Newport Boat Show- See the J/112E, J/121 & J/70!(Newport, RI)- The fabulous Newport International Sailboat Show is open next week from September 13th to 16th, Thursday to Sunday, from 10:00am to 6:00pm at the Newport Yachting Center in downtown Newport, off the famous America’s Cup Avenue.
On display will be three exciting models in the J/Boats line of one-design/ offshore sportboats and sport cruisers- the J/112E, the new J/121, and the incredibly popular J/70.
For starters, the most decorated J/Boat in recent months will amaze people with its family-friendly “cruising” features as well as its extraordinary performance in European regattas. The J/112E was the 2018 IRC European Overall Champion and was also the World Sailing Offshore Champion in Class 3 (the largest by far in the regatta with 50+ boats on the starting line). Learn more about the J/112E sport cruiser here.
Next, the new J/121 Offshore Speedster continues to gather steam, with class wins in the Newport to Bermuda Race (St David’s Lighthouse “professional” division, no less), the Doublehanded Class winner in the Ida Lewis Distance Race, second in class at Heineken St Maarten Regatta, and first in class in the recent Conanicut Round Island Race on Narragansett Bay. Take a tour to discover how this “water-ballasted” speedster is turning heads and helping to re-define fast, short-handed, offshore sailing- remember, a J/24, J/70 or J/80 crew are all it needs to get around the race track! Learn more about the J/121 Offshore Speedster here.
Finally, the world’s most popular sportboat- the famous International J/70 One-Design Class sailboat- continues to grow around the world, with fleets developing in all corners of Planet Earth and on every one of the Seven Seas! Hop aboard and discover why W.O.W. (Women On Water) in Denmark and other parts of Europe (and the Americas) are rapidly adopting the J/70 as their one-design keelboat class of choice to encourage more women sailors to have fun and compete on the world stage! Learn more about the women & youth friendly J/70 class here. For more Newport Boat Show information
J/22 Worlds Preview(Annapolis, MD)- The J/22 class continues to gather new, passionate sailors from across the spectrum of experience. The class strong holds- Chesapeake Bay, Lake Minnetonka (MN), upstate New York (Rochester/ Youngstown)- continue to see good participation in many events over the course of the season. And, other areas continue to see increasing activity in places such as Texas, Narragansett Bay (RI), New Orleans (LA), and Ohio.
A big fleet has gathered together to sail the 2018 edition of the J/22 World Championship from September 9th to 14th on the Chesapeake Bay, with Annapolis YC hosting sixty-five entries from the USA, Canada, and The Netherlands.
On the international front, there are six teams from Canada, including Trevor Collins’ ALTERNATIVE GIRLFRIEND, Sylvain Gougeon’s POLO, and John Koppernaes’ RAISED J. Plus, there is one team from The Netherlands- Auke Holtrop’s ROTTERDAM WORLD GATEWAY and one crew from South Africa- David Waiting’s SOLSTICE.
As for the Americans, it appears the class is increasing its depth of talent overall, as well as seeing a significant uptick in women-skippered teams (nine, as a matter of fact!). As for the women, a long-time class leader has been Sandy Adzick’s HOT TICKET from Severn Sailing Association, she was a 3x College Woman All-American at Boston University, and is consistently near the top of the leaderboard. Her good friend Cory Sertl from Rochester, NY (and summers in Jamestown, RI) often sails with her husband Mark and, as skipper, she has won numerous regional events, was US Women’s Sailing Champion, and has demonstrated she can finish in the top 10 in National regattas. In addition, other women helms include Sylvain Gougeon’s crew from Quebec on POLO; Koralina McKenna’s GODSPEED from SSA in Annapolis; Susan Mattis Turnham’s STELLAR JAY from Duluth YC in Minnesota; Karen Glass’ FOLKA from SSA; Julie Neal’s DONE DEAL from Wayzata, MN; Lynn Simpson’s BLING from LCYC in Texas; and Nicole Curran’s ATAATA from Riverton YC in Philadelphia, PA.
The balance of the fleet is formidable, including several World, North American, & Midwinter Champions. No question, the United Kingdom’s Ladbrokes Betting Parlour (famous for sports betting) would have a hard time putting odds on this hard-core group of teams; they include Allen Terhune’s THUNDER CHICKEN, Brad Julian’s USA 677, Jake Doyle’s ZESTY ENTERPRISE, Jeff Todd’s HOT TODDY, Zeke Horowitz’s UNCLE FLUFFY, Mark Foster’s PRESSURE DROP, Chris Princing’s EVIL DR PORK CHOP, Mike Marshall’s BAD NEWS, Kevin Doyle’s MO’MONEY, Chris Doyle’s THE JUG 4 1, Travis Odenbach’s YEM, Bill Draheim’s FINN, and Pete Levesque’s DUSTY. It would not be surprising to see this group of boats take most of the podium finishes all week long (if not all of the top five); in other words, picking a winner now would definitely be a “fool’s errand”! For more J/22 World Championship sailing information
J/80 North American Championship Preview(Marion, MA)- Twenty-five intrepid adventurers in the J/80 class are soldiering forth to the wild and woolly waters of Buzzards Bay, a place infamous for massively choppy waters and epic “blowing dogs off chains” breezes well into the 18-25 kts range. Participating teams in the 2018 J/80 North Americans cannot wait to test their boats in the strong southwesterlies that are the prevailing condition on most sunny days at this time of year.
As host for the event, the Beverly YC and their local J/80 Buzzards Bay fleet are looking forward to welcoming crews from as far away as California and Washington. The three major fleets are well-represented, Buzzards Bay (MA), Lake Winnipesaukee (NH), and Annapolis (MD). The courageous visitors from afar include Bryan Rhodes’ CRAZY IVAN from Corinthian YC in Seattle, WA and Gary Panariello’s COURAGEOUS from Sausalito YC in Sausalito, CA.
The homeboys from Beverly YC are hoping to take home the crown for proud display on the fireplace mantelpiece. Those crews include Chip Johns’ CAVITICA, Dan Cooney’s AMERICAN PRAYER, Jack Gierhart’s AEGIR. The always-strong Chesapeake Bay J/80 fleet are fielding solid contenders, too, such as John White’s USA 1162, Alex Kraus’ COOL J, Bert Carp’s ELEVEN, and Dan Shanahan’s LAWYERS GUNS & MONEY. The Lake Winnipesaukee contingent includes Casey Nickerson’s ARGO III, Jason Blais’ BLONDIE, Les Beckwith’s FKA, and Kevin Hayes/ Jeff Kirchoff’s MORE GOSTOSA. The “lone sharks” hoping to steal the championship include Ken Colburn’s GHOST (a previous winner and also NYYC Invitational Cup winner) from Boothbay Harbor YC and Peter D’Anjou’s LE TIGRE from PWYC. For more J/80 North American Championship sailing information
Italian J/70 Cup- Trieste Preview(Trieste, Italy)- The third act of the Italian J/70 Cup will be taking place this weekend off the beautiful, exotic Italian Riviera on the Mediterranean Sea. Hosting the twenty-boat fleet will be the YC Trieste off their fabled harbor in Trieste. Four nations are represented- Italy, Poland, Russia, & Switzerland.
A number of the top Italian crews in the season-long series are represented, such as Claudia Rossi’s LA PETITE TERRIBLE, Gianfranco Noe’s CALVI NETWORK, Pietro de Luca’s ENJOY 1.0, Paolo Tomsic’s LA FEMME TERRIBLE, Vittorio di Mauro’s PLAN B, and Luca Domenici’s NOTARO TEAM. The leading Russian teams include Denis Cherevatenko’s JOYFULL and Dmitriy Shunin’s GOLDEN WING. The lone crew from Poland is Pawel Oskroboa’s CELLFAST and from Switzerland is Tom Studer’s JERRY. For more Italian J/70 Cup sailing information
Inaugural J/80 Asian Championship Announcement!(Xiamen, China)- J/80 production in China started in 2008. Since that time hundreds of J/80’s have been built in China and supplied around Asia and many into new Chinese fleets. This year production has been steady at 1 1/2 boats per week, non-stop.
New fleets have developed in Qingdao, Sanya and Suzhou in 2018. The J/80 Chinese Class has been established and is now the only class in China that is working with a complete set of World Sailing class rules; including boat weight equalization, sail measurements, safety gear checks and crew weight limits being enforced.
This year’s J/80 Asian Championship will be raced out of Wuan Bay in Xiamen, from December 4th to 10th, 2018. The class anticipates the fleet will be 40-65 boats with teams from around Asia.
The first twenty new charter boats will be pre-checked on boat weight and safety gear. Sails and the safety gear list will be checked prior to registration. Three days planned for checking boats and practice. Priority will be given to international teams not based in China up until October 1st.
The racing area is not far from the docking areas and the plan is for two to 4 races per day over four days of racing. This will be an open J/80 event, so no issues on professional sailors in the class rules. Each driver will need to be a member of either the international or national class association. This can be done at registration.
If you or your team are interested in participating this December please contact- Jim Johnstone at J/Boats China- email- jimjboats@icloud.com
J/FEST Southwest Announcement!(Houston, TX)- This year’s J/FEST Southwest Regatta will be taking place from October 12th to 14th, hosted by Lakewood YC on Clear Lake and on Galveston Bay. Again, all J/Owners are invited to participate and the hope is that several one-design fleets will have starts, including J/22s, J/24s, J/70s, J/105s at a minimum! Plus, there will be PHRF racing for the larger J’s. Come one, come all! Never too late to head south and enjoy some fun in the Texas sun, great beer, and awesome TexMex food!
Since it was such a HUGE hit last year, the “LEGENDS RACE” will take place on Clear Lake, right in front of the club. This year, it will be a fleet of J/22s and J/24s, with live commentary on-site and on Facebook Live off the patio of the “party-barge” called BARGE 295. There will be five (5) video cameras recording the live action! It will be a blast for everyone!
IF you have any questions at all, please contact Scott Spurlin at mobile- 512-423-2179 or email- scott@jboatssouthwest.com Watch the J/FEST Southwest promo highlights video here. For more J/FEST Southwest sailing and registration information.
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
The past week saw the 40th annual J/24 World Championship take place on Lake Garda, one of the world’s most famous venues for holding regattas with most excellent wind conditions, generally. The host club- Fraglia Vela Riva- had their hands full for the 89 boats in attendance. But, PRO Hank Stuart from Rochester, NY had them under control and the Americans, yet again, prevailed and controlled most of the top five.Over in Switzerland, yet another significant event was taking place to determine the “Best Sailing Club” in Europe. With over a dozen J/70 sailing leagues (and 250-plus sailing clubs) feeding the event, there was no question that Europe’s top sailing clubs and their hand-picked teams were hoping to win the annual SAILING Champions League Finale. The event took place on the Engadine Lakes in St Moritz, Switzerland for 31 teams; the host club was the Sailing Club St. Moritz. As important as the sailing, the fabulous hangout of the world’s ultra-chic skiing world, the Grand Palace, also hosted an epic party for the uber-sailors of the European sailing community.
Off to the west on the Bay of Biscay, it was the occasion for the World University Sailing Championship sailed on a matched-fleet of one-design J/80 class sailboats; sponsored by World Sailing and the French Sailing Federation (FFV). The event took place in Cherbourg, France- hosted by YC de Cherbourg- for nineteen teams from ten nations.
Over in the Americas, the annual “Labor Day” tradition, the Stamford YC Vineyard Race took place for J/crews participating in their two principal events- the classic 238.0nm Vineyard Race from Long Island Sound around Buzzards Bay Tower and back and the Seaflower Reef Race of 143.0nm that takes place inside Long Island Sound. J/Crews collected a ton of silver in this long-winded race!
Then, while fellow J/lovers were criss-crossing Rhode Island Sound offshore in the Vineyard Race, the most famous Narragansett Bay race took place on Sunday- the Conanicut YC Round Island Race. The Conanicut YC hosted their annual 21.0nm race for over 100 boats. It was a fast race and a brand new J/121 from Japan nearly won the entire race overall- just 18.0 seconds!
Read on! The J/Community and Cruising section below has many entertaining stories and news about J/Sailors as well as cruising blogs about those who 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:
Sep 7-9- Italian J/70 Cup- Trieste, ItalySep 7-9- German J/80 Open Nationals- Glucksburg, Germany
Sep 7-9- J/24 USA Nationals- Falmouth, ME
Sep 7-9- J/80 North American Championship- Marion, MA
Sep 7-9- J/109 East Coast Championship- Newport, RI
Sep 8-14- J/22 World Championship- Annapolis, MD
Sep 9-10- J/24 Great Lakes Championship- Sandusky, OH
Sep 12-16- Rolex Big Boat Series- San Francisco, CA
Sep 14-16- J/70 Great Lakes Championship- Grosse Pointe, MI
Sep 18-21- J/111 North American Championship- Macatawa, MI
Sep 21-23- Canadian J/105 National Championship- Toronto, ONT
Sep 21-23- J/22 Northeast Championship- Diamond Point, NY
Sep 21-23- J/80 Atlantic Telegramme- Lorient, France
Sep 22-29- J/70 World Championship- Marblehead, MA
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
Welles Crowned 40th J/24 World Champion!(Riva del Garda, Italy)- Lake Garda lived up to its “bucket list” reputation for the 40th edition of the J/24 World Championship in Riva del Garda, Italy. Over the five days, the eighty-nine teams from 14 countries (Australia, Brazil, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden and United States) enjoyed spectacular sailing, with three days of the classic “ora” from the south and sunny, one unusual sunny, windy day of the “bora” from the north, and one day with clouds, sprinkles and no wind.
Will Welles’ KASTER of the USA has achieved his second J/24 World Championship in five years. With crew Nick Turney, Rich Bowen, Giuliano Cattarozzi and Andrea Casale, the Newport, RI-based helmsman recorded 47 net points in 10 races. Next best was Nobuyuki Imai’s SIESTA of Japan who ended with 68 points. Demonstrating the continued strength of the J/24 class in America, the balance of the podium and top five were dominated by three American teams. Taking the bronze was Keith Whittemore’s FURIO team from Seattle, WA (a regular on the Italian J/24 circuit); fourth place went to Travis Odenbach’s HONEY BADGER crew from Rochester, NY; and fifth was Mike Ingham’s NAUTALYTICS from Rochester, NY, who dominated Friday’s three contests with a 2-1-1.The IJCA also awarded its perpetual trophies:
• Jaeger Women’s Trophy to Lynn Wolgast, Derbe Kerle, Germany
• Under-25 Turner Trophy to Pietro Parisi, Ottobrerosso, Italy
Welles put together a combined American and Italian team, and commended “Giuliano for bringing a fast boat and Andrea for putting it all together.” He also thanked PRO Hank Stuart and all the various volunteers and sponsors. Reflecting on 40 years of J/24 World Championships, he said that the robust international attendance proves that “The Class is as strong as ever!”Top five:
1) Will Welles, Kaster- 2, 5, 2, 9, (25), 2, 2, 1, 8, 16, Net 47
2) Nobuyuki Imai, Siesta, JPN, 25, 10, 5, 5, 1, 1, 7, (32), 7, 7, Net 68
3) Keith Whittemore, Furio- 31, 19, DPI20, 3, 2, 9, 3, 1, (46), 3, 4, Net 75
4) Travis Odenbach, Honeybadger- 14, 7, 8, 3, (16), 12, 8, 15, 2, 11, Net 80
5) Mike Ingham, Nautalytics- 20, (43), 4, 10, 5, 8, 30, 2, 1, 1, Net 81
Eighty-nine teams from 14 countries (Australia, Brazil, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Sweden and United States) competed August 27-31 from Fraglia Vela Riva del Garda. For more J/24 World Championship sailing information
Italians Crowned SAILING Champions League Winners!(St Moritz, Switzerland)- Four days of tense competition and a nail-biting final race on Lake St Moritz brought victory for the Italian team from Circolo Della Vela Bari (CVB) in the SAILING Champions League Final in St Moritz, Switzerland. The team from CVB claims the title ‘Best Sailing Club of the Year’. Runner-up is the Swiss club from Société Nautique de Genève ahead of Wassersport Verein Hemelingen from Germany who take the third place. Thirty-one yacht clubs representing twelve nations came to St Moritz to fight for the prestigious silver trophy in the SAILING Champions League Final 2018.
For the second consecutive year, the silver trophy of the SAILING Champions League stays in Italy. The CVB from the southeast coast of Italy takes over the title from their fellow Italians from Yacht Club Costa Smeralda. Three months after winning Semifinal 1 of SAILING Champions League in Porto Cervo, Simone Ferrarese, Valerio Galati, Corrado Capece Minutolo and Leonardo Dinelli to claim the title.
Simone Ferrarese admitted: “We were very, very lucky, we can’t pretend it was anything else. But we never gave up, even when we were a long way behind. Sometimes we were unlucky on other days so maybe the luck came back for us today. Over the four days I think we have sailed very well and all of us are so happy to have won this regatta, to make Circolo Della Vela Bari the best sailing club in Europe.”The Italians won in the most extraordinary showdown between the top four teams who qualified through to the four-boat final. After seven flights of eight-boat races, it was the Swiss team, Société Nautique de Genève, who came through qualification at the top of the leaderboard. If the Swiss could win the first race of the finals, the ‘first-to-two-wins’ format for this competition would have made them the champions.
In a very light-airs final race, it looked like the Swiss would indeed close out the regatta. The Germans, Norddeutscher Regatta Verein and Wassersport Verein Hemelingen, were parked on the far side of the final run and it looked like the regatta was slipping away. But, a small gust from behind wafted the Italians past the Germans and the Swiss. As they crossed the finish line, all four boats were overlapped but CVB won the race by only one meter, and the SAILING Champions League 2018 after adding up the points.
The light-airs conditions came in strong contrast to the two semifinals that took place earlier in the summer. Porto Cervo produced moderate winds in Sardinia, while St Petersburg produced some all-out planing conditions on the Neva River, with winds gusting up to 30 knots. St Moritz was a much more subtle challenge. While day one produced perfect breezes under bright blue skies, the next three days of lighter wind demanded smooth boathandling and roll-tacking in the sub-5 knot conditions.The host city of St Moritz worked closely with the hosting club of Sailing Club St. Moritz and the region Graubünden to make sure that this gathering of international talent was given a world-class reception, with lavish parties in the evening and a great opportunity for all the international crews to get to know each other better.
Martin Berthod, Managing Director of St Moritz Tourism, was delighted to have welcomed so many top-level crews to the lake high in the Alps, “Water sports and sailing in summer is as important to us and the Engadine region as winter sports in winter. We want to offer our guests sports and relaxation, so we took the chance to work together with the SAILING Champions League to present sailing to our guests with hosting the finale for the best clubs in Europe.”
The SAILING Champions League is proud to be supported by a number of key partners: Juvia, KRAFTWERK, DEDON, Breitling, Badrutt’s Palace, DKSH, SAP and Marinepool.
For the clubs on the podium, three main partners handed over special prices:
1st– Breitling: four watches of the model Superocean Héritage
2nd– DEDON: a deep sofa from the TIGMI collection
3rd– KRAFTWERK: one Nautic Tool Trolley equipped with tools and four Swiss army knives
Sailing photo credits- Lars Wehrmann. SAILING Champion League finale video highlights For more SAILING Champions League Finals information
Gold For Australia & France @ World University Championship(Cherbourg, France)- The 2018 edition of the World University Sailing Championship took place from August 30th to September 6th on the inner harbor of Cherbourg, France. The event was sailed in a matched-fleet of J/80 one-design class sailboats and was hosted by YC de Cherbourg. In the end, the YC Cherbourg PROs- Roland Galliot & Jean Paul Mauduit from France- managed to run a total of 21 qualifying races over three days for the nineteen teams participating from ten nations, then 8 more Championship races for the top 11 teams.
Winning the overall World University Sailing Championship was the AUSTRALIA 2 TEAM comprised of Thomas Grimes, Nicholas Rozenauers, Mitch Evans, and Jessica Grimes. And, winning the Women’s World University Sailing Championship title was the FRANCE 3 TEAM that also took the bronze overall; their team included skipper Elodie Bonafous, Morgane Keramphele, Anne Guillou, Anna Kerdraon, and Louise Acker.
Opening DayIt was under the radiant sunset on a Friday night, on “the Green Beach” of Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, that the Opening ceremony of the 2018 World University Sailing Championship took place. The lively ceremony was marked by the presence of an unexpected and distinguished guest.
After each of the 10 delegations marched at the parade of nations, in the presence of 300 spectators and guests, former French Prime Minister and also former Mayor of Cherbourg- Bernard Cazeneuve- made his appearance while the French national anthem played across the sea and sky of Normandy.
Mr. Cazeneuve took the opportunity to thank the founders of the event, Olivier Gosselin and Eric Le Roi, two professors of physical education of the Cherbourg University campus.
Then, French Navy Admiral- Pascal Ausser- officially declared the World Championship “open”. Thereafter, the festivities include an artistic performance by the students from the University of Normandy.
Day 1- Spain takes leadThe regatta started on Saturday September 1st with almost ideal summer sailing conditions in the natural harbour of Cherbourg.
In spite of a good first round of races launched at 10:00am, the wind played on tricks on the competitors throughout the day. The teams had to be patient since the 19 teams had to wait for their turn in the rotation of thirteen boats to compete on the water.
At the end of the first day, the SPAIN 2 TEAM (skippered by Alberto Basadre Lopez) was leading, followed by FRANCE 2 (skipper Pierrick Letouze) in second and the Australians on AUSTRALIA 2 in third place (skipper Tom Grimes).
”This day was difficult, because of the very unstable wind and the very good level of the other competitors. The championship lasts several days, this is why our objective was to start strong the race for the title,” commented Alberto Basadre Lopez, skipper of the SPAIN 2 team.
”We got organized and psyched up, that gave us confidence quickly, but we cannot lose any momentum, because it is a tightly-packed fleet. You should miss nothing, because otherwise we pay the price in boats lost! And, with the changes of wind, the waiting onshore between the two rotations was favorable for us,” explained Pierrick Letouzé, skipper of the crew FRANCE 2.
Day 2- Leaders confirm their positionThe second day produced another gorgeous day of sailing, sunny, windy, and lots of races run for the enthusiastic university sailors.
On the water, the Spanish crew of SPAIN 2 again showed their domination by winning two races, allowing them to keep their leadership position. The Australians on AUSTRALIA 2 were not to be outdone, because they jumped into second place, followed closely by the French crew on FRANCE 2 and the French women’s team on FRANCE 3 (skipper Elodie Bonafous).
“It was a beautiful day for us, especially at the end when the wind increased in strength. We were able to adapt our tactics and learn from our errors from the day before. Little by little, we hoped to be the top qualifier for the Championship series, said Tom Grimes of AUSTRALIA 2.
“We are satisfied by our performance, especially with the 11th race. Our tactics and strategy was much better in the afternoon, thanks to a more stable and more regular wind that helped us sail faster!” commented Elodie Bonafous, skipper of women’s crew on FRANCE 3.
Day 3- Money time! Last day to qualify!
The third day of the regatta was the last day to qualify. And, it turned out to be the windiest so far, with 9 races being run for the fleet.
Winning the qualifiers was Grimes’ AUSTRALIA 2 team, followed by Bonafous’ all-women FRANCE 2 team in second, Lopez’s SPAIN 2 team in third, Letouze’s FRANCE 2 crew in fourth, and Jonathan Yeo’s SINGAPORE 1 crew in fifth (the top Asian boat).
The Championship round then took place over the next two days, with all teams starting from scratch with zero points. So, for many teams that presented an excellent opportunity to take lessons learned and experiences from the qualifying round for another chance to get on the podium!
Day 4– The French Vikings Prevail!After five races run in 10-12 knots of wind, there was no question which team was in command of the fleet- the French Vikings from Normandy on FRANCE 2; skipper Pierrick Letouze won three race to take the early lead in the Championship round.
Following them were the two Australian teams, Grimes’ AUSTRALIA 2 in second with a 1-2-3-6-5 tally and Ethan Pierto-Low’s AUSTRALIA 1 in third with a 2-8-5-2-2 record. Settling into fourth position with a 3-5-7-9-3 scoreline was none other than Bonafous’ all-women Brittany crew on FRANCE 3. Rounding out the top five was the top Chinese crew, CHINA 1 skippered by Chuancheng Zhou with a respectable tally of 6-4-1-7-9.
”We had an performance in our qualifying round, but we recovered well and analyzed our errors. Then, there was a great alchemy with our team and we felt comfortable in the harbor, improving our speed and tactics. We are going to give everything tomorrow!” said skipper Letouzé on FRANCE 2.
”We have tried our best since the beginning of the competition, but the level of the other competitors is rather high. We are satisfied by our place in the general ranking, because we do not have much experience at this level of competition. Today, we took time to understand and adapt to the shifty winds in the harbor and to the weather report; that helped us a lot! Plus, we won a race, a minor victory perhaps, but very encouraging for us!” commented Chuancheng ZHOU, skipper of CHINA 1.
Day 5- Thrilling Finale- Gold for Australia and France!The final day was a bit like Muhammad Ali’s “Thrilla from Manila” fight for the World Boxing Championship belt many blue moons ago. However, this times it was the “Wonders from Down Under” that delivered the final hammer blow by winning the final race to take the title! It was AUSTRALIA 2, skippered by Tom Grimes, that closed the last three races with a 1-6-1 to repeat as World University Champions (last won in 2016)!
Starting out the day with a 7-point lead over the Australians, it was FRANCE 2’s regatta to lose over three races. In short, that is exactly what they did. Under tremendous pressure to defend their “home court” advantage, Letouze’s Normandy team (Paul Cousin, Marie Zugolaro, Arthur Richer, & Swann Pain) just could not put it together on the last day, opening with a 6th and closing with two 4ths to take the silver medal, two points behind the Australians.
”We are really happy to win in Cherbourg! The level of the championship was very high, we were very happy to be here, and the French teams sailed very well. We had to fight hard all the way up to the end. Bravo to them, too!” said Jessica Grimes, crew on AUSTRALIA 2.
The surprising, and quite heart-warming, performance arose in the form of five French women! Bonafous’ all-women team from Normandy tied the AUSTRALIA 2 team for 2nd best record on the final day! Their 3-3-2 was good enough to earn them the Bronze in the Open Division and the Gold for the Women’s Division! “It was a great championship, with an excellent atmosphere, with a high level of competition on the water, and perfect conditions. It was fantastic to meet other crews, which come from everywhere, and the organization was really at the top!” commented Morgane Kéramphèle, crew on FRANCE 3.
Rounding out the top five were two more performances that are notable. Having barely qualified in the first round, Aoi Makino’s crew on JAPAN 1 knew they had their work cut out for them to post a respectable regatta and be proud of the outcome. After opening with a sub-par performance in the first 5 races (4-7-8-5-11), Makino’s crew (Shunsuke Mori, Kamikaze Takasaki, Tatsuya Takayama, & Daiki Tomita) finally figured it all out on the last day, closing with the best record for the day- a 4-1-3! As a result, they leapt into 4th place, winning the tiebreaker on 39 pts each!Taking 5th place on the tie-breaker countback was the Dutch crew on NETHERLANDS 1, skippered by Jelmer Van Beek with crew of Wietse Pijlman, Jorden Van Rooijen, & Ruger Vos.
The next World University Sailing Championship will take place at Lago di Ledro, Italy, in 2020!
Watch YouTube sailing videos here
Preparation- https://youtu.be/hE0yz3o9VfM
Day 2 highlights- https://youtu.be/TjKgNhqZJOI
For more FISU World University Sailing Championship information
J’s Sweep Seaflower Reef RaceSlow Vineyard Race, J/Teams Prevail in IRC/ PHRF Divisions
(Stamford, CT)- New England's classic Labor Day weekend offshore race has to be Stamford YC’s annual Vineyard Race. The 238 nautical-mile adventure starts off Stamford Harbor, and takes racers down the length of Long Island Sound to Buzzard's Bay Light Tower (passing it to starboard), then back to Block Island (also passing it to starboard) before again sailing the length of Long Island Sound, back to the finish just inside the harbor. The Stamford YC race committee also starts the 143 nautical mile Seaflower Reef Course that includes two PHRF Divisions. Both races are popular with J/Crews from all over the northeastern seaboard.
However, this year’s race may go down in history as one of the longest ever. Winning PHRF Class 11 and Overall PHRF was Bill & Jackie Baxter’s J/111 FIREBALL; their victory took just under 48 hours to complete the course- an average 4.95 kts over 238nm! Ouch! Second in their class was another J/111, Abhijeet Lele’s VARUNA.
Taking 2nd PHRF Overall and winning PHRF Class 9 was Dan Nash’s J/109 MISTRAL. They led a sweep of their class by other J/teams; 2nd was Don Dwyer’s J/109 GUARDIAN J, 3rd Mike Greene’s J/35 LOBLOLLY, and 4th was Cao Deambrosio & Chris Nicholls’ J/109 RHIANNON III.
Winning PHRF Class 10 was Bill Ingraham’s J/124 TENEBRAE, with John Greifzu’s J/109 GROWTH SPURT in 3rd place. Then, showing their class, commitment, and perseverance was the J/105 YOUNG AMERICAN (sailed by the Young American Youth Sailing Academy Team from Rye, NY), taking a 4th in PHRF Class 8.
In the IRC Class 12, the J/44s have done it again, with Len Sitar’s VAMP winning class with Chris Lewis’ Texas crew on KENAI taking fourth place.
Similar to the dominant performances of J/crews in the Vineyard Race PHRF divisions, the same scenario played out in the 143nm Seaflower Reef course that takes place all inside Long Island Sound. Sailing their 10th anniversary race was Todd Aven’s J/92 THIN MAN, celebrating appropriately by winning both PHRF Class 5 and also PHRF Overall- being awarded the Cotton Blossom Performance Trophy.Here was Todd’s commentary on their race:
“That was definitely one for the history books! We had a great start in very lumpy conditions... Easterly wind at about 15 knots. The wind increased, the wind decreased, it shifted left, and it shifted right. We started with a full main and the #2 jib. When it got windier, we put in a reef. When it got lighter, we shook out the reef. When it got lighter still, we changed (bare-headed) to the #1 jib. Then, the wind started building again. Time to put the reef back in, but only temporarily since the wind is going to drop soon (right?). At 22kts, we decided enough abuse for the #1 and switched to the #3 (bare-headed). That was good for a while, but then, the wind did drop and we switched back to the #1.
With the Easterly wind, the waves were pretty big and we were getting plenty of water over the deck. Then, the instruments shut off completely! It's really hard to drive in waves without a boat speed reading. I found a couple of bad connections right away, one of which was for the automatic bilge pump. That helped, since it now pumped some of the water out of the cabin, but still no instruments. Since it wasn't an easy fix, I went back to driving (without instruments) for an hour or two. Then, I went back to working on the instruments and got the wiring problem fixed.
The race was tough, a windward beat directly into the waves for most of the day, followed by some close tacking near the Connecticut shore in the night approaching Seaflower Reef. Once around the mark, we set the spinnaker and it was a gorgeous sleigh-ride all the way home.
When I got my "new" J/92 THIN MAN in 2007, I immediately set my sights on the Vineyard Race. I didn't know the boat well enough the first year to be comfortable jumping in right away, so we devoted ourselves to sprucing her up for 2008. Incredibly, we started off with a fleet and class win that year. Here is how we’ve done ever since:
- 2008 - Cornfield Point - 1st in class, 1st in fleet
- 2010 - Cornfield Point - 1st in class, 1st in fleet (and boat speed record of 21 knots)
- 2011 - Seaflower Reef - 1st in class, 1st in fleet
- 2012 - Seaflower Reef - 2nd in class
- 2013 - Vineyard Double-Handed - 4th in class
- 2014 - Seaflower Reef - 1st in class
- 2015 - Seaflower Reef - 1st in class
- 2016 - Seaflower Reef - 1st in class, 1st in fleet
- 2017 - Seaflower Reef - 5th in class
- 2018 - Seaflower Reef - 1st in class, 1st in fleet
Besides, the J/92 THIN MAN winning PHRF Class 5, Frank Conway’s J/105 RAPTOR took the bronze, Ken & Drew Hall’s J/88 NEVERMORE took 4th, and Justin Scagnelli’s J/88 ALBONDIGAS place 6th.
In addition, winning the PHRF Class 4 Doublehanded was Greg Imbruce’s J/109 JOYRIDE.
A great showing overall for the J/Tribe in the various Vineyard Race events! Follow the SYC Vineyard Race on Facebook here For more Vineyard Race sailing information
Sunny, Fast Conanicut Round Island J/121 CRESCENT IV Takes 1st Class, 2nd Overall!
(Jamestown, RI)- Under sunny skies and a building sea breeze, one hundred yachts ranging from 80 to 22 feet sailed 18 miles around the small island of Conanicut nestled in the middle of Narragansett Bay on Sunday afternoon. One of the oldest races in North America, the race marks the end of the summer sailing season in the coastal region.
“Some sailors come out for the trophy or just bragging rights, while others are simply on a family picnic sail,” said Race Chair Alan Baines. “The best part about this race that there is something for everyone and it's truly a celebration of another summer coming to end.”
The triple-digit fleet represented 25% of all race boats registered on Narragansett Bay, making it one of the largest CYC Around the Island Races in recent history. Plagued by Hurricane forecasts the last two years, organizers- who have been planning since January- were very happy both the weather and competitors turned out for the event.
“We want to keep it fun above all else,” said Principal Race Officer Mark Grosby of Jamestown. “Fair racing, a scenic course, and a great party afterward are what keeps everyone coming back year after year.”
Separated into 11 divisions and staggering starts by 6 minutes, the slower boats started at 11:00 am on Sunday in 8 knots from the south. It was around Beavertail Lighthouse on the southern tip on Conanicut that the fleets began to converge as they set their spinnakers for a nine-mile downwind run along the western side of the island.
There were plenty of winners amongst the more than 800 sailors (for full results go to conanicutyachtclub.com/ATI) but the residents of Jamestown also received a special treat watching the spectacular race from the shore. Jane Miner commented on the Race’s Facebook Page: “Loved that I could use KATTACK [tracking website] to see when they would be coming by my house, and then the scratch sheet to know who was who when I saw them with my binoculars from my terrace! So glad the breeze came in, too!!”In every division that included J/crews, they either won or placed on the podium- there was a LOT of silverware to give out! Starting with PHRF B Class, Dennis Nixon’s J/29 LYNX took third. In PHRF C Class of mostly J/22s and J/24s, taking 2nd was Cory Sertl’s J/22 LUCY, 4th was Kira Munger’s J/24 Youth Grant Boat, and 5th was Henry Lane’s J/24 FAST LANE.
Then, in PHRF D Class, 3rd was Dexter Hoag’s J/30 ALTAIR while a sistership placed 4th- Chris Tate’s J/30 BLITZ. The same happened in the PHRF E Class, with Sean & Susan Doyle’s J/105 KESTREL in 2nd with their sistership- Matt Schmitt’s J/105 HARDTACK- taking 3rd on the podium.
In PHRF F Class, a perennial winner had to settle for silver this time around- Paul Grimes’ J/353 BREAKAWAY. 5th place went to Dawson & Ben Hodgson’s J/100 GRIMACE.
The PHRF G Class consisted of just one-design J/109s. Winning the internecine battle was Bill Kneller’s VENTO SOLARE, joined on the podium by Ted Herlihy’s GUT FEELING in 2nd and John Sahagian’s PICANTE in third.
Finally, the “big boat J class” was PHRF H Class. Not surprisingly, it was a battle of the 40-plus footers, with a Japanese crew taking the class honors! Winning was Akimitu Hirai’s brand new J/121 CRESCENT IV from Hayama Marina YC in Japan- not only 1st in class, but 2nd in fleet PHRF Overall by a mere 18 seconds! Third was Greg Manning’s J/121 SARAH and fifth went to Jack Gregg’s J/122 TARAHUMARA. Sailing photo credits- Cate Brown For more Conanicut Round Island Race sailing information
J/Community
What friends, alumni, and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* Babe Ruth, Cal Ripken Jr., and Terry Hutchinson? Hmmm. Good guys, all. Bill Wagner from The Capital Gazette in Annapolis, MD had an interesting chat with Terry Hutchinson recently. For the un-initiated, Terry was a 2x College Sailor of the Year at Old Dominion University, a J/24 World Champion, a J/70 East Coast Champion, and a great family guy. That he's won the Farr 40, TP 52, and Maxi 72 Worlds with other teams is merely an asterisk to his J/24 accomplishments (the foundation of many of the world's best sailors worldwide).
As a kid growing up in Maryland, Terry Hutchinson couldn’t wait until weekends. Most Saturdays and Sundays were spent on the West River where his father Phil berthed a Concordia Yawl at Hartge Yacht Harbor in Galesville.
“We would go down there on the weekends and I would always beg my dad to rig up the dinghy so I could go sailing,” Hutchinson recalled. “I’d spend all day out on the water. It felt like my own little place of freedom.”
That love and passion for sailing that was instilled at a young age would become a guiding force in Hutchinson’s life. He attended Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia primarily because it boasted a strong sailing team.
Hutchinson was named College Sailor of the Year in 1989 and 1990, establishing a reputation that would lead to a career he never envisioned. He graduated from Old Dominion with an education degree, but wound up working for Ed Reynolds out of a Shore Sails loft in Traverse City, Michigan.
“My job was as much about promoting the product as selling,” Hutchinson said. “The J/24 class was wildly popular at the time and was a target market for our loft.”
So Hutchinson hit the J/24 circuit and quickly ascended to the top, reaching the pinnacle by capturing the 1998 world championship off San Francisco.Twenty years later, Hutchinson is still competing at the highest level of the sport. Last month, the veteran professional led Quantum Racing to the TP52 World Championship out of Cascais, Portugal.
That was just the latest in a long line of significant accomplishments for Hutchinson, who ranks among the greatest sailors in the long history of the sport. The 1986 St. Mary’s High graduate has been part of five America’s Cup campaigns and has been named Rolex Yachtsman of the Year twice (2008, 2014). He has claimed a total of 15 world championships in five different classes as either a skipper or tactician.
Hutchinson’s legendary career as a professional sailor was recognized when it was recently announced he was a member of the 2018 induction class into the Maryland State Athletic Hall of Fame. The Harwood native becomes just the second sailor ever selected for the state shrine, joining Annapolis resident Gary Jobson (2016 inductee).
“When you look at all the notable people who are members of the Maryland State Athletic Hall of Fame it is really humbling. I don’t look at myself in the same manner as someone like Cal Ripken,” Hutchinson said. “To be considered on par with so many great athletes is a tremendous honor.”Hutchinson was particularly proud to represent the sport of sailing and happy the Maryland State Athletic Hall of Fame selection committee gave it equal consideration to more mainstream pursuits such as football, basketball, baseball, golf and tennis.
Hutchinson’s professional career is far from complete and he is still chasing the one dream he’s held since boyhood. The 50-year-old is serving as skipper and CEO of American Magic, the New York Yacht Club’s challenger for the 36th America’s Cup.
Hutchinson came close to hoisting the Auld Mug in 2007 as tactician for Team New Zealand, which reached the finals of the 32nd America’s Cup. It was one of the greatest matches in America’s Cup history with Switzerland-based Alinghi Racing beating Team New Zealand 5-2.
“I don’t really want to sit back and reflect on my career right now because I haven’t achieved the greatest goal I set for myself,” Hutchinson said. “I want to become an America’s Cup champion, so there is still work to be done.”
The induction ceremony will be on Nov. 8, 2018. As J/Boats, we always wish him well! :)
* “The Joy of Sailing a J”- by Gaston Moonen- current owner of a J/27 and J/145 in The Netherlands. Enjoy Gaston’s story about how they fell in love with sailing a long line of J’s over time.“If there is anything that got my family and me into fast cruising it is J/boats. I started sailing at the age of nine when my father, an agricultural entrepreneur in the most land-locked province in the Netherlands, took his family – with five children - on a two-week sailing course. A few weeks after, he purchased two dinghies and the subsequent winter he ordered his first yacht, a Van der Stadt Design. My mother, not feeling comfortable on any boat, showed greatness in allowing this, something she has continued doing until the present day, including never lacking interest in the tales of sailing adventures we bring home.
I got to know J/Boats when I was studying at the University of Minnesota and saw J/22s competing against each other on Lake Minnetonka in 1990. I have never lost that image! That same summer of 1990, my father, my brother Martien and I test-sailed several sailing boats of different makes in the Netherlands. This included the J/35, which a dealer had just brought to Dutch waters as an example of J/Boats’ bigger models. It did not take us too long to decide in favour of a brand new J/35, Then, and actually for every subsequent boat purchase, we used three main selection criteria: first, the boat had to be fast - no speed, no fun. Second, it had to be rock solid, both in build and equipment. And third: when, after a weekend’s sailing, you took a last look at the boat, the boat should make you think, each and every time: ‘What a beauty!’ Although we did not know it then, this last criteria is very much in line with what I once heard in person from Rodney Johnstone, saying: ‘Half the joy of owning a boat is looking at it.’
Fast cruising is what we mainly did with our J/35 Jam Session. This ranged from trips to Normandy, including the Channel Islands, to fjords in Norway and also doing a ’Round Britain,’ but then in cruising mode, enjoying the shore’s great beauty. Most often we shared, meaning that one crew would do the first half of the trip, another crew the other half, always with at least a few family members on board. We truly loved our J/35, and not only because we were overtaking boats that were much bigger. We loved it also because it was such a comfortable boat to sail, which may come as a surprise to those who have only seen a J/35 and not sailed it. There was comfort in its stability, comfort in its straightforward set-up, also on the inside, and comfort in its ruggedness. While we pushed it hard occasionally, nothing broke, everything did what it was supposed to do. It had the finger-tip control in combination with thrilling responsiveness to wind and sea conditions that we knew from dinghy sailing.While fast cruising was its main destiny, we occasionally raced. I really got to know how much fun this was when I studied and worked in Manhattan in the early nineties and was a crew member sailing in Long Island Sound with skipper Dominique. Great fun, on a J/35 in a one-design fleet of about 20 boats. That’s where I got hooked on one-design racing, truly boat-to-boat racing. On my return to the Netherlands, this translated into the purchase of a J/22 and taking part more and more often, together with my wife Anne Marie and two friends, in J/22 one-design races, culminating in joining the 1995 J/22 Worlds in the Netherlands. While our results were poor, the fun we had and our learning curve were steep.
Having started families of our own, we decided it was time for something bigger and time to join the J/sprit revolution that J/Boats triggered in the nineties. As a sailing family we looked for a boat with ease of sail handling downwind, while still applying the other three criteria mentioned above, the first one having become even more nuanced, i.e. we were not only seeking passage-making speed but also excellent performance in upwind conditions. Our experience had shown that when sailing on the North Sea, beating against the wind somehow occurred more often than sailing downwind, and that pointing high was so much fun when gaining on other boats while enabling you to keep your engine hours low. So early this century we roamed boat shows and all the family members involved came to the same conclusion: it had to be a J/120. To get a good idea of the details of our newly-ordered J/120 we visited the J/Composites shipyard in Les Sable d’Olonne in France, just as we had visited the TPI shipyard on Rhode Island for our J/35 in the nineties. Besides the warm welcome we received from the Johnstone’s and others, this gave us amazing insights into how J/Boats is able to blend innovative new techniques with solid craftsmanship.What makes sailing on a "J "so typically "J"? A few reasons that leap to mind are:
- ‘Feeling’ the wind through your boat: every puff is translated into speed and/or higher pointing;
- Staying in touch with the elements: the low freeboard/topsides at cockpit level contribute tremendously to sailing, feeling close to the water, yet remaining dry;
- Walking on the deck of any J you feel the solid ‘build’ of the boat;
- The set-up of things, be it on the deck or inside, makes sense. One quickly relates to this ‘common sense,’ reflected in design and execution, built on experience. This common sense approach is also the stepping stone for innovation, the Johnstone family not only thinking about changing a product but how people relate to sailing, how that changes and what this requires to optimize the joy of sailing;
- Whenever I see a J it is a joy for the eye and it gives you a great feeling to sail on one of these gems yourself! After all, who wants to sail on an ugly boat?
Still today, our J/120 does what we bought it for: providing many enjoyable family sailing hours across generations, with my father at the age of 85 still sailing on it, or my brothers and sisters, and our children, cousins or the like-minded, joining in. And every trip is a new adventure.Probably my wife and I are the worst infected by the J-fever, having bought a J/27, called Jiggy, in 2004. We use Jiggy both as ‘get away from work’ on a nearby lake and as a pocket racer in winter race series in the Netherlands, leading to pleasant podium ascents with a boat of 35 years in mint condition.
For a good two years now, my wife and I and our three children are also the proud owners of the J/145 Ilderim, the fifth J in the family of J/boats we have sailed extensively. While providing more space, more speed, and also more draft, our J/145 ticks by far all the boxes we are looking for in a sailing boat - and even more, providing a fast, robust and comfortable yacht of timeless and striking beauty that offers an excellent and safe basis for memorable family fun sailing adventures.
From the very beginning, the Johnstone family has understood what it takes to make this happen for our family, and many others. Enjoy your J!”
* What it takes to win the J/111 World Championship. It was a repeat win for Martin Dent’s JELVIS. Twelve teams battled throughout the weeklong J/111 Worlds in Breskens, Netherlands, where big-breeze speed was the key to success. Martin Dent and his team on JElvis scored nine straight bullets and a second out of 12 races, an impressive scoreline!North Sails expert Ruairidh “Rory” Scott , main trimmer and crew captain onboard JElvis, says the team did a great job with boat handling.
“Our crew made sure our hoists, spinnaker jibes and douses were on time and very tidy. This resulted in huge gains and the ability to overtake boats when the pressure was on.”
They also matched headsail choice and mode to the conditions, Rory continues. “Most of the races were on the crossover between the J2 and J3. As the waves got bigger, we felt more comfortable on the J3 as a wider range of steering angles was possible. On Friday the waves were a little smaller and so we went back to the J2, which allowed us to sail a little higher at the same speed.”
Downwind, it was important to sail the correct mode. “We were usually the first boat to sail a higher angle, which was faster downwind. The crossover was around 17 knots, and we also kept the jib up to maximize efficiency. As soon as the wind dropped below 16 for any length of time we would drop the jib and put the bow down.”
North Sails expert Jeremy Smart helped Tony Mack’s McFly finish second overall and kept an eye on JElvis, noticing all the things they were doing right. “Their speed was unmatched as the breeze came up, when boat handling became crucial.”
“The biggest gains were made downwind,” Jeremy continued. “They were able to sail hotter angles to extend, leaving their jib up and maintaining control while planing. Surfing waves was really helpful, which they were very good at, making them unbelievably fast.”
“3Di has a great edge in breeze because it holds its shape very well,” Jeremy added. “Since it doesn’t stretch, the power that is put into the sail is transferred straight into the performance of the boat. The speed is unparalleled.”
JElvis used North Sails standard sail designs for the 2018 Worlds. For more information on our World Championship-winning sails, please contact a North J/111 class expert.
* J/88 Planing mode in Sweden’s famous annual Tjörn Runt Regatta on the Swedish west coast.Blowing 20-30 kts with A3 reaching kite up! Thanks for video from J/88.SE and the crew of Jocke Cordaly, Mans Lundberg, Carl Fjallman, Johannes Tegern, Fredrik Eliasson, and Jonas Dyberg.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tkiteyy80P8
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