Australian J/70s On Show
(Sydney, Australia)- Since the J/70's arrival in Australia, interest continues to increase in the dynamic little speedster that has been taking the world by storm since its introduction in America in the spring of 2012. With record turnouts in American winter/ spring regattas and building fleets in Europe, the world of sailing in the Asia-Pac world is just beginning to get its taste of the J/70 magic.
From May 23 to 26, the J/70 will be debuting at the Sanctuary Cove Boat Show, its first big show and first “Australian International” show since its arrival. For those passionate J sailing enthusiasts in Australia, this is a great opportunity to enjoy a classic "fall boat show" Down Under and learn more about why the J/70 will soon be the world's next giant international one-design class! After all, when club sailors were having a ball sailing their J/70s in 20-30 kt breezes (with no boat breakages) recently in the Charleston Race Week regatta, many sailing "other sportsboats" were doing cart-wheels across the water with massive breakages and capsizes taking place everywhere (rigs blowing-off boats and crews seen standing on keels in just 20 kts of breeze!). Learn
more about the fun, family-friendly, one-design speedster- the world's most popular new sportsboat- J/70!
70 & 95 at Rhode Island Boat Show
(Jamestown, RI)- A gorgeous weekend is forecast for Narragansett Bay with classic spring weather-- SSW winds 10-15 kts, upper 60s and sunny every day! Head on down to the quaint little seaside village called Jamestown (across from Newport), enjoy the picturesque waterfront and have a chance to "talk shop" and "simply messing about in boats!"
On display will be the J/70 on the Jamestown Green right on the waterfront and the J/95 shoal-performance cruiser will be in the water at Conanicut Marine. It's a wonderful way to spend a few hours this weekend, bring along family, kids and friends! There are some awesome places to eat locally, little cafes, lunch shops and even the infamous Narragansett Cafe- a favorite of locals for groovy local bands. Or, simply have a fun picnic sitting on the bench seats along the pier or a picnic on the Green itself!
If you'd like to schedule an appointment, please either call J/Boats (ph 401-846-8410) or contact the local J/Dealer- Tim Kohl at East Coast Yacht Sales- ph. 203-233-9709 or email-
tim@ecys.com. For
more Rhode island Boat Show information
Annapolis NOOD J/Fest Preview!
J/70 Debuts with Largest Fleet Ever!
(Annapolis, MD)- With 211 boats participating in this year's Sperry Topsider Annapolis NOOD Regatta, it promises to be quite the "class reunion" for many J sailors across eastern America. Why? For the simple fact that 156 boats are J/Teams (74% of the whole fleet) competing in eight J one-design classes (J/22, J/24, J/70, J/80, J/30, J/105, J/35, J/109)! In other words, for the few boats that comprise the six other classes (average of less than 10 boats per fleet) it may be a tad overwhelming to have nearly a thousand J Sailors criss-crossing the northern Chesapeake Bay and flooding the evening tent parties sponsored by Mt Gay Rum and other enthusiastic sponsors!
Leading the charge again are the J/70s-- setting a record fourth regatta debut as the largest one-design class. At forty-eight boats (Key West, St Pete NOOD and Charleston already in the books), the J/70 has completely eclipsed all attendance records for any sportboat worldwide in inaugural regattas since sprit-boats first exploded onto the sailing scene with the J/105 in 1991. The J/70 fleet is on a rapid learning curve and based on performances at past events, it's clear as mud who will be regatta leaders after the dust settles in the latest 70 battles. Perhaps most importantly, it was self-evident, based on the huge "can't wipe the grin off my face" smiles after the epic first day at Charleston in 15-30 kts of breeze, all J/70 sailors were having a rip-roaring great time sailing their boats!
After four regattas, the betting will on a number of leading teams that will be seen somewhere at the top of the leader board for the 70s. Included in that group may be Tim Healey's HELLY HANSEN, Joel Ronning's CATAPULT, Brian Elliott's B-SQUARED, Bob Hughes on MUSE/ HEARTBREAKER, Bennet Greenwald's PERSEVERANCE, Henry Brauer/ Will Welles' RASCAL, Jud Smith's RELATIVE OBSCURITY, Peter Vessella's RUNNING WILD, Bruno Pasquinelli's STAMPEDE, Henry Filter's WILD CHILD and a cast of local characters each of whom are capable of good performances, like Peter McChesney's TROUBLE, Tate Russack's DIESEL, and Cole Allsopp's MOXIE.
Next up are the J/22's with an excellent showing with twenty-eight boats (second largest J fleet). They will be vying for class honors bragging rights, as well as getting great practice for their J/22 World Championships that will be taking place in Newport, RI later this summer. For those familiar with teams that faired well in Charleston some weeks ago, it's clear that Chris Doyle and his "JUG 4 1" gang from Rochester, New York will be the ones to beat. Giving them serious heartache will be a rogue's roost of J/22 veterans, including Allan "Albie" Terhune on DAZZLER, Kurt Swanson on SLINGSHOT, Vic Snyder on MO'MONEY, Jeff Todd on HOT TODDY, super hot sailor chick Sandy Adzick on HOT TICKET, Mark Hillman on HAROLD GOES SKA and perhaps newcomer "gurl-stud" Jen Gaffney on PIRATE PRINCESS RACING TEAM. Amongst this crowd, anything goes, as it always has been!
With the third largest J fleet, the J/80's sailing with 23 boats are fielding a very competitive fleet. Like their J/22 sisters, for some American teams, the event provides great practice for J/80 Worlds in Marseilles, France. Amongst those teams, look for Brian Keane's SAVASANA and the Danish family team- Thomas Klok and the Crumps (Will and Marie) on their boat R80 to be amongst the top teams. Some other notable veterans in the mix will be Kristen Robinson's ANGRY CHAMELEON, Chris & Liz Chadwick's CHURCH KEY, Ken Mangano's MANGO and Ramzi Bannura's STACKED DECK.
The J/105's have a strong showing of an "all Naptown" fleet of eighteen boats and amongst them are some champion teams from past Chesapeake Bay and North American regattas. Sure to figure in the running for overall honors will be a cross-section of the old guard and some new faces, including Bob Reeves on A-TRAIN, Andrew Kennedy on BAT IV, Gerritt Schulze on MAX POWER, Jack Biddle on the infamous RUM PUPPY, Donald Santa on SANTA's REIGN-DEAR (for real!) and Scott Gitchell on TENACIOUS.
At fifteen strong, the J/24's are probably now on their fifth generation of owners and the competition simply does not diminish as the next-gen teams hop in, learn fast from the veterans, and simply continue to advance the ball in one of the world's most evenly-matched and competitive ISAF one-design keelboat classes. Remarkably, one of the most competitive veterans (now working on his 4th decade!) happens to be a highly respected, most knowledgeable local J/24 sailor- Tony Parker sailing BANGOR PACKET! He will be challenged by some "newbies" and some old guard teams, amongst them could be Mike Marshall from Conanicut YC, Jack van Dalen's ARNOLD GOES TO HOLLYWOOD, Pat Fitzgerald's RUSH HOUR, Mike Hobson's SPACEMAN SPIFF, and Frank McNamara's ZOT.
For the J/109's seven boat class, the event represents their J/109 Mid-Atlantic Championship! J/109 Fleet 4 provides great hospitality under the leadership of Fleet Captain Bill Sweetser and his gang aboard the famous RUSH! Assisting him is 109 class leader Bob Schwartz on NORDLYS from Manhasset YC and the Western Long Island Sound fleet of J/109s. With many new faces showing up in the 109 class, it's perhaps one of the most difficult classes for general prognostication, other than the obvious- Bill and Bob! Yet, any omniscient observer of this class will tell you there's always some new surprises in store for these veterans. More news soon on the outcome!
At ten boats, it's pretty clear the J/30s have not only achieved "classic" status, but perhaps "legendary" status, too. The first quintessential cruiser-racer J built in the early 1980s (some might argue it was the J/24-- not!). Nevertheless, the Chesapeake crew of 30s are having some fun, that's for sure. And, the NOOD is an annual reunion of like-minded 30 owners who LOVE their boats and it shows-- some look better than new! TEN BOATS! Amazing. Well, let's see if the "gurl-boats" have it this year (as owners or co-owners)! Included amongst the girl teams are Pam Morris' BUMP, Michel's LEAPFROG, Kathleen's MARY LOU and Sheila's INFECTIOUS SMILE! So guys, that's a "four-way" that may crush you this weekend, girls's may rule sooner than anyone imagines!
Finally, the J/35s. Like their "classic" sisterships (at minimum the J/24 and J/30), they were the second derivative of another boat that was incredibly successful (the J/36) in the early 1980s. With seven boats, the J/35s continue to show their offshore performance worldwide is not just legendary, but fun, too! One of the more famous boats participating is AUNT JEAN sailed by the Sagerholm/ Christofel team. But, BAD COMPANY, MAGGIE and MEDICINE MAN won't be far from the limelight. Plus, like her J/30 sisturz' the 35s could be facing an insurrection from Stephanie Reuer on DAKOTA GIRL! Watch out, some sparklers may be flying in this rather diverse group of sailors.
Sailing photo credits- Onne Vanderwal and Meredith Block/ Charleston Race Week. For
more Sperry Topsider Annapolis NOOD Sailing Regatta sailing information
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
Celebrating "May Day" today, perhaps? Maybe, just maybe we can consider a cautionary entrance to spring in the north that may eventually get us to more normal sailing weather for this time of year? Anyone sailing with "shorts & shades" north of the Equator? Clearly, our friends Down Under have it a bit better than their chilly sailing comrades to the North at this seasonal juncture. Starting in Europe, the J/24s had fairly good regattas despite what the weather Gods tossed at them. In England, the J/24s enjoyed a precursor warm-up to the J/24 Worlds coming up in Howth, Ireland with the hosting of their Fowey Rocks Regatta. East of them, the Italians hosted a remarkable charity regatta event that benefited disabled sailors called the Trofeo Academia Navale Regatta off Livorno, Italy. Along the same latitudes, the Warsash Spring Series concluded with their Spring Championships on the Solent in markedly more benign conditions than previously for J/70, J/80, J/109 and J/111 one-design classes as well as J/97s sailing in IRC. While the Italians and British enjoyed some nice weather, a famous French offshore solo Figaro sailor learned how to push a J/70 into the 20+ kts stratosphere off the Brittany coast in France. Moving further East, the Royal Hong Kong YC hosted their fun-loving event called the Nations' Cup with a fleet of J/80s participating. Moving across the Pacific, J teams had some fun smoking down the California coast in the annual pilgrimage across the border from L.A. known as the N2E (Newport to Ensenada Race). Some fast J's participated, including well-known offshore speedsters like the J/125, J/145 and J/124. On the eastern Americas side of things, American YC is hosting their Spring Series with one-design classes of J/105s and J/44s with J/109s and J/122s dueling it out in IRC class. A bit east and south in the Caribbean, Antigua is hosting their eponymous Sailing Week off English and Falmouth Harbours, a certain group of J/95, J/105 and J/120 sailors are again making their presence felt on the silverware front hitting the fleet! For those so inclined, there's great J/70 tuning tips and tricks to be had from Tim Healy, winner of Key West and Charleston Race Weeks-- see the community section below.
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:
May 3-5-
Annapolis NOOD Regatta- Annapolis, MD
May 8-12-
Semaine de Porquerolles (111)- Ile de Porquerolles, France
May 17-19-
Seattle NOOD Regatta- Seattle, WA
May 18-19-
Race for the Case- Lloyd Harbor, NY
May 18-20-
J/24 German Nationals- Flensburger, Germany
May 31-Jun 2-
Southern Bay Race Week (24, 70)- Hampton YC, VA
Jun 7-9-
Chicago NOOD Regatta (105, 109, 111)- Chicago, IL
Jun 7-9-
New York YC Annual Regatta (111, 122)- Newport, RI
Jun 14-15-
Off Soundings Regatta (105, 109, 120)- Watch Hill/ Block Is
Jun 15-16-
Cleveland Race Week (70)- Cleveland, OH
Jun 19-22-
J/24 US Nationals- Wayzata, MN
Jun 23-28-
Block Island Race Week- (80, 35, 105, 109, 111, 44)- Block Island, RI
Jun 27-30-
Kieler Woche (70, 80, 24)- Kieler Segeln Club- Kiel, Germany
Jul 4-7-
J/24 UK Nationals- Plymouth, England
Jul 6-13-
J/80 World Championships- Marseilles, France
Jul 13-15-
Chicago Mackinac Race- Chicago YC- Chicago, IL
Jul 27-28-
Youngstown Level Regatta (70, 24)- Youngstown, NY
Aug 9-11-
J/109 North Americans- Chicago YC- Chicago, IL
Aug 9-11-
Verve Cup Offshore (109, 111)- Chicago, IL
Aug 9-13-
J/27 North American Championship- Oakville, Ontario
Aug 14-18-
J/111 North Americans- Chicago YC- Chicago, IL
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please
refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
J/125s Love Fast, Epic Sleigh-ride to Ensenada
(Newport Beach, CA/ Ensenada, Mexico)- 202 entrants for Ensenada Race saw some of the most epic, "send it down the autobahn" sailing conditions in decades this past weekend. While it was a mostly windy, classic off-the-wind sleigh-ride in 15-25 kts from the WNW (the outer edge of the Pacific High wobbled in close to the coast compressing a Low depression inshore to the east), the final turn into the finish line at Ensenada was anything but. Said one hapless, somewhat frustrated sailor, "It took us four hours to sail the last two miles!"
Was this the same race? In the Lexus Newport to Ensenada Yacht Race it depended on what boat you were on. The fastest finished soon enough to seize the glory; the slowest suffered some agony of windless drifting, but only near the end. For most of the fleet, the wind held strong well past the border until entering Todos Santos Bay.
From the "driver's seat" on-board the renowned J/125 TIMESHAVER, we got one report from "KMag" (Keith Magnussen, tactician) from the first day/evening: "A beautiful day of sailing! This years N2E is in full swing right now as we pass Point Loma at 5:30pm on the TIMESHAVER. We had a good start (avoided a certain boat in our class like the plague) and immediately went to our small laminate Code 0. Horizon below us and the two Farr 40′s above us meant we had to hold our lane well and avoid any dirty air. We managed that and now set up for the day. We opted to be one of the further boats out and ended up switching to our 3A pretty quickly.
With the wind at 260-270 we put the bow up and got on a low plane at about 140 degrees. We were constantly in the mid teens as we scooted past Horizon, Blue Blazes and anyone else near us. DERIVATIVE, the other J-125, went inside and he is now off our quarter stern to leeward about 2 miles behind us. Horizon is to weather and behind about a mile. We are now doing about 10 kts aimed about 1 mile outside the Coronado Islands. Hope this is the right call because Blue Blazes is looking their going inside the islands at this point. Ensenada by midnight??"
And, from TIMESHAVER's owner, Viggo Torbensen, we got this report: "We participated in the Ensenada race last Friday with my J/125 in the PHRF A class. We came up with a third in class and a fifth overall, this after having demolished the fleet all day long going down the California coast. Outside the Coronados at 6:30 pm we got caught in a small hole for about 20 minutes and the very well sailed "Horizon" a custom SC50, caught up and passed us. Around 10pm we both jibed in for the Ensenada bay, we were running our A2 in 13-15 knots of breeze, 140 apparent the boat speed was in the twelves, every time had a gust we were able to heat up just a bit and get the boat up to 14 knots and we pulled a boat length or two on the SC50 every time. The party was over when with hit an island of weed at 11:30, the boat went from 12 to 2 knots. We were lucky we were able to get out of the weed with just one full back down. We of course have kelp cutter systems on both the keel and rudder, but these are not really made to cut down a forest!! The back down cost us 10 minutes, running 12 knots of boat speed, we lost 2 miles or so to the SC 50, too much distance to recover with only 15 miles to the finish. The J/125 is a rocket ship-- love it, love it, love it!"
For a quickie video of their experience on "Vine" video, check this out little vignette from Keith Magnussen who was aboard TIMESHAVER:
http://bit.ly/11VtOhU
As for the rest of the fleet, similar conditions were seen by the bigger, faster J's. In PHRF A, the J/145 RADIO FLYER finished 9th and were over an hour behind the J/125 on elapsed time-- indicative of how well sailed Viggo's team cranked on the fleet in the evening/ overnight hours.
In PHRF D, Larry Levielle's team from Santa Barbara YC on the J/29 RUSH STREET again proved they're more than capable competitors offshore, grabbing 2nd in class and just eight minutes off taking overall honors in class.
J/120s had a ball as a one-design offshore racing fleet. As one might expect, some new faces in the 120 fleet upset the status quo. While J-ALMIGHTY won by nearly 40 minutes over HASL FREE, the next five boats all finished less than five minutes apart! Holy smokes, that's remarkably close after that many miles, finishing just about overlapped with one another after 125nm! Third was SHENANIGANS, fourth was FEE EVENT and fifth was ADIOS!
Sailing photo credits- Leslie Richter/ Rockskipper Photography For
more Newport To Ensenada sailing information
Grand Finale For Warsash Spring Series!
Fabulous competition for J/70, J/80, J/109 and J/111 Fleets
(Warsash, England)- The final gathering for the Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series and Spring Championship took place over 27th/28th April 2013. Having had no cancellations due to gales and flat calms, the event has been a great success all round. Over the eight race days race officers have run over 170 separate races and even if the early spring was unseasonably cold, there was a warm and convivial atmosphere in the clubhouse for post-race banter and where the weekly class winners received their champagne and one lucky winner each week a SLAM jacket.
Saturday:
Four races were scheduled for Black Group on Day 3. The committee boat anchored near Sunsail buoy and set up windward/leeward courses with the addition of a windward spreader mark. The second round for IRC3, IRC4 and J/109s used a shorter windward leg. IRC1 was first to go and over enthusiasm led to a general recall. Their restart used for the first time the new “U” flag as a preparatory signal, indicating anyone over the line would be disqualified. Sadly, one boat was caught out and there are no discards in the Spring Championship. There was keen competition everywhere, especially with Sardonyx IX (William Edwards) topping the J/109s.
For the remaining races the committee boat moved west to Flying Fish buoy for less effect from the strong spring tide. This time a leeward spreader was introduced. As grey clouds gathered during the day there were short 27 knot gusts and the brief arrival of hailstones. IRC3 and IRC4 called it a day after three races and Sardonyx IX made it a clean sweep in the J/109s.
White Group raced near the North Channel with the tide pushing boats along the line. Starts went generally to plan with a couple of general recalls. The J/70s got away cleanly. For the J/80s the start line was moved and a large fender marked the anchor chain! The wind here coming from the north was shifty and sometimes reaching 25 knots. It was during one such gust in the last race of the day that an SB20 became caught on one of the buoys forming the leeward gate, reducing the gap just as the J/80 class arrived. Those in the lead were sufficiently spread out to negotiate the reduced space, but a bunch came as the race committee RIB was trying to lift the mark. The race had to be abandoned but was quickly re-sailed. The strong tide had an impact on the runs, particularly in the gusts, with many boats from all classes being seen to white sail to the gate having been carried too deep. North Sails (Ruairidh Scott) took three wins in the J/70s, with Boats.com taking one race. Stewart Hawthorn in J’ai Deux Amours posted two firsts in the J/80s with Betty (Jon Powell) and Aqua-J (Patrick Liardet) taking one each.
Sunday:
The Black Group line was set near South Coast Sailing buoy. The initial windward leg went across the Bramble Bank, which the race committee brought clearly to the attention of all navigators by radio! IRC1 had a 16 mile course and the following classes slightly shorter courses of 13 and 11 miles. For all boats life was made interesting for tacticians and those watching the depth. The wind varied from the forecast later in the morning turning some of the runs into tight spinnaker reaches. With everyone back after two and a half to three hours’ racing, a very short second race was then held for the Spring Championship competitors only.
Tigh Soluis II (Iain MacKinnon) finished on a high in the J/109s. Mefisto was forced into the enviable position of having to discard a first place in her series results. Helmed by Kevin Sussmilch with Andy Budgen on main sheet and tactics, the remaining crew are locally-based students. Mefisto’s performance, whether in light or heavy conditions, has been outstanding throughout.
On White Group there was a total lack of wind when the committee boat set up station by the Meon shore but just before the start time a gentle breeze began to fill in from the south-west to give enough pressure for the first race to get underway after a short postponement. The wind continued to build through the three races to reach 15 knots by the end of the third race, causing a few broaches and “wineglasses”. North Sails continued in fine form in the J/70s taking all three races. In the J/80s Betty (Jon Powell), Aqua-J (Patrick Liardet) and Juicy (Allan Higgs and Cressida Robson) shared the honours.
Summary results:
As a result of the weekend sailing, the winners of the Spring Series and the Spring Championship have finally been determined. For the J/70s the story of the day was simply the fact that Ruairidh Scott sailed NORTH SAILS very fast onto the comeback trail after a slow start to the season. Trailing
BOATS.COM at the beginning of the Spring Series, NORTH SAILS climbed their way back into contention to ultimately take the series sailing to six straight firsts in the last six races to take Spring Series as well as the Spring Championship. Blasting off to a fast start for the Spring Series, Ian Atkins' BOATS.COM sailed consistently well to finish second in both the month's long Spring Series as well as snag second in the Spring Championships. The battle for third was different for each event. In the Spring Series, it was Malcolm Jacques' DJANGO that took the bronze. And, in the Spring Championships, it was Simon Ling's SPITFIRE POWERED BY SLAM that took the third spot.
The big dogs in the J/80's in terms of performance and consistency were Jon Powell's BETTY and Allan Higgs' JUICY, both finishing in the top three in each event with BETTY getting the upper-hand on JUICY both times. For the Spring Series, Powell's BETTY won by a good margin by virtue of the fact they were sailing strong in the beginning of the series. Like a freight train rolling down the hill, Higgs' JUICY had a tough go initially, but finally got the wheels back on their shopping trolley to collect some silverware for second overall! Following them in third for the Series was Gillian Ross' ROCK & ROLL. For the Spring Championship, it was Stew Hawthorn's J'AI DEXU AMOURS that convincingly won the event, displacing his other colleagues one spot down the ladder. As a result, BETTY took 2nd and JUICY 3rd.
The J/109 fleet faced similar scenarios as the J/70s and J/80s, with two boats seemingly locked into a perpetual battle all spring for class domination! In this case, it was Mike & Sarah Wallis' JAHMALI locking horns with Owain Franks & Jean Lockett's JYNNAN TONNYX. For the Spring Series, JAHMALI won with the JYNNAN TONNYX gang in second, third was Paul Griffith's JAGERBOMB. For the Spring Championship, William Edwards' team sailing SARDONYX IX nearly ran the table, collecting nine 1sts in 11 races, to completely eclipse the 109 class and take the championship overall. Second in the championship was Tony Dickin's JUBILEE with the JAHMALI gang in 3rd and JYNNAN TONNYX 4th.
The J/111s had great sailing, especially on the last weekend of the Warsash championship. Sailing IRC but scored as a sub-class, the J/111s saw yet another duel taking place for the lead. It was James Arnell's JEEZ LOUISE battling with Duncan McDonald's SHMOKIN JOE, with Arnell's team holding the upper-hand in the beginning of the series only to see McDonald's team come on strong in the end to nearly take the gold! Nevertheless, JEEZ LOUSIE hung on by a whisker to win by two points over SHMOKIN JOE. Third was Richard Barnes & Alfred Munkenbeck's beautiful grey/black BIELA-MUNKENBECK.
Within the world of IRC handicap racing, the Spring Series had fairly light attendance in IRC1. It wasn't until Spring Championship did a good fleet of boats jump in, perhaps due to the frigid temperatures earlier in the season! For the Spring Championship, top J was McDonald's J/111 SHMOKIN JOE in 4th following by James Arnell's J/111 JEEZ LOUISE. Just behind was Neil Martin's J/133 JAMMY DODGER in 6th, Barnes & Munkenbeck's J/111 BIELA-MUNKENBECK in 10th and Jackie & Robert Dobson's J/133 JERONIMO in 11th.
Finally, the J/97s were also setup up in another duel with one another with both vying for the lead with two other competitors in IRC3 Class. Leading the fleet for the early part of the Spring Series, Chaz Ivill's J/97 JIGGERY POKERY had a rough time in her last two races, dropping to third just one point from 2nd and 4 pts from first! Flip-flopping with them for the lead was Nick & Adam Munday's INDULJENCE. Their rebound in the last three races nearly enabled them to win, instead having to settle for 2nd overall in one of the most competitive fleets on the Solent.
Sailing photo credits- Iain McLuckie For
more Warsash Spring Series sailing information
Nations' Cup- Hong Kong Wins J/80s
(Hong Kong, China)- 78 boats representing 23 nations were on the start line earlier today for the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club's most fun regatta, the Nation's Cup which is as much about the activities on land as it is about those on the water. Race Officer Sofia Mascia started the fleet in an easterly wind ranging from 15 to 20kts from Hung Hom and sent them eastwards through the Lei Yue Mun gap and then on to Shek O. The race course saw boats then head to Cape Collinson where they rounded a mark (TCS4) before going back to Shek O and then it was a dash through the harbour to the finish line back at the Club.
J/80 had very close sailing for all the national participants. With six nations represented amongst the eleven teams, it was pretty clear it was going to be a tough, closely fought race. With concentration and opportunistic use of wind lines and passing lanes being the order of the day, whomever was making the best of the wind holes and breeze was going to top the podium. In the end, after three-plus hours of sailing, the top five all finished with five minutes of each other with mere seconds separating most of them! Local Hong Kong sailor David Fan on SEA BISCUIT hung in to the bitter end, winning by a mere 30 seconds! Just behind was the Canadian team lead by Rob Tanner on EPEKWIT'K that took second. 50 seconds back in third was the Danish Team on J-CHI led by Inge Strompf-Jepsen. Rounding out the international top five were the Netherlands team on FOOTLOOSE led by the Dijkhuizen/ Sonnemans team taking fourth and in fifth was the Swedish team on HAKAWATI skippered by Dan Tullberg.
The J/111 MOJITO- Simon Blore from England Team finished 7th in the Big Boat Division behind some TP52s and larger racing boats. For
more Royal Hong Kong YC Nations' Cup sailing information
LA SUPERBA Repeats J/24 TAN Regatta Win
(Livorno, Italy)- The Trofeo Accademia Navale (TAN) is more and more a sailing festival for everyone, the only sailing event in Italy that unites world-class athletes, thousands of lovers of the sea, the disabled and people in need, together in their passion for the sea and for solidarity with one another. Included within the event is "The Regatta of Solidarity", organized by the Naval Academy and Retedeldono-- it's a charity fundraiser for the "Italian Union of Sailing Solidarity" (an organization founded in 2003 with 27 associations that has enabled over 20,000 people with disabilities to go sailing in the past ten years!).
"The idea that the sea is for the few, for the elite, has challenged the boating world; instead we have taken a road that will open the doors of the sea for all. It will be beneficial to the whole society and the boating industry." This is the message that comes from the rally being held in Livorno at the Tuttovela village to celebrate the 30th TAN. "The sea is not a luxury or a privilege for the few, but a resource for the whole society, a means to educate young people, to be inclusive, to tackle social disadvantage and disability."
The rally ended with Don Antonio Mazzi speaking about the importance and value of the sea, stating that: "Saint Peter was a fisherman, Noah made the Ark and saved the world, and Jesus on the Sea of Galilee said to his disciples on the Ark: 'Do not be afraid I'm there on the Ark with you.' The sea is infinite, its power is its beauty: we must enjoy with our family and children and we will return home a better person."
Taking up the challenge to help others and educate them on the beauty and power of the sea was an entire flotilla of J/24s participating in the event to honor the "sailing solidarity" theme. As they did last year, the team of Ignazio Bonanno and crew on LA SUPERBA sailed a good series to repeat their win in this 30th anniversary event, winning four of the races along the way. Second was the top German team, Shade Frithjof sailing JJ-ONE to one of their best regatta performances in Italian waters. Third was Fabio Delicati sailing DJKE, fourth was Pietro Diamanti on JAMAICA and fifth was Nicola Giovannini on OTTOBRE ROSSO. For
more TAN sailing information
Antigua Sailing Week Update
(English Harbour, Antigua)- It’s been buzzing in Antigua as Falmouth Harbour and Nelson’s Dockyard have been hosting the fast racing yachts from all over the world participating in the 46th Antigua Sailing Week. Beautiful sunshine, crystal clear blue skies and a gentle breeze produced a positive vibe for the first day of racing, with grins all around on the sailor's faces after three hours of racing in paradise-- just can't beat Caribbean-style sailing when the weather is simply so sweet!
After three days of racing, it's pretty certain that Rick Wesslund's gang of merry-makers sailing their J/120 EL OCASO are hell-bent again to take silver in one of the longest running "classic Caribbean" regattas. They are dueling for CSA Racing 3 leadership with some long-time J/105 sailing veterans, Phil & Wendy Lotz sailing their 42 ft ARETHUSA. This one may go down to the wire! Also racing in their class is Peter Lewis' J/105 WHISTLER.
In CSA Racing 4 class, the beautifully maintained J/39 SLEEPER VIII sailed by a crack team from the UK are keeping skipper/owner Jonty Layfield in the hunt for the top five.
Finally, it seems that Tom Mullen and crew on the J/95 SHAMROCK VIII are not only having a fantastic time, but like their fellow J sailors in the Caribbean circuit, simply can't have enough of the amazing sailing the trade-winds offer at this time of year. For
more Antigua Sailing Week sailing information
American YC Spring Series Update
(Rye, New York)- As a right of passage, it's hard to beat the opening of the Western Long Island Sound Spring series hosted by American YC. With such gracious and accommodating hosts, it's hard not to have a fun time sailing in this eponymous regatta within sight of the famous New York City skyscrapers and skyline off to the West, not too mention the spectacular sunsets offered by such an extraordinary vista.
As many veterans know of this series, the weather can experience rather remarkable extremes. Sometimes a frigid 45 degrees, blowing 15-25 kts NW with hammer-blow puff-lines in a classic "blowing dogs off chains" scenario or simply unbelievable "shorts & shades" late spring conditions in the 70s with a gentle sea-breeze wafting gently over Long Island in a metronomic shifting pattern with puffy white clouds, 6-12 kts of breeze and not a worry in the world about how you're going to sail the race because it's so outrageously beautiful. Thankfully for many, this past weekend was the latter, not the former. In fact, this coming weekend might have even better sailing, though the wind might be an issue with a weak offshore High pressure dominating the weather proceedings.
After the first weekend of sailing, the thirteen strong J/105 class are having some great competition with some new faces amongst the leaderboard in the largest class at the AYC Spring Series. Sean and Susan Doyle's KESTREL are currently winning, posting a solid 2-2-4-2-1-1 for a mere 8 pts. Nipping at their heels are veteran J/105 sailors from Cedar Point, George and Alex Wilbanks, on board REVELATION. With a 6-1-3-1-2-2 tally they're only one point back! Kevin Grainger, winner of the third race on Saturday, stands in third with 14 points. Tied for fourth is the new AYC junior team sailing KINCSEM and Harald Edegran/Jeremey Henderson aboard CONUNDRUM.
Speaking of KINCSEM, there's a "new KINCSEM" on the block, a beautiful one-design J/44 that is the new project for that fabled sailing pair- Joerg Esdorn & Duncan Hennes- unaccustomed to being the "newbies on the block"! They're learning fast from the many veterans of J/44 one-design racing. Currently, the ring-leader of the lot, Jim Bishop on his famously sea foam green GOLD DIGGER is leading. He's followed by RESOLUTE (Don & Rick Rave) in 2nd, VAMP (Len Sitar) in 3rd, MAXINE (Bill Ketcham) in 4th and BEAGLE (Phil Gutin) in 5th. Looks like Joerg and Duncan have a bit of tweaking to go to penetrate this fortress of experience in front of them!
Further on the one-design activity going on at AYC Springs, the J/109s have been tossed into the IRC 3 Division with the J/122s. Currently, the J/109 ranking sees SKOOT (Jim Vos) in 5th, STORM (Rick Lyall) in 6th, PAX 3 (Bob Siegel) in 7th and MELODY (Alan Tannous) in 8th. The J/122s are lying 3rd and 4th in class, respectively, with Steve Furnary's PATRIOT leading the WINGS syndicate in 4th.
In the IRC 1 class, the province of the big, exotic boats from New York and Connecticut, the J/133 ANTIDOTE sailed by Ron Richman is hanging tough in 6th overall.
The weekend forecast looks unbelievably nice, with winds blowing in from the easterly quadrant for the most part-- a good and bad thing for Long Island Sound since the island can heat up so fast and so hot that it can prevent any form of easterly gradient flow from ever touching Long Island Sound! Fingers crossed the PRO's can sneak in some good racing! For
more American YC Spring Series sailing information
MADELEINE J/24 Fowey Trophy Champion
(Fowey, Cornwall, England)- As the J/24 class in the United Kingdom and Ireland prepare for the onslaught of "foreign" teams to invade the "islands" like the Vikings of old to plunder for J/24 Worlds silverware, the locals are not taking the challenge lying down. Quite the contrary, in fact. With Olympic medallists, World and European champions in their quiver, the UK/ Irish contingent are pulling out all the stops to ensure it's a "jolly good show" for all, not just as hosts, but as competitors, too.
This past weekend, Duncan McCarthy and the team of MADELEINE (GBR 4265) got their season off to a great start by claiming the 2013 Fowey Trophy by 3 pts from the HITCHHIKER team (GBR 4242). Third was JIGGY 2, forth was JUMBA and fifth was JAWBREAKER.
Kudos to the Fowey Gallants Sailing Club for "just the job, well done mates" for a great weekend series. Every step of the way to the Worlds in Howth will be paved by such efforts to ensure the "home team" provide a gallant defense to win the title for the British/ Irish isles, or is it-- "the Queen"!! We will all soon find out! For
more J/24 Fowey Trophy sailing information
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* J/70 Hits 20 knots!? And wins IRC!! You have got to be kidding. Not if you're Nicolas Troussel, a very famous French Figaro racer and Tour de France a'La Voile winner, who recently broke the 20 kts barrier several times while racing offshore in his new J/70 off the coast of Brittany! You might ask, what is Troussel doing sailing a J/70? Well, he loves sailing, loves one-design racing, and loves sailing hot sportboats with friends. J/70 is the answer! Over this past weekend, J/70s were sailing in the 2013 CCI Trophy in Morlaix (North Britanny). Here's the report from Fred Bouvier at J/Composites in France:
"On Saturday, the coastal race was started with a starting line in the vicinity of the Castel "Du Taureau". The weather conditions were simply epic-- 22-27 kts of Northerly breeze with massive, steep waves for the boats to surf the downwind run offshore to the "Méloine" sea-buoy.
Troussel's J/70 managed to stay in the race for most of the initial long upwind leg against optimized 38 to 40 foot IRC handicap racers. Indeed, sailing well enough to be able to use his downwind ability to recover his handicap time deficit while managing to beat the 20 kts speed record several times!
Unfortunately, Sunday's sailing saw very light and tricky winds, so the PRO had to cancel racing for the day.
In the end Nicolas Troussel and his J/70 team were crowned the victorious champions of the 2013 CCI Trophy in Morlaix!! An astounding, earth-shattering performance! Plenty of enthusiasm was shown around the J/70 and, in particular, Troussel's ability to sail easily and fast as a rocket downwind in rough conditions!" Cool. Troussel would've loved the Friday afternoon in Charleston Race Week when it blew 15-30 kts in flat water, too! Next time. :)
* J/70 Sailing Tips & Tricks-- recently, the Key West and Charleston Race Week winner, Tim Healy from North Sails, offered to all J/70 sailors the latest know-how, go-fast ideas that have propelled him to two significant class wins in the two largest fleets of J/70s assembled to date. As Tim describes,
"I just returned from beautiful Charleston, South Carolina after completing another fantastic Sperry Top-Sider Charleston Race Week! The entire event was so impressive and the organization on every level was impeccable, from the race committee work to the hospitality on shore, the event was well run, welcoming, and fun. The food was fantastic, and even though the sheer number of boats and sailors must have been a huge logistical challenge, the Charleston event team pulled it off seamlessly which made for an incredibly enjoyable regatta.
A whopping fifty-five J70’s were entered, making it the largest class of the nearly 300 boats that competed. As with the two other J/70 regattas our team has sailed in 2013, our learning curve was steep. Here are our thoughts, lessons learned, and the adjustments we made to our boat in conditions that ranged from 8-30 knots and water that could be flat one minute and extremely choppy the next." Please read-on here-- lots of good info from a past J/24 World Champion!
Click here to read more about tuning a J/70 for hyper-space mode.
* How to Safely Rename Your Boat- As the American Yacht Club (Rye, NY) prepares for its venerable Spring Series to be held in Long Island Sound on the weekends of April 27/28 and May 4/5, the competitors are getting ready too. One team in particular is making sure to avoid any mistakes that could plague their event.
Robert Siegel of the Stamford YC acquired last October the J/109 previously known as Tastes Like Chicken, and intends to campaign the boat this season renamed as PAX3. But recognizing that renaming a boat is serious business, here is the procedure Robert followed to avert problems:
"Since re-naming a boat is considered to be very unlucky, an abbreviated De-naming Ceremony was conducted to purge the Tastes Like Chicken name from the Ledger of the Deep, and from Poseidon’s memory. This was then followed by a Re-naming Ceremony, imploring Poseidon and Neptune to take PAX3 into their records, guarding her with a mighty arm and ensuring her of safe and rapid passage through her journeys within your realm.
The re-naming ceremony was followed by a ceremony to appease the winds, flinging champagne to the north, west, east and south, followed up by sailing backwards, “backing over” the old name. It should be noted that some of the champagne was also imbibed (an important element of the proceedings!).
A lengthy re-naming protocol by Hal Burchard was published in Scuttlebutt on April 11, 2007, who also approved of the consumption of the remaining champagne. Here Hal provides his final advice:
Once the ceremony has been completed, you may bring aboard any and all items bearing the new name of your vessel. If you must schedule the painting of the new name on the transom before the ceremony, be sure the name is not revealed before the ceremony is finished. It may be covered with bunting or some other suitable material." Click
here for the complete procedure.
* A Weekend full of surprises? So, what else is new in Australian J/24 sailing!? Here's an amusing anecdotal story from our friends in the J/24 fleet Waay Down Under:
"I had made up my mind to sit out the Vic championships this year for one and a thousand reasons, but the Monday before the championship weekend brother Ron rings me out of the blue to say there was a boat available that needed a helmsperson. With only a moments thought I was there – great, fly in fly out (rockstar! – how lucky could I be?). Little did I know there was no crew either!
So with help I managed to gather a lovely bunch of keen sailors for the racing. Sydney ‘foldup’ Matt ( mast person from the winning boat Kaotic last year) kindly offered to join us (thank you God!). Matt flew down with me last flight Friday evening from Sydney. Simon and Ron put the boat in the water. And in the morning we woke to a text from our French (very much needed 100kg) crewman who said he was “closing in on very first Australian woman” and couldn’t make it for the racing today. I had to smile having never met the man at least he was honest!
So down to the 4 of us. We arrived to see the boat in the water, clean and neat and tidy and by the time we had met each other and had weighed in ( all 270kg of us) it was time to go ( who starts racing at 1000hrs these days?). The wind was a steady 15knots and after establishing the crews limited sailing experience and positions we pulled on our gloves and hoisted the mainsail. First practice work the main pops out of the boom track. So truckie Matt lashes it to the end of the boom with a tight outhall and we were off again.
Race 1 – not a bad start considering no-one onboard had a watch ( used the flags and the whites of our competitors eyes to estimate the start) 101,102,103!!! Ahh they are coming!! Better power up, lets go for the line!!!… we found ourselves mid fleet approaching the first mark when BANG!! The traveller and mount pulled out from the boat along with 2 x mainsheet pulleys. I was ready to go back ashore but SUPER FOLDUP MATT sprung into action.
We managed to limp around the first mark and lucky it was a long downwind leg as Matt (6ft 4) folded himself up into the back hatch and found the nuts and bits ( he does bit parts for Gumby in the off season). He stayed in there while the girls stood on the traveller and mount and after much blood sweat and tears it was secured. The pulleys and spring were also pieced together enough to give us some purchase for the rest of the day. Miraculously it was sorted by the bottom gate ( with not a second to spare I might add). We headed off upwind to chase ‘em down!
The next 2 races were good – shorthanded the girls were fabulous with learning to set and jibe the spinnaker ( had never done this before on a J). With only one major wrap – sailing angles a little sharp (waved “hi” to Brighton Yacht club) we got to the gates packed up ready for the upwind leg every time. And heck only lost a brace at the finish line nearly wrapping the finish boat with our kite, just the once!
Race 4 – I didn’t take note of the windward mark change and headed over to easterly side of the course for the big lift from the left, overlaid the top mark by a country mile – dunkoff! Last again!!
Day 2 – Wasn’t sure whether any crew would turn up but alas they were there with bells on – comparing bruises. We had time to practice the pole set and jibe while still tied up to the mariner. Matt tightened every nut and bolt and lashed the mainsail before we left the wharf. We decided no matter what the wind did we would stay with the jib and aim to stay with the fleet today.
Race 5 – first start OCS (lost count!) so back we went and decided to practice our tacks upwind – playing the lifts and knocks – and spinnaker sets and jibes downwind – perfect. OK so now we are ready to go and compete!!
Race 6 – In the groove – and found ourselves battling it out for 15th spot with JN in ‘Vice Versa’ by our side and WC in J-Force so excited to see us in the mix at the top mark he nearly drove us into the hitch mark – hands waving I shooed him away – (he doesn’t want to be my best friend anymore!) And we held 15th ahead of Vice Versa! We were on the up!
Race 7 – the last race – I had decided the Thomo cup was well out of reach (again!) – if you cant beat ‘em, join ‘em, I thought as I followed my big brother up the first work and kept up with the pack. Switched into race mode again and we were ripping along. Matt calling the wind, tacking beautifully, floating the spinnaker, Jodie jibing systematically and cleanly and Justine arranging the middle of the boat fabulously and tucking the spinnaker away single handily perfect!. We confidently rounded the last windward mark, set the spinnaker and tucked a quick jibe to squeeze up to 13th . And then it was pin back the ears and go for that finish line!! JN was riding every wave and we could hear him praying from our boat, trying to peg us back with every gust (please God – I have been a good boy this week, make me go faster!) And it was only the congratulatory hail of “Bitch!” that confirmed our victory-- 13th!!
We couldn’t wipe the smiles from our faces – it was worth it after all. So what a challenge it was and I am grateful for the opportunity to race and to sail Gatsby (thanks JN) with such patient and lovely girls and sooo grateful to sail yet again with Matt. He was our godsend for the weekend.
PS. Last saw JN standing under Gatsby negotiating ‘best price’ to buy the boat back from himself!" Ha ha! Now that's amusing-- lost his girl, now wants it back! For
more Australian J/24 sailing news and views
* J/160 AVATAR headed for the Caribbean, again! We LOVE these updates from our cruising J sailors that continue to criss-cross the Seven Seas. This one comes from
Alan Fougere, sailing his beloved J/160 AVATAR.
Alan sent us an email update commenting on their passage south this winter, "In mid-December AVATAR completed her sixth transit to her winter Caribbean home, Grand Cruz Bay, St. John, USVI (seen above) from her home port in Quissett (Falmouth), MA. A crew of three, Captain Alan (e.g. me), Crew Pablo Brissett and Mark Conroy, covered the 1,500 nm trip in in her best time to date- 7 Days 5 Hours, averaging 8.7 kts, that's about 208 nm per day! Amazing passage it was! Rainbow at right far offshore was some of the amazing phenomenon we experienced on this fast offshore passage.
AVATAR will participate in the BVI Sailing Festival/Regatta again in 2013, where last year she won the Nanny Key Cup Cruising Class race around the Island of Virgin Gorda. Here are some photos for you to share with the J/Community at-large. Enjoy!"
Best, Alan Fougere/ AVATAR
* Bill & Judy Stellin recently had an interview about cruising on their J/42 in the
Wall St Journal called "Retiring on the Open Sea". The Wall St Journal asked Bill to reply to dozens of questions that flooded into the WSJ's Editor desks. Here's the update:
Retiring on the Sea: Answering Readers' Questions
Advice about selecting a boat, ocean crossings, itineraries and safety
The article in our WSJ Online December retirement report about eight years spent sailing the Mediterranean— "Retiring to the Open Sea"— prompted many questions and comments from readers. We asked William Stellin, who wrote the story, to answer some of the most common queries.
WSJ- "What kind and make of boat did you use? Looking back, would you have picked a different boat?"
Bill- "In 1995-96, J/Boats of Newport, RI, came out with a new cruiser/racer model, the J/42. We bought hull No. 6 of this popular 42-foot sailboat and named it JAYWALKER. This was our fourth boat since beginning sailing in 1975.
Although long-distance cruising wasn't what we had in mind when we purchased JAYWALKER, it soon became apparent it had the ability to carry us easily and safely anywhere we wanted to go. Because the boat is light, it sails well in light winds, which means very little motoring is necessary.
People often ask (and argue) about what boat is best for cruising. Any boat that is strong, safe, fast, comfortable and easily handled by two people should fit the bill. One thing for sure, fast is fun—and important when trying to avoid bad weather."
READ MORE ABOUT BILL'S INSIGHTFUL COMMENTARY AND THOUGHTS ON WSJ ONLINE HERE
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/
*
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.
J/Brokerage
J/65 MAITRI For Sale
Custom build, sloop-rigged, J/65 is long and lean with low wetted surface, allowing the boat to be easily driven with a moderate sailplan in light airs. To make target cruising speeds of 9-10 knots, J/65 won't be as dependent upon auxiliary diesel power as most vessels in her category. A graceful sweeping sheerline and flared topsides allow for a sleek and purposeful silhouette and a dry, comfortable ride. The large, protected aft cockpit offers plenty of space to get comfortable as well as great protection offshore. MAITRI was built in 2006 and currently resides in San Diego, CA.
Contact: Jeff Brown- JK3 Nautical Enterprises. Work- 619-224-6200 or Cell- 619-709-0697
J/46 QUESTAR For Sale
Questar is an immaculate and extremely well maintained J/46 built in 2000. Commissioned for an avid and seasoned yachtsman, she is thoughtfully outfitted and well equipped and currently resides in San Diego, CA.
J/46 may be the only investment grade sailing yacht of its size not requiring professional crew to sail at designed performance levels-- or to maintain. Two people can easily manage her upwind and down to achieve the same 8 knot passage-making speeds under sail that is possible when motoring with 76hp diesel auxiliary. The joy of sailing the perfect boat is, after all, a goal we believe every owner ultimately seeks. To insure that good sailing days are spent sailing rather than scrubbing and varnishing, J/46 is designed to be virtually maintenance-free. Her exquisite joinerwork is protected from the sun-- belowdecks where it’s beauty can be preserved.
Contact: Kenyon Martin- JK3 Nautical Enterprises- wk- 619-224-6200 or cell: 858-775-5937
J/122 PENN AZEN For Sale
One of the world's most successful J/122s is for sale- hull #6 built in March 2007 by J/Europe.
PENN AZEN has been very successful since her launch in 2007:
- 2007 RORC IRC Class 1 season winner
- 2008 RORC IRC “Yacht of the Year”- plus 8 season’s awards
- 2009 Winner of UNCL Trophée Atlantique in class 1
- 2010 French Rolex Commodores Cup team and 2nd at Trophée Atlantique
- 2012 Cowes-Dinard race: 3rd in IRC Class 2 and 4th IRC Overall
Inside arrangement- 3 cabin version plus folding sea berths in the saloon – 10 berths in total
Deck/ Rigging includes- Varnished Hall spars high modulus mast and boom, Rod rigging and dyneema backstay on hydraulic adjuster, Tuff-luff Forestay and Carbon steering wheel
Sails- X-Voiles France- complete inventory for any offshore racing, including RORC Fastnet Race.
Electronics- Full set from NKE Electronics including carbon wind indicator, 3 mast displays and 2 cockpit displays, gyroscopic compass, gyro autopilot, plus Icom VHF with ASN and AIS receiver and Furuno GPS.
Please contact- Gwen THOMAS from Ouest Greement-
P: +33 (0)2 40 82 66 65
E: tgreementpornic@free.fr
International J/70 Class Update
Hamble Winter Series- Weekend VI
Xiamen’s Blue Sea Wins J/80 China Match Race!
The first 3 days lost an average of 2 hours per day due to the breeze being, simply put – somewhere else but the team comprising of PRO Kang Peng, Li Li, the “glue” that held the event together, and the umpire team of Jono, Al, Lauren and GG, not forgetting Jim Johnstone who tirelessly fixed breakdowns and handled boat swaps kept the event pretty much on schedule albeit with nav-lights required on the umpire boats for the return to the marina on a couple of days. The semi-finals saw both extremes of weather from 6 knots for the first 2 races to over 25+ kts for the completion of the final matches.
J/70 Liguria Championship Report
Creole VDS Team Wins Brazilian J/24 Championships
"It was a sensational championship, things were happening that were favorable to us. We tried to sail without pressure, without getting anxious and doing little risk. It was fun,” said Renato Plass. It’s also interesting to note this team will represent Brazil in the sailing competition in the South American Games in March 2014 in Chile.
