the race he’d never seen seas like those before.  The forecast gale-force conditions made good on Monday for the bulk of the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race fleet with yachts experiencing 40-50 knots of gale to storm-force winds from the west-southwest -- together with massive seas.  The strength of Monday afternoon's gale, though, was a sobering experience for every sailor.  Adrienne Cahalan, the navigator aboard Wild Oats XI has described the afternoons gale as the worst crossing of Bass Strait she has experienced.  She described the conditions as "violent and awful"-- a big call from a professional sailor who has competed in every major ocean race in the world.  Seamanship was the name of the game.

Tasmanian dolorite "horn pipes" rock formationBy Tuesday, the fleet was experiencing much gentler conditions, with the winds swinging clockwise from the south-west to the west at 10 knots by about midday before the wind is due to turn north-easterly Tuesday afternoon, building to 20 knots during the day and up to 30 knots Tuesday night.  They are ideal conditions to bring the remainder of the fleet down the Tasmanian coast.  While the race to the corner of Tasman Island and the Hornpipes formation is the focus of all race navigators, "Tasman Island to the finish is in the hands of the gods," said one navigator.

Stormy Bay, Tasmania enjoying a placid momentPATRIOT consistently took a middle road relative to the fleet in the first part of the race.  Beating up the Australian coast, not going too far offshore and not heading too far inshore.  As they reached Cape Howe, the southeastern tip of Australia and headed over towards Tasmania on starboard tack, PATRIOT broke off earlier than most competitors, staying further east of rhumbline in anticipation of a wind shift backing from S/SW to W/NW-- it was initially a good move.  By Tuesday, PATRIOT was sailing on starboard gybe downwind with the big asymmetric spinnaker and staysail up surfing downwind about 60 miles offshore of Taz, headed at 9-13 knots surfing downwind towards the  famous "Hornpipes", the final turning point to the finish line in Hobart up the River Derwent.  However by late Tuesday and early Wednesday, PATRIOT's fortunes were about to change.  A park-up for 3+ hours prior to Tasman Island turned the tables fast as the breeze filled in from the nor’west for the remainder of the trip leaving them with a 10-20 knot beat to the finish.  Then, a final park up a few miles from the line only added to their frustration.  However, for their first Hobart on a J/133, a near miss on the class win and a podium finish is both gratifying and commendable.  Here's the Rolex Sydney Hobart Race sailing website.

Stormy Bay and Cape Raoul on Tasmanian coastNo matter how good or bad the sailing is across the infamous Bass Straits or down the eastern side of Tasmania, its the combination of the challenge at sea sailing down the coast, the spectacular scenery and perhaps the "calling" of ancestors (all 75,000 convicts) that called Port Arthur home is what brings everyone back year after year.  As the fleet approaches Storm Bay from the East, they're first greeted by the guiding light emanating from Tasman Island Lighthouse-- it sits atop 220 meter high vertical sea-cliffs surrounded by spectacular, if not breath-taking rock formations each with a unique name- Cathedral Rock, Cape Pillar, The Blade and The Chasm-- all within Tasman National Park.  Carved out of Jurassic dolerite by the great Southern Ocean and separated from the Tasman Peninsula by a 1200 mtr wide chasm the island's lighthouse adds the finishing touch to a stunning feature of the Tasmanian coastline. After the light, the boats then round "The Monkeys" off the SE tip of Tasman Island.  Then, past "The Organ Pipes" on Cape Raoul, both spectacular rock formations.  After passing these two capes, the fleet then sails north across Storm Bay towards the Iron Pot, a large rock pile that forms part of the course at the mouth of the Derwent River, just 11 miles from the finishing line in Hobart. Off in the distance forming the southerly ridge line west of the river is majestic Mt. Wellington, a 4,500 foot high mountain surrounded by forest.  For the aesthetics who appreciate such geologic beauty, it's hard to beat.    Tasman Island Lighthouse.    Coastview of Tasmania by virtualtasmania.com.   Westpoint Hobart Webcam with view of harbor and Mt Wellington.

As for human interest, Taz cultural history is unusual.  First inhabited by the Taz Aborigines at least 35,000 years ago, they were isolated as rising sea levels cut Tasmania off from mainland Australia about 10,000 years ago.

The Cathedral rock formation off Tasman Island, Cape PillarThe first reported sighting of Tasmania by a European was on 24 November 1642, by the Dutch explorer Abel Tasman. Tasman landed at today's Blackman's Bay. Famously, Captain James Cook landed at Adventure Bay in 1777 – with young William Bligh aboard. William Bligh returned in 1788 (H.M.S. Bounty) and again in 1792 (H.M.S Providence, with young Matthew Flinders aboard. Numerous other Europeans made landfalls, adding a colorful array to the names of topographical features. Matthew Flinders and George Bass (who named the Bass Strait) first proved Tasmania to be an island in 1798–99.

The first European settlements were by the British at Risdon Cove on the eastern bank of the Derwent estuary in 1803. An alternative settlement was established in 1804 in Sullivans Cove on the western side of the Derwent, where fresh water was more plentiful. The latter settlement became Hobart, after the British Colonial Secretary of the time, Lord Hobart.

The early settlers were mostly convicts and their military guards, with the task of developing agriculture and other industries. Numerous other convict-based settlements were made in Van Diemen's Land (aka Tasmania), including secondary prisons, such as the particularly harsh penal colonies at Port Arthur in the southeast and Macquarie Harbour on the West Coast. In the fifty years from 1803 to 1853 around 75,000 convicts were transported to Tasmania. The Colony of Tasmania was a British colony that existed on the island of Tasmania from 1856 until 1901, when it federated together with the five other Australian colonies, each with their own Parliaments, to form the Commonwealth of Australia.

J/122 MARTA JEANE racing off Sydney, Australia in cruising regatta ladies race.J/122 Wins Australian "Ladies Race"
(Newcastle, Australia)- The J/122 MARTA JEAN finishes the year with a win in the Ladies skippers race. "It’s supposed to be a fun race", said Maureen Rae, "but we couldn’t believe how serious everyone was taking it. I had never taken the helm before in a yacht race, but with support from husband Steve and an unexpected amount of encouragement from friends & fellow lady sailors, reluctantly agreed to skipper our J/122 for this race."

"At the start of the race the wind was quite variable, anything from less than 10knots up to 20knots and a 2 metre swell, so a lot to take in quickly.  However, the boat was just incredibly light and responsive at the helm and much easier than expected to steer," commented Maureen.  "We came in 2nd across the line, just behind one of the leading point score race boats and 1st on PHS."

Husband Steve was overjoyed saying, "My wife will have more confidence to take the helm when we're cruising and she will definitely have to return to the helm to defend her title next year! These boats are just fantastic.  MARTA JEAN is primarily setup for cruising but we are finding ourselves exceedingly competitive on the race track. What a great way to finish the years sailing."

J/Community

Argentine J/24 and dinghy sailor Pepe Bettini at 29er Worlds Buenos Aires.What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide

* At the 29er World Championships in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Argentine J/24 sailors and Opti coaches Pepe Bettini and Fernando Gwozdz are atop the leader board sailing their 29er in spectacular sailing conditions-- 3-6 foot waves blowing 15-25 knots on the Mar del Plata.  When asked about the conditions, Bettini commented that "we had steady winds but a big swell with waves breaking on the top. At the beginning of the downwind legs it was like surfing the Pipeline against pro surfer Kelly Slater! Our PRO Tino Mora did a really good job and we're happy with the days results. We're tied with Tavella and Greggi in points."  For more 29er Worlds info.  Sailing Photos credits- Matias Capizzano.
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Dick and Richie Stearns sailing Bill Zeiler's J/122 SKYE in Chicago-Mac race* Milestones and Miles: The 100th Mac.  Here's a great read for you armchair sailors wondering what it's like to sail one of the world's more popular offshore classics.  Written by renowned SAIL Magazine contributor from San Francisco, Kimball Livingston shares his experiences racing aboard the J/122 SKYE on his blog-  "I love Chicago for the sheer vertical audacity of it.  An astounding (why here, but why not here?) confluence of energies sets this place apart. And when I flew in for the 100th running of Chicago-Mac, the place was alive. Summer was on. In Millennium Park, the whole world was out .

I was on the final leg of my mission to sail milestone editions of America’s three distance classics: Centennial Bermuda, Centennial Transpac, the 100th running of the Race to Mackinac. The opening decade of the 21st century offered that unique opportunity. Now the decade is winding down, and this is my report.

Chicago Millenium Park reflecting poolI sailed Transpac ‘05 on a Cal 40. I sailed Bermuda ‘06 on an Open 50. The final leg would be Mac ‘08 on a J/122 for a grand total of 3,193 rated miles, which is kinda sorta far, except that I have friends who do circumnavigations where that mileage is nothing. And of these distance classics, the Race to Mackinac is the shortest, but it most revels in how hard the race can be—most of the length of Lake Michigan, Chicago to Mackinac Island, 333 miles. This signature event of Chicago Yacht Club has been raced almost-annually since 1898.

If you’re a sailor hereabouts you have to go. Youngsters scouting the docks will ask, “Are you going to Mac?” If the answer is, No, they keep walking.

It’s a cult thing. When you’ve racked up 25 races, you qualify to join the Island Goats Sailing Society, an organization that refers to the experience via these pithy active verbs (their words, not mine): endured, survived, suffered.

I get it. When the wind switches off, the flies arrive. For a while in ‘08 we even had a bat in the rigging. And I’ve never before seen that much lightning from the deck of a boat.

But it’s also so damned beautiful.

It occurs to me that I sailed the 50th Ensenada Race, back in the day, and in the spring of 2008 I was on my way to Mobile Bay for the 50th Dauphin Island Race when I was benched by strep. Milestone event is to journo as flame is to moth. And if you’re a sailor in the bargain, it’s a helluva good excuse. Along the way I got fried, frozen, slammed, sore and high on sailing and life. I made friends, and one friend, well, one friend I lost.

Rich Stearns was our core player aboard Bill Zeiler’s J/122, SKYE (now for sale- see below)—in 2009 and again in 2010 Bill and Rich teamed up to win the doublehanded division—and Stearns explains the Mac as not one race, but four races back to back, through changing geographic zones. This was my second Mac (23 to go) and I’ve built up the conviction that it’s not so hard to win. You just have to be fast enough and smart enough and work hard enough to deserve it; then you need to get lucky several times in a row."  Read the rest of Kimball's story on BLUE PLANET TIMES.
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USCG EAGLE furling sails before a storm* Sailing the USCG EAGLE with Captain Chris Sinnett is always a joy and a remarkable experience.  Chris was a member of the USCG Academy Sailing Team from 1981 to 84 when yours truly, the Editor, was coaching the Intercollegiate and Offshore programs in New London, CT.  Kimball Livingston had the privilege to experience what few "commoners" ever get to an opportunity to do-- sail on the EAGLE.  Here's Kimball's story:

"What do you do with 22,000 square feet of sail?" The Captain of the US Coast Guard Cutter Eagle, Chris Sinnett says, “It’s basic sailing, just a lot of it.”

We were at sea for three days, downriver on the Columbia to salt water at Astoria, then south along the Pacific Coast from Oregon to California and the Golden Gate. Being a small-boat sailor, I had my epiphanies.

Imagine a medium breeze near or forward of the beam. You will see the square-rigger crew “fanning” the uppermost sails—trimming them farther aft—to account for higher wind speeds aloft. (Maxi and America’s Cup crews have a different tool kit but similar challenges.) In light air the uppermost sails of a square rigger are again trimmed farther aft than lower sails, to act as telltales and warn the driver if it’s time to fall off. Aboard the Eagle, however, you will not hear too-cool-for-school racer lingo like “driver.” Before we pulled out of Portland town, the crew was mustered on deck and the cadets were told, “Learn all you can. This is how you become a Coast Guard officer.”

I don’t know what may have been going through the minds of young cadets as they stood straight, listening to those words, but I have a notion of what they were thinking, three days later, as the light failed and the wind rose and there was a bite to that wind, and the ship was flying too much sail and came the call, ALL HANDS!

All eyes were aloft, up up up to the rigging. There’s this other saying aboard the Eagle:  "If you don’t let go, you don’t fall."   Read the rest of Kimball's account on the EAGLE on BLUE PLANET TIMES.
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Paul Henderson - the Pope of Sailng on sailing and life.* Paul Henderson- the "Pope" of sailing? Perhaps.  A wise man, a very entertaining person to speak with, always has a thoughtful perspective or opinion and a damn good sailor to boot.  Perhaps it was his Canadian childhood along the shores of a cold Lake Ontario in Toronto.  Or, too much hockey and skating in sub-zero weather.  A kindred spirit and friend of the "J/Family". Whatever it was, Paul always had his feet on the ground and simply loved the sport of sailing.  A friend of the Editor's, David McCreary who publishes Scuttlebutt Europe, had this to say about Paul and the book- "What's really fun about this book is that it reads as Paul speaks. Having spent countless hours in conversations with him, I can hear his voice telling me the stories as I peruse the book. Lots of stories I'd heard, but many I hadn't, and a good mix of the serious and the not very serious. This is a man in love with life, sport, and sailing, and it shows.  This guy is not a blue blazered yacht snob.  Far from it. He's a blue collar plumber from Toronto, albeit one who was very successful at his trade. And, for those who grumbled about his mannerisms when President of the ISAF.. well, most are now a bit wistful for those days, eh?"  "The Pope of Sailing"- by Paul Franklin Henderson is now available on Amazon.com and LULU.com.

The J Cruising Community

J cruising directions- roll the dice and go!  Sailing to anywhere, anytime!J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers.  Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.

* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand.  A recent update from Bill and Kathy- "Hello, all!  We have safely arrived in Opua, New Zealand from Tonga. It was a remarkably fast passage. Some statistics: Time: 6 days, 3 hours.  Total distance: 1023 miles.  Distance sailed: 1020 miles.  Distance motored: 3 miles.  Average speed: 7.0 knots.  Fuel used: 3 gallons (12 hours of engine idling for power generation).  Best memory: sailing into the Bay of Isles, hand steering in 25 knots of breeze, watching the sun rise behind us, lighting Cape Brett up in a warm red glow. Next is New Zealand!" Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/

* Prolific writers, Bill and Judy Stellin, sailed their J/42 JAYWALKER around the Mediterranean and Europe and back across the Atlantic for nearly three years.  Their blogs/journals can be found at- http://blog.mailasail.com/jaywalker.  The earlier journals have been compiled into two self published books which can be found at: http://www.blurb.com.  Search for "SEATREK: A Passion for Sailing" by Bill Stellin or William Stellin."  Fun reading when rocking back in a chair watching your storm-lashed windows take a beating in the gale roaring outside and listening to the crackle of a roaring fire.  It is winter "down under" you know.  The Argentineans are freezing.

J/130 sailing ARC Rally arrives Portugal- leave a message on the sea wall!* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary will have just finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.

* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between.  Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins??  Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).

J/160 land tender- 1944 vintage Willies Jeep!!SALACIA, the J/160 owned by Stephen and Cyndy Everett has an on-going blog describing some of their more amusing experiences (http://www.salacia1.blogspot.com).  
A recent excerpt- "Stephen and Ross were enthralled by Roger's "Willies 1942 WW2 American jeep". Both boys took it for a burn and one is now at the top of Stephen’s wish list. When Roger was restoring it he was delighted to find a genuine WW2 American Hard hat under the back seat...."

-  Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun).  Check out there recent travels- now past Fiji!  A recent excerpt- "Things Unplanned Run Amuck in Tahiti- Boats have feelings, don’t you know?  They do not like to be left alone, unattended and seemingly unloved.  This is a fact of which both The Captain and The First Mate are well aware, but given their lifestyle, they have no choice.  Avante must go it alone every once in a while, and they know they eventually will have to deal with nautical hurt feelings and the consequences which follow."  The rest of the thread is both humorous and quite educational- many lessons learned!

* Long-distance cruising communications advice for those who wish to be connected beyond a cell phone/ WiFi connection (10 miles) anywhere on the planet- try SailMail.com- a remarkable SSB communications network good for up to 5,000 Nautical MILES of connectivity! How cool is that!  Founded by renowned superstar navigator Stan Honey and friends, here's good info for long-distance datacomm fanatics.  Stan says, "SailMail has worldwide coverage, but as with any HF propagation, you have to be knowledgeable about selection of which station to use, what time of day, and what frequency.  The only holes in coverage worldwide would be a very noisy marina where battery chargers on nearby boats prevent SailMail use.  In those situations most folks use WiFi or GSM anyway, and use SailMail when they are at sea, or in most remote anchorages.  There is lots of information on the website at www.sailmail.com about SSB choice and modem choice.  The Icom M802 radio and AT140 tuner are currently the best choice."

Featured Boats

J/122 SKYE- racer cruiser one-design sailboat from Chicago, Lake MichiganJ/122 SKYE- Triple Mac Race Winner For Sale

Possibly the best equipped and fastest short-handed 40 foot racer-cruiser in the world! SKYE is the Chicago-Mackinac Race Winner in 2008 (fully crewed) and the 2009 and 2010 Double-handed winner overall!  This IRC-friendly 40 footer offers a perfect, completely furnished interior with all the canvas protection covers for the bright-work while racing.  As a fresh-water boat it has been immaculately maintained to "Bristol" condition.  It features two flip-up pilot berths in the main cabin and gimbaled LPG stove/oven.  The B&G 3000 system includes a Garmin 3210 chart plotter, three 20/20s on the mast, lots of readouts everywhere, plus a Hercules H3000 autopilot system  with the H3000 gyro- an awesome short-handed sailing system! Sail inventory is all North Sails 3DL carbon, including 2 mains, 6 jibs, Code 0 and 2 spinnakers (Norlite runner and AirX reacher)- blue and white colors.  Hull is white with double-blue boot-stripe and white racing bottom paint.  For more info call Richie Stearns at Stearns Boating- ph- +1-847-404-2209 or email- rich@stearnsboating.com.

About J/Boats

Started in 1977, J/Boats continues to lead the world in designing fun-to-sail, easy-to-handle, performance sailboats that can be enjoyed by a broad spectrum of sailors.  The International J/24 has become the most popular recreational offshore keelboat in the world with over 5,400 J/24s cruising the waves. Today, there are 13,000+ J/Boats, ranging from the International J/22 to the J/65 and ranging in style from one-designs to racers, cruisers to daysailers and, of course, the ubiquitous J sprit boats- J/Boats' innovation in 1992 for easy-to-use asymmetric spinnakers and retractable carbon bowsprits (J/80, J/92, J/95, J/105, J/109, J/110, J/120, J/122, J/130, J/133, J/125, J/145, J/160).

J/Boats has the best track record in sailing for innovation and design as evidenced by:  15 Sailing World/ Cruising World Boat of the Year Awards in 14 years; 2 SAIL Awards for Industry Leadership; 2 American Sailboat Hall of Fame Designs (J/24 & J/35); and the three largest ISAF International One-Design keelboat classes (J/22, J/24, J/80).

Counting crew, every year there are over 100,000 friends to meet sailing J's, populating the most beautiful sailing harbors and sailing the waters of 35+ countries around the world.  Sailing is all about friends.  Come join us and expand your social network everywhere!    For more information on J/Boats.


Read Kimball Livingston's SAIL update on the J/Boats story- A Band of Brothers.