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.
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