J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
This past week saw an enormous diversity of sailing experiences around the world. Starting in Central America, the 2019 J/24 North American Championship took place in Valle de Bravo, Mexico; the fleet of twenty-seven boats enjoyed amazing hospitality from Club Nautico Valle de Bravo and simply spectacular sailing conditions all four days of the event.Then, just to the east of them across the Gulf of Mexico, a brand new J/112E sailed the St Petersburg to Havana Race, a 300.0nm race from a start line off St Petersburg YC on Tampa Bay to a challenging finish line just off the Hemingway Marina in Havana, Cuba. It blew like hell most of the race, from 15 kts up to 40 kt gusts at times. Theirs was an interesting report to read! Then, across America to the west coast, St Francis YC hosted J/Fest San Francisco, with racing taking place on San Francisco Bay for one-design fleets of J/70s and J/105s.
Over in the United Kingdom, we find the Warsash Sailing Club hosting their fourth weekend of sailing on Southampton Water and the infamous Solent for their HELLY HANSEN Warsash Spring Series; participating were fleets of IRC boats and one-design classes of J/70s, J/88s, J/109s; and a J/Sprit Class!
Finally, yet another brand new J/112E had her sailing debut in Australia. Sailing the Sydney Offshore Series, which ran from the September 2018 to April 2019, the new boat with new crew enjoyed tremendous success Down Under.
In the J/Community section below are two enjoyable stories to read from Sailing World from two notable writers- Gary Jobson and Dave Powlison. First, the Women’s World Champion in J/22s and J/24s and summer resident of Newport/ Jamestown, Cory Sertl, has been named as US Sailing’s next President. Gary Jobson interviews her and provides his report. Second, J/35’s continue to provide vintage offshore one-design yacht racing for vintage crewmen. Read what David Powlison had to say about his recent experience sailing the 2018 J/35 North Americans in Michigan late last summer.
J/99 Sailing Anarchy Report
(San Francisco, CA)- Norman Davant from Sail California sent this report to SailingAnarchy.com from the first sail of the new J/99 offshore shorthanded speedster on the west coast. Norm and crew took her for a spin on the infamous San Francisco Bay to give it a good test after the Pacific Sailboat Expo boat show in Richmond, CA. Commented Norm,
“We went thru several gyrations of everything, stretching and settling-in, and finally got the rig set up correctly. The headstay adjustment will be the key to the boat, keep the rig straight as the breeze comes up and then apply backstay.
Jeff Thorpe and Peter Cameron set the rig up as we went up thru the range; it sure helped to have these two guys along. We think we have good numbers in the 14-18 knots range, we need to sail in a bit more wind to make sure the headstay and shrouds are correct, they are close for sure.
We had six sailors on board. Amazingly, the J/99 is on “rails” up wind, totally balanced, beautiful touch on the helm.
We did not have anyone hiking; I wanted to see what the stability was like. The boat is really stiff; you can sail with two upwind in breeze for sure.
As we were tuning, I did the old bear away trick to see if you can bear away with sails fully trimmed-in. No problem! There is no shortage of rudder size and control!
Downwind, we had a few nice 18-knot puffs and we were cruising along at 12 kts boatspeed with all the control you would want. Was I surprised with the way the boat handled and sailed? Not at all. Designer Al Johnstone nailed the design and the build was exactly as expected out of J/Composites in Europe.
This boat will be a weapon for anyone that wants to go short-handed racing.” Thanks for contribution from Norm Davant and SailingAnarchy.com
SPERRY Charleston Race Week Preview(Charleston, SC)- It is that time of year again, the weekend before Easter/ Bank Holiday, when it seems just about half the East Coast heads down to Charleston Harbor to sail in the amazingly popular SPERRY Charleston Race Week. It is not hard to see why over 115 J/Teams are headed down to the historically famous venue (Fort Sumter is where the American Civil War started) for a long three-day weekend of sailing on six courses spread around the huge harbor. The Charleston Harbor Resort & Marina serves as host for the event and the CORA organization provides all logistical and professional race management for the 750+ sailors. While the on-water racing is fun, fast & furious, it’s the après’ sailing social activities on the beach ashore with loads of rum, beer, southern food, and live music that keeps sailors coming back for more fun-loving memories in the Deep South.
The regatta features six one-design J/Classes, including J/22s, J/24s, J/70s, J/80s, J/88s, and J/105s. In addition, there are two “Pursuit-style” sailing divisions for both PHRF and ORC handicap rated boats that includes a J/30, J/35, J/109s, J/111s, J/120s and a J/122.
Starting with the biggest fleet in the regatta, the fifty-seven J/70s will have their hands full negotiating the shoals and currents and wildly shifting breezes on 3/4 mile windward legs (max!). Despite the challenges, for most J/70 sailors, it is like a big college regatta, but on keelboats. Looking forward to that experience are many top J/70 teams, like John & Molly Baxter’s VINEYARD VINES from Riverside, CT; Doug Strebel’s BLACK RIVER RACING from Dallas, TX; Joel Ronning’s CATAPULT from Wayzata YC in MN; John Heaton’s EMPEIRIA from Chicago YC; Trey Sheehan’s HOOLIGAN: FLAT STANLEY RACING from Edgewater YC in Cleveland, OH; Marty McKenna’s RARITY from Annapolis, MD; Henry Brauer’s RASCAL from Marblehead, MA; Peter Duncan’s RELATIVE OBSCURITY from American YC; and Brian Keane’s SAVASANA from Boston, MA. Top visiting teams from outside the USA include Tony Staples’ REDCOAT from Royal St Lawrence YC in Canada; Francisco Van Avermaete’s JUICY from YC Argentino in Buenos Aires, Argentina; Pedro Camargo’s MANCHA NEGRA from YC Rio de Janeiro in Brazil; Paul Wolman’s MENACE from Royal Hamilton Dinghy Club in Bermuda; and Vernon Robert’s MORENITA from Club de Yates Algarrobo in Chile.
After sailing two midwinter regattas in St Petersburg, FL, the ten-boat J/88 class is looking forward to solid, warm winds, and hot competition. It is a star-studded gathering of the top J/88s from Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, and the Northeast. The leading teams should include Iris Vogel’s DEVIATION from Huguenot YC in New Rochelle, NY; Andy & Sarah Graff’s EXILE from Chicago, IL; Laura Weyler’s HIJINKS from Youngstown YC in New York; Rob Ruhlman’s SPACEMAN SPIFF from Lakeside YC in Cleveland, OH; and Mike Bruno’s WINGS from American YC in Rye, NY. Anyone of those teams is capable of podium finishes and have all topped the leaderboard in major J/88 regattas in the past.There are six-boats sailing in the J/22 class, mostly comprised of “Warrior Sailing Teams” on four boats; the four skippers are Sammy Hodges, Jacob Raymond, Corey Hall, and Sammy Lugo. Joining them is Terence Young’s PUFF and the US Patriot Sailing Team on PATRIOT XXII.
Of the dozen boats sailing in the J/24 class, eight are from the local fleet and four are “out of towners”. It is those “foreigners” that represent a formidable challenge to local knowledge, such as Carter White’s YouREGATTA from Portland YC in ME and Mike Quaid’s ICE CUBE from Mallets Bay Boat Club in VT.
The five-boat J/80 class may be dominated by a dynamic duo from Annapolis, MD. Those teams are Bert Carp’s ELEVEN from Annapolis YC and Bill & Shannon Lockwood’s SHENANIGANS from Eastport YC in Annapolis.
It will be an all-South Carolina turn-out for the five-boat J/105 class. Amusingly enough, it also features an internecine rivalry amongst them; Frickie Martschink & Bill McKenzie on RUMFRONT versus Miles Martschink & Ben Hagood on SKIMMER. Making sure that family blood doesn’t boil over will be Joe Highsmith on DEAD ON ARRIVAL, Bob Scribner on JOYRIDE, and the trio of Matt Self, Russ Smith, & Paul Jacques on RUCKUS.
It will be interesting to see how the ORC Hybrid Pursuit Division of fourteen boats turns out after three days of sailing. Half of the division is J/Teams. Those boats include Andy Wescoat’s J/109 HARM’S WAY from Houston, TX; two J/111s (Rob Stein’s KINETIC from Charleston, SC and Ian Hill’s SITELLA from Hampton YC in VA); two J/120s (John Keenan’s ILLYRIA from Mt Pleasant, SC and Rick Moore’s MOOSE DOWN from Charleston, SC); Robin Team’s J/122 TEAMWORK from Lexington, NC; and Will Schwenzfeier’s J/35 ARROW from Charleston, SC.
In the “traditional” PHRF Pursuit Division, there are five J/Teams. Those fun-loving crews include the J/120 EMOCEAN (Bill Hanckel from Charleston YC); the J/120 ROCKET SCIENCE (Rick Oricchio from Mt Pleasant, SC); the J/130 SCEPTRE (Bob Musor from CORA in Mt Pleasant, SC); the J/30 LAS BRISAS (Mark Swatta from Mt Pleasant, SC); and the J/36 SOUL (the College of Charleston Sailing Team).
The forecasts are for “breeze-on” for most of the regatta, starting Thursday practice day through the Sunday finale. For more Charleston Race Week sailing information
Les Voiles de St Barths X Edition Preview(Gustavia Harbor, St Barths)- The tenth edition of the Voiles de Saint Barth is about to start this coming weekend. A fleet of fifty-five offshore racing thoroughbreds and a dozen cruising multihulls will be plying the spectacular aquamarine waters around St Barths for a week of fun in the sun and fabulous sailing from April 15th to 20th, 2019. And, to be sure, the après’ sailing is simply outstanding and considered some of the best in the Caribbean.
Les Voiles has been a bucket list event for sailors since its inception in 2010, and for its tenth edition, the sailors will enjoy five days of racing! Regatta Director François Tolède commented, “The extra day of racing last year proved very popular. It brings more competitiveness and fun to the regatta, which we know is exactly what our participants are interested in! We look forward to the regatta kick off on Sunday and wrap up Saturday. Racing is scheduled for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. Still, the official “Day Off” is scheduled for Thursday and we hope to see everyone at Nikki Beach to celebrate!”
Participating for at least the fourth year in a row are the two J/122s- LIQUID (Pamala Baldwin from Antigua) and EL OCASO (Chris Body from the United Kingdom). Joining them will be the J/105 SUNBELT REALTY JENK from Curacao, skippered by Jan Henk van der Wier. For more Les Voiles de Saint Barth sailing information
J/Fest Northwest Announcement
(Seattle, WA)- Sail Northwest, the northwest USA J/Boat dealer, invites you to join them for the 2nd year of the comeback of the original J/FEST Northwest from June 22nd to 23rd, 2019.
New this year! The Corinthian Yacht Club of Seattle will be taking over management of the Regatta!
This is a two-day event that is open to all J/Boats owners and crew. Starts will be provided for one-design, PHRF and cruising classes.
The on-the-water activities are hosted by Sail Northwest and Corinthian Yacht Club of Seattle. Shoreside activities will be at the CYC Seattle Shilshole clubhouse Saturday and Sunday.
Saturday evening’s dinner and door prize extravaganza is always a sellout. So head on down and join them for what Northwest Yachting Magazine called “the most looked forward to regatta of the year-” J/FEST NW.
Initial one-design class commitments include the J/22s, J/24s, J/80s, J/97e, J/105s, and J/109s. And, the PHRF commitments include a J/122E, J/29, J/27, and J/30 and Cruising class commitments include a J/35c, J/37, J/40, and J/44. Come join the fun, every type of J/boat will be out sailing with us at the end of June!
Please contact SAIL NW with any questions about the weekend’s festivities, sponsorship and racing questions- phone# 206-286-1004 or email- sales@sailnorthwest.com
Regatta & Show Schedules:
Mar 17- Apr 28- Warsash Spring Series- Warsash, EnglandApr 9-14- J/22 World Sailing Nations Cup- San Francisco, CA
Apr 11-14- Charleston Race Week- Charleston, SC
Apr 13-14- Irish J/24 Westerns- Lough Re, Ireland
Apr 14-20- Les Voiles de Saint-Barth Regatta- Gustavia, St. Barth
Apr 18-22- SPI Ouest France Regatta- La Trinite sur Mer, France
Apr 20-21- J/22 Van Uden Ecco Regatta- Stellendam, Netherlands
Apr 26-28- Newport to Ensenada Race- Newport Beach, CA
Apr 27-28- American YC Spring Series- Rye, NY
Apr 28- May 3- Antigua Sailing Week- English Harbour, Antigua
May 3-5- Annapolis NOOD Regatta- Annapolis, MD
May 3-5- Yachting Cup Regatta- San Diego, CA
May 4-10- J/24 European Championship- Patras, Greece
May 4- RORC Cervantes Cup Race- Cowes, England
May 9-12- SAILING Champions League- Palma Mallorca, Spain
May 10-12- Grand Prix de St Cast- St Cast, France
May 10-12- RORC Vice Admiral’s Cup- Cowes, England
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
Welles Crowned J/24 North American Champion
(Valle de Bravo, Mexico)- Who knew that the Mexican-hosted J/24 North American Championship would come down to two “gringos” from “el norte” that are “buenos amigos” from “el estado de Maine”. What? Yes! True story.
Having known each other from way, way “Down East” for well over three decades, it was more than ironic that the two leading protagonists for the 2019 J/24 North American Championship both hailed from the state of Maine, and had sailed against each other in J/24s at various events ranging from Portland to further Downeast in Southwest Harbor off Mount Desert Island! That they found themselves battling “hammer & tong” for the 2019 J/24 N.A. finale was a bit of a “back to the future” experience for both Will Welles on BRUSCHETTA and Tony Parker on BANGOR PACKET. No one was going to “pull the wool over the eyes” of the other boat, they both know each other all too well!
The 2019 J/24 North American Championship was hosted by Club Nautico Valle de Bravo on their gorgeous lake in Valle de Bravo, Mexico. The twenty-seven boat fleet consisted of USA, French and Mexican teams from across the top fleets in the respective countries.
In the end, it was Welles’ BRUSCHETTA that withstood a hard-charging Parker on his BANGOR PACKET to return the J/24 North American Championship to Newport, RI. Welles, two-time J/24 World Champion and now four-time J/24 North American Champion, came into Friday’s final two races with a slight two-point advantage over Parker. With Mexican boat owner Aroldo de Rienzo aboard, as well as Rich Bowen, John McCabe and PJ Schaffer, BRUSCHETTA took the victory in Race 9, with Parker still hot on their heels in second. The pair dueled in the final contest, with Welles placing ninth and Parker 10th, giving Welles and team the Championship with 24 points to Parker’s 28. In third place overall, and top Mexican finisher, was Kenneth Porter’s “S” with 32 points.
Welles had never sailed in Valle de Bravo before this week, when he also competed in the Mexican National Championship (placing first overall). Although this marked the first time paired with local Valle de Bravo boat owner de Rienzo, the remaining crew are good friends from Newport, RI, who sometimes race together in the famous Newport Fleet 50 Thursday night races (considered the world’s “hottest” fleet since it has at least five J/24 World Champions sailing on some Thursdays!).
Welles summarized the conditions in Valle de Bravo, saying, “It’s funky out there. The puffs don’t move quickly, so you have to get to them. That doesn’t happen in Newport or other places we have sailed.”
As for strategy in the final two races, Welles said, “We focused on getting good starts, so we could go the way we thought we should. The goal was to just keep Bangor Packet behind us! Of course, we know them, and Tony is a great friend. Kudos to them for pushing us so hard!”
Rounding out the top five were top Seattle, WA sailor Mark Laura with buddy Mark Thomas onboard, sailing BABA LOUIE to 4th place. Fifth was another Mexican team, one of the early regatta leaders- Javier Velásquez’s TRINQUETE. For more J/24 North American Championship sailing information
J/112E SILVER SURFER Wins St Petersburg to Havana Race
(Havana, Cuba)- “The forecast looked good for this year’s 89-year old race from St Pete YC to Havana (Marina Hemingway). In fact, it was so good that the 25-30 knot NNE breeze would be too much for the leeward shore Gulfstream finish line in Havana, so the start was delayed a day.” So said, Harvey Ford and Tom Mistele, the co-owners of the new J/112E SILVER SURFER. Both went on to describe their somewhat demanding experience in moderate to very high winds (40 kts plus) over the course of their race in their newly launched boat. Here is their story:
“At 9:00 AM the next day, on March 19, twenty-seven boats started on a reach off downtown St. Pete in a still sporty 25 knot NNE breeze.
So back up a minute...the race was the first of its kind in 1930, running for 29 years until suspended due to events in Cuba. Then, 58 years later, it resumed in 2017. This year was the third edition of the new race. Unchanged since 1930, the race is a 20-mile dog leg out of Tampa Bay under the Skyway Bridge, with a sharp left-turn just outside the Bay at Southwest Pass sea buoy #1, then at ~182 degs and 200 miles to Rebecca Shoals (east of Dry Tortugas island at the end of the Florida Keys), then about the same heading another 80 miles to Cuba.
This year, our J/112E SILVER SURFER took first overall, much to our pleasant surprise! Who knew! The crew was Chris Bergstrom, Marty Kullman, Lin Robson, John Monahan and Christian Koules.
Finishing second was Wasabi (a fast, well-sailed Farr 395 also from St. Pete), and third went to Fresh Pineapple (a hard-charging Esse 990 from New Orleans). All 3 boats set a new course record, with line honors to Pineapple (32h:43 m) and Wasabi (34h:5m), but neither saved their time on SILVER SURFER that finished in 35h:27m.
At the downwind start, conditions were about 25 knots and gusting higher. SILVER SURFER, appropriately painted silver/gray and named after Tom Mistele’s Marvel comic hero, set its A2 spin and jumped on the wake of the larger Wasabi, together chasing Pineapple out of the Bay. However, Pineapple was soon raked by some really big gusts and got the dust washed off its spreaders in a prolonged knockdown (e.g. a massive massive broach!). Wasabi similarly rolled out, so Surfer lost its wake ride, but we surfed on. Surfer took several knockdowns itself, losing its MOB buoy in the process (as did Wasabi), leading to calls to the RC to advise that all was OK. For sure, we were successfully testing the maximum limits of the 650 fabric of our brand new North spinnaker!
We were the first boat to the dog leg inside the Skyway Bridge and then set our A3 chute in the building breeze. Recording 29-33 knot gusts, we managed to carefully jibe about 5 times in the dash out SW Pass maintaining 10+ knots for the first 2 hours and maxing at 14.5 knots.
After the final jibe at SW #1, Surfer and the others set into a 200-mile port tack reach in the 25-knot breeze...with the true wind angle at about 140 degs off the bow and apparent wind at about 100 degrees. With a deep keel, one reef in the main and the A3 spinnaker, we were able to maintain a higher COG inside the rhumbline, while still surfing off every other wave...eventually posting a top speed of 15.7 knots.
Pineapple scooted out ahead, but stayed in sight all day on a lower heading. Wasabi eased further offshore outside the rhumbline and eventually caught us at Rebecca Shoals, out of view to leeward.
Anticipating even higher winds (35-40 knots) and a slight tilt to the east for the breeze on the first night, according to pre-race weather reports, we elected to drop the chute before full-on darkness. But, that was done only after hot lasagna and Hawaiian Rolls served “comfortably” to the whole crew. The next 9 hrs were still fast under full main and jib and a totally obscured full moon. But, the really bad winds never happened, so we settled for good control, a high course, and 10-12 knots of boat speed all night.
Wasabi was going to catch us eventually, but owed us 99 minutes on corrected handicap time. In the conditions we were sailing, that meant they had to beat us by about 15 miles, so we felt relatively safe.
On Wednesday morning, the winds dropped down to a civilized 21.0 knots. Feeling quite comfortable, we served coffee and breakfast bars and then we re-set the A2! Tracking the location and strength of the Gulf Stream, we jibed back and forth across the rhumbline to attempt a clean arrival at Havana over the final 80 miles.
As we approached the Havana Hemingway Harbor finish line, the 10-foot onshore rollers triggered by the NE breeze and the opposing east flowing Gulf Stream of 4-5 kts would make the after-dark finish somewhat challenging, to say the least!
The finish mark, being a 10 sec flashing white light with the city behind it, is an annual riddle. The buoy bobs in 300 feet of water (up from about 2,000 feet deep less than a 1/2 mile offshore) and the conditions were too rough for the RC to stay on post. So, we all took our own times at the finish buoy per the Sailing Instructions. The reef along the shore is just 1/4 mile downwind from the finish, so we definitely had one foot on the brake as we approached! Conservative as we were, we even doused the chute well before the finish! This hair-raising finish made the smooth Cuban customs process seem like a walk in the park!
Our hats off to the designers and builders of the sturdy J/112E! Despite the “dancing on a piano-wire/ walking the tight-rope” sailing conditions, our only real challenge was the A-sail tack line chafe that we doubled up underway before it parted. We regularly blessed the over-sized rudder and carbon wheel and, needing front-end buoyancy, we were happy that we had stored the extra water, life raft, anchor, and other stuff in the aft lockers.
As you would expect, a glorious hour of celebration occurred at the dock after clearing customs! All seven of us went below, turned on the AC, had some drinks, ate the full dinner that we had been envisioning all race long, and asked each other what just happened! What an amazing time and great way to celebrate our first win on Silver Surfer!” For more information regards the fast, powerful J/112E sport cruiser
Successful J/112E Debut in Sydney Offshore Series
(Sydney, Australia)- In its first full race series since arriving in Australia, the stunning new J/112E ZEST finished an impressive 2nd overall in the Sydney Amateurs Sailing Club “Cruiser Racer series”. The full sixteen race series was held on stunning Sydney Harbour.
Starting in September 2018 and finishing in mid-April 2019, the competitive fleet raced in a wide variety of wind and sea state conditions. From light drifters to 30 knots plus “blowing dogs off chains” kind of weather, the new J/112E handled everything in her stride, with an impressive score line of four 1sts, a 2nd, three 3rds, and a 4th.
“I was on a very steep learning curve,” commented ZEST’s proud owner Stephen. “A new crew, new sailing club, new courses and a very special new boat; we are still learning a lot about it! Progressively, through the season, we learnt what the boat was capable of doing in all conditions. We especially enjoyed sailing upwind, with her better pointing and better VMG speed capabilities than our competitors! A special thanks to my crew and our competitor’s, we look forward to racing against you all again next season!” For more information regards the exciting, powerful J/112E sport cruiser
Tight Battles @ J/Fest San Francisco(San Francisco, CA)- The annual J/Fest San Francisco, hosted by St Francis Yacht Club, provided yet again excellent race management and close racing for the fleet of one-designs that included J/105s and J/70s. Over the two-day weekend, the fleet was able to get in three races per day for a total of six overall.
In the twenty-five boat J/105 division, the top of the leaderboard saw nip-and-tuck battles that raged race-by-race. The key was consistency and, other than the regatta winner, all teams posted at least one or more double-digit finishes; that is how tight the racing can be in the J/105 Fleet #1 on San Francisco Bay.
It was rough going for everyone, as evidenced by the scorelines. Nevertheless, it was Tim Russell’s NE*NE, with an 8-1-1-9-5-3 tally for 27 pts, that took the class honors. Leading the regatta after four races was Ryan Simmons’ BLACKHAWK, but a bruising 5th race dropped them out of contention, scoring a 2-2-10-3-13-2 for 32 pts to take the silver. Taking the bronze on the podium was Adam Spiegel’s JAM SESSION with a 3-8-5-10-10-7 scoreline for 43 pts. The balance of the top five was Justin Oberbauer’s STRANGELOVE with 44 pts in fourth and Phil Laby’s GODOT with 53 pts in fifth (breaking a tie-breaker with Jeff Litfin’s MOJO that ended up 6th).
The J/70s saw two boats duel for the class lead on the first day. However, on day two, it was Chris Kostanecki’s JENNIFER that firmly took the upper hand to win the regatta with a 2-4-1-1-1-3 record for 12 pts. While giving them a run-for-the-money on day one, Scott Sellers/ Harrison Turner’s 1FA ultimately had to settle for the silver with a 3-3-4-2-5-1 tally for 18 pts. After starting off with a blistering 1-1-5 to lead the regatta on the first day, Brian Mullen’s ORANGE YOU GLAD lost their “mojo” on day two, posting a mediocre 5-7-9 to close the series with 28 pts and settling for the bronze on the podium. For more J/Fest San Francisco sailing information
Warsash Spring Series- Weekend IV Report
(Warsash, England)- The fourth weekend is now on the books for the Warsash Sailing Club’s famous HELLY HANSEN Warsash Spring Series. The fleet was blessed, again, with good enough conditions to get in one more race for the IRC handicap fleets and three more for the J/70s.
Race Report- Black Group
IRC 4 Class was started off Meon Shore on time at 1000 hrs from the White Group line in a very light easterly breeze. As on the previous Sunday, the main Black Group start was set up near QXI International buoy on the south edge of the East Knoll bank.
With the forecast of 6-8 knots starting off in the ENE and swinging to the SE during the racing period, but then dying away to nothing by late afternoon, the race team was considering the difficult question of timing the moving orientation for course setting when the breeze died away almost completely. With more hope than expectation about any return of a sailing breeze, a postponement was announced and the boats and the race team sat and waited.
Happily by about 1030 hrs a light breeze of 4-5 knots arrived from the SE and with suitable courses quickly set, the start sequence got all classes away between 1050 and 1110 on a series of beats, runs and reaches between the Ryde Middle bank and the East Knoll area, with courses of 8-10 miles. Light sunshine and the gentle breeze made for enjoyable racing and testing tactics over the spring tide.
In IRC 1 Class, it was the first outing for Chris Jones & Louise Makin’s J/111 JOURNEYMAKER II, showing they had not lost their edge by winning their class in convincing fashion.
In IRC 2 Class, Simon Perry’s J/109 JIRAFFE had a disappointing 9th place on Sunday which she’ll hope to discard when enough races have taken place next Sunday; but even so she held onto second place overall. Sitting in third continues to be Chris Burleigh’s JYBE TALKIN. It was good to see Royal Yachting Association Chairman Christopher Preston out racing with the J/109 JUBILEE, his crew included Cowes Week regatta director Laurence Mead; they scored a creditable 5th place in this 21-strong class. In addition, Charles Ivill’s J/112E DAVANTI TYRES team is beginning to get themselves up to speed in the series, posting a 1-3 in their last two races to be sitting in 5th overall, easily within striking distance of the podium. Everyone was also glad to see the new J/99 JENGA 99 competing for the first time, raced by Mark Richmond and his team and finishing a few seconds behind the J/109 JUBILEE.
With four races under their collective belts in the J/88 Class, Gavin Howe’s TIGRIS continues to dominate with all bullets for 4 pts. However, the top five has jumbled a bit since a few boats had “no show DNC’s” posted in their scorelines. Currently, sitting in second is Dianne & Dirk Van Beek’s SABRIEL JR with 31 pts, third is Richard Cooper’s JONGLEUR with 33 pts, fourth is Kirsty & David Apthorp’s J-DREAM with 36 pts, and fifth is Tim Tolcher’s RAGING BULL with 38 pts.
The J/109s also have four races on the books. Winning the fourth race quite handily was John Smart’s JUKEBOX, an amazing performance for their first day on the water this season! Meanwhile, Simon Perry’s JIRAFFE continues to lead with 7 pts. They are followed by Chris Burleigh’s JYBE TALKIN in second with 12 pts, third is Rob Cotterill’s MOJO RISIN with 33 pts. The balance of the top five is Bill Stock’s JENGU in 4th and Chris Preston’s JUBILEE in 5th position.
The J-sprit class continues to be dominated by the J/88s and by Gavin Howe’s TIGRIS, in particular, as she took her fourth win in four weekends! The next two spots have flip-flopped. Sitting in 2nd is now Dirk & Dianne Van Beek’s J/88 SABRIEL JR with 31 pts, following in 3rd by Kirsty & David Apthorp’s J/88 J-DREAM with 33 pts. This class will see a significant shake-up on the leaderboard once the toss race comes into effect after race six, as several teams have “no show 25’s” counting in their scorelines.
Race Report- White Group
The forecast for the day was not exciting, E to SE, 4-7 knots. This eventually turned out to ENE to S and the back to ESE, with 3-5 knots for most of the day and reaching nearly 8 knots for the last half of the last race of the day.
IRC 4, as is normal, got away on time at 1000 hrs for their round-the-Solent cans course, but the swing to the right started immediately, and the start of the combined sportsboat fleet was postponed. After an hour, during which the wind went right round to S before settling at SSE, the fleet finally got away. In the second race, it was a relatively stable breeze. Then, for the third race the wind was back to its old tricks, which needed the course shifted left before the start, and 25 degrees further left during the race. The ongoing shift shook things up somewhat on the race track.
The hotly contested fleet of J/70s have now sailed twelve races. Continuing to lead the class is Paul Ward’s EAT SLEEP J REPEAT with mostly 1sts and 2nds for 15 pts net. Jumping up to second place is Phil Chandler’s BLACKJAX with 50 pts net. Dropping into third place was Graham Clapp’s JEEPSTER with 66 pts. The rest of the top five includes Terry O’Neill’s AQUA J in 4th and Doug Struth’s DSP in 5th place. Sailing photo credits- Andrew Adams/ CloseHauled Photography Follow the Warsash Spring Series on Facebook here For more HELLY HANSEN Warsash Spring Series sailing information
J/Community
What friends, alumni, and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
-----------
* Tony Mack’s J/122 McFLY/ EL OCASO took second in their division at the recent BVI Spring Regatta. Tony also remarked on the BVI Spring Sailing Festival events that took place before the regatta, commenting that “Pamala Baldwin’s J/122 LIQUID won the very popular Round Tortola Race and our J/122 won the fun-loving Scrub Island Race. We thought you might enjoy some photos from those events and the team celebrating their good fortune with some nice silverware!”
* J/35 Vintage Yacht Racing with Vintage J/35 Classmen!?
Three decades and many owners later, these utilitarian 35-Footers remain true to their calling. Sailing World’s David Powlison provides us a unique insight into the popular offshore class.
“It’s been more than three decades since I last set foot on a J/35, but walking down the docks at the County Marina in Cheboygan, Michigan, I’m feeling, as Yogi Berra once famously said, “déjà vu all over again.” Among the marina’s slips are 13 survivors of the one-design sportboat invasion: battle-worn J/35s and their owners gathered 15 miles southeast of Mackinac Island for the class’s 2018 North American Championship.
There’s no mistaking the J/35 with its big overlapping genoa and a weather rail stacked with crew, just as designer Rod Johnstone intended it to be. Yes, a number of the boats have bits of modern gear; carbon tillers and spinnaker poles, new instrumentation, laminate sails and modern lines. It all seems cosmetic. With boats, especially, age is impossible to mask. The copious hardware mounted about the deck, the beefy rod rigging, the unmistakable profile— the J/35 is, without a doubt, a product of the 1980s.
As I study which halyards lead to where, it’s obvious this championship will require me to tap a skill set from years past.
With the symmetric spinnaker, there are sheets and guys and their lazy counterparts— a far cry from the simplicity of the modern asymmetric. Gigantic overlapping headsails take a lot longer to grind home after a tack than the non-overlapping jibs used on newer boats. Then, there’s the task of choreographing 10 people every time something happens. A consistent crew is prized among owners, especially when racing on the championship’s short, labor-intensive, windward-leeward courses.
I’ve been invited to join Greg Whipple, from Grand Blanc, Michigan, and his crew aboard Whiplash. Whipple races in the Detroit area, and the crew delivered the boat north as part of the Port Huron to Mackinac Race two weeks earlier, which is the case for other teams from Detroit. The Chicago-area fleet used the Chicago to Mackinac Race as its feeder to Cheboygan.
Whipple has been in the class for a long time; but for this event, most of his crew are new to the boat. He walks us through maneuvers as we motor out of the harbor for the first race of the series. Once sails are up, with the wind spiking into the upper teens, much of our pre-race time is consumed by a sail change from the No. 2 jib down to the No. 3. It’s a reminder of how long a sail change takes, even with a rail full of helping hands.
Thirteen J/35s on the starting line of the 2018 North American Championship at North Star Sail Club is a testament to the strength of the class, its devotees and the timeless nature of the design.
Once racing, we get a good start and hold our own, upwind, before the fun begins.
Across the fleet, foredeck crews are assimilating to an old-world order at the pointy end. Most newer crews survive the heavy-air spinnaker sets, but there’s plenty of chaotic jibing, shrimping and spinnakers flagging aloft.
“Having the same crew is a big deal,” says Bill Wildner, whose boat, Mr. Bill’s Wild Ride, is always the one to beat. If there were a reward for having the most seasoned crew, he would’ve won that too. His youngest, newest crewmember joined the squad 14 years ago. The crew’s age range goes from Mike Zanella, 67, to Eric Weston, who joined the team 26 years ago, when he was 16.
“I’m very fortunate I’ve had the same guys stick with me— and it’s not just for sailing,” Wildner says. “ We have a blast the rest of the time as well.”
The wind moderates the second day and eventually fades to a whimper on the third and final day. The Whiplash crew, and most of those on other boats that struggled the first day, hit their stride, and crew work dramatically improves. The race committee delivers nine races over three days, which amounts to 18 spinnaker sets and drops. That’s enough to make veterans of any crew in one weekend.
As with any grassroots regatta, the overarching social experience transcends the racing itself. The Whiplash crew meets regularly for breakfast at Alice’s Restaurant, a great dive with a menu a mile long. Coincidentally, Cheboygan, a city with fewer than 5,000 full-time residents, is hosting a music festival the same weekend as the regatta. Bands play from early afternoon and well into the evening, and for the thirsty sailors, there’s the Cheboygan Brewing Co., which has been serving suds since 1882.
The biggest draw to this year’s championship, however, is the omnipresence of designer Rod Johnstone. At 81, Johnstone still sails his own J/35 in Maine. He might not be as quick on his feet as he once was, but his stories and enthusiastic wit make him the star of the show.
Dean Fitzpatrick, the mastermind behind the North American Championship, remembers calling Johnstone’s house one Thanksgiving morning. “His wife answered and said she was making dinner for him and their kids,” Fitzpatrick says. “But, she put him on the phone anyway, and when I told him about the event and that we hoped he’d attend, he said, without hesitation, ‘I’ll do it!’”
He didn’t just show up to shake hands though. For the final day of racing, he jumped aboard Sheri Dufresne’s Firefly. “It was amazing,” she says. “He was so giving of his time. We even had him sign the boom.”
Afterward, Johnstone stopped by every boat to chat with owners and sign his name on the interior. The entire Blackhawk crew signed a hat for Johnstone that he wore for the rest of the event. He spent a lot of time with us aboard Whiplash.
“That was so cool having Rod stop by to talk with us,” Whipple says. “For most of us, it’s likely his visit will be remembered long after the event itself fades.”
Pulling off an event of this caliber, let alone drawing a fleet of this size, is a feat. Even with 13 boats, the J/35 class championship is the envy of many 30‑plus‑year-old one-designs.
The venue had its challenges too: There’s no yacht club, and it’s being held in early August, earlier than the traditional September date. And, with the Mackinac races serving as feeders, it’s part of a two-for-one event. North Star Sail Club, located down lake in the Detroit area, hosts the event “off-campus,” so to speak, and shuttles race-committee gear, boats and personnel north to make the event successful.
Fitzpatrick no longer sails competitively, but still maintains an unparalleled passion for the J/35, its people and its class association. He regularly corresponds by email with 172 people, which includes 45 J/35 owners from: Chicago; Milwaukee; Duluth, Minnesota; Ohio; New York; Annapolis, Maryland; and Toronto. Despite the mountain of work he puts into this event, he deflects all praise with humility. “I just make the calls,” he says. But he does acknowledge, “Nothing ever just happens.”
When the J/35 was conceived in the early 1980s, there was no real consideration of the measurement rules of the time. Johnstone had another idea in mind. “As with all of our boats, we worked to create a one-design racer, but it just happened to rate well under IMS,” Johnstone says. Yet, one of the first J/35s ever built won its division in the 1984 Bermuda Race.
The J/35 is an offshoot of the J/36, which debuted in 1980. The J/36 came fully loaded, with a complete interior, wheel steering, etc., and the $84,000 price reflected that. “Then the recession hit in 1982,” Johnstone says. “We couldn’t sell any more 36s. And the big thing was the number of hours we were spending on the J/36 to fit all the options. The J/35 was easy. We made everything optional except for the diesel engine and four bunks below.”
J/Boats sold the base boat for $49,500 back then, and when the first boats were delivered in 1983, it was clear they had a winner. The boat rolled up a string of victories beyond the ’84 Bermuda Race, including Mackinac Races, the Monhegan Race and Miami to Montego Bay. American Tony Lush raced one in the 1984 OSTAR, a singlehanded transatlantic race. It carries a PHRF rating of around 72 in most PHRF fleets.
By 1988, J/35s were getting more expensive to build, Johnstone says: “With the 35, we ended up competing with ourselves in the used-boat business. This happened with the J/24 and J/30 as well. When you get to a certain point where a new boat costs twice as much as a used one, it’s hard to sell new boats.”
Once production ceased in 1992, 330 J/35s had been built.
Yes, there are challenges to owning a 1980’s-vintage fiberglass craft. The hull is balsa-cored, so buyers beware: a moisture meter is a sound investment.
“If you can find one that’s not all wet, you’ve done well,” says Wildner, who recently stripped the skin off his rudder, dried it out and rebuilt it. “I was tired of fighting the blisters,” he admits.
Blackhawk had its stern replaced as a condition of purchase before Amie and Tim Ross bought it. It had fallen victim to a bungled DIY repair involving particleboard that attempted to deal with high moisture content. The boats can be refurbished without too much time and money, however, and parts are readily available, either with a direct replacement or its modern equivalent.
While many sailing thoroughbreds of a similar vintage have been put out to pasture, converted to cruising boats or left to decay in their slips, the class has persevered, with centers of activity in Chicago, Detroit and Annapolis. Any time I ask a J/35 owner, “Why this boat?” I hear the same answer as I would for any other older design with a devoted following. The appeal is the level of competition, the presence of like boats in their area and the lower cost of getting into one.
Yet, there are intangible reasons that link those who sail it with Johnstone’s creation. Amie and Tim’s relationship is founded in their love of the 35.
They met on match.com, Amie says. She had posted a picture of herself on a boat she was racing, and he had posted one of himself with a car.
“He saw my picture and wrote, ‘Nice boat.’ I responded with, ‘Nice car!’”
Tim had never sailed before. Amie talked him into trying it out, and in short order, they were sailing together in a Mackinac race. During the race, the owner’s son got sick, and they had to retire. “While we were ashore, Tim told me that this race was going to cost us a lot of money,” Amie recalls
“He said, ‘We’re going to have to buy our own boat so we can finish the race.’” That boat ended up being a J/35. Besides a few local races, they’ve since completed a pair of Port Huron to Mackinac races.
There’s also Ron Rabine, a barrel-chested man with rosy cheeks and a big smile buried in a thick gray beard. “He would often sail with us,” Amie says. “He even let us braid his beard. One time, he was flying the kite, and one of the other crewmembers suggested he move to get his weight in a better place, and he said, ‘When I’m flying the kite, I don’t weigh anything.’ So we started calling him our deck fairy.”
Rabine’s connection to the J/35 came while running some races at a J/35 championship out of Cheboygan back in 2002.
“I had heard a bunch of love songs on the radio on the way up and bought a ring at the local Kmart that used to be just down the road from here,” he says. The race committee boat he was assigned to had a Gaelic name that translates to “love of my life.” The coincidence was too great to ignore, so he proposed to his wife, Terry, just as the fleet rounded the weather mark.
She said "yes", of course.
The appeal is the level of competition, the presence of like boats in their area and the lower cost of getting into one.
Distracted, he pooched the starting sequence for the next race. “I was off by a minute,” he says. “But I stopped the sequence, admitted the mistake over the radio and also said, ‘I just proposed to Terry.’”
The entire fleet broke out in applause. The following year, he picked up a permanent spot with Mr. Bill’s Wild Ride. He’s been a fixture ever since.
Ken Schwandt operates Kent Sail Co., a three-person sailmaking business. His father, Kent, got him involved in the family business when he was 11, sweeping floors and keeping the loft tidy. They built mostly cruising sails, but got involved in the now-defunct MORC class with a Lindenberg 26. In 1988, the elder Schwandt bought a J/35. Son Ken now makes class-legal sails, including wardrobes for three teams at the North Americans — including Wildner’s.
The Schwandt family tradition continues with his son. “When he was young I tried to put him in junior sailing,” Schwandt says. “But he said he’d rather skateboard. He’s 30 now, and he came back and said, ‘Hey, can I go sailing with you?’”
He’s now a regular with Mr. Bill’s Wild Ride, and so long as Wildner keeps winning, he’ll have no problem keeping the consistent crew required to win. It’s a code of competitive sailing: Good teams keep good crew.
When Wildner bought the boat 26 years ago, he thought he’d have the boat for five years at most. “I’ve sailed a lot of different boats when they first came out — J/105s, J/120s — thinking I’d make a move, but I like the way the J/35 sails,” he says. “It’s a better sailing boat and a great platform to race.”
Sailing photo credits- Sailing World/ Santo Fabio and article credits- Sailing World/ David Powlison
* Cory Sertl- J/22 and J/24 Women’s World Champion- is now US Sailing President!Gary Jobson recently provided a profile on Sailing World.com regarding the recent election of Newport/ Jamestown native and top woman sailor- Cory Sertl. Here is Gary’s report on a woman sailor he has also known for nearly two-plus decades as a friend, competitor, and fellow US Sailing volunteer.
“The new leader of American sailing is a champion and a proven leader, but the sport is changing faster than any organization could possibly keep apace.
From Cory Sertl’s perspective at the President’s helm of US Sailing, and as a member of the World Sailing Council, she sees similar challenges across the American sailing landscape as she does elsewhere in the world: participation is stagnant in many regions. At home, the United States won only one medal in the past two summer Olympic Games, and there’s considerable confusion on what is the best handicap-rating rule. Sertl has the high-level racing experience and longtime board service to draw upon as she takes on these and other challenges, but she faces stiff headwinds on her first beat.
Sertl, 59, has transitioned over the years from an Olympian and champion sailor to a leader at the highest levels of the sport. She was selected Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year twice (1995 and 2001), is a winning skipper and crew, and regularly races with her family. But, today, she’s committed full time to advancing the sport that has defined her life. She recently reminded me of a story when, in 1990, immediately after she and Jody Swanson won a gold medal in the International 470 class at the Goodwill Games in Seattle, I took them aside and said, “OK, you have just won a gold medal, so now you have to give back to the sport. You really have to be role models here.”
Sertl took my advice to heart and has since become connected to the sport, from the bottom up. Leading US Sailing while simultaneously serving on the World Sailing’s Board today gives her a unique vantage point to the inner workings of our sport.
“It’s been fun to continue at a high level in sailing, not just competing, but also making decisions about what’s good for the sport,” she says. “Sixty years ago, we didn’t have many women sailing at as high a level as men. There has been a women’s class in the Olympics since 1988 and now we have more opportunities. I’m glad to see World Sailing working to achieve gender equity by the number of competitors and medals starting in 2024. It’s really exciting.”
US Sailing’s Presidential term limit, however, is only three years, which is a short amount of time to implement initiatives, but her priorities include improving the U.S. Olympic sailing program, building a better education system and getting more new people to the water. The organization recently published its strategic plan for 2018 to 2020 and one of its goals is to encourage more people to get out on the water throughout their lifetime. The plan is to offer a variety of sailing activities.
To understand sailors’ needs, US Sailing will use technology and data analysis, focused communication and customer service. Each department will address specific ways to achieve these goals.
“We put all new projects and ideas through this filter to understand what will work,” Sertl says. “For example, if someone leaves the sport for several years, we must help them re-engage with sailing. We can do this with colleges, community sailing, yacht clubs and other sailing organizations. It could be something simple like getting five friends together to go sailing on a J/24. An important part of the plan is to measure progress by observing participation trends at events or training programs, US Sailing membership and results at regattas. These activities will include casual recreational sailing to high-performance competition.
“At the World Sailing Annual Conference in Singapore last year we talked about how to keep kids in the sport,” she adds. “Sometimes young girls don’t like sailing by themselves in the Optimists. We want to keep them excited and we worked on ways to accomplish that task.”
US Sailing’s Board has its own set of priorities. But, at the international level, the process of governing a rich and increasingly diverse sport is considerably more complicated today. Sertl says she’s learned to listen and understand different people’s points of view and has become more effective as a result.
“It takes a while to gain respect and trust, so, when we speak, people listened,” she says. “Common sense is important when finding solutions.”
Sertl started down the sailing path in Jamestown, Rhode Island. Her family had a summerhouse on the small island west of Newport when her father served in the Navy. “We learned to sail right in front of the house,” she recalls with fond memories.
US Sailing’s presidential term limit, however, is only three years, which is a short amount of time to implement initiatives, but her priorities include improving the U.S. Olympic sailing program, building a better education system and getting more new people to the water.
She attended the University of Pennsylvania and raced on the sailing team for four years. Upon graduation, she campaigned an International 470, crewing for Susan Dierdorff Taylor. They won the World Championship in Brazil in 1988, and with her commanding height, she says, she was best-suited for the crew position.
The pair later lost Olympic selection to Alison Jolly and Lynn Jewell by a narrow margin. Sertl, however, was named to the Olympic Team in Pusan, South Korea, as an alternate. Jolly and Jewell went on to win a gold medal that year, the first female sailors to achieve such an honor.
“Crewing in a 470 is awesome, because when you’re on the trapeze you get to see a lot,” Sertl says. “You really get to control the tactics. I enjoyed getting into that role because I had done so much skippering. I felt like a true 50/50 partner. We helped push Alison and Lynn toward winning the gold medal. It’s fun to be part of the whole team, and experience the Olympic movement.”
In 1995, panelists selected Sertl as Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year, citing her versatility in both fleet and match racing that year as both a skipper and a crew. Sertl and her teammates, Dina Kowalyshyn, Susan Taylor and Pease Glaser won the Rolex International Women’s Keelboat Championship sailed in a matched fleet of J/24s, the pinnacle of women’s fleet racing at the time. The team won four of 10 races against 60 teams. The winning skipper of the championship was awarded a Rolex watch, and because Sertl, Glaser and Taylor had already had won Rolex watches in the past, Sertl made a grand gesture by giving hers to Kowalyshyn.
In 2011, Sertl was back into the action at the Rolex International Keelboat Championship with a new team sailing on J/22s, all from her home club. The regatta was held at Rochester YC, so she was right at home.
There were 36 teams from 16 countries racing, and entering the final day of racing, she trailed 2008 Olympic gold medalist, Anna Tunnicliffe and Olympian Sally Barkow. Three races were sailed in thunderstorms and unsettled conditions and Sertl won the regatta, beating Tunnicliffe by 5 points.
Sertl, her husband, Mark and their two grown children, Katja and Nick, continue to race Lightnings, but they usually race on separate boats because the Lightning requires three crew. Plus, they are often seen sailing their J/22 in the Conanicut YC’s famous Tuesday Night Series in the summertime.
The Sertl family spends winter months in Rochester, New York, where they own a real-estate development and management company, and try to spend a good part of the summer in Rhode Island. Sertl recently teamed up with Hannah Swett, Melissa Purdy Feagin, Joan Porter and Jody Stark to compete in the 2018 J/70 World Championship. In the next few years, she plans to race in the New York YC’s IC37 fleet, to continue to racing in the Lightning class, and to race a J/22 in the local circuit.
One of her roles at World Sailing is serving as chair of the Youth World Championship committee. Teaching young sailors to make sailing a lifelong sport is an essential part of Sertl’s work both in the United States and around the world.
“We try to provide great resources for youth sailing and make it more understandable and easier to get into the sport, and easier to stay in it,” she says. “We want to promote all kinds of different sailing, not just at the top level.”
Sertl is a certified sailing instructor and travels often to work directly with community sailing programs.
“I am passionate about getting young people involved in the sport at all levels,” she says. “At US Sailing we have the opportunity to strengthen support for the sport at all levels, continuing to strive for excellence and creating quality programs. Partnering with the many organizations that support development is key to sustaining a solid base and inspiring lifelong sailors.”
Young people who get involved in sailing are busy learning life skills and contributing in positive ways to their communities, she adds, noting that lasting friendships develop through the sport whether it is racing and learning the elements of sportsmanship or becoming a sailing instructor and having a summer job teaching sailing.
Add to Flipboard Magazine.
|
