J/Class @ Key West
Join Us for the 25th Anniversary- KWRW 2012!
(Key West, FL)- North America's premiere annual midwinter big-boat regatta, Key West Race Week, has lots to celebrate. A new sponsor and early one-design class commitments from J/Sailors are just some of the reasons the 25th anniversary will be a memorable gathering. KWRW has on-board Quantum Sail Design Group as Title Sponsor- the regatta will be January 16-20, 2012 (a.k.a. Q/KWRW).
"Key West Race Week is the premiere midwinter regatta in the northern hemisphere and has been for well over two decades," said Quantum President Ed Reynolds, a long-time J/sailor and participant in the first J/24 Midwinters in 1978 that inspired KWRW. "People love heading to Florida after the holidays to catch up with their sailing friends who come from around the globe to participate in this event which is second to none for competitive racing."
"We're grateful for Quantum stepping up to the plate and helping make the 25th anniversary event a reality," said Event Director Peter Craig. "J/Boats entrants and classes have been a really big part of this midwinter classic since Premiere Racing first got involved in 1994. In addition to the J/80 and J/105 one-design classes, we feel the new J specific handicap classes will generate great racing with tight rating bands."
J/Classes committed include the J/105s and J/80s running their Midwinter Championships. A 2012 innovation will be J/Boats based handicap classes that utilize time-tested PHRF rating benchmarks published by J/Boats since 1980 (see J/Boats PHRF Handicaps). "We are really excited about the prospects of developing J/Boats specific handicap classes at Key West 2012," said Jeff Johnstone, President of J/Boats. "The concept is to group together different J designs of similar speed to provide both excellent class racing, as well as open up the possibility for sub-class one-design racing. An example would be the J/111s and one or two other models racing together with a tight rating band. We are already projecting as many as six J/111s next year for Key West."
Come join us this year for more fun in the sun in Key West! Please contact J/Boats at "info@jboats.com" or ph 401-846-8410 or Premiere Racing's Peter Craig- Peter@Premiere-Racing.com or 781-639-9545. For more Quantum Key West Race Week sailing information Sailing photo credit- Billy Black photography
BMW Joins J/24 Europeans!(Dublin, Ireland)- Howth Yacht Club has announced that BMW Ireland is the title sponsor of the J/24 European Championship at Howth this coming September when up to forty boats from six countries are expected to compete.
One of the major regattas in Ireland this year, the BMW J/24 Europeans has already attracted interest from J/24 sailors in the UK, Holland, Sweden, Monaco, Italy, Germany and Greece. Racing will take place over four days (September 12th to 15th), and will be preceded by registration, measurement and practice starting on the 9th. The Principal Race Officer will be ISAF International Race Officer David Lovegrove while Bob Milner (UK) will chair the International Jury. Howth Yacht Club has previously hosted six World and European Championships in the past, testimony to its ability to host major regattas. The BMW J/24 Europeans is the biggest event in a program of 22 local, national and international events being staged by the club in 2011. For more BMW J/24 Europeans sailing information and more sailing sponsor information from BMW Yacht-Sport here.
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
If April showers bring May flowers, haven't seen too many of them yet. Much of the northern hemisphere is experiencing either cooler than normal conditions with plenty of rain (flooding wide areas of the American Midwest), producing remarkably powerful thunderstorms or producing highly variable winds from a number of directions and velocities (the Med and northern Europe). Perhaps the exceptions happen to be the real sunny places like Southern California, Sydney, Australia, Bermuda (of course), South Africa and Palma Mallorca, Spain. Speaking of which, Palma had an exceptional J/80 Copa de Espana this past week with ferocious competition. Just north in The Netherlands, Stellendam hosted a warm, sunny but light Van Uden Rico Regatta for the J/22s. Down off France's famous seaside town, La Trinite sur Mer, the J/80s and larger J's had a fast, furious windy race in the Tour de Belle Ile, that gorgeous, hilly island off the Bay of Quiberon. Down under in Australia, the J/24s had a well-attended, competitive fleet sailing in Sandringham Bay. The J/22s in South Africa on Easter Weekend had a record turnout for their Mpumalanga Provincial Championships with plenty of breeze. Their sunny neighbors across the Atlantic pond to the west saw the J/24 and J/105 classes in Bermuda host yet another fun, sunny, breezy Bermuda International Invitational Race Week at the equally spectacular Royal Bermuda Yacht Club. Read on! The J/Community and Cruising section below continue to enjoy the Caribbean and the South Pacific, staying warm while others are trying to stay warm up north. Check them out! More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page! Below are the summaries.Regatta & Show Schedules:
May 10-14- J/24 Nationals- Dallas, TX- http://j24texas.com/May 14-15- J/109 Vice Admirals Cup- Cowes, England- http://www.rorc.com
May 14-15- Ahmanson Cup- Newport Beach, CA- http://www.nhyc.org
May 14-15- J/109 Vice Admirals Cup- Cowes, England- http://www.rorc.com
May 20-22- STS Seattle NOOD- Seattle, WA- http://www.sailingworld.com
May 27- STC Block Island Race- Stamford, CT- http://www.stormtrysail.org/
Jun 3- Annapolis-Newport Race- Annapolis, MD- http://www.race.annapolisyc.org
Jun 12-19- Rolex Giraglia Cup- Genoa, Italy- http://www.yachtclubitaliano.it
Jun 18-22- Kieler Woche Regatta- Kiel, Germany- http://www.kyc.de/
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
IURISNAUTIC Wins J/80 Copa de Espana(Palma Mallorca, Spain)- As predicted, the Copa de Espana for the J/80 class in Spain was every bit as competitive as a J/80 World championship, but there was a surprise victor! Cesar Espinosa sailing IURISNAUTIC ended the first day of racing in first and managed to hold off all contenders to become the Copa de Espana Champion 2011.
On Saturday, the fleet racing began in the waters off Palma with 2 World Champions, 2 class Olympic Medallists and 14 Palmistas from the local fleet, all strong teams. And, it was a "local Palmista" that sailed a very strong series to win the day. IURISNAUTIC sailed by Carlos Espinosa of the Club de Mar in Palma was ranked first with Jose Luis Serra at the helm and tactician was none other than Tono Piris-- now that's called "stacking the deck" in your favor-- all smart sailors. In second for the day was the PalmaVela winner MAPFRE sailed by Carlos Martinez from the RCR Santiago de la Ribera club. And, third for the day was J/80 World Champion Rayco Tabares sailing his well-known, and famous, HOTEL PRINCESA YAIZA from the Canary Islands.
For the second day of the Cup of Spain there were less stable conditions for the participants. Saturday's test was marked by the struggle between the top three overall. The second set of races on Sunday for Carlos Espinosa's IURISNAUTIC showed that the lead in the opening day was not a gift! Ultimately, they were proclaimed Champion. Sailing strongly on Sunday to jump onto the podium was TURISMO DO ALGARVE sailed by Olympic medallist Hugo Rocha and Gonzalo Araujo just three points behind. Third place was Carlos Martinez's MAPFRE. Fourth place went to another J/80 World Champion, Ignacio Camino sailing his famous NEXTEL ENGINEERING and in fifth place was HM HOTELS sailed by Javier Chacartegui. It was a great day of racing in the Bay of Palma, plus the local Palma J/80 fleet paid a tribute to the late Severiano Ballesteros-- a famous Spanish athlete/ golfer. For more Copa de Espana J/80 sailing information. Sailing photo credits- Jesus Renedo- SailingStock.com
COYOTE And J/120 Dominate Tour de Belle-Ile(La Trinite sur Mer, France)- Aurelie and Romain Pilliard, organizers of the Tour de Belle-Ile, are amazed at success of the event, which this year attracted 486 boats on the same line, against 329 last year. It's seemingly a gathering of those who love the fun and challenge of "round island" events, the "tour" is like England's famous Round Island Race (Isle of Wight), Newport's Around Jamestown Island, San Francisco's version (the 3BF- Three Bridge Fiasco) and Brazil's Round Ilhabela. Friends and family from all over France gather together for a 41 nm jaunt around the spectacular scenery of Belle Ile, marked by its mountainous terrain and enormous cliffs with picturesque lighthouses perched atop verdant green rolling hills. It's always a challenging race and the massive fronts that come rolling off the Bay of Biscay often see the less prepared "running for the hills", so to speak, headed back to the cozy confines of La Trinite sur Mer's harbor.
The big French offshore tri's show up. So do top Volvo 70 teams like Franck Camas on GROUPAMA 70. It's certainly thrilling to watch these monsters roar through the fleet at obscene speeds (15-25 knots) with spray flying everywhere, disappearing in a cloud of salt mist over the horizon, certain to finish in under 3 hours. This year, one of these monsters set a new record- 2 hrs 42 minutes- Sebastien Josse on the 77 ft tri- GITANA 11. As one of them said, "I shall return. It was very nice! A very nice tour of Belle-Isle!"There were a number of J's sailing the event. The top dog was Yves Lanier's J/120 LES 4 VENTS- BREST from Centre Nautique de Lorient, winning Group HNA with 21 boats. In the same division was Gaetan Bodmer's J/92s MAORO from CV de Morsang sur Seine in 8th overall. Incredibly, a J/24 was racing in a fleet of mostly 25-30 footers and finished in 7th, Antoine Vanek's SEA TADDLE in Group HNC.
In Group IRC3, the top J was Frederic Guillemot's J/105 MISS J just missing the top 3 by 5 minutes, ouch, and instead getting a 10th overall-- it was a very tightly fought race in this group, surely the last few shifts coming into the finish line causing many tacticians anxiety on which way to go.
Perhaps the big story was the large J/80 fleet of 14 boats, the largest one-design class in the Tour de Belle-Ile. And, it included several notable, famous French sailors- Mr. America's Cup/ Louis Vuitton- Bruno Trouble on-board his COYOTE (pictured right) and also Yannick Tabarly, the son of the very renowned offshore sailor Eric Tabarly of PEN DUICK fame. It was a tough fight for this group. Starting out fast downwind, the J/80s got down to the SW tip of the gorgeous Belle Ile knowing that after they past the eastern tip it was going to be a tough, uphill windward battle to the finish. As they demonstrated in the J/80 Worlds in Newport, Bruno's "Jurassic Park" team were as tough as Tyrannosaurus Rex! Bruno's COYOTE team won by nearly 9 minutes over Yannick Tabarly's ALARME DELERUE PROXEO sailing for Ecole de Voile Oceane. In third was Hubert Wargny sailing AXELLE J from Yacht Club d France, fourth was Eric Bastard sailing SENJI from Societe Nautique Trinite sur Mer and fifth was Patrice Mack sailing GIGA also from SN Trinite s/Mer. 
We got a full report from friends Francois Thobie and crew on LE SALON- THE PLACE TO BE- BE J's: "It is these "races" that we remember! It is these events that we refuse to miss, for the atmosphere, for the journey, and for all those little things that make the "Tour of Belle Isle" different from what we used to live in the Coupe de France. There is also this wonderful picture that gives us the wild side, and this, whatever the weather, and also the now "famous" night crew who arrive late while their competitors have been spending many dance hours on rhythms in the discos.The Tour of Belle Isle is a great feast, to which BE J's makes a point of honor to take part each year. The main difference this year was the weather. Uncertain until the final hours before departure, even to the point where it was discussed to run the fleet inside the protected Bay of Quiberon.
Once outside, the starts were delayed. It leaves us time to go play with the spi, that's when BE J's beat its record day surfing to just over 16 knots! That's good start…
However, what to do on the start (picture at right)? Especially, in the company of nearly 500 competitors! BE J's is among the smaller boats of the fleet, it will therefore have to find a hole among all these bows (some cruisers, proudly display their anchors on their bows- yikes!). Without doubt it's a tactic to scare the opponent who would dare to assert its priority over the line ... a bit like judo with a dagger in the pocket of the kimono!After the start, everyone follows a brisk pace out to sea and the waves are becoming bigger and bigger, a surfing condition that J/80 loves flying fast, in total control, with hundreds of liters of water rolling across the deck--- we go very, very fast!
To go around the island is fine, but then you have to get back upwind! After the tip of the shoals off the east end, we find ourselves handicapped by our jib halyard, which prevents us from properly flattening the sail. Arriving on the southeast side of the island, along the wild coast, we also face an enormous 3 meter swell in which we seem very small. From that point, going upwind to return home to La Trinite is a long time!We are not alone in the breakers off the wild south coast, we have many J/80s in view! The return from the tip of Taillefer will only be a continuation of the competition with one of our top J/80s GIGA. In fact, with one tack to the finish line in Trinidad, only 30 seconds separated us! So small a distance after only 40 nm of sailing! Amazing. One-design sailing is so fun.
BE J's finished the Tour in 7 hours, 30 minutes, the final ranking of 6th place (out of 14) ... but we have no time to lose, a rum tai punch is waiting for us at the regatta tent. Thank you to the SNT for this tour, you can count on BE J's to be there for the 5th edition! And, congratulations to Bruno and Team COYOTE!" For more Tour de Belle Ile Sailing Information. For more of BE-J's /80 sailing stories, please see their site.
Sailing photo credits- Christophe Launay- SeaLaunay
Postcard Perfect Bermuda Sailing!J/24s and J/105s Revel in Race Week
(Hamilton, Bermuda)- This years edition of the Bermuda International Invitational Race Week, powered by Bacardi Rums, proved yet again why crews love to get invited to sail in Bermuda. What's wrong with this picture? Get invited. Go sail. Go party. Get picked up and delivered at the airport. And, enjoy wonderful times with your gracious host! For those who've experienced the extraordinary Bermudian hospitality, many simply say, "we've died and gone to sailing heaven".
The first day of racing for 83rd Bermuda International Invitational Race week started with beautiful sunny weather and winds out of the North between 15-20knots. Day two of Race week was very exciting. Winds were 20-22 with gust to 30, the end result is the IODs had a little bit of damage. Racing resumed day 4 (Wednesday) after racing was cancelled on Tuesday because of high winds 35-40. Because of this the Tuesday night "Dock on the Dock" party was quiet because the racing was close for all classes. The rest of the week was both benign and beautiful.
The J/24 class in Bermuda threw down the red carpet and welcome mat again for their breathless guests. This year there were teams from England (2), Canada (1) and USA (1). Adorned with Bermuda shorts and polo-shirts, ready to tickle their toes in the famous pink sand beaches, and enjoying their first libations of Bacardi Rum drinks with umbrellas in them, it didn't take long for the visiting dignitaries to take on the sybaritic trappings of "island life" (where manana is manana-- e.g. tomorrow is tomorrow). While being great and wonderful hosts, it did not mean the Bermudians were offering to duck everyone while on starboard or letting everyone "walk politely through the gate door first" and have room at the mark! Au contraire! The racing was fun but competitive. And, having learned the ropes fast, young Trevor Boyce from Bermuda grabbed the "Wetty Gripper Trophy" for first overall. The British team of Roger Morris managed to snag second and the Canadian team of Sean McDermott placed fourth. Pete Ramsdale from Bermuda was third.In the J/24 class there was some excitement on the first day. Local boy, Trevor Boyce and his son decided to go swimming in the third race of the day getting a fourth in the that race after getting two bullets. Lots of broaches in the J/24s, should be even more exciting tomorrow with higher winds. At the end of the day, Trevor Boyce sailed very well and was first overall, and which was fairly certain before Friday's racing. The major contest was for second, third and fourth place. The racing for those places was also decided right at the finish line with Peter Ramsdale just beating Sean McDermott by a nose and Roger Morris just beating Pete. So Trevor was first with 17 points, Roger Morris from the UK was second with 25 points, Pete Ramsdale was third with 28 points and Sean McDermott from Canada was fourth with 30 points. Talking with Trevor he said it was great racing all week and the competition was very close.
The J/105s have continued to grow as a fleet in Bermuda, taking advantage of the fact that you can buy great used J/105s in the USA and import them for less than half of what it cost to do new a dozen or so years ago. This year, it is believed that it was the first time anyone had won a BIIRW Bacardi with nearly straight firsts! Congratulations to Chuck Millican and Dave Brining for this remarkable feat. Second was Jim McDonald and third was Ed Faries. There was plenty of discussion at the Royal Bermuda YC bar about this year's race week and the weather. What is interesting, since 1958, RBYC have never had a race week with the wind from the south!? And, that's despite the fact the prevailing wind in Bermuda is from the south! Video of J/105s Sailing in Bermuda. Video of J/24s Sailing in Bermuda. For more Bermuda International Race Week sailing information.
AMTEC J/22 Mpumalanga Provincial Champs (Mpumalanga, South Africa)- What to do on an Easter Weekend in South Africa? Go sailing no matter what "Mum" says! From 1000 hours on Easter Friday, the grounds of Witbank Yacht & Aquatic Club became a hive of activity in frantic and hyper-kinetic preparation for the Amtec J/22 Mpumalanga Provincial Championships. Life was made easier for the registration team as most of the information had been collected prior to the event. Thank goodness since we had a HUGE turn-out twenty-one boats!
Witbank Yacht Club had pulled out all the stops with the facilities and infrastructure ensuring a well run and organised event. With boats and crew prepared, the winners of the Amtec sponsored spinnaker, the team on PAGURO IV, knew that their chances had just improved. The first race on Saturday started with winds of 8-10 knots, an organised bridge committee had a course laid and a prompt start for the fleet of 21 J/22's commenced at 1100. No one boat held the first place consecutively as the competition was close and fierce. In the first three races a maximum of 8 minutes separated the first and last boats. A quick turnaround between races ensured that a total of 6 races were completed. The Durban entry, VOODOO skippered by Luke Wagner and crewed by Jean and Siya showed that they were a team to be reckoned with achieving two firsts, two seconds, a third and a fourth. The steady wind which calmed slightly after three races did nothing to deter the boat skippered and crewed by the Youth team. They were as competitive as their experienced senior counterparts as proved by Donovan Kruger on HAKAHANA rounding the mark first in the 6th race and ultimately finishing 7th. As the sound signals for the 6th race were heard there were some tired bodies but the focus was ever present with five minutes separating the first and last boat. Sunday saw a lighter breeze but four evenly matched races completed the regatta on 10.
The land crew worked extremely hard getting all J22's out of the water in preparation for the J/22 Amtec Nationals scrutineering. Prize-giving acknowledged Donavan Kruger, with his team of Jared, Steven Kruger and Justin Botha being the first placed youth skipper. Third place saw US'N'J skippered by Graham Baker with Barry and Shaun Gurnell with 28 points, second VOODOO with Luke and his team with 25 points and first place to Richard Weiderholdt on CELL C with his team of Greg Plunkett and Rob Edwards on 18 points. Special thanks went to Mike Hayton of Amtec for his sponsorship, time and effort as well as all Witbank Yacht Club ensuring a fantastic regatta was held by all. For more J/22 Mpumalanga Provincial sailing information
J/24s Clash @ Sandringham(Sandringham, NSW, Australia)- Past champions clashed for the honours to be named the J/24 Sandringham Yacht Club Centenary Regatta winner. Adam Evans who has represented Australia in the 2005 International Cadet and 2009 J/24 World Championships, won the title after battling against the 2010 J/24 World Championship representatives Hugo Ottaway and Kirsty Harris. Evans and his crew of past Cadet sailors have only been sailing J’s for 6 months yet mastered the testing 5 to 10 knot breezes to score a 1-3-2-2.
Adams boat SDM was the quickest under spinnaker and this was the key to his win. Second was Hugo Ottaway and 2011 Laser Victorian Champion Sean Bly doing tactics with a 2-1-1-6 sailing his newly acquired BRUSCHETTA VI. Kirsty Harris and her mainly female crew scored a 3-4-3-1 sailing HYPERACTIVE. The J/24′s have enjoyed a huge growth this year with 15 boats actively sailing at Sandringham Yacht Club. The J’s flew Red and White Class flags in honor of the Clubs 2011 Centenary on the hardstand area creating colour and impact behind the main stage where the competitors gathered for the presentation of trophies. For more J/24 Sandringham sailing information.
Beautiful Easter J/22 WeekendVan Uden Reco Regatta Had Great Sailing
(Stellendam, The Netherlands)- It was a nice Easter weekend. It was perhaps late this year but 3 years ago there was so much snow on Easter that a snowman in the garden could be made. Shorts and sun this weekend were must-haves during the Van Uden Reco in Stellendam.
The predictions were very mixed. A sleepy start for the day was very welcome. For those who tried to sail to the line it was hard, a paddle worked nicely! The first couple of hours before the race the RC had a challenging time to determine which way to set the starting line and the first windward leg. The postponement flag was interspersed with lots of class flags. The J/22 started a contest that was canceled halfway through. Around 1500 hrs the wind suddenly began to fill. The gradient wind for that matter that came from the north east. So there were two hazards for us today. One, the overheating of many heads hanging and bobbing in the sun, which the cool breeze helped blow away. Second, was the wind! Time for concentration. It remained difficult to sail with the thin and unstable winds. An abbreviation of the last race at the leeward mark caused a surprising turn. After two races GILL was the first racing team with 3 points, second was ENG 1385 and third ENG 1591.
Sunday there was more stable wind than on Saturday. After some delay there were two more races. Around 1400 hrs the sea breeze cam in nicely. The race track had to be moved. But, because there was no time limit in the SI's, all the folks at home who were waiting to celebrate Passover would just have to wait a little longer! After a whole day of re-shuffling among the top three after 6 races the final score as follows: first was NED 1385 STRIPES, second was ENG 1591 sailed by Henry Wouter Kollman and third was ENG 1141 GILL RACING Team sailed by Marieke Poulie. For more J/22 Netherlands sailing class information.
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* WANTED!! J/160 FOR PASSAGE-MAKING! The J/160 is one of the most sought after performance cruisers ever designed and I have a BUYER! If you own a J/160 in good condition (preferably on the east coast of the US) and are willing to sell, please contact Tom Babbitt, East Coast Yacht Sales, 207 236 8656, or tom@ecys.com.
* J/90 San Francisco Bay "beer can" YouTube sailing video- go for a five minute sail (vicariously) on Rodney J's old J/90 RAGTIME. Rod sold it in 2003 to Frank Slootman, who is now the owner of the first J/111 INVISIBLE HAND sailing on San Francisco Bay. He put an inboard diesel in RAGTIME. Trig Liljestrand bought it from Frank. After racing it for a year or two, Rod helped him scope out a new "Turbo" Hall carbon rig so he can go faster all the time with a taller main and chute without using a genoa. Only change was a three foot taller topmast. RAGTIME is so fast now that even without spinnaker up in main/jib only beer can racing they're planing away downwind at 12-15 knots in 20-25 knots winds under Angel Island-- these guys were racing out of Corinthian Yacht Club on the Bay. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9In0MTg8SiM
* J/22 Netherlands Promote Student Sailing- A new J/22 team sailed the Van Uden Reco Regatta this year off The Hauge, in The Netherlands. For the first time the Groningen Student Sailing Association MAYDAY sailed in the J/22 class regatta that starts the season. This new team of students in the class will sail their J/22 called MAYDAY all season. For G.S.Z. MAYDAY it will represent a new challenge and a step forward in racing. Since 1994, this association for sailing has introduced many Groningen students to sailing. The J/22 is a logical step to continue growing. For the J/22 class, it means a new impetus, new faces, and refreshing new competition in the fleet. It was clear their participation in the J/22 class was very enthusiastic and they will participate for the long-term in the class. A warm welcome to them and we hope to see more of them! For more J/22 Netherlands sailing class information. The J Cruising Community
J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers. Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand. Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/
* Prolific writers, Bill and Judy Stellin, sailed their J/42 JAYWALKER around the Mediterranean and Europe and back across the Atlantic for nearly three years. Their blogs/journals can be found at- http://blog.mailasail.com/jaywalker. The earlier journals have been compiled into two self published books which can be found at: http://www.blurb.com. Search for "SEATREK: A Passion for Sailing" by Bill Stellin or William Stellin." UPDATE- Just a short note to update from Bill- "Our cruise began in May of 2000 and ended in May of 2008, some 8 years later. I have just finished and published my third and final book covering the last three or so years including our double handed crossing in 16 days and one winter in the Caribbean. Like the others, "Sea Trek- A Passion for sailing- Book III," can be found at www.blurb.com. Thanks, Bill and Judy"
* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between. Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins?? Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).
- SALACIA, the J/160 owned by Stephen and Cyndy Everett has an on-going blog describing some of their more amusing experiences (http://www.salacia1.blogspot.com).
- Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun). Check out there recent travels- now past Fiji!
- Eric and Jenn on the J/160 MANDALAY also sailed the Pacific archipelago, read more on their blog at http://www.sailmandalay.com. Eric and Jenn are J/World alumni took MANDALAY up and down the West Coast (Mexico, CA)
, then to the South Pacific and New Zealand. MANDALAY is back in San Francisco now, and in the J/World fleet--she is available for skippered charters, private instruction, and corporate/executive groups.* The J/109 GAIA (seen right in the Java Sea) was sailed by Bob Riggle and Phyllis Macay around the world. In February 2011, their cruising adventures came to an abrupt, sad ending. As a tribute to them and their cruising friends worldwide, we hope their chronicles on their GAIA website remains a tribute to their warm-hearted spirits- read more about why many loved them dearly and will remain touched by their loving spirit forever- http://www.gaiaworldtour.net/
