J/70 @ Lido Yacht Expo(Newport Beach, California)- From September 27th to 30th, at the Lido Marina Village in Newport Beach CA the J/Boats SoCal dealer, JK3 Yachts will be displaying the J-65 “Maitre” as well as the new J/70 speedster. Please be sure to contact Joan at JK3 Newport Beach at phone- 949.675.8053 or email- joanne@jk3yachts.com for an appointment to see the J/70 or a demo after the show.
J/80 UK Nationals Preview(Hamble, England)- For The Royal Southern Yacht Club, Hamble, the weekend of Saturday 8th and Sunday 9th September marks the last of their 2012 regatta series, one which provides competitive top class racing for one-design and IRC keelboats. Commencing on Saturday morning, the series will incorporate The MIQ Logistics 2012 J/80 National Championship, for which twenty boats are expected to compete.
The MIQ Logistics 2012 J/80 National Championship will be warmly welcomed back to Hamble after a brief hiatus in Dartmouth in June last year. Among the boats expected to collect silverware will be Hamble-based JAT, skippered by Chris Taylor. Chris is the son of co-owner Phil Taylor, who along with Kevin Sproul put in a fantastic performance at the 2012 World Championship, making JAT winner of best British performing boat. Chris will also be hoping to retain his father’s trophy; JAT was crowned National Champion in 2011.
The competition, as well as being a significant stand alone event, is great preparation for the world competition in Marseille next year, for which the international fleet predicts a record breaking 150 entries. At this year’s event, host town Dartmouth welcomed seventy-six J/80 sailors from Ireland to Hong Kong , demonstrating the on-going strength of this exciting fleet. Sixty new boats have just been sold in Europe, with even more in America.
The Race Officer will keep the J/80 fleet busy on the water; four races are scheduled for the first day of the event and three on the second and final day. A fitting and no doubt lively 80’s themed party will take place at the Royal Southern Yacht Club on Saturday night for those celebrating or commiserating their start to the Championship. The prize-giving will take place on Sunday afternoon, where as well as silverware and glassware, the top teams can expect to collect some desirable first-rate sailing gear from supporting sponsor SLAM. For more J/80 UK Nationals sailing information
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
It was an epic start to the month of September. Not often that J/Teams strike it rich across the "Big Pond" simultaneously! Yet, that was the case this past week. With a humble J/105 sailed by a double-handed team in the RORC Cherbourg Race from England collecting a library-full of RORC Offshore Series silverware and compatriots doing the same in Dartmouth Race Week with J/109s, J/97s and a J/70 you know it could be a good week for J/Sailing teams. But, it did not end there in England. In fact, it was only the start! Across "La Manche", the J/22s were having a great time in Hamburg, Germany. Then across the "pond", it was clear a fleet full of seasoned veterans were scooping a pile of silverware off the shelves at several venues. During the classic offshore Stamford-Vineyard Race a slew of J/122, J/35, J/120, J/145, J/92s sailed well-enough to walk-off with a pile of booty. During the Chicago Tri-State Offshore Race the J/111 crews and the J/120s had a field day. At the Annapolis Race Week the J/24s, J/35s, J/30s, J/105s and J/80s had fantastic events sailing one-design; plus, J/111s smoked their PHRF class. In the incredibly famous Conanicut Island Around Jamestown Island Race the J/70, J/80, J/22 & J/24 one-designs and J/44 all had a "scream" sailing the 18.1nm race in a gorgeous, benign southerly breeze. Finally, our friends in MoBay, Jamaica are having just as much fun as anyone else having a "jump up" in their J/22s on Montego Bay, Jamaica-- who can ever argue with a few around the "beer cans" racing with this crew?Read on! The J/Community and Cruising section below continue to enjoy the Caribbean and the South Pacific, staying warm while others are trying to stay warm up north. Check them out! More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page! Below are the summaries.
Regatta & Show Schedules:
Sep 6-9- J/70 New York YC USQS- Newport, RISep 6-9- Rolex Big Boat Series- San Francisco, CA
Sep 7-9- J/80 German Open- Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Sep 11-14- J/22 North Americans- East Tawas, MI
Sep 12-16- J/35 North Americans- Erie, PA
Sep 13-21- J/24 Worlds- Rochester, NY
Oct 18-21- J/30 North Americans- New Orleans, LA
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
The DRAGON Devours Vineyard Race MORNING GLORY Shines in Seaflower Reef Course
(Stamford, CT)- For the classic 238nm Vineyard Race sailed over America's Labor Day holiday weekend, it would go down as one of the fastest on record. A crazy one it was, too. For many boats, spinnaker reaching out of Long Island Sound headed east, then turning around their respective marks, only to reset spinnakers in the early morning hours to fly home yet again on a spinnaker reach heading west to the finish line off Stamford!
Leading the charge home for the champion J/Teams was Andrew Weiss' family team aboard the J/122 CHRISTOPHER DRAGON, taking both IRC 40 Class honors and Overall IRC Handicap honors against a fleet festooned with gold-platers and famous all-pro, all-carbon, all-whatever racing teams in the northeastern offshore community. CHRIS DRAGON managed to again beat several famous custom offshore racers like George David's 90 foot RAMBLER, the Dickie's renowned Ker 43 PTARMIGAN, Brim's RP 60 RIMA 2 and Towse's RP66 BLUE YANKEE-- it's the equivalent of winning a Formula I race with your basic Mercedes AMG S600 saloon-- the J/122's comfort, speed and family fun against a rogue's gallery of carbon/foam O.T.T. expensive offshore sailing weapons. As a reward for their efforts, the Weiss family again take home the "Vineyard Lightship Trophy" (Best corrected time in the IRC classes).Over on the Seaflower Reef course, two other J/Teams were showing their mettle, taking home the silverware for both the Overall and Double-handed divisions. The "Jig Time Performance" Trophy (Best corrected time on the Seaflower Reef course in the doublehanded class) went to the J/105 MORNING GLORY sailed by Carl Olsson from Larchmont YC. And, the "Cotton Blossom Performance" Trophy (Best corrected time in the Seaflower Reef course) went to the J/92 RISK (Kevin Mackay- Riverside YC).
It was a very fast race according to the J/105 crews. Three J/105s competed in three different divisions in this weekend's Vineyard Race, with Carl Olsson's Morning Glory finishing first in PHRF Division S 2 Double-handed; Dave Spence's Synergy finishing fourth in PHRF S 3; and Marcus Wunderlich's Stratos getting second in PHRF 6. Morning Glory and Synergy sailed on the A-Seaflower Reef Course while Stratos did the Vineyard course. Wunderlich says the 240 NM Vineyard course was a blast. "It was quite an epic journey with 15-20 knots of wind for most of the time. Not only was the wind very good for a fast sail but it also changed direction to keep us broad running. Of the 34 hours racing, we had the kite up for all but 2 hours. Not one single tack and five gybes from start to finish. We spent sometimes sailing between 10-12 knots for minutes at a time. Missed victory by only a few minutes. Had I sailed under IRC so would I have finished in third ahead of a bunch of J/109s."In the Vineyard Course IRC Double-handed, the J/35 PALADIN sailed by Jason Richter of Setauket YC was 2nd, the J/120 MIREILLE skippered by Hewitt Gaynor from Pequot YC in 3rd and the J/100 FLASHPOINT sailed by Adrian Little of Cedar Point YC in 4th.
For the IRC 35 class the J/109s took 3 of the top five. First was SKOOT (Jim Vos- Stamford YC), third was RHIANNON III (Curt Schibli- Stamford YC) and fifth was ARIEL (Jeff Warren- Pequot YC).
In the IRC 50 Class the J/145 SWEET LORRAINE sailed by Mike Nasen from Larchmont YC gave the custom IRC offshore racers a run for the money to finish a very respectable 2nd in class!
The PHRF 8 class had two J/120s sailing with Steve Levy's EAGLE garnering a 2nd with Bill Mack's M-SQUARED finishing 4th.
Finally, in the S3 Class the quartet of J's nearly cleaned house. The two J/92s finished 1-2 with RISK leading the way followed by Todd Aven's THIN MAN. Fourth was Dave Spence's J/105 SYNERGY and sixth was the J/33 SIRIUS (Mike Sullivan- Fayerweather YC). Sailing photos credits- Ken Delmar For more Stamford-Vineyard Race sailing information
J/105 Tops RORC Season1st IRC 3, 1st Double-handed, 3rd Overall IRC!
(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- The 2012 RORC Season's Points Championship came to a dramatic conclusion in Cherbourg in the early hours of Saturday morning. 278 yachts have competed in the ten race series. Indeed, the 75-mile-sprint to Cherbourg was not only the last hurrah of the RORC Season’s Point Championship, but a cliff-hanger to boot! This year’s championship has been one of the most hotly contested for many years. Three yachts were contesting the overall championship and in the end, the venerable J/105 managed a podium finish and was top UK boat in the RORC Season series, plus winning class in both IRC 3 and DH!
In IRC Three Nick Martin's fairy tale season came to an end racing his J/105, DIABLO-J. A second place in the race secured the IRC Three and Two-Handed titles for the season and a magnificent third overall for the RORC Season's Points Championship. DIABLO-J enjoyed a very close battle to Cherbourg with Christopher Palmer's J/109, J-T'AIME, which claimed third by just 13 seconds. In the end, Chris' J-T'AIME scored a commendable fourth overall in IRC Three for the RORC Season! In fact, J/Teams took five of the top ten overall. Behind J-T'AIME was Kevin Armstrong's J/109 JAZZY JELLYFISH in seventh, Todd Well's J/109 JE VANTE in ninth and Niki Curwen's J/105 VOADOR in tenth! For more RORC Cherbourg Race sailing information
J/Teams Hot In Annapolis!(Annapolis, Maryland)- Annapolis Race Week (ARW) is a Mid-Atlantic Region annual event that occurs every year over Labor Day weekend off the famous shores of Annapolis (a.k.a. "Naptown"). The 3-day event offers a significant and unique opportunity for sailors to party and have fun on the city-front right in the city square where the enormous Annapolis Sailboat Show is held every year in October. There were significant fleets of one-design J/Teams sailing, including J/24s, J/35s, J/30s, J/105s and J/80s. Plus, J/111s sailed in PHRF class.
J/24s had six boats participating with Paul van Ravenswaay's team on MILLENIUM FALCON walking off with top honors with four 1sts, one 2nd and three 3rds for 15 pts total. Second was Paul Ford on WILDCARD with a 4-3-3-4-3-1-1-3 record for 22 pts. Just one point back was Peter Rich on USA 4006 with a 1-5-4-1-4-2-4-2 tally for 23 pts.
In the J/35s, a strong contingent of seven boats sought the "holy grail", but in the end it was Masci McGonigle's WINDEPENDENT that just squeaked out a win with a 1-1-2-6 score for 10 pts. Just behind them the score was settled on a tie-breaker with Pete Scheidt's MAGGIE beating out Chuck Kohlerman's MEDICINE MAN. MAGGIE's 3-5-1-2 for 11 pts was better than the Med-MAN's 2-2-3-4 also for 11 pts.
The J/105s had the one of the large one-design racing division with seventeen boats participating. Jack Biddle's RUM PUPPY was "alpha male dog" here with a fairly dominating 4-2-3-1-1-2 for 13 pts. The next four boats had to fight it out amongst themselves for 2nd and 3rd on the podium. Carl & Scott Gitchell's crew on TENACIOUS emerged from the smoke-filled field of battle as top of the pack with a 1-4-5-11-7-1 for 29 pts to snag second place. They just managed to beat the VELOCE gang with 31 pts who finished 3rd. Fourth was Andrew Kennedy's BAT IV with 32 pts and fifth was Carolyn & Chris Groobey's JAVA.
J/30s had a nice turnout with seven boats and it was quite clear the top three had an incredibly competitive series. Setting the BETTER MOUSETRAP was Bob Putnan, sailing to a steady 1-3-1-4-2-2 for 13 pts. One point back BEPOP'ing around was Bob Rutsch and Mike Costello with a 3-1-3-1-3-3 for 14 pts. Then thirsting INSATIABLY for more was Ron Anderson's crew managing to smoke the fleet for two picket fences on the last day, but not enough to overcome his friends in 1-2. So, Ron's 4-2-5-3-1-1 for 16 pts meant they had to settle for 3rd.
The largest one-design fleet sailing were the J/80s with eighteen boats on the starting line. In the end, it was Kristen Robinson's much-improved team winning by a substantial margin- their 1-3-2-4-2-2 for 14 pts meant they had a 7 pt margin of victory. Second was Ray Wulff on GORILLA PANIC! with a 3-7-3-2-1-5 for 21 pts. Third was John White's team just one pt back. Fourth was Todd Olds on TSUNAMI with 29 pts and fifth was Clarke McKinney sailing AUNT EDNA'S DEAD with 34 pts.
In handicap world of PHRF A-1, the J/111s had a dog-fight for top to the pack. This time, it was Tony Culotta's CUORE DI LEONE overcoming the well-traveled VELOCITY for top banana. Tony's crew managed to garner the identical score of 2-1-2-1 for 6 pts to Marty's 1-2-1-2 also for 6 pts, with the winner being who won the last race! For more Annapolis Race Week sailing information
J's Love Dartmouth WeekJ/70, J/97, J/109s All Winners!
(Dartmouth, England)- Earlier in the summer of 2012 the International J/80 One-Design Class felt it would be worthwhile to host a J/80 World Championship in one of the most picturesque sailing venues in all of the United Kingdom. Such wisdom was not unfounded. The sailing can be superb and simply mind-blowing-- Beatle's Yellow Submarine, Strawberry Fields eye-opening spectacular. No wonder sailors in the UK don't ever mind taking a wander down with their trucks, campers and boats to this magical part of this island nation. And so, there is this nice regatta that is held at the end of summer that perhaps could have a "Newport-like" Jazz Fest associated with it (like a mix of old Rolling Stones blues, Jimmie Hendrix, Stan Getz, early Led Zep, Beck, Davis and others) that bring additional cache and fun to what has to be one of the best end-of-season summer sailing regattas in the world.
Dartmouth Week is run by the Joint Regatta Sailing Committee that includes the River Dart SC, the Royal Dart YC and the Dartmouth YC. Like their compatriots just a "bit East" of them in Cowes (e.g. Cowes Combined Clubs), the "Dart Team" are no "shrinking violets" when it comes to the ability to put on a world-class event. And, with the pedigree of a few amazing regattas they continue to host on an annual basis, it's no wonder that "Dart Week" continues to grow apace. With a growing contingent of J-Sailors who are amongst the world's cognoscenti of what are the best regattas to attend, it appears the "Dart Crew" are on the right track!The J/109 teams seem to agree and have attended Dart Week with tremendous enthusiasm. In the J/109 One-Design class one of the class leaders managed to walk off with all the marbles, with Paul Griffiths' JAGERBOMB winning with a 4-7-2-1-4-2-1 tally for 10 pts net. Their erstwhile competitors, Liam Shanahan's RUTH sailed a solid series to compile a 5-1-1-5-6-3-5 record for 15 pts net. Just one point back was Angus McPhie's WAVE WARRIOR in third with a 9-2-3-3-7-1-7 for 16 pts net.
In the much watched Sportsboat Class it was going to be clear that a "shoot-out" amongst the fast asym boats was going to be the order of the day with a "pecking order" established amongst the fastest sportboats in the UK. So, far, almost a draw, but with the J/70 winning this latest battle amongst the J/80s, 1720 Sportboat and Laser SB3s. It was the J/70 JENGA 8 sailed by Julian Cook that garnered a 1-1-1-1-3-13-2 for 6 pts net to win Sportsboat honors and bragging rights for this coming week. 2nd was the J/80 TEAM BALTIC that compiled a near equal record of 2-2-3-2-1-1-1 for 7 pts net to be just nipped in the end for class honors. 3rd was class compatriot, the J/80 CAPTAIN JACK sailed by Frank Roswell that managed a 4-3-2-3-2-3-4 for 13 pts net.Division 2 IRC was a serious, tough class to win. But, yet again the J/97 came up "spades" at the critical juncture to simply walk off with class silverware. This time it was the J/97 JIKA-JIKA sailed by Mike Holmes that finished first in class. They were followed by the J/97 JEOPARDY 2 skippered by Richard Watney that finished 5th in class and in 6th was the J/105 JACKPOT sailed by Vernon Bradley. Sailing photo credits- James Walker For more Royal Dart Yacht Club & Darmouth Week sailing information
J/70 Flies Around Island(Jamestown, Rhode Island)- There are few regattas on the Narraganset Bay yachting calendar that have a greater following and are looked forward to with greater anticipation during the course of the "Newport Summer" than Conanicut YC's Around Island Race. While Newport enjoys multiple "around Jamestown Island races" during the course of the summer, from little boats, to big boats, to classic yachts (like really big ones), the Granddaddy of them all has always been the Labor Day Weekend romp around the 18-21nm course on Sunday.
This year 100 boats competed in the 85th CYC Around Island Race for both the new elapsed time trophy as well as the PHRF handicap corrected time trophy. Plus, there were one-design classes competing, including J/22s and J/24s from the local Narraganset Bay fleets.
The forecast for the day was a bit variable, but suffice it so say the SSE winds of 8-12 kts ultimately developed such that the fleet was treated to yet another classic around the island romp. While fleets A to F started in light winds with a massive "ebb current" flushing them out of the start area just off Conanicut YC, the combination of current "wind" and actual "wind" conspired to push the small boats out to the first major turning mark off Beavertail Lighthouse at a rapid speed of current + wind of about 3 kts VMG. The RC's PRO wisely decided to postpone the "big boats" for 45 minutes until the wind re-established itself. At that point, it was going to be clear that the overall elapsed and corrected time silverware was going to be a run-for-the-money by the "big boats". The fleet was treated to a "classic" Bay sea breeze, building up to 15 knots so the sailors could enjoy a fast downhill ride down the West Passage to the northern part of Jamestown (against the strong ebb current) before turning back upwind into the moderate southerly against a tide that changed to beat (guess what) back into the flood tide!! Ouch. Can't win some days, but the current/wind Gods conspired so the fleet was basically fighting against the current all the way around the island!! Little boats got crushed in the standings, big boats dominated by a country furlong.
For the one-design boats, none of the wind/ current stuff mattered-- whomever beat who got the ultimate bragging rights. In the J/22 class, 1st was LUCY sailed by Cory Sertl, 2nd was WHARF RAT helmed by Matt Dunbar and 3rd was MACHBUSTER led by Jeff Westcott. In the J/24s, it was "girl power" again like their compatriots in Hong Kong! This time is was Lindsey Turowski winning with BERLY MOVIN, followed in 2nd by Bob Lambert's BARFLY and 3rd was Newport J/24 class veteran Mike Hill on OBSTREPEROUS.
In PHRF handicap world it was an eclectic bunch of boats and fleets that made up the rest. Starting with Class B the J/24 NIGHTHAWK finished 3rd with Richard Barker and Mike Ryan. Class F saw two J/29s taking two top spots with Dennis Nixon's LYNX in 3rd and Steve Wood's BIG TAZ in 4th. Class G was a tough fleet, but the J/109 PICANTE sailed by Dr Rob Salk led the J teams home with a 2nd, followed by Paul Grimes' J/35 BREAKAWAY IN 4th and EC Helme's J/92s SPIRIT in 5th.
In PHRF Class H, it was "sports-boat" shootout with J/80s, a J/70, a pair of VX-One's and others. In the end, the J/70 J-HAWK sailed by Stu Johnstone and Julia Langford (sailing double-handed) were first across the line elapsed amongst the smaller boats but ended up 3rd on PHRF corrected (sailing with a 111 PHRF rating). Winning the top two slots were the J/80s GROMIT sailed by Andy Burton and GOOSE in second sailed by Chris Bulger. Fifth in class was Peter McCarthy and gang on the J/80 EAGLE! A great performance overall by the J/Sports boat gang.
Finally, in PHRF Class J, finishing third was the custom J/44 WHITE GOLD sailed by Jamestown "hommie" and CYC member Jim Bishop.
The trophy winners for the event included a proverbial J/Alumni list of owners, including Phil Lotz (J/24s and J/105s) sailing his Swan 42 to the Fastest Elapses Award and Malcom Gefter (J/105s) on his Melges 32 winning the Handicap Award. Plus, the Eads Johnson Trophy (large boat, fastest corrected time) went to Jim Bishop's J/44 custom WHITE GOLD and the Robert A. MacLeod Rear Commodore Trophy (day-sailer, fastest corrected time) went to Cory Sertl's J/22 LUCY!! For more CYC Around Island Race sailing information
Hartog Wins J/22 Hamburg Champs(Hamburg, Germany)- The J/22 fleet in Germany continues to grow and the Hamburger Segel-Club that sails on the gorgeous waters off Hamburg always seem to enjoy spirited competition amongst friends. The fleet has expanded and the level of sailing competition has improved considerably.
Over the August 25th-26th weekend, it was pretty clear that Svend Hartog's team on GER 1450 were sailing quite confidently and their record of 2-5-1-1-2 for a 6 pts net total meant they just nipped their friends in second by just one point. It was a wonderful victory for Svend's team that was comprised of two guys and two girls- Svend and friend Dirk Fischer and Stefanie Schweder and Annie Westschfling. Sailing incredibly well and giving Svend's team serious competition was Hardy Kleinfeld on GER 1181 with a very steady 1-1-3-2-3 with just 7 pts net (unbelievable to lose with such a steady record!). Third was Frank Lammerskitten with yet another tough record of 3-4-2-4-1 for just 10 pts net!
While the top three boats were having their own battle for fleet domination, it was pretty clear that several other battles were emerging amongst other members in the fleet. The balance of the top five was decided by a tie-breaker! Winning this gunfight at the OK Corral was Kai Freese on GER 1243 with a 5-2-7-5-5 for 17 pts. Losing that skirmish was Ingo Hueter on GER 1364 with a 4-6-4-3-6 record for 17 pts (no seconds made the difference). For more J/22 Germany sailing information
J/111 MENTAL Wins Tri-State(Michigan City, Indiana)- The annual Tri state race has divided into the Tri-State and the Bi-State Race. The first leg of the race from Chicago to St. Joe (just over 50 miles) had 94 entries and J/Boat dominated when they were in a section.
Friday night saw the small boats start in a light SW wind then when the section 2 boats started a Northerly wind came through and blew around 12. A power reach to St Joe Michigan for a few hours then the wind started clocking finally turning into a light beat. The J/111 MENTAL, sailed by Paul Stahlberg and crew, was the eventual winner and sailed all the way to the Michigan shore where within one mile of shore there was a reverse thermal breeze coming offshore into the lake. The sand dunes cool off and cause this to happen. Mental short tacked the shore to beat J/120 JAHAZI and J/111 NIGHT HAWK who sailed more of a straight line to St. Joe.
Returning to Chicago was a beautiful run in 12-15 kt winds with the J/111s MENTAL and NIGHTHAWK going 1-2 with the J/120 JAHAZI in third. For more Tri-State sailing information
J/22 MoBay Fleet Report(Montego Bay, Jamaica)- The Jamaica J/22 Class had a fabulous third meet in Montego Bay. The second meet was a hoot, but the third one was even better- we called it the "Hannah Montana" special. We had six races in 5 to 25 kt winds. For the most part there were three race per day with at most two hours on the water per day. Too short, you say?
Well, here in MoBay we take most kindly to the most "considerate" sailing imaginable. After all, it's beautiful here. The people are beautiful, too. And, they are simply wonderful and laid back. Don't believe us? Please come down and join us, mon! Be assured, we can show you a good time!
So, here's an example of how we sail-- There should be no such thing as a ‘close call’ in a port-starboard that doesn’t result in a protest and this past weekend people realized that as port boat in close quarters they must either tack and (preferably) lee bow, or duck. A good duck can only mean that the chances are the roles will be reversed at the next encounter further up the course!!The fleet was very conservative at the start on both days with ZIPPER playing at the port end and clearing easily across the fleet on a couple of occasions.
Once again a square short start line, with excellent race management from Evelyn Harrington and Robbin Delisser, the fleet was able to enjoy a focus on extremely close racing. The only thing persistent for the whole weekend was that there was no right or wrong on the way up the course and 20 degree shifts were the norm. Those that could capitalize gained big and those that couldn’t - well, next time. Boat speed helped but as RENEGADE proved with her oldest sails pointing the bow in the right direction ensured a place well up in the fleet was really possible.Sunday’s racing had everyone in the bar within 2.5 hours albeit with rain preventing the boats from coming out of the water. There is so much positive energy and reaction to the impetus we can only hope that Montego Bay can generate as much participation in Kingston in the coming months.
Thanks to "Hanna Montana" for the title and a pink beach ball picked up during a downwind leg on "Renegade" which even has a little bell in it!! Cool runnings, dudes, kids will love this one! Sailing photo credits- Evelyn Harrington For more Royal Jamaica YC and J/22 Montego Bay sailing information
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* J/111 friends in Scandinavia- the BLUR gang dial it up to 17.88 kts in 22 kts wind at 150 TWA-- not bad for a bunch of rookies in "the north"! According to Peter Gustafsson and his buddies sailing in one of their recent regattas, "the plan was to go to south to Skagen, but when the wind topped 20 knots and the sea built we decided to pop the spinnaker and go north to Marstrand instead. Why not?! It was incredibly fun and a GREAT RIDE!! For those of you who do NOT own a J/111, we hope you SOON appreciate this! And, for those who DO own a J/111, you'll LOVE this. "Turn & burn" may be our new motto! This boat flies upwind, it goes even FASTER off-the-wind. WE LOVE IT!"Enjoy the YouTube video of Peter G's fun in the Scandinavian sun aboard the appropriately named BLUR
* A Dream Cruise on a J/130? Experience what John & Mary Driver describe in a recent sailing article. "Have you dreamed about sailing across the Atlantic to explore the beauties of Italy, France and Greece; or maybe taking a more northerly route to Scotland or through to Scandinavia? A west to east Atlantic crossing can be a daunting prospect, but making the effort is well worthwhile.During the late 90s and early 2000s, while sailing on the Chesapeake Bay, we had started to think about some long term cruising. During that time we entered three Annapolis to Bermuda races and an Annapolis to Newport race and did several cruises along the East Coast. These offshore excursions gave us the taste for more adventure and we soon started to think about an Atlantic crossing and sailing into the Mediterranean.
We gradually converted our 43 foot J130 from an around-the-buoys racer to an ocean cruiser/ racer. With the boat fairly well equipped for safety, we focused on changes needed for long-range passages and cruising comfort. Additions included a fuel cleaning system, second fuel tank, solar panels, wind generator and updated electronics.
Where next? We made a summer shake-down cruise to Maine to test out all the new gear, while not adventuring too far from home in case we needed to get any warranty work done. After a lot of thought and discussion with other sailors, we decided to join the Caribbean 1500 to sail in company from the Chesapeake Bay down to the BVIs. Our plan was to cruise the Caribbean and participate in the ARC Europe rally leaving the following May. This was a decision that worked very well for us and which we never regretted.
European Highlights:
Since arriving in Europe in 2010, we crossed the Mediterranean and wintered in Northern Cyprus. It seemed the longer we stay in the Mediterranean, the more we realize there is to enjoy. Some of our most memorable highlights to date were:
• Off-road Segway tours in Sintra, Portugal.
• Passing through the Straits of Gibraltar with the Atlas Mountains of Africa to starboard and the peaks of Estrecho National Park in Europe to port.
• Playing with the Barbary apes on the Rock of Gibraltar.
• Walking the streets of Cartagena, Spain, full of ancient Roman historical sites.
• Sailing around the bays and islands of the Spanish Balearics.
• The unique culture and character of Cagliari, Sardinia.
• The friendliness of the Maltese island of Gozo.
• Enjoying local cuisine on the Island of Crete.
• Helping conservationists release baby green turtles on a remote beach in Northern Cyprus.
We are now preparing for the next part of our adventure which will be the Turkish coast to Istanbul and then the Greek isles. At some point, we’ll have to think about returning home, but so far we are in no hurry. What’s another year when you are enjoying a once in a lifetime experience?" John & Mary Driver
* The J/Family expresses their deepest regrets and most profound sympathies to the family of Dr. Ned Cabot who drowned recently off the coast of Newfoundland, when a rogue wave swept him from his J/46 CIELITA. Ned was a lifelong sailor and "friend" of the J/Family. He was on the final leg of a journey he and friends had pursued over the past seven summers that had taken them from Nova Scotia through Greenland, Iceland, and Scotland to the coast of Norway.“He was good at everything he did, and a great teacher,” Betsy Washburn Cabot said in the statement. “You couldn’t get out of an invitation by claiming you didn’t know how to do it, because he would teach you how.”
Cabot wrote and spoke publicly about his voyages, and won a 2012 writing award from the Cruising Club of America, in which he was a long-time member. In addition to sailing, Cabot enjoyed skiing, whitewater kayaking, and horseback riding, family and friends said.
Cabot’s father, Thomas Dudley Cabot, served as director of the US State Department’s Office of International Security Affairs under President Harry S Truman. His grandfather, Godfrey Lowell Cabot, in 1882 founded the highly-regarded Cabot Corporation, a Boston-based company.
Cabot was a surgeon at Brigham & Women’s Hospital for more than 25 years and taught at Harvard Medical School. He retired from medicine a decade ago and dedicated himself to philanthropy and sailing. He was the founder of Cabot-Wellington LLC and a trustee of the Cabot Family Charitable Trust and the Godfrey L. Cabot Family Association.
The J Cruising Community
J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers. Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand. Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/
* Prolific writers, Bill and Judy Stellin, sailed their J/42 JAYWALKER around the Mediterranean and Europe and back across the Atlantic for nearly three years. Their blogs/journals can be found at- http://blog.mailasail.com/jaywalker. The earlier journals have been compiled into two self published books which can be found at: http://www.blurb.com. Search for "SEATREK: A Passion for Sailing" by Bill Stellin or William Stellin." UPDATE- Just a short note to update from Bill- "Our cruise began in May of 2000 and ended in May of 2008, some 8 years later. I have just finished and published my third and final book covering the last three or so years including our double handed crossing in 16 days and one winter in the Caribbean. Like the others, "Sea Trek- A Passion for sailing- Book III," can be found at www.blurb.com. Thanks, Bill and Judy"
* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between. Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins?? Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).
- SALACIA, the J/160 owned by Stephen and Cyndy Everett has an on-going blog describing some of their more amusing experiences (http://www.salacia1.blogspot.com).
- Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun). Read about their latest adventures as they've gotten to New Zealand- "Avante Cruises the Pacific".
- Eric and Jenn on the J/160 MANDALAY also sailed the Pacific archipelago, read more on their blog at http://www.sailmandalay.com. Eric and Jenn are J/World alumni took MANDALAY up and down the West Coast (Mexico, CA)
, then to the South Pacific and New Zealand. MANDALAY is back in San Francisco now, and in the J/World fleet--she is available for skippered charters, private instruction, and corporate/executive groups.* The J/109 GAIA (seen right in the Java Sea) was sailed by Bob Riggle and Phyllis Macay around the world. In February 2011, their cruising adventures came to an abrupt, sad ending. As a tribute to them and their cruising friends worldwide, we hope their chronicles on their GAIA website remains a tribute to their warm-hearted spirits- read more about why many loved them dearly and will remain touched by their loving spirit forever- http://www.gaiaworldtour.net/
