J/70s Sailing Across America!Long Island Sound, "The Gorge", Sarasota & Texas
(Newport, RI)- Recently, J/70s have been delivered to their happy customers in some great sailing areas around America. Dozens of new J/70 sailors are hopping aboard and fleets continue to sprout like kudzu weeds in even the remotest parts of the Midwest. Sailors young and old alike, girls and boys, Mom's and Dad's are discovering the joy of having a fun, easy-to-handle boat that can be towed by the family car, ramp-launched just about anywhere, and can handle just about any weather condition Mother Nature can throw at them.
Just ask the J/70 crews on the infamous "Gorge", that remarkable body of water with a natural "wind tunnel" on the Columbia River east of Portland, Oregon that is the favorite of the world's best kite-boarders and board-sailors. A current sweeping you upwind at 1.5 knots plus a sunny afternoon westerly breeze of 20-25 knots is a "normal" day. The J/70 sailors are lovin'it! SAIL NORTHWEST's customer Scott Sutherland is having a ball flying around the Gorge.
Meanwhile, CROSSCURRENT MARINE proudly took possession of J/70 #10. Craig Crossley had this to report, "The 1,400 mile trip from Bristol, RI to Sarasota was a snap with the brand new Triad trailer doing a stellar job of transporting our new J in style and safety. Transporting in keel-up mode provides a very low distribution of weight and the trailer support points were perfectly laid out to cradle the boat properly.The arrival at Sarasota Sailing Squadron this Friday created quite a buzz with numerous sea-trials going on. The consistent feedback is she's a great sailing platform -- easy, stable, quick and responsive. With the annual BIKINI CUP Regatta being held today, Squadron Board Officer Michelle Lee grabbed a few of her friends and got the J/70 out sailing with the gals for a great day of racing on Sarasota Bay!"
What are you waiting for? Get on down to your local J/Dealer and hop aboard a J/70 for one of the most enjoyable sailing experiences you've ever had. A gentle five kts breeze and flat water or nuking at 25 kts and blowing dogs off chains, it will be hard to wipe that "cheshire cat grin" off your face. We promise. For more J/70 sailing information
Bermuda Race PreviewTwo Dozen J's Thrashing to "The Patch" For Glory
(Newport, RI)- The grand-daddy of all American offshore races, the Bermuda Race, is about to start on June 15th, Friday at 1300 hrs off Newport's Castle Hill, sending over 167 racing and cruising sailboats hurtling across 635nm of capricious Atlantic Oceans towards the gorgeous pink sand beaches beckoning all sailors like the famous "Song of the Sirens" in the Odyssey.
The very first Bermuda Race was an act of rebellion. In 1906, the "Establishment" in America believed that it would be "insane" for amateur sailors to race offshore in boats under eighty feet. Thomas Fleming Day, the feisty editor of The Rudder magazine, vehemently disagreed, insisting, “The danger of the sea for generations has been preached by the ignorant.” Certain that an ocean race would be enjoyable and safe – and also develop better sailors and better boats – Day founded one on his own. The Brooklyn Yacht Club started the race in New York Bay, and offshore on that island paradise, the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club finished it off St. David’s Head. Today, it's co-hosted by the Cruising Club of America (with New York YC's Harbour Court in Newport providing support) and Royal Bermuda YC.
The goal is to sail fast on a VMC course of 162 degrees magnetic for 635nm. Few Bermuda Race veterans can ever describe the experience as a "walk in the park"-- in fact, it's reputation is quite the contrary. Starting off Castle Hill, Newport, Rhode Island, the first 15 miles of the race finds the fleet typically beating towards Bermuda in a southerly thermal breeze. However, this year the forecast shows a North-Northeasterly with 10-20 knots for up to 48 hours-- perhaps making for a faster, nastier race than normal (see Gulf Stream description). After the start, the race is divided into three general parts, each with its own problems and strategies:
I. Between Newport and the Gulf Stream- Sailing in cold water and often in fog, the navigator must select a route to the optimal position on the northern edge of the Gulf Stream, avoiding the bad side of warm eddies north of the stream, or taking advantage of the favorable side of the clockwise rotating warm eddies. Current in the eddies may reach 3 knots and the warm eddies can be 60 to 100 miles in diameter. Satellite photos and their interpretation are available so these days the navigator has a pretty good idea of the location of the stream and its major eddies.
II. Crossing the Stream- Depending on the configuration of the Gulf Stream (there is no typical configuration) the navigator must choose to cross the generally east flowing current up the 4 knots in the most efficient manner. Due to the extreme temperature difference between the stream and the slope water to the north, it is not unusual to have thunder squall activity in the stream. The racers often find light winds punctuated by powerful, fast moving cells of wind, lightning and waterspouts. The stream itself is often quite lumpy as the current and the wind interact-- e.g. this scenario is quite likely this year-- the experience of ENE 10-20 kt winds against a powerful 4 kt easterly flowing current is not a wonderful combination in the Gulf Stream, unless you like 10-15 foot breaking seas with an occasional freak-wave at the height of your first spreaders! There’s a good reason why the Bermuda Race’s nickname is “The Thrash to the Onion Patch.” Rough weather and Gulf Stream stories are hardly strangers for those riding the rail to Bermuda. In fact, they're synonymous with one another.
III. Happy Valley! After bashing and crashing across the Gulf Stream in epic sailing conditions, the last 300 or so miles from the bottom of the stream to Bermuda are generally most pleasant-- that's why many call it "the happy valley". The racers are in warm water, the winds are warmer and generally southwesterly if the Bermuda High is established, fetching the island is often possible. Bets are made on when the island will be sighted and there is anticipation of the sweet-smelling aroma of oleander flowers as one of the first "tell-tale" signs the island is near.
The Bermuda Race consists of five divisions - The St. David's Lighthouse (amateur) Division, The Cruiser (amateur) Division, the Double Handed Division, the Gibbs Hill (professional) Division and the Open (professional) division.
Among boat builders, J/Boats has 28 entries, the largest brand participating for the 10th year running. By contrast, Nautor-Swan are represented with 24 boats, Beneteau have 7, Hinckley with 6, and C&C/ CAL with 4 apiece. In other words, 17.0% of the Bermuda Race fleet are comprised of passionate offshore J sailors. Many of them are amongst some of the most experienced and successful offshore sailors.
In the largest and most competitive fleet, the St David Lighthouse Division has amongst its race veterans the famous GOLD DIGGER, Jim Bishop's J/44 (New York, NY) who will be back for its twelfth race in what looks to be like another tour'de'force for the seven boat J/44 class. Included amongst them are Phil Gutin's BEAGLE, Len Sitar's VAMP, Jason Leblanc's GLORY, Dr Norm Schulman's CHARLIE V, Jimmie Sundstrom's STAMPEDE and Lawrence Glenn's RUNAWAY.
In addition to the strong turnout of J/44s, there are a number of other very competitive boats in the St David's Lighthouse Division, including a fleet of twelve well-sailed 40-43 footers from the J/Design team. The big bananas are the troika of J/133s sailing- BACCHANAL (Jan Smeets), JACK KNIFE (Andrew Hall) and MATADOR (Dale McIvor). Next up is past division winner, Andrew Weiss's veteran campaigners aboard the J/122 CHRISTOPHER DRAGON, 2nd place finishers in the recent New York YC Annual Regatta. The trio of J/120s include ROCKET SCIENCE (Rick Oricchio), SHINNECOCK (Jim Praley) and WINDBORN (Richard Born). The quintet of J/40-42s include the J/40 MISTY (Fred Allardyce) and the J/42s- ARROWHEAD (Steve Berlack), SHAZAAM (Roger Gatewood), FINESSE (Newton Merrill) and GLIDE (Tanner Rose). Rounding out the division is past Bermuda Race competitor Darren Garnier sailing his J/35 GREAT SCOT.
In Cruising Division will be Howie Hodgson's J/160 TRUE and in the Gibbs Hill "pro" division will be the J/130 DRAGONFLY sailed by Colin McGranahan and crew.
Finally, the Double-Handed Division is only getting stronger every Bermuda Race. This year we'll see repeat Bermuda Race winners participating, like Jason Richter's incredibly well-sailed J/35 PALADIN. Like last time, Jason will have his hands full with two J/120s, Hewitt Gaynors' MIRIELLE and Gardner Grant's ALIBI- both tough contenders. Plus, toss in Scott Miller's J/122 RESOLUTE and Nathan Owen's J/46 SEABISCUIT and you have a nearly "one-design" race amongst these five highly competitive boats. Not to be outdone will be the J/40 EAGLE sailed by Dana Oviatt, eager to give fellow competitors a run for the money! For more Bermuda Race tracking and sailing information
BMW J/29 North Americans Update(Lunenberg, Nova Scotia)- The organizers of the 2012 BMW J/29 North Americans are pleased to announce that our entry is up to 17 boats with a very important addition to the fleet. Chris MacDonald and Mike O’Connor, the brain trust behind four-time Atlantic champion SCOTCH MIST IV, have officially announced their intention to compete.
We always hoped and expected that SMIV would be in. She is after all based at Lunenburg Yacht Club and has sailed every Lunenburg Regatta and Chester Race Week event in memory. Chris was, in fact, the "Papa Doc Duvalier" of our class, ruling as “President for Life” through the first decade of the century.
SCOTCH MIST IV won championships consecutively in 2005, 2006, and 2007, as well as an isolated win in 2001. They haven’t really lost a thing since their run of dominance. They’ve got a big crew and are especially tough when it blows hard, as it does at times in Lunenburg.
We are thrilled to have SMIV in the fold and to be back to the brink of having the largest J/29 fleet of all time. Just one more will put us in a tie and two will secure the record. With so many good 29s sailing PHRF events in the US and Central Canada, there have to be two more that would like to test themselves in a major one design event. Call us!! For more J/29 North Americans sailing information
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
The second week of June has traditionally been a big week for major offshore events in both Europe and America. On biennial years, the renowned Newport Bermuda Race takes place. Preceding it are the Rolex New York YC Annual Regatta and the Onion Patch Series. Also taking place during this period is the well-attended Chicago NOOD Regatta hosted by Chicago YC for various one-design and ORR classes, including J/105s, J/109s and J/111s. Across the big pond in Europe, the famous Rolex Giraglia Race series that starts in St Tropez, France for an inshore series, then concludes with the famous "around the rock race" (Giraglia Lighthouse just north of Corsica) is running its course with a fleet of J/122s and J/109s vying for honors in their respective classes. A bit further north in Scandinavia, the Foerder Race was sailed around the famously capricious fjords and islands off Oslo, Norway with the new J/111 BLUR cutting its teeth in the competitive offshore arena in the vast stretches of the Baltic and the North Sea.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:
Jun 9-15- J/80 Worlds- Dartmouth, England- http://www.j80worlds2012.com/Jun 15- Newport-Bermuda Race- Newport, RI- http://www.bermudarace.com/
Jun 16-23- Kieler Woche- Kiel, Germany- http://www.kielerwoche.de/
Jun 22-24- Long Beach Race Week- Long Beach, CA- http://www.lbrw.org/
Jun 24-30- J/24 US Nationals- Dillon, CO- http://www.dillonyachtclub.com/
Jun 26-29- J/22 Worlds- Le Crouesty, France- http://www.j22-france.com/world%202012/index.htm
Jul 3-7- CORK Week- Cork, Ireland- http://www.corkweek.ie/
Jul 7-8- J/105 EuroCup- Yarmouth, England- http://www.royalsolent.org
Jul 14- Bayview-Mackinac Race- Port Huron, MI- http://www.bycmack.com/
Jul 14-21- Copa del Rey- Palma Mallorca, Spain- http://www.regatacopadelrey.com/
Jul 14-22- Rolex New York YC Race Week- Newport, RI- http://www.nyyc.org/
Jul 15-20- Whidbey Island Race Week- Oak Harbor, WA- http://www.whidbeyislandraceweek.com/
Jul 21- Chicago-Mackinac Race- Chicago, IL- http://www.cycracetomackinac.com/
Jul 21- Lake Ontario 300- Port Credit, ONT- http://www.lo300.org/
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
J/111 IMPULSE Wins NOOD(Chicago, IL)- The final day of the Chicago Sperry Top-Sider NOOD Regatta greeted sailors with gorgeous weather and consistent 5-10 knot wind, setting the stage for a full day of racing on Lake Michigan. The sailors could not have been luckier. For the third straight day, the crews had been enjoying unseasonably fabulous sailing weather. If you recall, last year's event was punctuated by a epic front spitting massive thunderbolts, squalls, hail, horizontal rain and pouring "cats & dogs"!
Enjoying the wonderful sailing was none other than the J/111 IMPULSE sailed by Dr. George Miz, Pete Dreher and Mark Hatfield. With a 1-5-6-1-3-1-2-4 record for 23 points, they won their first major J/111 regatta on a tie-breaker over Steve Dabrowski's NIGHTHAWK, with a record of 4-4-3-3-2-3-1-3 also for 23 pts. With a half-dozen entries, the J/111 class had very competitive fleet racing one another, as evidenced by very close scores. With two races to go in the eight race series, it was anyone's guess as to what the podium would look like when the spray cleared on the race course. Past NODO Regatta winner, KASHMIR sailed by Karl Brummel, Steve Henderson and Mike Mayer, finished only 1 pt out of first place! KASHMIR's 5-3-4-2-1-5-3-1 for 24 pts was good enough for the bronze. Fourth place just 1 pt back was Paul Stahlberg's MENTAL with a 2-2-1-4-5-2-4-5 for 25 pts; a strong start but slow close on the last day meant they finished just out of the money. Win-Place or Show in the last race sealed the deal for the top three!
For the J/105s, this year again saw one team simply dominate the regatta, with some new faces on the top of the heap. Blane Shea and crew on STRIKING started off strong and never let up on their classmates. STRIKING knocked out a striking scorecard of four 1sts, two 2nds and two 5ths to win with 18 pts, four pts clear of Tom and Gyt Petkus' VYTIS-- a past regatta winner. Third was Clark Pellett's team on SEALARK scoring two 1sts, four 4ths, a 3rd and 6th to finish with 27 pts to grab third place. Like their J/111 brothers, the 105s also saw the last spot on the podium come down to the final race. In this case John Weglarz's crew must've had the inmates already running THE ASYLUM as their last three races of a 4-3-7 sunk their chances for a bronze, finishing just 2 pts back from 3rd overall.
In the J/109s, the top three also had a tough three-way battle for the top three. Again, the last two races made all the difference as some teams stepped up to the plate and "closed the deal" while others faded a bit and tumbled down the standings. In the end, Dave Gustman's team on NORTHSTAR won the battles and the war, scoring a 3-2-1-2-2-2-6-3 for 21 pts to win class. Second was Don Meyer's CERTAINLY with a 1-7-5-3-1-3-4-2 scoreline for 26 pts and 2nd place. Just missing second by one point was Kevin Saedi's MOMENTUS, finishing third while collecting three 1sts along with a 2-3-6-6-7 for 27 pts.
In ORR3, Mitch Padnos' new J/122 SUFFICIENT REASON sailed a very strong regatta to finish 2nd overall with a 2-5-2-3-2-1-3-1 tally for 19 pts. Mitch's new J/122 replaces his J/124 which he raced for years in the Chicago-Mackinac Race. The new SUFFICIENT REASON was previously SKYE, which has won the Chicago-Mackinac in Class and Overall three times, once as a fully-crewed boat and twice as the overall Double-handed Class winner. For more Sperry Topsider Chicago NOOD Regatta sailing information
WINGS Flies In Rolex NYYC Regatta(Newport, RI)- After a rousing 19-mile Around the Island Race on Friday, sailors at the New York Yacht Club (NYYC) 158th Annual Regatta presented by Rolex had to face light winds on Saturday and Sunday and a subsequently abbreviated race schedule where every move counted as critical to final results. With 104 boats entered in Friday’s race (separately scored and optional) and 133 entered in weekend racing, this 2012 edition of what is revered as America’s oldest regatta will go down in sailing history as having its biggest fleet ever-- and, for some, the most intriguing last-minute victories.
In the IRC 5 Class, the expected competition between the J/111 and J/122s was tough. Henry Brauer's J/111 FLEETWING was up against a quartet of exceptionally well-sailed J/122s and managed to finish in the middle of them, finishing 7th in fleet overall with a 6-7. However, past J/122 North American champion Mike Bruno and Tom Boyle (Irvington, N.Y.) finished 2-1 in the regatta’s two races to take IRC 6 on his J/122 WINGS. Second in class was Andrew Weiss' J/122 CHRISTOPHER DRAGON sailing to a 1-5.Amongst the J/44s there were familiar top class teams in the lead of IRC 5 Class. Leonard Sitar’s (Holmdel, NJ) J/44 VAMP took class honors with a 2-1 in his series. Second J/44 and 5th in class was Jim Bishop's GOLD DIGGER with a 4-5.
IRC 7 Class has often been the domain of the J/109s taking the rest of their class to task for the top of the podium. This year was no different, with the J/109s taking four of the top five! Winning with a 1-1 was past J/109 NA Champions like Bill Sweetser on RUSH with local champions Rob Salk and John Sahagian on PICANTE finishing 3rd with a 4-3, Rick Lyall's STORM in 4th and Paul Milo on VENTO SOLARE finishing 5th.
In PHRF Navigators Division, the J/105s sailed well with Fred Darlington's TONTO taking 2nd and Nelson Wiederman's KIMA taking 5th. In the big boat Navigators Division, the J/160 TRUE sailed by Howie Hodgson finished 3rd in class. For more Rolex New York YC Annual Regatta sailing information
J/111 Sails Fast FOERDER Race(Oslo, Norway)- What happens when you get 900 boats and a challenging course out through the Oslo Fjord? Then, mix in a shifty, streaky, puffy breeze meandering down the fjords? A pretty slow race with TWS mostly around 2-6 knots! But, for the J/111 BLUE sailed by Peter Gustafsson and crew from Sweden, it simply meant a great opportunity knocking on the door to demonstrate to fellow Scandinavian offshore sailors what it's like to race the fun, fast J/111 speedster in demanding conditions. As Peter described, "In 900+ boats, we were 15th fastest boat in some great company! Being 13 minutes slower than a GP42 and beating a Brenta 42, X-50, Dehler 41 and First 40 on the water after 20 hours isn't bad! :D
Friday offered brilliant sunshine and 2-3 m/s from SW. We had plenty of time and had a good track on everything. 1.5 hours before departure, we went out so that everyone got acquainted with our new Code 0. We had had it up on Thursday on the way up, but it was important that everyone had a look at how it set as we'd be using it a lot this race!
Easy start where we were too early to windward. After being sailing 10-12 perfect starts in Marstrand last weekend, it was like all the skills were gone! After a while (seemed like an eternity) we were able to sail our race and get down to the islands to the left. Several had had good pressure there, and I think it worked for us too. Teknova and 4-5 other fast boats chose this route for the same reason.Easy check down past Dyna Lighthouse where we continued on the left. Stretch to Nesoddtangen Buoy where we got into a good groove with a little wind in the middle of the track.
We had a good track and were able to deploy our Code 0 just after the rounding. We passed a First 40.7 with double the speed, it was quite hilarious. Here, we also passed a number of boats, including the King 40 "Magic" and a Class 40, both boats were not shifting gears at the same rate as us. Plenty of wind came in. Then it was back to the jib ... and now we were in the game again. Just JV41R, Teknova and Karukera ahead of us, but lots of good boats just behind.
After a while, we were able to again use the Code 0 and step on the gas past the JV41R Karukera before the bottom at Slemmestad. Here we were caught up and passed another JV41R and a Landmark 43! But what good was it when Teknova worked hard with puffs on the right wing to the south. Incredibly difficult sailing some time before it filled in from the east.
This year we had an OK push through all the difficult straits. Frederick and Pelle on-board our boat were working hard. We started to the left to avoid the reverse current, then went down the Hallangstangen and towards Dröbak. Good fight with an X-41 that we finally hit but most of all we got in lots of distance on Teknova. I do not think we have passed the Straits in the best way ever, and the only thing that was better was a Landmark 43 and an X-50 that snuck inside the Oscar Borg and the Castle, but it felt like a high-risk maneuver.
Easy to check the south where we and Teknova continued fight on the right side. We had a little better speed, but especially picked some great shifts and we were gone. Incredibly nice. And good to have a good boat to run against.
After Filtvet, the wind increased and turned on the South so we switched to medium / heavy-jib. We wanted the left, but a little sloppy with shifts in the exchange so Teknova ran up again, but we kept them on pace. It eased back to 2-3 m/s, so switching back to ease the jib. Now, we significantly improved and was able to snatch back some distance. Then we picked a couple of good shifts and we were gone. Outside Gullholmen was X-50 and a few other boats parked in the doldrums, so we were a bit worried for a restart. But finally the wind filled in from the East to make it sailable again.
As the wind would eventually turn to the south, the choice was to go high and go slow but in the middle or to throttle-up and hope for a big shift in the wind towards the Foerder shore. Counter-current was the deciding factor, so we set the Code 0 again and flew down the inner part of Bolærerna. At more than 5 knots boat speed, all crew on the rail in only a light 2 m/s wind is quite fun! It was exciting as we passed lantern after lantern during the night's darkest hours. It was hard to know what it was that we were passing so fast, so we all looked forward with great anticipation for morning light to find out what happened!
Just before Bolærerna the wind shifted. Hoisted the medium / heavy jib and furled the Code 0. Now we were definitely ahead of those that run on the outside of Bolærerna, but we were still nervous that we were the only boat on the right (except for two small boats). At Småkryssande we finally met boats coming from the left. GP42 Al Capone, Brenta 42, JV41R and X-50 Jokerman. Wow! All had been well ahead at Gullholmen!!
The wind increased gradually and it was a tough final leg out to Tristein. Around Tristein up with A2. Fantastic sailing homewards with 10-12 knots and spinnaker fly fast. But not enough wind for the J/111 to go really fast. We had a fun time sailing her. J/111 is truly an amazing boat to race offshore!" For more J/111 BLUR sailing information
J's Sailing Tough Onion Patch Series(Newport, RI)- Known as the "triathlon of ocean racing", The Onion Patch Series is a diverse three-event series of international races that challenge the complete range of a yacht's capabilities and a racing crew's skills. Yachts compete in the Onion Patch for both individual and three-boat team prizes.
The Onion Patch starts out with the high-level competition of the New York Yacht Club Annual Regatta, with a focus on fast-paced, round the buoys racing. The Series then moves on to the historic ocean racing of the Newport Bermuda Race, complete with the challenges of the Gulf Stream and the joys of "Happy Valley" in the approach to Bermuda. As a fitting reward, the Onion Patch concludes with Royal Bermuda Yacht Club's Anniversary Regatta's delightful and exuberant racing on the Great Sound and surrounding bays and harbors.
Among the three-boat teams racing for the Onion Patch Trophy the NYYC Red is in second place with 37 points led by Andrew Weiss's J/122 CHRISTOPHER DRAGON, the famous M&R 48 CARINA skippered by NYYC Rear Commodore Rives Potts, and Jim Bishop's J/44 GOLD DIGGER. This trio of boats all have class wins and even overall wins in the Bermuda Race St David's Lighthouse Division; we expect to hear good things from this team after the smoke clears on the fields of battle on the onion patches in Bermuda!
Lenny Sitar's J/44 VAMP had a brilliant weekend in the New York Yacht Club 158th Annual Regatta presented by Rolex but is still 13th in the Onion Patch Series. "I just did what I was told by my tactician," Sitar said. " I had a great crew and they pointed the way to go and I just had to do my job driving the boat. We caught up with the Class 4 boats who started ahead of us, so we know we were doing well." Sitar and crew came first in class and first in the Blue Circle fleet. VAMP sailed in IRC Class 5 and on Sunday they sailed in the Blue Circle on the Rhode Island Sound. The White Circle went up Narragansett Bay looking for wind there while the bigger boats went outside.
Rives Potts, skipper CARINA, tied with Sitar for the regatta and both had a first and a second for three points. The official results list VAMP in first and CARINA in second.
On the White Course, CHRISTOPHER DRAGON, Andrew Weiss's J/122 is sixth in the Onion Patch Series. She was the top Onion Patch boat for the Annual Regatta on that circle. Matt Brooks' Classic S&S yawl DORADE was the second in the annual Regatta, but stands ninth in the series. For more Bermuda Onion Patch Series sailing information
J/80 Worlds UpdateSpanish Teams Leading, English & French Fill Top Ten
(Dartmouth, England)- It was a tough first day of racing for the 76 boats sailing the J/80 Worlds in Dartmouth, England. The day started ashore with a postponement. Then breeze built in from the south light air and rainy. Just one race for the fleet doing a double windward-leeward. As a result, many of the top contenders were all over the map, some finishing mid-fleet. The podium was Frenchman Patrick Bot 1st, Englishman Robert Larke 2nd and Spaniard Javier Aguado 3rd. French were 5 of top 15, showing their hard-work this spring has been paying off. English were 8 of top 15 and Spanish were 2 of top 15, the latter was a surprise to many sailing.
Racing commenced in Dartmouth on Tuesday. The World Championship is being co-hosted by the Britannia Yacht Club and the Royal Dart Yacht Club. Principal Race Officer Mike Pearson held the crews of the seventy six competing teams ashore for a postponement of just over two hours in order to wait for the breeze to fill in and settle. Light airs meant that only one race of the three scheduled for today was raced but the fleet returned to the Regatta Centre happy to have completed the first race of the eleven scheduled for the World Championship series.Out in the race area in Start Bay the breeze eventually filled in to a very tricky four to six knots from 180 to 190 degrees and a windward-leeward course was set. Keen to get going, competitors pushed the line on the first start resulting in a general recall and the PRO immediately deployed the black flag and at the next start all boats got away cleanly. Crews from nine nations are racing in Dartmouth and today it was Frenchman Patrick Bot sailing Ecole Navale CG29 who took the win in Race 1.
Patrick explained ‘I had a good start, not perfect, but I arrived at the first windward mark in eighth place having sailed the left hand side of the beat. We then just worked our way through the fleet. The gate at the bottom on the leeward leg was important: I took the left hand mark and it paid. The boats around us on the race course are all evenly matched in terms of boat-speed.’Rob Larke of Great Britain took second place in Race 1. He said ‘We also chose the left hand side of the beat but it was hard to call. Our boat speed and we’re happy with our second place today.’
All in all it was a good day on the water for British teams with five GBR sail numbers in the top ten at the end of day one. Four races are scheduled for Wednesday 13th June and all the competitors are hoping for a little more breeze to add to the excitement.
On the second day of sailing, clearly the sun was shining brightly on the Spanish Teams. Dartmouth was blessed with blue skies, sunshine and just a little more breeze on Wednesday for the second day of racing. Four races were sailed in 6 to 9 knots of breeze oscillating through the day between 095 and 135 degrees. As the crews came ashore after racing it was clear that the fleet were delighted to have enjoyed really tight racing and top flight competition albeit the day’s sport had been both physically and mentally challenging. The overnight leader of the regatta is Jose Maria Van der Ploeg from Spain and his crew on board NILFISK, a result of this crew’s consistency across the regatta series so far, never scoring a result outside of the top 10 boats in the fleet of 76.
The first race of the day (Race Two of the series) was won by Laurent Sambron of France racing EJP 10 with the young crew of Henry Bomby on Team Baltic who are all from Dartmouth in second place. Simon Ling and Ian Southworth took third in RAF Benevolent Fund Team Spitfire. Eric Brezellec from France won Race Three in Interface Concept 1 and his friend Maxime Rousseaux won Race Four in his J/80 called CN St Cast Grand-Ouest Etiquette. The final race of the day (Race Five) belonged to Javier Aguado’s team on board CROCS, a win that puts him second in the overnight rankings.
The two top boats in the fleet going into Day Three on Thursday are both Spanish teams. Speaking to Jose Maria Van der Ploeg, skipper of NILFISK after racing he said ‘We are very satisfied to be leading but it was hard on the water today. We are not used to sailing with this much current and we found it very difficult. We have tried not to take too many risks but we were very close to being over the start-line in Race Four and that would have meant a Black Flag disqualification for us’. Van der Ploeg’s son Junior is just twelve years old and is a crucial part of this talented race-crew. He explained that today the crew work and boat handling was good on board NILFISK but that the J/80s racing in Dartmouth are all very evenly matched in terms of speed across the water.Javier Aguado helmsman and skipper of CROCS are in second place overall and he said ‘The racing was close and exciting although the light airs and strong current are not what we are used to and it has made judging the start-line very difficult. We were over cautious in Race Two and found ourselves late when the start signal sounded but we were tactically strong for the next three races and I am pleased to be in second place overall.’
The top placed British boat is Kevin Sproul’s J.A.T. and this crew currently sits in third place on the leader-board. Sproul is a formidable sailor and is well known in racing circles for his dry humor. ‘I was feeling close to suicidal when I came ashore’ he joked. ‘It was so hard out there with 76 boats on the race-track and I really felt that I could have sailed better. I suspect that I may have been just a little hard on my crew today but when we came off the water and I saw our points score and our position in the rankings I have to say I felt a lot better. My crew definitely deserve a beer or two on me tonight.’
The next two days of racing promise more wind, more weather and, most certainly, much tougher racing as the top teams from Spain, UK, France and Germany fight it out for the podium and top ten. Sailing photo credits- Tim Wright- http://www.photoaction.com For more J/80 Worlds sailing information
Rolex Giraglia Cup Update(St Tropez, France)- When St Tropez rolls out the red carpet, with gardens in full bloom, surrounding hills of the Baie de St Tropez lush with fragrant flowers, fabulous cafes serving up an orgy of delicious seaside cuisine, crystal-clear skies dotted with puffy white, cottony clouds and warm Mediterranean breezes sweeping down the picturesque coastline, it's awfully hard to beat. And so far the sailors have been treated to nothing but the best St Tropez has to offer.
Spoiled after four days of exceptional weather conditions sailing the inshore racing portion of the event, the teams are now headed out into the challenging 242-nautical mile race from St Tropez, France to Sanremo, Italy via the Giraglia Lighthouse sitting on a rocky outcrop off the northern tip of Corsica. Of course, can't be too bad if you're simply going out to sea, turning left and going from the French Riviera's hot-spot to the Italian Riviera's ho-spot, right? Think again. The forecast is for 20-30 kts and by Thursday blowing up to 40 knots in a classic Mistral-like condition. “It will be very demanding with a lot of wind throughout today,” explained Francesco de Angelis, former J/24 World Champion in Capri, Italy and tactician onboard the 62-foot NATALI–B2. “For tomorrow we are forecasting a certain drop in conditions and some changes of direction bringing lighter winds. It will be a difficult race for everyone although, as always, you can never predict what is going to happen.”
Few boats will be as experienced and up to the challenge as the J/122 ARTIE from Malta, owned by Lee Satariano and co-skippered by Christian Ripard. In their previous competitive offshore outing the combination were the first Maltese in ten years to win the hugely demanding 606-nm Rolex Middle Sea Race. Keeping them honest will be Giancarlo Ghislanzoni on his J/122 CHESTRESS 3. Also, in the hunt will be Olivier Parchet's J/122 NOISY OYSTER and Edward Gatt Floridia's J/122 OTRA VEZ. With four J/122s racing, one of them is certain to revel in the conditions. After the first four races in IRC A with 73 boats participating, the top J/122 is Giancarlo's CHESTRESS 3 sitting in 6th place, just 20 points out of third going into a double-counter race. Just behind in 10th is Olivier's NOISY OYSTER and 11th is Lee's ARTIE RTFX.
In IRC B, with 55 boats participating, the top J is Antonio Marcri's J/39 SCINTILLA J sitting in 9th place. The J/109 JAVA BLEUE 3 sailed by La Forest Bardaille sits in 12th place and another J/109 JET LAG sailed by Richard Burton (not the movie actor!) is lying in 20th place. With the forecast for a solid breeze and waves, look for the J/109s in particular to make a quick climb up the ladder and be further up the standings after the Giraglia Race. For more Rolex Giraglia Race sailing information
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* The J/39 CLUB-RACER- this is the real story of a "phoenix rising from the ashes" in Antwerp, Belgium. It starts like this. Kathleen asks: "Honey, if I had enough money, I'd like to buy a new 40-foot J-Boat, OK?" Eddy answers: "Hmmm. I once saw sailing during Ramsgate Week in England a J/39 that sailed and performed so well that I immediately had great respect for this design." That same evening, Kathleen and Eddy ("Ice") searched on the Internet for various boats-for-sale. Ice was immediately charmed by a J/39 in Trinidad for a very attractive price in USD. But, in France there was a J/39 for sale with a factory-installed wheel-steering option that was preferred. Said Ice, "We found this J/39 in a French shipyard near La Trinite Sur Mer. She 
was left behind in the shipyard for more then 6 years!! My wife Kathleen and me bought this beautiful racer/cruiser and started to refit her last summer. It seems that the new CLUB-RACER is gonna hit the water for summer 2012!" Sure enough, CLUB-RACER is launched, looks gorgeous and according to Ice, "will be used for doublehanded regatta's, as a press boat (for www.clubracer.be) and last but not least for our holidays."For more information on Eddy Lekens (a.k.a. "Ice"), the Founder/ Editor-In-Chief of Belgium's top on-line sailing website- please visit "Clubracer.be"- http://j39.clubracer.be/
* More J/125 DOUBLE TROUBLE action during this year's Spinnaker Cup. If you recall, Andy Costello's DOUBLE TROUBLE has pulled off three consecutive Spinnaker cup Overall Victories 2010-2011-2012. The 2012 Race had over 30 knots of breeze for the upwind portion and the downwind portion consisted of high teens to mid-twenties for windspeed. Here's a video update of their experience blowing down the coast of California at excessively fun speeds in complete control with huge grins plastered all over their faces! See their Blog at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/doubletroubleracing/ Plus, here are their two most recent videos.Spinnaker Cup race- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1VT9Ns5VTA
Pacific Cup practice and sail test- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mHsGd41P7o
* J/105 part of the NASA Space Shuttle Enterprise Experience? You bet. Seen here is the Space Shuttle Enterprise as it's lifted onto the deck of the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum on the retired USS Intrepid Aircraft carrier in New York, June 6, 2012. Pretty cool stuff. Good to see fellow J/Sailors looking after "space sailors" that circled the globe at 25,000 kts for years, all in the support of better science and, for sailors at least, better weather forecasting!* J/40 Cruiser Turbo'd? Seems that Dave Moore on his J/40 #11 called LIBERTY in Los Angeles, California was looking for solutions to get his J/40 going faster after recalling how the first J/40 won the Chicago-Mackinac Race in a "three-peat" in the early 1990s. Rodney and Alan J went to work to help Dave turbo LIBERTY's downwind potential. Said David, "The 20 pct penalty pole with matching symmetrical spin has proven to be very effective, just as you suggested. We won our race from LA Light to Dana Point on Memorial Day weekend. A 20 mile broad reach in 15 to 20kt TWS westerly followed by 14 miles of close reaching in an erratic 3 to 6 kt TWS southwesterly. In the stronger wind conditions we watched most of our fleet round up repeatedly. None of that on the J40 - just comfortable speed and smiles." Gotta love those stories. Keep them coming!
* J/120 action in Detroit is "hotting up" all the time in the summer. Competition and fun that is, not temperature or tempers. And the Grand Poobah and King of all things J/120 One-Design Racing in the Great Lakes, Commodore Frank Kern, forwarded to us some more video evidence that the J/120s continue to have a good time with their boats in greater Day-twah, that resurgent urban waterfront town more renowned for bending metal, snapping on plastic, throwing in some leather, tossing on some good "shoes & rubber" and making lots of cars. Enjoy the video!
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=294142850682578&set=a.161021807328017.35243.160993177330880&type=1&theater¬if_t=like
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). Read about their latest adventures as they've gotten to New Zealand- "Avante Cruises the Pacific".
- 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/
Featured Boat
J/122 GAMBLER For SaleGAMBLER is a 2008 J/122 that is ready to continue winning races, or go cruising! If you are looking for a 40' dual purpose sailboat, GAMBLER can do it all! There are very few J/122's with the winning pedigree that GAMBLER has and even fewer with the 3 cabin layout. GAMBLER has been optimized for racing with top notch bottom and foil preparation, she's a past J/122 North American Champion. The sail inventory is all North and includes NEW 3Di sails!
Please contact Scott Spurlin at: Scott@JBoatsSouthwest or Toll free at: 1-877-596-8430
