J/Newsletter- October 28th, 2009

New J/111 Speedboat Info

For more details regarding J's latest 36 footer, please check out the J/111 webpage.  You'll find an Interior layout depicting the comfortable weekending accommodations, navigation station, galley and spacious dining/ living area.  The deck and cockpit plan give you an idea of how we've integrated some of the better features of past J's to give you excellent comfort for day sailing as well as enough ergonomic elbow-room to race a boat of this size.  Finally, the profile and baseline technical specifications for DSPL/ Length and SA/ DSPL Upwind and Downwind provide insight as to the horsepower and upside speed potential of the J/111.  No question, this will be a fun, easy-to-sail boat that has an extraordinary turn-of-speed when you want it to-- planing off the wind in with finger-tip control on a 60" wheel will make the J/111 a joy to sail.  For more information, please contact J/Boats at Ph- +1-401-846-8410 or email us.

J/97 Chicago Demos

Rich Stearns reports they've had a number of excellent days for demonstrating the J/97's extraordinary performance in a wide variety of conditions.  For those of you in the Great Lakes region, now's a great time to get down to Chicago to get a chance to take a demo sail on a terrific, comfortable, easy-to-sail boat-- customer reactions are similar to what's been heard in Newport and Annapolis- "amazing interior", "great cockpit", "feels like a 40 footer"!  Please call Rich at Cell# 312-555-1212 or email him at "rich@stearnsboating.com."

J/80 Tour Update

Word on the street is that upwards of a dozen J/80s have been bought  for competing in this years' upcoming J/80 Tour that starts with the Nautica Key West Race Week in Key West, Florida and ends with the J/80 World Championships in Newport, Rhode Island.  J/80 Class leaders at the recent J/80 North American Championships in Houston, Texas have seen strong enthusiasm for the J/80 Tour.  For more information on this circuit, please contact J/80 Class reps at the J/80 Class Association.

Regatta Schedule

Oct. 28-Nov. 1- J/105 North Americans- Long Island Sound- American YC.
Oct. 30- Nov. 1- HCM J/24 East Coasts/ Annapolis- Chesapeake Bay- Annapolis, MD
Nov. 18-21- J/24 South Americans- Porto Alegre, Brazil- Veleiros do Sul.
Jan. 18-22, 2010- NAUTICA Key West Race Week- Key West, FL-
                             Invited classes include J/80s, J/105s, J/109s, J/122s.

J/Regatta News

The Rainbows Never Set on J's Sailing Worldwide

After passing the autumnal equinox, it appears as if winter was making an early bid in the Americas.  However, wait a few hours (or days) and, as the old adage goes, it will become good again.  Sure enough, such schizophrenic weather conditions seemed to be the norm in Europe as well.  In Europe, the Garmin Hamble Winter Series is headed towards a conclusion soon for the legions of J/80s, J/105s and J/109s flying around England's Solent "river" and the J/24 Europeans are underway with some vexing (and spectacular) weather conditions affecting the fleet.  In the Americas, the J/80 North Americans had a star-studded class of racers competing; including six previous North American Champions and the Manhasset Fall Series on New York's western Long Island also produced some spectacular conditions at the extreme ends of the spectrum this past weekend. Read on! More importantly, if you have more J Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page!  Below are the summaries.

Garmin Hamble Winter Series

(So'ton, Hamble, England)- In its fourth week of sailing, the Garmin Hamble Winter Series, run by Hamble River Sailing Club, remains on track after delivering another full programme and excellent day’s racing in the Solent on Sunday. The fourth day of racing of the Garmin Hamble Winter Series 2009 took place on Sunday, October 25th.  The 16 boat fleet saw 17-25 knots from the south west and the sun was quite warm whilst you were in it, giving perfect conditions for a longer course to be set. 

In contrast to last weekend’s drifting conditions in bright sunshine, Sunday delivered typical Winter Series conditions above forecast with a constant 20 to 25 knot south Westerly across both Black and White fleet courses.  Amongst the Black fleet one-designs ‘JOURNEYMAKER 5’ scored a win in the J/105 fleet.

Within the J/109 fleet it was business as usual as ‘J-DREAM’ scored a fourth race win with ‘SHIVA’, making her first outing in the series, coming home second.  At the start J-DREAM (David & Kirsty Apthorp) saw off the challenge of SHIVA (Matthew Boyle) but was held out left waiting for JUMPING JELLYFISH (David Richards) and JUST SO (David & Mary McGough) to tack right, to stay on the plateau and in less tide.  East Bramble was the first windward mark and then the fleet had an excellent run back to Hamble Yacht Services before a shorter 2 lap windward/leeward course between Air Canada and Hamble Yacht Services.  At the first windward mark, J-DREAM led from SHIVA, a position which she extended for the remainder of the race, winning by nearly 4 minutes.  At the halfway stage of the event,  J-DREAM has 4 points, ARIA 12 points and OUTRAJEOUS 17 points, while places 5th to 8th are only separated by 4 points.

Over on the White fleet course all three races went off as programed, despite gusts up to 28 knots. A few competitors headed for home before but the start of the third race, but most seemed to relish the tough conditions. ‘Oi!!’ scored a consistent 2, 1, 2 in the J/80 fleet maintaining her overall series lead.  Out for the first time in a J/80 was Robin Fielder and his crew. Paul Fuller, who was part of Robin’s crew had this to say;

‘Well, what a weekend for a test sail !  We were slightly apprehensive about the challenges of three races on a breezy Sunday – a new crew and an owner who hasn’t sailed competitively for two years.  However, with some expert tuition from Paul Heys, we quickly got up to speed and by the last race were thoroughly enjoying ourselves, finishing with a win.   The J/80 was excellent fun to sail in a breeze and very stable downwind.  We found it relatively easy to sail and as test sails go, to come away with a 3, 2, 1 was fantastic.  It says much for the layout and the handling characteristics of this great little sportsboat that a new crew can jump onboard and race competitively.’

J/24 Europeans Start in Stormy Weather

(Bay of Souda, Crete, Greece)-  With twenty eight entrants from all over Europe, racing started on Tuesday for the J/24 Europeans.  Competitors came from six different European countries, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Hungary, United Kingdom and Greece.

The first day of racing had three races completed in difficult weather conditions. Despite the changeable winds, the crew of the HELLENIC POLICE (be careful with them!) with skipper Alexandros Tagaropoulos managed to finish first in the first race of the day with good sailing choices and very good boat speed.  The German boat GUNNI, with Matthias Garzmann on the helm won the second race and the English boat RELOADED with Gavin Watson and his crew, won the last race of the day.

On Wednesday, the crews didn’t manage to finish even one race because of the lack of wind and the very strong rain. The Race Committee tried to start a race but the big wind change made the accomplishment impossible. Then the rain started again.  For the evening the Organizing Committee honored its Sponsors with a Party in the restaurant-bar "Cozmo", at the old port of Chania.

More news on the race, the party, the venue and the incredible Greek hospitality later.  To keep up to date, check it out here.

If Cute Pigs Can Fly

While we do not take any form of advertising, we were incredibly amused by the creative and innovative tactic taken by this creative/web services group in Greece supporting and sponsoring the J/24 Europeans in Crete, Greece.  As they say, "The Farm Creative Group wants to welcome you to a new world of exciting and reliable services! Sit back and let us promote your business. Seek with us new markets, both local and international, expand and become more efficient with services that know no limits! We will be happy to be your partners and your guides in the opportunities that the internet opens for everyone."   We wish them we well!  Take a peek.

Stormy Manhasset Fall Series

(Manhasset, NY- Oct. 17-18 & 24-25)- The Manhasset Fall Series concluded with a wild and woolly weekend on Western Long Island Sound.  True to the forecasts, Saturday blew hard with 20-35 knot winds from the Southwest with driving rain and uncharacteristically warm weather.  Sunday dawned bright, cool and clear with 10-20 knots shifty and puffy from the northwest, dying as the day wore on and shifting more north.

Amongst the fifteen boat J/105 One-Design Class, Kevin Grainger and the gang prevailed against all competitors to win overall with fourteen points on their J/105 GUMPTION 3.  Strong Long Island Sound sailor Damian Emery and his contingent onboard ECLIPSE finished with eighteen points.  And, Nathan Boyle sailing his JOYSEA finished third with 28 points.

In the fun, competitive J/44 One-Design Class, Jeff Willis took CHALLENGE IV to an overall win with thirteen points.  Following closely behind was Bill Ketcham on MAXINE.  Jim Bishop and crew on GOLD DIGGER managed to hang in there with some tough competition and finish third with seventeen points.

A trio of J/122s continued to race after their J/122 North Americans, the Stamford- Vineyard Race and the American YC Fall Series to close out their Northeast season with the Manhasset Fall Series.  Andrew Weiss' CHRISTOPHER DRAGON won IRC3A Class with eight points and just behind were Jamie Anderson's AVALANCHE from Port Washington YC with sixteen points and George Marks' GEORGETOWN III from North Shore YC with twenty two points. For more information and results.

Texas J/80 North Americans

Klingler Grabs Three-Peat

(Houston, TX- October 23-25)- Kerry Klingler has been sailing J/80s for a number of years.  Yet, despite the talent and the CV that might favor a "three-peat", Kerry was perhaps the least confident of the class leaders going into this year's J/80 North Americans.  With six previous J/80 North American Champions in attendance, including a current J/22 International Class World Champion Terry Flynn, it was not readily apparent who would come out on top of the heap of such a talented group of sailors.  As Terry said. "it was closest competition ever in NAs amongst the top 10....it could've gone either way."

The first day was perhaps the best for the fleet as it was a windy, puffy northerly gusting to twenty knots on Galveston Bay.  It made for difficult conditions to stay consistently in the top five against the tough fleet of NA Champions.  On the second day, there was no wind in the morning and the fleet had to wait for a light, shifty sea breeze to develop out of the southeast.  By the third day of racing, a solid sea breeze filled in making for extremely tight, fun racing amongst everyone-- the very tight mark roundings had an enormous impact on race outcomes.

Prevailing through the smoke and fog of battle was Kerry Klingler and team again aboard their J/80 LIFTED with a  1-4-1-5-[13]-1-4-5 record for  a total of 21 points.  Hanging tough was Terry and David Flynn, finishing second with a 3-1-[8]-7-1-5-3-2 for 22 total points! Third overall was Glenn and Reese Darden sailing LE TIGRE to a 4-2-6-[10]-5-4-2-3 record for 26 points.  Special mention must be made of Jay Lutz- the victim of an extraordinary accident at the J/80 Worlds in Santander, Spain.  Now fully recovered, Jay "feels like new again" and sailed to a respectable fourth overall onboard the appropriately named PAINKILLER JANE with a  6-[9]-4-4-3-3-7-1 tally for 28 points.  Photo credits- Andrea

J/Community:

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

* Every once in awhile, we come across some extraordinary achievements by friends of the J/Community that ought to be recognized.  "Kos" happens to be one of them. Back in 1991, Stu Johnstone was sailing his J/44 J-HAWK in the Spi Ouest Regatta in La Trinite Sur Mer.   Working with Stu at the time to take care of J-HAWK was a young Englishman, Rick Deppe (see PUMA media site).  Another friend came along and said a young English girl named "Kos" needed some help on a photo shoot.  On a spectacular sunset evening after racing, Stu, Rick and Kos took off on J-HAWK to help Kos complete her photo assignment.  Since then, Kos has grown KOS Pictures into the principal photo library/ stock house for over 200 yachting/ sailing photographers around the world.  To celebrate that talent, take a moment to appreciate this extraordinary J/80 photo. For more pictures from KOS Photos, please visit her website here.


*CitySail is a learn-to-sail organization that introduces city youth to the sport of sailing every day.  There are inumerable examples around the world.  Nevertheless, here is a heartwarming story that we felt should be shared with the J/Communithy:  "Simone is 15 and too old and too cool to be bothered with all the boys seeking her attention (pictured at right).  She won’t come to our after school center because she feels like she is too old for that stuff.  But she’s just the right age to sail.  This summer her mom signed her up for City Sail and she reluctantly came to the first class.  We were teaching nautical terminology to all the kids.  Simone was one of the quickest kids in the class.  Later that week when for the first time in her life she stepped on to a sailboat, she feigned indifference.  But once a boat leaves the dock, all the fronting stops.  Kids either beg to go up on the bow and get rocked by the waves for the sheer joy of it, or they hang on for dear life.  Simone was one of the former.  All the layers of smug superiority melted off her face as the wind and the waves pulled the laughter and surprise out of her.  By the middle of the summer I was trusting Simone with the tiller in an 18 knot wind.  On one such occasion I leaned over and asked her how many of her friends at school had ever sailed in such a wind.  She smiled the smile of someone who has just realized their own achievement and said, “NONE!”

She wasn’t quite right.  Over the last five years we’ve taken out over 100 Jersey City school children.  This is a huge privilege for us.  Although the kids live within a mile of some of the most exciting visually stimulating sailing around, they literally never get out on the water.  They might as well live 1000 miles from the water for as much as they are able to enjoy it - until City Sail.  "Without City Sail I'd never have learned to sail," says Derrik age 14.  Dozens of children entered our free sailing school and competed for points through three levels of seamanship.  Our top point scorers this year were invited to apprentice for a week on a working 80 foot schooner.  Next year we would like to make this opportunity available to even more kids.  We are looking  to add a J/24 to our fleet.  Anyone interested in helping us can contact us at citysail@gmail.com.  All contributions or boat donations are fully tax exempt.

Featured Boat

Rock & Roll The J/80 Tour

Cross Current Marine has an "in-stock" J/80 immediately available for those of you who may be considering participating in the 2010 J/80 Tour that starts with the NAUTICA Key West Regatta and ends with the J/80 World Championships in Newport, Rhode Island.  Please be sure to contact Craig Crossley at Cross Current Marine for more details at email- craig.crossley@gmail.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:  11 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 in 35+ countries around the world.  Sailing is all about friends.  Come join us and expand your social network everywhere!
For background info: 
http://www.jboats.com/intro.htm

J/Newsletter- October 21st, 2009

J/111 Enthusiasm Growing Fast

Strong Global Interest in J's NEW Speedboat

Since the announcement during the Annapolis Show, over 7,000 unique visitors worldwide have gone to the J/111 web page  to learn more about this exciting new design from J/Boats.   It appears evident the newly announced J/111 is striking a sensitive chord amongst sailors who are looking for that next-generation one-design 36 footer.  Breaking new ground in its looks, layout and performance, sailors are looking forward to the J/111's introduction next year.  No wonder,  the J/111 is a sleek, modern one-design, with a large daysailing cockpit, easy-to-handle sail plan, and 6' headroom below for weekending.  The result of all that enthusiasm? The first dozen hull slots have been reserved by customers for 2010 delivery. Get on board now!  Check out Alan Block's SA Innerview with Jeff J about the J/111.  For more info contact J/Boats- Phone 401-846-8410 or email us for more info.

J/97 Introduced to Great Lakes!

The J/97 has officially arrived in Chicago after having started its world tour from the its builder, J/Europe in France back in May.  After a terrific reception at the Newport and Annapolis Boatshows on the East Coast, the J/97 will be available for demos in Chicago starting Monday next week (pictured here at Chicago YC).  After sailing the J/97 for a few days on the spectacular waters off Chicago's renowned waterfront, Richie Stearns had this to say about the J/97s performance and handling: "Wow, what a fun boat to sail!  Everyone's impressed by the boat's speed in almost no air and even in the eighteen knots we had today it performs really great!  In today's good breeze (Wednesday) the boat easily hit 8.0+ knots off the wind while surfing down the waves. It looks like we've got a winner for our sailors here on Lake Michigan!".  To schedule a demo, please be sure to contact Rich Stearns at Cell# 847-404-2209 or email him.

J/95 SA Annapolis Interview with Rod J

(Annapolis, MD)- Alan Block from Sailing Anarchy was covering the Annapolis Boatshow for SA enthusiasts.  Alan and Jeff Johnstone participated in the forum regarding "Saving Sailing/ Growing Sailing"- one of the many activities where J/Boats continues to support the community of sailing and  grow the sport.  Alan also had an opportunity to discuss with Rod J the insights and concepts that hatched the ground-breaking, highly innovative J/95 shoal-draft cruiser-- the nearly perfect boat for those who love to sail ANYWHERE weather and draft limitations permit them (e.g. a beach or the most secluded anchorage inaccessible to no one but yourself!).  For a great perspective, take a look at Alan's exclusive SA Innerview- here's the link.

J/105 North Americans Preview

(Rye, NY)- Next week, the J/105s will be invading that little island enclave jutting into Long Island Sound known as the American Yacht Club.  From this spectacular venue the expected fleet of thirty two boats will go at it hammer and tong to determine the Champion.  Considered to be amongst the leaders in this remarkable fleet will be some of its perennial class leaders.  In that august circle of rarified air will be ECLIPSE- Damian Emery; KINCSEM- Joerge Esdorn; PLANET CLAIRE- John Koten; POWER PLAY- Bruce Stone; and SAVASANA-- Brian Keane.

With forecasts changing pretty drastically each day in this year's capricious fall season along the Northeastern seaboard, it's anybody's guess as to who will prevail in the end.  Standings have changed dramatically in the last day of competition amongst this leading group and who's to say that some unknown "rookie" won't come blasting out of right field and decimate these contenders!?  More news is sure to come when this competitive class gets together for its annual championship.

J/Boats Show @ McMichaels November 7th

(Mamaroneck, NY)- On Nov 7th,  McMichael Yachts will be having an on land and in water boat show with 45 used boats for sail. Part of our inventory of used boat consist of many J/Boats-- they we will have  available several J/105's , several J/109's , a J/124, J/122, J/42, J/37and several others.  If you have any questions, please contact McMichael Yacht Brokers- ph# +1-914-381-5900.

Regatta Schedule

Oct 23-25- J/80 North Americans- Galveston Bay- Lakewood YC
Oct. 24-30- J/24 European Championships- Eastern Mediterranean- Chania, Greece.
Oct. 28-Nov. 1- J/105 North Americans- Long Island Sound- American YC.
Oct. 30- Nov. 1- HCM J/24 East Coasts/ Annapolis- Chesapeake Bay- Annapolis, MD
Nov. 18-21- J/24 South Americans- Porto Alegre, Brazil- Veleiros do Sul.
Jan. 18-22, 2010- NAUTICA Key West Race Week- Key West, FL- invited classes include J/80s, J/105s, J/109s, J/122s.

J/Regatta News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

The fall sailing season continues in full swing with world-class events continuing to take place in Europe and USA with a few events starting up in the Asian/ Pac Rim region, like Hong Kong's China Coast Race Week.  The J/80 North Americans are starting in Texas as well as the J/24 Europeans in Greece will be getting going shortly in gorgeous azure blue waters of the  Mediterranean waters.  In Europe, the GARMIN Hamble Winter Series continues to go full tilt with some hot racing in J One-Design classes (J/80, J/105 and J/109).  In America, the Richardson Cup competitors survived icy conditions in Minnesota; the Intercollegiate sailors had a ball racing their ICSA Offshore Championships; and a J/27 and J/35 were tearing it up in the nascent Florida Winter circuits.  Read on! More importantly, if you have more J Regatta News, please email  it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page!  Below are the summaries.

GARMIN Hamble Winter Series Rages On!

(Hamble, So'ton, England)-  For the Big Boat Series entrants, sponsored this weekend by Wight Vodka, it was the second half of their twelve race schedule that began in tough conditions a fortnight ago. Racing this Saturday commenced in a 15 knot northerly breeze that gradually reduced, and with a falling tide, the course had to shifted to the northern side of the Brambles Banks for the last two of the four scheduled races.
In the IRC class Neil Martin’s J/133 JAMMY DODGER maintained her domination with two more firsts, with Ian Matthews J/122 JINJA  also grabbing a win in Race 4.  The J/80s were dominated by the irrepressible Ian Atkins on BOATS.COM.

While Saturday had been overcast and chilly, Sunday was the epitome of high pressure October weather, with brilliant sunshine and only just enough breeze to get racing underway. It soon turned into a drifting match, and with only three finishers in the first White Group races, and the bigger boats with little prospect of finishing, racing was abandoned for the day. Even so it had been a beautiful sight, with the brighter coloured spinnakers transforming the normally grey Solent.

Next Sunday’s racing (25th Oct.) continues with the full Winter Series program for White and Black Group racing.   For more information and full results.  Photos by Paul Wyeth.

RICHARDSON CUP 2009

J/22 Fleet Hosts Icy, Hot Match Race

(Lake Minnetonka, MN)-  It was June 18th, 1924 when English mountain climbers George Mallory and Andrew Irvine looked at the path before them. Climb the coldest place on earth: Mt. Everest. Five times they had tried to climb Everest and five times they had failed.

It was October 8th, 2009 when Dutch sailors Chris and John VanTol and Irish veteran, Michael B. Hoey, looked at the path before them. Sail in the coldest place on earth for the 2009 Great Lakes Match Racing Championship: Minnetonka, MN. Five times they came within close reach of the summit and five times they had failed.

The winner of the event would be awarded the coveted Richardson Cup. The Richardson Trophy was established in 1912 by Commodore S. O. Richardson, Jr., of the Toledo Yacht Club, Toledo, Ohio. It is a Sterling Silver Trophy (created by Tiffany & Co) which is the second oldest sailing trophy in US history. The 2009 event was the 70th running of the Richardson Cup.

On Friday, Wayzata Yacht Club and Lake Minnetonka in Minnesota greeted 11 different teams with brisk winds and 45-50 degree temperatures. By Saturday, temperatures had plunged into the 20's and the forecast was for a high of 34. Winds were 15-25 mph with a wind-chill of 18 and a layer of steam blowing from shore to shore. The J/22s were covered with about an inch or so of snow.  At the end of this "ice match", Chris Van Tol and team prevail with a 14:1 record over Steve Lowery with a 13-2 match race tally.  Thanks to Mike Hoey for the story.
For more info, read more at Scuttlebutt.

ICSA Offshore Champs- a.k.a.- College J/FEST!

Michigan Wins Highly Competitive J/109 Class

(Larchmont, NY- Oct. 10-11)- Here are the facts- forty boat fleet, thirty four (34) of them are J/Boats (85% of the fleet)- one-design classes of seven J/44s, ten J/109s and thirteen J/105s and the balance of J's distributed amongst the only two handicap classes- IRC40- J/122s and J/120 and IRC35- J/35.  The ICSA might as well have called it "J/FEST Intercollegiate Championships"!  The ICSA has been hosting the Intercollegiate Offshore Regatta in cooperation with Storm Trysail and Larchmont YC for the past nine years, once again introducing the joys of big-boat racing to boatloads of college sailors.  Interestingly, the event has become the largest college regatta in America, with 31 schools and 327 sailors racing 40 boats ranging from J/105s to J/44s.

The largest boats in the regatta were the J/44s sailed by teams from the service academies and St. Mary's, which have offshore teams. These boats are large, fast and demand experienced crew. All the J/44s used class-owned one-design sails, which made the seven boats a very tight one-design group. Maine Maritime won the J/44 Class by sailing STC Commodore Jim Bishop's GOLD DIGGER-- they crushed the rest of the fleet and beat the second-place team from the Naval Academy by nine points, garnering a 1-1-1-5-1-4 record.  Behind them in second was  J/44 RESOLUTE, also sailed by the US Naval Academy with owner Don Rave,  getting finishes of 3-2-5-3-2-6.  The J/44 MAXINE sailed by USMMA and owner Bill Ketcham was third with a 2-5-3-2-3-7 record.

In the IRC 40 Class, Navy found its pace sailing George Petrides' modified J/120 AVRA to a 1-3-1-2-1-1 record. They eclipsed the second place team from Georgetown University, sailing Steve Furnary's J/122 PATRIOT, by nine points as well who had a 2-1-3-3-5-4 record.  Rounding out the top three was Tufts racing the J/122 GEORGETOWN owned by George Marks to a respectable 5-4-4-1-2-5 tally.

In the 10-boat J/109 class the teams from the University of Michigan and Webb Institute tied for first.  But the tie only existed because Michigan did not finish the third race due to blowing up a chute and losing the wind instruments off the top of the mast in a broach that occurred when a 30 knot-gust hit a majority of the J/109 fleet halfway through the race.  Michigan, sailing Andrew Berdon's STRIDER, had to count the 11-point DNF (did not finish) since the regatta had no throw-outs. On the water, the team out-sailed the other J/109 teams upwind and downwind.  No kidding!  With finishes of 1-1-11-1-1-3 it's apparent the "scuttlebutt" on the dock was the "GO BLUE" Michigan team were THE team to beat and should be headed to Marseilles to rep the ICSA in the Student Worlds.  Oh well, better luck next time guys.  Trailing them on the tie-breaker was the J/109 RELENTLESS raced by Webb Institute and owner AL Minella with a record of 3-3-2-2-4-4.  Just off the pace was LOKI sailed by the crew from Cornell and owner David Rosow with respectably consistent scores of 2-2-6-6-3-2.

The biggest fleet was the 13-boat J/105 class. The team from Bowdoin, a regular at the event, sailed Carl Olsson's J/105 MORNING GLORY to a slim two-point victory over the second team from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy sailing Kevin Grainger's J/105 GUMPTION 3. First-time participant Trinity College from Hartford, Conn., finished third with three firsts in their score line racing Barry Gold's J/105 WARHORSE.

"This regatta could not happen without the generosity of the boat owners who not only lend their boats but lend their expertise onboard," said Regatta Chair Adam Loory. "These guys come because we work hard to convince them that the regatta is a chance to give something back to the sport, but they return because they have so much fun with the kids learning from them and, at times, they learn from the kids.

Dr. Dan Herron, owner of the J/105 LIQUID COURAGE, a first time participant, said after the regatta, "Thanks again for the opportunity to participate. Watching the expression on the skipper's face as he surfed LIQUID COURAGE downwind on Saturday was priceless!"  For complete results and pictures.  Photo credit: Photoboat.com.  And, Andrea Watson at SailingPress.

RHKYC China Coast Race Week

(Hong Kong, China- Oct 14th-25th)-  Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club's China Coast Race Week started this past week.  Conditions in Hong Kong at this time of year are ideal for "big-boat" racing, usually bright and clear and with winds in the 15 to 20  knots range ~ T-shirts and shorts all the way.

Race Week will consist of the well-established China Coast Regatta from 16th to 18th October, followed by a Category 3 Offshore Race from 23rd to 25th October.  For the Offshore Race, competitors will be offered 36 to 48 hours of racing around physical and virtual marks in the South China Sea, with the available courses starting and finishing in front of RHKYC's Kellett Island Clubhouse in Victoria Harbour, thus minimising the need for delivery crews and holiday time.

Competing in IRC is Nick Southward's J/109 WHISKEY JACK and Simon Blore's J/92 MOJITO.  We wish them all the best in their week-long series in the azure blue China Seas.

J/Community:

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

* Captain Cork Friedman seems to be having a GREAT time with his classic J/27.  Here's a nice account of their recent escapades and successes on the high-seas off Miami:  "Just sending along a bit of race news regarding my J/27 RUM LINE (pictured here at right).  J/ 27's don't seem to get a whole lot of notoriety anymore, but we are  still sailing this wonderful boat and WINNING! RUM LINE took 1st place in ARC1 in the 2009 Miami to Key Largo race,  beating an impressive class of 40+ footers!  Awesome boat! "Cork".

* The J/30 Class is alive and kicking!  Recently, the class elected two Co-Presidents-  Dave Erwin- owner of J/30 ZEPHYR from  New Orleans, LA and Bill Kneller- owner of J/30 RHAPSODY from Portsmouth, RI.  They're making personal efforts to reach out to J/30 owners and improve communications to help promote class activities.  Over the past year they've contacted J/30 District Governors to help reach J/30 owners all over the globe.  They've updated the J/30 Forum to include dedicated sections for each district as a means of facilitating easy communications.  The J/30 Forum also has been updated with a photo section. They have seen the activity pick up significantly over the past year. Recently,  the J/30 Class Web Site has also been updated.  Bill Kneller can be reached at  bill@j30.us and Dave Erwin can be contacted at dave@j30.us.

* In an exciting and windy weekend of ocean racing, the J/35 MAN-O-WAR finished first overall in West Florida Ocean Racing Circuit during the weekend of October 16-18.  Congratulations to Tom Beery and his team from Pensacola, FL.  MAN-O-WAR also won the Boat of the Regatta Trophy with four firsts and two seconds in six races total.  It appears the conditions on the race courses were well suited to Tom's J/35 with winds ranging from 17 to 30 knots with lots of upwind/ downwind legs.

Featured Boat

New J/133 "Demo" boat is available, ready to race for Key West!

This J/133 is currently located in France but is ready to ship anywhere in the world.  A proven race winner, her sistership J/133 BATFISH III won the RORC IRC Overall Season Championship in England and France.  Another sistership in America is racing on Long Island Sound, the J/133 SIREN SONG is proving hard to beat in a wide variety of conditions.

Now is the time to get rolling for Key West and the 2010 sailing season.  Take advantage of this "fall special" and get ready to rock and have fun this coming season.  This J/133 is available at $430,000 USD, FOB Bristol, RI with all options and U.S. shorepower.

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:  11 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 in 35+ countries around the world.  Sailing is all about friends.  Come join us and expand your social network everywhere!
For background info:
http://www.jboats.com/intro.htm

Subscribe to our J/Newsletter here:
http://www.jboats.com/lists/?p=subscribe

J/Newsletter- October 14th, 2009

Annapolis Sailboat Show Success

Good Turnout, Strong Interest in Latest J's

(Annapolis, MD- October 9th-13th)-  J/Boats introduction of the J/95 and the J/97 was very warmly received by J/Enthusiasts in one of America's sailing capitals- Annapolis, Maryland. 

For the Chesapeake Bay, the J/95 had particular interest because of its shoal-draft cruising capabilities and its strong daysailing appeal.  In fact, one group from a sailing club in the region were talking about forming a J/95 fleet soon!  The J/97 crowds seem to indicate the concept was spot on- it was particularly attractive to young families and couples who wished to have a manageable, very roomy and accommodating cruising boat that could easily be raced competitively in local fleet events.

The J/122 continues to garner strong interest for those interested in a very comfortable, fun, easy-to-race offshore racing and cruising sailboat in the 40 foot range.  Quite a few sailors were talking about the growth of the J/122 fleet and its evolution into a fun J/122 One-Design class.  Don't be surprised if a number of former owners of other racing 38 to 42 footers jump ship and get into the J/122 One-Design class for the 2010 sailing season.

Finally, the newly announced J/111 was generating a significant amount of interest from sailing aficionados from all over the world.  Breaking new ground in its looks, layout and performance, sailors were excited about the new J/111 36' sportboat design planned for 2010 introduction.  The J/111 is a sleek, modern one-design, with a large daysailing cockpit, easy-to-handle sail plan, and 6' headroom below for weekending.   For more info contact J/Boats- Phone 401-846-8410 or email.

Regatta Schedule

Oct 23-25- J/80 North Americans- Galveston Bay- Lakewood YC- For more info.
Oct. 24-30- J/24 European Championships- Eastern Mediterranean- Chania, Greece- For more info.
Oct. 28-Nov. 1- J/105 North Americans- Long Island Sound- American YC- For more info.
Nov. 18-21- J/24 South Americans- Porto Alegre, Brazil- Veleiros do Sul- For more info.

J/Regatta News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

The fall sailing season continues with several world-class events taking place both in Europe and in the USA.  In Europe, the GARMIN Hamble Winter Series continues to go full tilt with some hot racing in J One-Design classes (J/80, J/105 and J/109).  In America, the ROLEX Women's Keelboat Regatta concluded in Rochester, New York.  Read on!  More importantly, if you have more J Regatta News, please email  it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page!  Below are the summaries.

ROLEX International Women's Keelboat Championships

Tunnicliffe and Team Capture First Title

(Rochester, New York-  October 7-10, 2009)-  Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.) and her team of Molly O'Bryan Vandemoer (Redwood City, Calif.), Liz Bower (Rochester, N.Y.) and Debbie Capozzi (Bayport, N.Y.) won US SAILING's 2009 Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship.  At the gala Rolex Awards ceremony held at the Rochester Yacht Club, Tunnicliffe and her team were awarded US SAILING's perpetual Bengt Julin Trophy and a Rolex Oyster Perpetual Stainless Steel & Gold Datejust presented by Jaimie Carlsen of Rolex Watch U.S.A.

"We're very excited," said Tunnicliffe, Olympic Gold Medalist and a member of the US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics, moments after returning the dock. "We wanted to win this event for a while and finally we've done it. We're super psyched!" Both Vandemoer and Capozzi also are members of US Sailing Team AlphaGraphics.

After yesterday's disappointing day off from racing, due to lack of suitable wind conditions, the fleet was anxious to get out onto the Lake Ontario race course. With only one day of racing and three races completed, Tunnicliffe lead the 35-boat fleet with a narrow two-point margin over Jennifer Provan (Toronto, Ontario, CAN). The final standings would come down to today, the final day schedule for racing. The RYC Race Committee, lead by Principal Race Officer Hank Stuart, took advantage of today's spectacular conditions - 15-18 knots of wind - and held three races.

"We were really happy about our first day," continued Tunnicliffe, 2008 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year. "None of us have fleet raced for at least two months, and we are all a bit rusty in our fleet race tactics. Once we got a chance to get our heads around the tactics, we got locked in and dialed in, and we did really, really well."

Her team's five-race score line was 3-6-1-1-1 and with an unbeatable margin they decided not to participate in the final race. "It's one of those big decisions, do you race or do you not? We felt we wanted to stay out of everyone's way. We knew it was close for second (place), so thought we would stay out of the way and not influence anything."

The final race, with 10-12 knots of wind, was won by Nicole Breault (Old Lyme, Conn.) with Amanda Taselaar (Scarsdale, N.Y.) in second and Carol Cronin (Jamestown, R.I.) in third.

"It was so nice to have good breeze," said Breault. "The wave action made the shifty-ness really about boat speed, and we finally started to click as a team. It felt really good and the day was great. We wish there were a couple more days of racing, but that's the way it goes."

Second overall was Cory Sertl, who counts this regatta as her 11th (including two wins in 1985 and 2001). She clearly relished having the regatta on her home waters at her home club. "It was really fun sailing and great to be out there," said Sertl, a two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year. Her 'Team Lucy' included Annemarie Cook, Jane Mastrandrea and Amy Moran. Sertl's and Moran's daughters, Katja and Merritt, sailed together with the world renowned founder of TeamONE Newport, Martha Parker ("Princess Martha"), on the bow to keep them out of trouble and headed generally in the right direction. They finished 13th overall (pictured here). "They did just fine," continued a beaming Sertl. "They were really fast today off the starting line and held it for a really long time. Their speed was awesome today."

For Cronin, who won the regatta in 1991 as crew, her overall third place finish is satisfying. According to Cronin, who marks this regatta as her ninth, her results were starting to look like a terrible trend. "I won this event in 1999," she said. "I was second in 2001, third in '03, fourth in '05, and that was my goal, to break the curse."

"We had a great day today," continued Cronin of her 'Team Spidey,' Kim Couranz, Margaret Podich and Kate Fears. "We worked really well together, and I thought it was a challenging day of sailing because the waves were ahead of the breeze." Three teams finished the regatta tied on points - Cronin, Dominique Provoyeur (Cape Town, South Africa) and Jennifer Provan. A count back system, detailed in the sailing instructions, was used to break the tie, putting Provoyeur into fourth and Provan in fifth.

"We can't really be too disappointed," said Provoyeur, who has competed in this regatta four times. "The fourth is our best result yet, but obviously when you are so close you think what could have gone better. I woke up this morning a little anxious for the final day of racing and knowing there was a bit on. There was breeze and we were in a position close to first. We tried to take the attitude that we want to go sailboat racing, but the wind was up and the swell was bigger than what we had had. We tried to start well and see what would happen, really one race at a time." Provoyeur sailed with Louise Meek, Tiffany Baring-Gould and Saskia Butcher.

Rounding out the top 10 teams: Jennifer Provan (CAN) in fifth, Marieke Poulie (Maarssen, NED) in sixth, Amanda Taselaar (Scarsdale, N.Y.) in seventh, Breault in eighth, JoAnn Fisher (Annapolis, Md.) in ninth and Kaitlin Storck (Huntington, N.Y.).

Until this regatta, Tunnicliffe had held the record as the youngest competitor, having set the mark as a 14-year-old skipper in 1997. At that time, she confided that one day she would win the regatta. "I always thought it would be cool to do really well one day," she said. "This is my fifth time sailing the regatta, my fourth time skippering it. We were getting to the point that we need to get up there sometime soon. I'm happy we sailed really well together and did so well. I have a fabulous crew. Debbie, Molly and Liz sailed together a few times before, and the chemistry has worked perfectly. It makes my life so easy on the race course and they make me look really good."

For more information-  where fans around the world can go to view photos from official event photographer Dan Nerney.  Daily highlights videos produced by  Tucker and crew from T2P.tv can be seen at  www.t2p.tv and at US Sailing.

GARMIN Hamble Winter Series

J/109s, J/105s and J/80s Rocking the Solent

(Hamble, So'ton, England- Oct 3-4)-  October 3rd and 4th was the opening weekend of the annual Hamble River Sailing Club's Winter Series, sponsored by Garmin. On Saturday a strong but steady 250 degree wind produced exciting conditions for the first day of the Hamble Big Boat Series. With a few broken halyards, some crew injuries, and a collision between two yachts, the IRC fleet dwindled from seven starters to three by the third race. Demanding conditions perhaps, but spinnakers were flown throughout as the gusts topped 30 knots.

In the fifteen boat J/109 One-Design class, it appears that David and Kirsty Apthorps J-DREAM continues their winning ways in the J/109 class, leading the pack with a 1-1-1 over Luca Rubinellis's ARIA that has a 2-3-3.  In third are Richard and Valerie Griffith sailing OUTRAJEOUS with a 5-2-7 over the two weekends.

The six boat J/105 One-Design class has tight competition with Paul Griffiths in FAY-J just hanging onto the lead by the hair on his chinny-chin-chin by one point (with 2-1-2 finishes) over Simon Curwen in the well-campaigned, hard-charging VOADOR with a 1-2-3 on the board.  Lying third for now is Chris Jones JOURNEYMAKER 5 with a 3-4-4.

The seven boat J/80 One-Design class has two perennial class leaders pulling no punches and going at it hammer and tong over six races to date.  John Cooper racing O!! with a 2-2-1-1-2-4 record is holding off Mr. BOATS.COM EUROPE Managing Director, Ian Atkins, racing none other than the appropriately named BOATS.COM (who knew?) with a 4-1-4-3-3-2 tally.  Not far off the pace in third is Thor Askeland aboard ELLE SAPELLE also showing strong improvement over the two weekends with a 5-4-5-4-1-1 score card.
For more information and full results.  Photos by Paul Wyeth.

GARMIN Big Boat Series

J's Dominating IRC Class!

(Hamble, So'ton, England- Oct 3-12)-  So far, so good.  That's about all the Neil Martin on his J/133 JAMMY DODGER and Ian Matthews racing his J/122 JINJA can expect in the wild and woolly racing they've seen so far in the Big Boat Series.

After two weekends of racing, JAMMY DODGER has collected finishes of 1-1-1-3-1 over stablemate JINJA which has a 2-2-2-1-3.  The racing is closer than the scores indicate on the tally sheets.  Unfortunately, another champion stablemate,  he other J/133, Bill Blain's world-beating, RORC Champion BATFISH III was forced to retire from Race 2 after a heavy collision.   It remains to be seen if Bill and the BATFISH III crew can rejoin the series.  For more information and full results.  Photos by Paul Wyeth.

GARMIN Autumn Championships

J/80's and J/109's Tangle For Solent Bragging Rights

(Hamble, So'ton, England- Oct 10-11)- This past weekend saw the J/80s and J/109s race for their Autumn Championships in southern England.

The ten boat J/109 One-Design class again saw class leaders David and Kirsty Apthorp on J-DREAM cruise to a first overall with a 3-1-3-1-1 set of finishes.  Guy Knight's team aboard BETH jumped into second overall on the podium with a 4-2-1-4-5 record.  And, in third was Adam Wright and Martin Miller racing VELVET ELLIS/ JOUSTER into third with finishes of 5-7-2-2-2.

For the eleven boat J/80 class, it looked like the top three from the weekend before agreed to flip-flop their positions!  Thor Askeland proved that his team on ELLE SAPELLE was only warming up from the weekend before and walked off with the J/80 Autumn Championships with a 2-8-1-2-5-1-1 score sheet.  Hanging in there as he'd done the week before was Ian Atkins (yea, that Boats.com guy) racing none other than BOATS.COM into second on the podium with a 3-6-5-1-4-3-2 record.  John Cooper racing O!! couldn't seem to get a consistent series off but nevertheless managed to avoid too many disastrous decisions on the race track and while starting off with a bullet, rode the roller-coaster to a 1-10-6-4-1-2-5 tally.   For more information and full results.  Photos by Paul Wyeth.

Norway's Hollender Regatta

J/133 FLIRT Dominates Huge Class

(Oslo, Norway)- Eivind Astrup and his team won the illustrious Hollender Regatta in Norway recently, emblematic of their late summer/early fall offshore sailing championship.  Here is Eivind's account of what took place in the land of the northern lights:

We love our boat and we sail our J/133 always as fast as we can. The link below is the results of the main fall event in Norway, the "Hollender" regatta with 330 entries. The distance is 50 nm. I think you will like our class result (1st out of 33 boats)  and you will note that we have reasonably good boats behind us. Otherwise, we were 1 min 05 secs from winning overall. Last year, we also won our class and missed the overall victory by 2 mins, so we'll soon be there!

I had the pleasure of helming the boat at a speed of 14-16 knots on flat water for about an hour, attaining 17 several times and a peak speed of 18.5 knots, with 7 guys sitting on the transom. The pressure was such that the cover of the spinnaker sheet melted! As a result we lost control, ended up on the roof and destroyed the sail. A new one was hoisted but the lesson is clear: Under a load like this, the drum has to be watered in order to cool down the sheet. (Ed's note- holy COW that's a lot of HEAT to melt a spinnaker sheet like that-- fair warning to all of us to "grind hard but stay cool"!!).  Here is the link.

J/Community:

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

* Holy Smokes Batman- The Wilson Race was a blast!  The J/125 WARRIOR Rocks!
    We were forwarded a follow-up report on the Wilson Trophy Race from Santa Barbara, California.  We thought you'd be amused by the account that comes from "Madmax" (a Sailing Anarchy.com contributor) onboard the J/125 WARRIOR raced and owned by the renowned radio/ talk show psychologist Dr. Laura (her boat is pictured at right):

"We started in 18-22 knots with puffs to 24 knots. Had a long beat up to Platform Holly off Isla Vista. Pretty square beat, slightly right favored. Pounded upwind with the number 3 and all went well. Were racing a SC 52 PREVAIL and a J/105 REPEAT OFFENDER  (Larry Harteck's boat that was reported on last week) mostly due to the fact that they were the only boats we could see.

There were 10-25 degree windshifts and we tacked on shifts all the way up the coast. Rounded the Platform and because it was almost a square run and max puffs were 24 we put up the Whomper..the A2. At this point we were probably winning the race, close in time though with the J/105 REPEAT OFFENDER.

We set and BLASTED OFF! As we migrated offshore looking for steadier conditions, more constant 22-24 knots windspeed, we were met with a nice surprise. Wind shot up to 30 knots and never went below 25 knots and we were, to say the least,  HAULING THE MAIL. The J/125 in 30 knots with the A2 up has enough power and speed to pass waves. We would climb up the backs and shoot down into the troughs, only to do it again. The swell was small and wind-waves were 6-10 feet. Constant 20 knots with frequent blasts to 24 knots--boatspeed man, pure boatspeed!!

We continued down the coast and finally realised that we had to gybe and get rid of the A2. We letter box dropped the A2 and then gybed. Everything was fine, we were still surfing at 20 knots with the main and jib and 130 apparent. Boys were setting up the boat to put a smaller kite up and our bowman, Jan, decided to go for a swim. Mind you we were going 18-23 knots at the time still surfing like crazy and as Jan walked back from the point with the tack line the boat surged and he flipped head over heels over the bow. I tried to turn towards him...deeper and flick him back on but it was to late. Kit our boat man ran for him and got a hand on him but frankly at 20 plus knots...no way. Ker-plunck...Jan gone.

Instant broach into the wind on port, crew sprang into action and 3 people kept an eye and pointed at him. 2-3 others ran to the bow for a jib douse. Jib was 70% down and we sailed 2 more boatlengths and tacked, never getting more that 4-5 boatlengths from Jan.

Jan looked OK and after the tack we bore off to a broadreach and headed up beside him with the leeward beam and by the time the boat stopped he was abeam the mainsheet winches. Pulled him back on and had to put the jib back up, just to bear away. It was now 32-33 knots steady. Bore away and gybed again and ended up on port with a wind angle of 120-130 headed for the barn. Continued to surf at 20-24 knots with main and jib, not really surfing but planing 65% of the time.

Checked on Jan and he was OK. Had a nice mouse under his eye from hitting the rail. He showed no signs of shock but was a little shaky. We watched him closely and finished just behind the SC 52.

Parked the boat and trudged up to the club. Jan was fine but decided to head home for some ice on his lump.

Larry Harteck and the REPEAT OFFENDER crew on the J/105 managed to sail the whole run with their chute up and won easily. Dana Jones, the Santa Barbara YC Race Committee chair said he had never seen a J/105 go so fast. He said they were planning and looked like a skiff. This did not come without a wipe out though--Larry said the were pinned at least once during the 3 gybes they did.

All and all, INSANE RACE. Most fun running I have done in a LONG time. One thing is clear....The J/125 needs a smaller kite then the A2 in 30 knots!!

I give the entire Doc Laura crew a "big kudos" for acting so fast and staying so calm during the man overboard drill. It could have been much worse. The crew pulled together and did a superb job."

Editors Note- "Congratulations to you, Dr. Laura and the crew for exemplary seamanship in such difficult conditions.  Thank goodness you had fun and could tell the story afterwards!"

Featured Boat- J/133

A brand new J/133 "J/Demo" boat is available, ready to race for Key West!

This J/133 is currently located in France but is ready to ship anywhere in the world.  A proven race winner, her sistership J/133 BATFISH III won the RORC IRC Overall Season Championship in England and France.  Another sistership in America is racing on Long Island Sound, the J/133 SIREN SONG is proving hard to beat in a wide variety of conditions.

Now is the time to get rolling for Key West and the 2010 sailing season.  Take advantage of this "fall special" and get ready to rock and have fun this coming season.  This J/133 is available at $430,000 USD, FOB Bristol, RI with all options and U.S. shorepower.

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:  11 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 in 35+ countries around the world.  Sailing is all about friends.  Come join us and expand your social network everywhere!
For background info:
http://www.jboats.com/intro.htm

Subscribe to our J/Newsletter here:
http://www.jboats.com/lists/?p=subscribe

J/Newsletter- October 7th, 2009

Introducing The NEW J/111 Speedster!

(Annapolis, MD- October 8th)-  J/Boats announces today a new 36' sportboat design planned for 2010 introduction.  The J/111 is a sleek, modern one-design, with a large daysailing cockpit, easy-to-handle sail plan and 6' headroom below for comfortable weekending. 

“The J/111 is all about more speed, fewer crew and more fun,” says J/Boats President, Jeff Johnstone.  “The low wetted-surface hull, high-aspect, non-overlapping sail plan, and low VCG bulb keel combine to provide tremendous acceleration in light air plus high righting moment for good upwind performance in a breeze. The masthead asymmetric spinnaker set off a retractable carbon sprit will deliver planing speeds in moderate breezes."

Jeff and Alan will be at the Annapolis Boatshow and can speak to you in more details about this exciting new J!  For more info contact J/Boats now- Phone- +1-401-846-8410 or Email- info@jboats.com.

Regatta Schedule

Oct 23-25- J/80 North Americans- Galveston Bay- Lakewood YC.  For more info.
Oct. 24-30- J/24 European Championships- Eastern Mediterranean- Chania, Greece.  For more info.
Oct. 28-Nov. 1- J/105 North Americans- Long Island Sound- American YC.  For more info.
Nov. 18-21- J/24 South Americans- Porto Alegre, Brazil- Veleiros do Sul- For more info.

J/Regatta News

The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide

The fall sailing season with significant events taking place in both the Americas and Europe.  In Europe, they've kicked off the GARMIN Hamble Winter Series.  In America, there have been significant events taking place, including the ROLEX Women's Youth Training event in Rochester prior to this week's ROLEX Women's Keelboat Regatta.  Furthermore, the J/30s celebrated their 30th Anniversary this year with a great North Americans in Long Island Sound.  And, not to be outdone is the J/22 Class hosting another epic J/22 North Americans down south in the hospitable confines of sunny southeastern Texas!  Letting us know that not all the fun is out East are the boys from Santa Barbara- the Wilson Trophy was held in 20-35 knots winds in the Santa Barbara Channel!   Read on!  More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page!  Below are the summaries.

J/30 North Americans Celebrate 30th Anniversary

Team FUZZY WUZZY Smothers Them All

(Cedar Point YC/ Westport, CT- October 2nd-4th)-  Bengt Johansson, representing Raritan Yacht Club in NJ, sailed his FUZZY WUZZY to a second consecutive J-30 North American Championship. With all firsts and seconds in the five-race, 15-boat series, FUZZY WUZZY bested five-time champion Scott Tonguis' ZEPHYR team from New Orleans, and local aces John McArthur in SMILES and 1994 champion Carl Sherter in FAT CITY, and Steve Buzbee sailing BLUE MEANY, also out of Raritan.

Friday dawned with temps in the 30s, and a light southeasterly. By race time the temperature was straining to get to 60, and the breeze oscillated, with a rightward trend, at about 5-7 knots. ZEPHYR (sailing in borrowed boat BLEU BAYOU) led from start to finish, seeking to reclaim their trophy last won in 2006. FUZZY WUZZY was a close second, ahead of SMILES.

By the start of the second race, the ebb tide was ripping down Long Island Sound, across the building southerly wind. FUZZY WUZZY claimed the top spot, leading ZEPHYR and BLUE MEANIE as Principal Race Officer Eric Robbins (Tampa, FL) and his 12-person team stepped the four-leg course down-tide, changing at each mark.

The fleet motor-sailed back to the original starting area for the third race, with the wind now blowing 12-14k. As the tide slowed, FUZZY WUZZY romped to another victory, well ahead of FAT CITY and ZEPHYR.

Saturday was warmer but still overcast. After a short postponement, the breeze settled in from the south, and the fleet raced another six-mile, four-leg course. This contest belonged to SMILES, holding off FUZZY WUZZY and ZEPHYR in the final run to the finish. The fifth race of the series saw the top four boats FUZZY WUZZY, ZEPHYR, SMILES and FAT CITY finish the race in the order of their final standings. Although another race was attempted, the wind faded before the starting signal, and the fleet raced in ahead of a building storm.

All enjoyed a most excellent lobster banquet, as Regatta Chairman John McArthur handed out trophies to the first five boats in each race. The forecast for Sunday was discouraging.  All morning Sunday a race committee boat sat out on Long Island Sound, but could find no breeze stronger than 2.5k, so the fleet stayed ashore. After three horns at 1245, beautiful half-hull trophies were awarded to the top five boats. FUZZY WUZZY also repeated as Top Amateur boat. Next year the Championship will be held in Marblehead, MA.  For more regatta info.  Event photos courtesy of PHOTOBOAT/ Alan.

J/122s Dominate Voile de St. Tropez

LANCE J and MADE IN LOVE Take 1-3

(St. Tropez, France- October 2-4)- Saturday was the last, but certainly the most exciting, day of racing in the 2009 edition of Les Voiles de Saint-Tropez. Navigators had a tough time on the water as the winds were incredibly shifty and the water choppy, leading to lots of action both inside and outside the Gulf once the classics and modern boats had started and all the spectator boats were on the race course. The wind picked up remarkably outside the Gulf and stayed steady in force, although unpredictable in direction, at about 10-20 knots.

The J/122 LANCE J won their IRC class amongst a grand prix collection of teams from around the French offshore racing circuit.  Pierre Duchein and team did a nice job to win and were followed by the J/122 MADE IN LOVE in third place overall, led by Jean Marie Patier with two leading French women sailors amongst their crew- Catherine Chabaud as skipper and world renowned Christine Briand as tactician.
Photo credits by Gullain Gernier/ Gilles Martin-Raget.   Full regatta results.

J/22 North Americans

Flip Wins Showdown at OK Corral!

Heath, TX (September 30, 2009) - Phil "Flip" Wehrheim, of Rochester, NY, scored bullets in three of four races to rule day one at the Genesta J/22 North American Championship at Rush Creek Yacht Club. Sailing with Max Skelley and Greg Koski, Wehrheim controlled the other 36 teams, and finished the first day with just 8 points.  They held their lead by only by one point heading into the final day of racing.  Scott Young of Austin, TX placed in the top three in each of Thursday’s races, including a first in the last race of the day.  With one throw-out coming into play, Wehrheim’s team sat with 15 points to Young’s 16 going into Sunday. With seven races completed, Terry Flynn held the third-place position with 21 points, and Kelson Elam followed him with 25 points.  Elam won Thursday’s first race, and Wehrheim won the middle race.  Competitors saw a wide range of weather on Lake Ray Hubbard, including rain to start and sun to finish.  Most of the day, winds blew between 8-12 knots, building to 18 in the final race.

However, Sunday became anti-climactic for the leaders because all racing was canceled due to no wind!  Competitors were postponed on shore until early Sunday afternoon.  An attempt to complete at least one race proved unsuccessful, as the light winds never settled, and teams were sent back to shore.  The top 10 were: Flip Wehrheim (15 points), Scott Young (16), Terry Flynn (21), Kelson Elam (25), Chris Doyle and Eric Faust (tied at 33), Rob Johnston (35), Dave Kerr and Marvin Beckmann (tied at 56) and Max Scott (58).

The J/22 Class and the competitors wish to thank Genesta as the title sponsor, Rush Creek Yacht Club, PRO Mike Anderson and the entire race committee.  For more regatta info.

ROLEX Women's Keelboat Championship

Top Women's Worlds Teams Face Off This Week

(Rochester, NY- October 6) - This year's US SAILING's Rolex International Women's Keelboat Championship has 35 teams representing five countries (Canada, Great Britain, Netherlands, South Africa, United States) and 15 U.S. states gathered together at host Rochester Yacht Club (RYC). Off the mouth of the Genesee River on Lake Ontario, four days of racing will take place, Oct. 7-10, under the leadership of Principal Race Officer Hank Stuart and the RYC Race Committee. The biennial regatta, celebrating its 13th anniversary of offering women of all abilities the opportunity for top-level competition, features evening social activities and culminates with the traditional Rolex gala and awards presentation where the Bengt Julin Trophy and a Rolex timepiece will be awarded to the winning boat's skipper.

The second place team at the 2007 Rolex IWKC was lead by RYC's team skippered by Cory Sertl, who has competed in the regatta 10 times, winning twice - as crew for Betsy Alison in the inaugural event in Newport in 1985 and as skipper in 2001 in Annapolis, Md. A 1988 Olympian and two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, Sertl kept her 2007 team together and set her sights on this year's title. Together with crew Amy Moran, Annemarie Cook and Jane Mastrandrea, they will be focused not only on doing well in the regatta but also on one other team in particular, the team that two of their daughters are part of. Moran's daughter Merritt, a RYC sail instructor and high school sailor will helm an entry including two high school sailors, Sertl's daughter Katja, and Julie Wiesner, with top-level bow person Martha Parker and 10-year-old Bridget Lawless, the youngest skipper in the history of the event, rounding out the five-person team.   Follow the 2009 Rolex IWKC.  For regatta photos.

J/105 Wins Wilson Trophy

Harteck's REPEAT OFFENDER Smokes Fleet

(Santa Barbara, October 4th)- A number of brave souls ventured forth into the incredibly capricious Santa Barbara Channel this past weekend in what might be described as "nuclear conditions".  With a forecast of 20-30 knots, gusting higher, a small band or hardy souls ventured forth and survived.  Could it be that some of our more intrepid J/Boats owners were included in that elite (or crazy) group??  Perhaps so.

Larry Harteck from Santa Barbara Yacht Club sailed his J/105 REPEAT OFFENDER to first place in the twenty mile race.  It was a ten mile beat around the westernmost oil platform off Santa Barbara Chnanel with a long run home.  As Larry reported, "We did the 10 mile run in about 45 minutes which included 3 jibes, one of which resulted in a knockdown. Wind peaked at about 30 knots and we hit a top speed of 20.4 knots. We were going about 18.5 when this photo was taken. This was a PHRF event with only 5 boats finishing. We finished 1st overall, 2nd was Dr. Laura's J/125 Warrior and 3rd was a Santa Cruz 52."
Photo credits-  Cheryl Fontana

 

US SAILING’S 2009  ROLEX Next Step Program

Twenty Five New Junior Women Sailors Graduate!

(Rochester, NY- October 4) – This past weekend, 25 young women sailors traveled to the Rochester Yacht Club to take place in the Next Step to Rolex Program. The young women, ranging in age from 14-17 and representing junior programs from across the U.S. and as far away as Hawaii, were selected to participate in the once-of-a-lifetime keelboat clinic, the core outreach program of US SAILING’s Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship. Organized by 1988 U.S. Olympian and two-time winner of the Rolex IWKC Cory Sertl (Rochester), the weekend featured all-day clinics with the focus on making the transition from dinghies to keelboats.

“The girls really came with a lot of experience in different kinds of boats,” said Sertl, noting that the caliber of sailors participating was more advanced than when she first coached the program, in 2001. “They picked things up quickly and we got more accomplished than we ever thought we would.”

In addition to Sertl, a two-time Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, coaches included Sertl’s Rolex IWKC crew Amy Moran, along with 2008 Olympic Gold Medalist and US SAILING’s 2008 Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year Anna Tunnicliffe (Plantation, Fla.), Justin DaMore, RYC’s sailing director Jon Faudree and RYC’s junior sailing director Liz Bower.

The program utilized International J/22s, the same keelboat used in the Rolex IWKC, with four sailors on each accompanied by a coach. The weekend centered around teamwork, communication and the skills essential to racing keelboats. Easily identified by their bright buoy-yellow caps, with the Rolex IWKC logo and ‘2009 Next Step to Rolex’ embroidered on the back, the young women concluded their learning experience with a video debrief by coach Faudree, who followed the J/22s throughout the two days. For comparison, he showed the same maneuvers executed by Tunnicliffe and team on a J/22. The enthusiastic group noted the significant difference in style and boat handling.

“We talked about doing a mini regatta at the conclusion,” said Sertl, “but we didn’t want to risk having the boats damaged before regatta. For most of the girls, their time-on-distance wasn’t as good because they’re new to these boats. They were all together, learning to sail in a non-competitive atmosphere. They’re always in a competitive environment when they’re racing, so they were comforted by the fact they didn’t have to race.

Three of RYC Next Step to Rolex Program participants will get to take what they’ve learned straight to the race course this week when they make their debut as a team in the Rolex IWKC. Merritt Moran, Katja Sertl and Julie Wiesner will team up with veteran bow person Martha Parker (Newport, R.I.) for racing this Wednesday through Saturday.

The Next Step to Rolex Program was established in 1997 to expose and mentor juniors interested in taking the “next step” toward advanced women’s sailing.  Since its creation as a complementary component of the Rolex IWKC, the Next Step to Rolex Program has served as an inspiration for hundreds of young women from across the U.S. and abroad.

For more information about the 2009 Next Step to Rolex Program, contact Cory Sertl via email or the Rochester Yacht Club at 585-342-5511.

J/Community:

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

* "Got to love a boat that lets you fly the chute with the kids and the dogs on deck..."  So says Randel Osborne who was last seen disappearing over the horizon on his J/120 FLY with the whole gang in tow.  We believe he may be inspired by another enthusiastic J/Owner- Peter Van Alstine who's taking his J/44 "down island".  While Randel may not have prepared his crew to do the long trek, we would not be surprised in the least that he simply turned "right" and headed past Bermuda to Tortola!  ;-)  Here's to those sweet, cherished snapshots in time to enjoy a few moments together!

*  From the week before, we got a very thoughtful note from Brad Earl at Brad Earl Photography regards his coverage of the J/24 New England Championships.  Were it not for his diligence and perseverance, we would not have seen any photos of this event, nor even coverage! Thanks again to Brad for his efforts, it's greatly appreciated by all of those who sailed in the event as well as their friends in the J/Community worldwide.   To remind everyone, here's one of Brad's many nice photos.  For more examples of his work, please visit his site.

*  Amanda Denton, the J/Concierge for J/Fest West and our J owners out West took a lot of great photos of the various J's racing last weekend off San Diego, California as well as some great shots of the crew, both onshore and offshore!  Plus, take a look at how good those J skipper's/ owners grill and serve up munchies and drinks!  Now that's a great idea that ought to be duplicated at other J events-- crews rule!!   Here is the link to the picasa photo album Amanda made for J/Fest. You can steal all the photos you want off of there.

* More lessons learned from our friend Scott Young?  OMG, Scott, seems like it's more life lessons learned for all of us!!   Scott is among a long list of outstanding sailors from Texas and was an All-American Intercollegiate sailor from University of Texas back in the days when your Editor (Stu J) once competed for the Jumbo's (Tufts University Sailing Team).  After not having steered a boat in a competitive race since May, Scott and his team came within one point of winning the J-22 North American Championship held last week at Rush Creek Yacht Club outside of Dallas, Texas.  Consider the fact that Scott was up against other top guys like Kelsom Elam, Terry Flynn and Chris Doyle- all J/22 Champions of some form or another and you'll appreciate his achievements.  Here is an excerpt  from his wrap-up report: "....I always try and come away with at least a few lessons learned.  #1- Always sail with people you enjoy. Life is too short to not enjoy the people you race with. John Morran and Mark Salih are a couple of my oldest and best friends. I haven't laughed so hard in a long, long time! Sailboat racing is a game. Have fun and enjoy it with people you like."  We couldn't agree with you more!  Please read  more of Scott's pearls of wisdom here.

Featured Boat

New J/133 "J/Demo" boat is available, ready to race for Key West!

This J/133 is currently located in France but is ready to ship anywhere in the world.  A proven race winner, her sistership J/133 BATFISH III won the RORC IRC Overall Season Championship in England and France.  Another sistership in America is racing on Long Island Sound, the J/133 SIREN SONG is proving hard to beat in a wide variety of conditions.

Now is the time to get rolling for Key West and the 2010 sailing season.  Take advantage of this "fall special" and get ready to rock and have fun this coming season.  This J/133 is available at $430,000 USD, FOB Bristol, RI with all options and U.S. shorepower.  Contact J/Boats at Ph# +1-401-846-8410 or via email at "info@jboats.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:  11 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 in 35+ countries around the world.  Sailing is all about friends.  Come join us and expand your social network everywhere!    For background info.

Subscribe to our J/Newsletter here.