J European Dream Team Re-United!
(Les Sables d'Olonne, France)- We are pleased to announce that JB Composites in Les Sables d'Olonne, France will take over the J Boats building license from Kingcat. JBC principals Yves Roucher, Arnaud Ringeard and Didier LeMoal bring a wealth of boat-building, corporate and J Boats expertise to the company. This is a “dream team” come true for J Boats and a very exciting development for the entire J network.Mr. Roucher, former president of Federation Industrial Nautique (French Sailing Industry), has owned several successful boat companies, including ALUBAT, a company he f
ounded in 1970 and which later (in 1994) acquired the first license to build J's in France. Mr. Ringeard is president of FAST Groupe, a third generation, family-owned holding company with business interests across many fields including mass transportation, healthcare, eco-cars and even sailing charters. Didier LeMoal is well known to the J community for his 15 year involvement overseeing European J production and sales including project directing the successful launching of the J/109 and J/122.The good news is the European economy is improving, leading to greater confidence for active J sailors and buyers, in particular. Future prospects are bright and with the JB Composite team leading the charge, renewed energy has led to a significant backlog of orders for several models including the J/109, J/97, J/92s and J/80. For more information, please contact J/Boats at ph# 401-846-8410 or info@jboats.com
Royal Hong Kong YC J/80 Fleet
(Hong Kong, China)- J/Boats Asia and HYM (Hudson Yacht & Marine) are running at full throttle this spring building J/80's for the newly formed Hong Kong J/80 fleet. Currently, 15 J/80s are going to the Royal Hong Kong Yacht Club. After a detailed look at competitive options in the market the J/80 was chosen because it was stable for the new sailors, but exciting enough for the experienced yachtsmen who wanted sportboat performance.The long-term goal for the local Hong Kong and Chinese sailing clubs is to host the J/80 World Championships in 2015. The buzz around the club is contagious, everyone is anticipating sailing the new J/80s in the fleet later this spring. With the J/80 being built regionally in Xiamen, China, the club is also seeing the benefit of the factory support for hosting such an event in 2015 with the factory willing to supply 10 brand new charter boats for the 2015 J/80 Worlds. You won't want to miss sailing in this exotic and exciting location!
J-UK Hosting a "J/Boat Open Day"
(Hamble, So'ton, England)- For those of you looking forward to experience "what a difference a J makes", please ramble down to the Hamble and have fun day! Here's what's on in the Solent March 27th. A J/Boat Open Day will take place in Hamble on Saturday March the 27th. Anyone and everyone who is interested in finding out more about these asymmetric cruiser-racers and sportsboats, and perhaps wishing to try a J/Boat for themselves, are invited to attend.J-UK, the distributor for J/Boats in the UK and Ireland, has arranged a series of short, informative talks to take place on Saturday morning in the comfy environs of the BANANA WHARF BAR in Port Hamble Marina. In the afternoon visitors will be invited to sail any of the J/Boats in the current range, including the new J/97 and the new J/95, which features a lifting centreboard. Guests will be able to establish for themselves precisely why these asymmetric yachts drive so much interest and excitement amongst racing and cruising sailors alike. If you would like to join the J Boat Open Day on Saturday March 27th, please just email Emma Vaughton (emma@j-uk.com ) and let her know.
Regatta & Show Schedules:
Apr 1-5- SPI OUEST- La Trinite, France- http://www.spi-ouestfrance.comApr 8-11- Charleston Race Week- Charleston, SC- http://www.charlestonraceweek.com
Apr 9-11- J/Fest San Francisco- St. Francis YC- San Francisco, CA- http://www.stfyc.org
Apr 15-18- Strictly Sail Show- Alameda, CA- http://www.strictlysailpacific.com
Apr 30-May 2- Annapolis NOOD- Annapolis YC, Annapolis, MD- http://www.sailingworld.com
May 5-8- J/80 UK Nationals- Cardiff Bay YC, England- http://www.j-80.co.uk
May 10-14- J/22 South African Nationals- False Bay YC, South Africa- http://www.j22.co.za/
May 14-16- Seattle NOOD- Seattle YC- Seattle, WA- http://www.sailingworld.com
May 18-23- J/24 North Americans- Seattle YC- Seattle, WA- http://www.j24northamericans.com/
May 27-30- J/80 Copa Espana- Barcelona, Spain- http://www.rcnb.com/regata_copa_esp_j80-2010_eng.asp
Jun 5-6- Sprit Fest Regatta- Breakwater YC- Sag Harbor, NY- http://www.spritfest.org
Jun 10-13- J/80 Italian Championship- Lake Garda, Italy- http://www.j80euro2010.it/
Jun 21-26- J/80 European Championship- Lake Garda, Italy- http://www.j80euro2010.it/
Jun 20-26- Block Island Race Week- Block Is, RI- http://www.blockislandraceweek.org
Jun 25–27- Long Beach Race Week/ J/120 NAS- Long Beach YC- Long Beach, CA- http://www.lbrw.org
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
J/Regatta News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
In America, the first of Sailing World's NOOD Regattas took place in San Diego with a strong J fleet turnout. The world's navies competed in J/24s for bragging rights in the World Military Sailing Games in Bahrain (a United Arab Emirates state). In Europe, the Warsash Spring Series enjoyed another beautiful weekend of sailing on England's fabled Solent. Upcoming events to watch out for this include France's famous SPI OUEST, hoping to get 100 J/80s; the Balboa-Cabo Race with four J/125s fighting it out for one-design line honors; the 45th SNIM FRANCE- The Semaine Nautique Internationale de la Mediterranee with a slew of J/109s and J/122; and the renowned, fun ROLEX St. Thomas Regatta with a bunch of J's racing handicap and one-design (15 IC-J/24s). Read on! More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page! Below are the summaries.
SW NOOD San Diego
JAVELIN Dominates J/105s
(San Diego, CA)- Fifty-one J's sailed this past weekend's NOOD in San Diego, over 50% of all offshore keelboat fleets! The weather was spectacular. Postcard perfect perhaps. Great winds. Good race management. Great parties. What's wrong with this picture? Hmm, yet another great spring weekend in San Diego, CA. Ever wonder why more US NAVY Admirals retire on Point Loma and Coronado Island? Go figure, find out for yourself why guys like Dennis Conner, Malin Burnham and other notables can't ever be convinced there's a better climate to live in worldwide-- heck, they oughta know since they've sailed everywhere. Although, too much sun can't possibly do the soul too much good, does it?
There were more J/Boats represented at the NOOD than any other boat manufacturer! With 18 boats the J/105s took the honors of being the largest class at the regatta with J/105 JAVELIN having a nearly perfect regatta with four bullets and one second place finish. JAVELIN, owned and sailed by Pam and Doug Werner, didn’t miss a shift and consistently lead the two day event in their home waters. JAVELIN crew SDYC Commodore Bill Campbell and wife Sherri thoroughly enjoyed being out in front with the two couple crewed JAVLEIN. One of the big challenges for the crew was trying to keep up with the NCAA’s and Sherri’s alma mater Syracuse University’s game on Sunday. Second was Dennis and Sharon Case sailing WINGS and third was Gary Mozer on CURRENT OBSESSION 2. The top five boats sailed remarkably well, taking all podium finishes for the series. 
J/World San Diego also came out in full force, hosting tune up races on Friday and adding four J/80’s to the racing in the 12 boat J/80. San Diego’s morning fog took a little while to burn off and the first race of the day kept the J/Sailors racing in less 150 -200 feet of visibility at times. After the fog burned off typical San Diego conditions replaced the fog revealing a beautiful day with the breeze consistently at 7 – 14 knots and sunny skies. J/Sailors were surprised with candy and treats being delivered on the water between races by J/Concierge Amanda Denton. The twelve boat J/80 fleet was won by Curt Johnson on AVET with nine points, six points ahead of Gregg Kelly sailing MERKIN. John Steen sailing UNDERDOG was tied for third with Steve Wyman on HUNU, but UNDERDOG won by virtue of not "who beat who" but by most 1sts, 2nds and 3rds! 
On Sunday the wind built to 12 knots, however racing proved to be challenging with constant shifts. In a great example of Sportsmanship to help his fellow fleet members Tom Brott, owner of ELECTRA and Fleet Captain of J/109 Fleet, stepped up to help Daylen Teren, new to the 109 fleet and the owner of GREAT BALLS OF FIRE in his first ever high point regatta by sailing with him during Sunday's races. Tom Brott's ELECTRA did, indeed, electrify their competition, winning with straight bullets- five firsts! Second behind that ELECTRA-fying performance was Steve Carter's GERONIMO beating by just one point John Shulze's LINSTAR who finished third.In the nine boat J/120 fleet, a repeat winner scored top spot on the podium. CC RIDER sailed by Chuck
Nichols won with a 1-1-2-1-5 record for 10 pts to win by nine points over CAPER, raced by John Laun and JIM, raced by John Snook. It was tight, solid racing with podium finishers amongst 8 of 9 competitors! The J/24s as always had a great time. After all, can't kill the spirit of a class that has survived the test of time over 30+ years! Eight boats showed up and RUMBLEFISH with Peer Fischel won a closely fought series by a scant three points over Charlie Fox's MOURNING WOOD. Just off the pace was Norman Hosford on SUPER STRINGS. Susan Taylor put in a nice performance getting fourth overall with TAKE FIVE. For more Sailing World NOOD San Diego information. Photo credits- Tim Wilkes Photography
Warsash Spring Series
J/122 JOLLY JELLYFISH Wins IRC1
(Hamble, So'ton, England)- The sunshine continued for the second week of Warsash Sailing Club's Spring Series on 21st March but in stark contrast to week one, the breeze was often elusive and tricky. The weather forecasts varied, with wind speeds ranging from 4 to 15 knots, but in the main agreed a north-westerly was due to back to the south-west or south.The latest period of light airs had persuaded the Race Committee to shorten IRC1 at South East Ryde Middle and IRC2 at Browndown at the end of a run. There were only two finishers in IRC1 and this week's champagne went to the J/122 JOLLY JELLYFISH. The courses for IRC3, J/105 and J/92s were also shortened. Bill Blain's new J/97 Batfish was the first of the IRC3 boats to escape the doldrums at the bottom mark and had established a four minute lead by the time they reached the finish.
In IRC1 the J/122 JOLLY JELLYFISH put the pedal to the medal, sailed well, proving that you don't need a brand new McClaren $250,000 GBP F1 carbon sedan to dust-off your mates on the M-1 or M-25 roadways. JOLLY JELLYFISH is just one point off the overall lead over the redoubtable Niklas Zenstrom on RAN and just behind Paul Turner's purely professional team on ARTEMIS.
In IRC3, the J/97 JIKA-JIKA raced up the standings to be lying third overall just one point out of second and four points from first place. J/97 BATFISH showed everyone home by a country furlong in the one race they could complete.
For J/105s, there's an unprecedented three-way tie for first place! Roger Williams JOS OF HAMBLE, Chris Jones JOURNEYMAKER 5 and Rob Dornton-Duff's JAVA are wrapped up in a scrum for next weekend's racing!
The J/109s are all in a virtual tie for the lead with only two points separating four boats. Surprise leader this early in the series is Matt Boyle's SHIVA, just one point ahead of perennial class champ Kirsty and David Apthorp's J-DREAM. Breathing down their necks in this four-way scrum are David Mcleman's OFFBEAT and Jim Arnell's JEEZ LOUISE tied at six points apiece. Next weekend will surely move these positions around a bit?
The J/92s are having an equally good run for the money for win-place-show amongst the top competitors. The trio of Andrew, Matt and Peter Campbell sailing JAMMIN are tied for first with Dominic Horner's JEKYLL. Rory and Cathy Staunton on JAYA and Bill Howard's team racing WIZARD are just off the pace only four points back.
The J/80s as usual are having a helluva donnybrook. Scrum? Not really. Just for second place. The leader by a wide margin is Terri Palmer on JUST DO IT with twelve points after six races, a second average!! The fly-boys on TEAM SPITFIRE are tied for second with Mark Baskerville and Steve Sault racing HOOLINGKAZAN. TEAM SPITFIRE was HOT, tallying double-bullets in races 5 and 6 for the weekend-- a harbinger of things to come in this tight, competitive fleet? Time will tell. Full results Warsash Spring Sailing Series.
J/24 World Military Sailing Championship
Italians Beat the Russians!
(March 22, 2010) - Bahrain Sailing Club hosted this years 44th edition of the World Military Sailing Championships. Imagine that! Just after Woodstock's famous rock and roll festival in New York that rocked the world, the boys in dress blue were chomping at the bit to determine who were the leaders in the Cold War World. After a period of time, contestants included ALL sailors in ALL militaries around the world who simply wanted to get together and have a great time sailing against one another. Without getting into too much detail (embarrassing perhaps to some countries), it's clear everyone has had a fantastic time at these events. J/Boats have been a significant sponsor and supporter of the World Military Sailing Championships over times, having supported them with J/22s, J/24s and, of course, the European Military Sailing de-facto one-design sailboat, the J/80 International Class.This year's event was hosted by another one of the renowned United Arab Emirates, Bahrain. It was clear the kingdom was prepared to put on a remarkable show for ten days and no one was disappointed. With great sailing conditions (yes, Ernesto and Ed Baird we do believe you) the teams and spectators were treated to 100+ races on the Gulf. The week-long championship got underway with 21 teams, including six Arab countries - Oman, UAE, Tunisia, Qatar, Libya and hosts Bahrain. The remaining countries were Italy, France, Russia, Pakistan, Canada, India, Poland, US, Norway, Brazil, Turkey, Finland, Austria, Denmark and Spain.
Teams were divided into three groups of seven squads. The first stage featured round robin races and the top four teams from each group qualified for the second round. The second round also featured a single round robin battle, with the best four countries reaching the semi-final knock-out stage.
At the end of the amazingly civil proceedings (after all, this IS the military), ITALY defeated RUSSIA to clinch the 44th World Military Sailing Championship which concluded recently at the Bahrain Sailing Club premises near Al Jazayer Beach, Zallaq. It was a perfect finale to the 10-day event, organised for the first time in the Middle East with top sailing teams from across the world in the fray.The final was held in strong winds starting from 15 to 20 knots and reaching up to 25 knots. But it was the ITALIANS who proved the better side in the final race. The ITALIANS were coached by Ercole Petraglia and comprised of Romolo Emiliani, Fabio Montefusco, Pierlulgi Fornelli, Paolo Emilio Ciam and Giancarlo Simeoli. RUSSIA, coached by Kanov Sergey, were spearheaded by Andrey Arbuzov, Sergey Budanov, Alexey Krylov, Vyacheslav Kaptyukhin and Petr Kochnev. TURKEY, comprising Kemal Mujlubas, Kaan Ozooneng, Metin Yasamali, Mert Koseoglu, Baris Bilge and coached by Kani Vardar, finished third. FRANCE were fourth, followed by NORWAY in fifth place, FINLAND sixth and DENMARK seventh.
Bahrain Maritime Sports Association (BMSA) president and organising committee member Shaikh Khalifa bin Abdulla Al Khalifa witnessed the final day's action with Italian Ambassador Enrico Padola and his Russian counterpart Ambassador Victor Smirnov. Shaikh Khalifa thanked General Organisation for Youth and Sports president Shaikh Fawaz bin Mohammed Al Khalifa for his support to sailing activities in Bahrain. The BMSA chief also highlighted the significant role of companies and establishments which sponsored the event, adding that without their support it would have been difficult to have this championship here in Bahrain.
The event was sponsored by a star-studded group of regional supporters, including: LURSSEN YACHTS, Trafco, Abu Dhabi Ship Building, Alba, Bapco, Batelco, MBDA Missile Systems, Banagas, Bahrain International Travel, Dadabai Travel and Yateem Air-conditioning. Other sponsors included Jawad Group, Al Safeer Travel and Tours, Nadia Travel Agency, Turkish Airlines, AJM Kooheji Group, House of Travel, Bahrain Kuwait Insurance, GPIC and A A Bin Hindi. For more World Military Sailing information.
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* Balboa Yacht Club’s 2010 Corona del Mar to Cabo Race is set to start this Friday and Saturday with a fleet of 36 boats. Particular attention will also be paid to the extremely competitive Class D fleet with four J/125’s and three Farr 40’s racing one-design as well as for class and overall corrected time. The majority of the boats are expected to finish on Tuesday with the forecast for moderate winds along the course. For more Balbo-Cabo Race information.
* Rolex International Regatta- The three-day event, hosted by St. Thomas Yacht Club, has a track record - spanning 37 years - for delivering the goods when it comes to racing and island-style hospitality. Over twenty-seven J's are racing from IC/24s to J/160s, that's nearly 50% of the whole fleet! Alan Fougere's (Pocasset, MA) J/160 AVATAR; Herve Margolis' (Cannes, France) well-sailed J/133 JII; William Coates' (Bellaire, Texas) J/122 OTRA VEZ; Jim Baus' (Penuelas, Puerto Rico) beautiful J/46; Bob Read's (Barrington, RI- and father of the famous Read Bros- Ken and Brad) fast cruising J/40 NEPENTHE; Tom Muller's (Campton, NH) J/95 SHAMROCK VII; Marc Vayn's (San Francisco, CA) J/105 WHISPER; Antonio Sanpere's (St. Croix, USVI) J/36 CAYENNITA GRANDE; and Jim Dobbs' (Antigua) J/122 LOST HORIZON are sure to add compelling racing to their respective divisions. Also participating are a strong fleet of fifteen IC-J/24s and two J/27s- Jerry Clifford's ATLANTIC RAIDER and Paul Davis' MAGNIFICENT 7. For more Rolex International Regatta Sailing info. * The 45th SNIM FRANCE- The Semaine Nautique Internationale de la Mediterranee - SNIM (International Nautical Mediterranean Week) lifts the veil on the programme for its 45th running, which will take place in Marseilles from April 2th to 5th: new series, a new type of course, participation of the French IRC Champion and free boarding for the public with "Regatta in Sight", the benefits abound for the anniversary of the great international rendezvous of the Easter weekend - hosted for nearly half a century by the Societe Nautique de Marseille - led by its chairman Bernard Amiel. With two sailing areas - under the direction of Paul Roussange for larger IRC boats in north-Rade and Dominique Berenger for IRC and other one-designs in south-Rade - the competitors will do battle on different types of courses. Participating J's in this year's event include J/122s, J/109s, J/80s. The J/109s will effectively be racing one-design and include Mr De Saignes' GALANGE FRANCAIS, Mr Picon's MISS JUJU, Mr Burton's JET-LAG and Mr. Pezin's ALBACOR. The lone J/122 is Mr Asperti's J-LANCE and the lone J/80 is Mr Cornesse's JASMIN. For more SNIM 45 Sailing Results. Sailing Photos by Gilles Martin-Raget.
* Current World Match Racing Champion, Kiwi Adam Minoprio, will be racing J/80s in the Match Race France Regatta from April 6-11 in Marseilles. Adam's signed on to Team New Zealand as understudy to Dean Barker. It's Adam's unflappable nature that has earned him the call up from Grant Dalton to be Dean Barker's side-kick in Team New Zealand's two-boat development programme for the next America's Cup. "For Adam it's how fast is he, because you can be able to match race, but on these boats Dean's instinctively fast, there's only a few that are fast," says Grant Dalton. "I'd like to think I'm fast enough. I've been sailing a long time, I'm always learning and I think I've got what it takes to make one of those Cup boats go fast," says Minoprio. At 24, Minoprio is the reigning world match racing champion, set to defend his title on the eight month long World Match Racing Tour circuit with his team Black Match Racing. First event is Match Race France in Marseille to be held in J/80s on April 6 - 11, 2010." Time to prove you can beat the world's best on a J/80. A boat that is sailed fast by many, many people worldwide- French, Spanish, Germans, Belgians, Americans, British. Good on ya mate...master these like other J Champions before you (Ken Read, Ed Baird, Terry Hutchinson, Chris Larson, Dave Curtis, Brad Read, Eddie Warden-Owen, Francesco D'Angelis, to name just a few) and the "big ride" could be yours! Good luck!
* Environmentally, Safety-Conscious LEDs- Although they’re clearly a superior technology, LED lights haven't become mainstream because they’ve been too expensive, too "blue" and too dim compared to incandescent bulbs. While we can't yet offer you a jumbo-tron 60" LED HDTV flat screen (yet), current J/122 owner JD Hill is the factory agent for a new generation of LEDs that are as bright as the halogen bulbs on your J/Boat, but use only 1/10th of the electricity!! HOLY SMOKES Robin, get to the Bat Cave now and change all those bulbs, we need those carbon credits now!! What's even "cooler", they don't get hot, are fully dimmable, color correct and will last for the lifetime of your J -- guaranteed. Reducing the strain on your J/Boat’s electrical system will also prolong battery life! As well as our liferaft- EARTH! For more information, please visit: www.rejex.com/LED.html or call 469-583-9218. Replacements for your cabin lights retail for approximately $15; mention you’re a fellow J/Boat owner for a discount. 
Featured Boat
Gorgeous J/124 FORTUNA For Discerning Yachtsman
An amazing boat, at an amazing price! From the elegant carbon-fiber Y-spoke wheel to the fine teak trimmed joinerwork below, or simply by the smooth, graceful way it slides through the water, the J/124 is every bit a sailing yacht...in the best sense of the word. One that is a joy to sail in all conditions with few crew and with little need to rely on the 40-hp saildrive diesel.If you've realized that the joy of sailing is a priority in your life. If you've experienced how the acceleration and response of a well-designed boat can work wonders for your soul. If you've wanted to share a unique sailing experience with your family, children, grandchildren, and your friends. Or if you dreamed of being able to escape for a solo sail on the spur of the moment, the J/124 is the "J" for you.
This boat is a "custom" production boat, and the close attention to every detail both inside and out really shows. "Fortuna" has many additional upgrades: Espar Heater, all Cherry interior including the ceilings in the forward and aft cabins, Cherry doors throughout, custom dinning table, and stove with oven, upgraded foam mattress in forward berth, Hoyt jib boom, electric halyard winch, seawater wash down for anchor and in galley. There is so much more, take a look at the full specs. Note- photo of a flag blue sistership- FORTUNA is a white gelcoat hull with black boot and cove stripes (easy to refinish to any color of your heart's desire!).
Contact Norm Davant at SailCAL- Tel 510-685-7453 or email "norman@sailcal.com" or see this beautiful J/124 kept in immaculate condition at http://www.sailcal.com
About J/Boats
Started in 1977, J/Boats continues to lead the world in designing fun-to-sail, easy-to-handle, performance sailboats that can be enjoyed by a broad spectrum of sailors. The International J/24 has become the most popular recreational offshore keelboat in the world with over 5,400 J/24s cruising the waves. Today, there are 13,000+ J/Boats, ranging from the International J/22 to the J/65 and ranging in style from one-designs to racers, cruisers to daysailers and, of course, the ubiquitous J sprit boats- J/Boats' innovation in 1992 for easy-to-use asymmetric spinnakers and retractable carbon bowsprits (J/80, J/92, J/95, J/105, J/109, J/110, J/120, J/122, J/130, J/133, J/125, J/145, J/160).J/Boats has the best track record in sailing for innovation and design as evidenced by: 15 Sailing World/ Cruising World Boat of the Year Awards in 14 years; 2 SAIL Awards for Industry Leadership; 2 American Sailboat Hall of Fame Designs (J/24 & J/35); and the three largest ISAF International One-Design keelboat classes (J/22, J/24, J/80).
Counting crew, every year there are over 100,000 friends to meet sailing J's, populating the most beautiful sailing harbors and sailing the waters of 35+ countries around the world. Sailing is all about friends. Come join us and expand your social network everywhere! For more information on J/Boats
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When the smoke cleared on the waters of Bahia de Banderas, it was pretty clear J/24 class veterans used to very tight, close quarters racing with an unmistakeable capability to make the best of really bad situations at starting lines, mark roundings and weather conditions were the ones whom ultimately prevailed. The cream would rise to the top after such a long series of five days and ten races. While Chris Snow from the USA sailing "S" won "college-style" on the water with the most consistent no-throw out scores, it was Maurizio Santa Cruz from Brazil sailing BRUSCHETTA who prevailed by four points by tossing two bad scores for an impressive victory over a talented and remarkably, deep fast fleet. Just off the pace in the top three was Maurizio's Brazilian colleague, Claudio Ruschel racing A QUE SI, finishing a solid third. The Mexican contingent are proving to be not only fast, but wily as coyotes. They know their waters, are strong tactically and are a force to be reckoned with--- guess it doesn't hurt to race every two weeks in fifty+ boat fleets on Valle de Bravo for bragging rights as best sailors in Mexico! Both Jorge Murrieta on VIVO MEXICO and Ken Porter on MONSTER FISH COMEX sailed strong last days to finish 4th and 7th overall, respectively. Of note aboard Jorge's boat was Regatta Chairman Peter Wiegandt, DELL Computer's chief sponsor representative for the regatta. The top ten shows the diversity of international talent in the world's largest one-design keelboat class; Brazilians were 1st, 3rd; Americans 2nd, 5th; Mexicans 4th, 7th, 10th; Germans 6th; Puerto Ricans 8th; and Peruvians 9th. For 
The sailing has been fun and challenging so far, but what a social event! Peter Wiegandt and Kenneth Porter have done a spectacular job for everyone to enjoy. The Mexican Ministry of Tourism, the President of Mexico- Felipe Calderon (a sailor himself sailing on the lake of Valle de Bravo) and the Mexican Navy (with Optimist youth training programs at every facility) are all supporting sailing, the Regata Copa Mexico and the J/24 Class in particular. And, the line-up of sponsors is extraordinary: MICROSOFT Office, Nyssen, Dos Equis XX Brewery, Nextel, Icon Vallarta, DELL Computers, Comex, Grey Goose, Coca Cola, Marival and Banamex. The Marival Suites Hotel, an all-inclusive resort, has every amenity, activity, food and drink one could ever wish for in a beach-front complex- four pools, horseback riding, hiking in the mountains, sailing, surfing, paddling, shuffleboard, bocce ball pits, tennis, 18-hole golf course, world-class spa (mud baths, whirlpools), the list is endless. Throw on top of that a spectacular sunset dinner on the beach and a Mayan-inspired evening show at the romantic and gorgeous Bahia Las Caletas on the luscious, mountainous south shore of Bahia de Banderas and you have a recipe for a fabulous event (read more about it below in an excerpt from SAIL's Kimball Livingston's blog). For more 
After ten races, sailed in mostly N-NW winds ranging from 10-15 knots, it was clear the outcome of the series. Jim Bishop completed a wire-to-wire win in IRC class with a first and a second in Sunday’s two races. The Rhode Island skipper steered his 20-year-old J/44 to victory in five races and finished no worse than second in totaling 19 points. Jim Madden's J/125 STARK RAVING MAD was in second most of the series but just lost out the last day to finish third overall-- a remarkable achievement considering that it's a "pre-IRC" designed boat. 
The long leg south from the northern turning mark off the coast of St. Maarten to the island of Les Saintes off the southern tip of Guadeloupe was an upwind surprise for the fleet, with the breeze from the south, turning southwest early on Wednesday morning. This was quite a different story from the start where clear blue skies, fresh breeze and aquamarine seas greeted the sailors-- the sailors were treated to some superb champagne sailing conditions that typify these waters at this time of year. The first boats crossed the starting line for the 605 mile race on February 22nd to start an adventure that would take them around fourteen Caribbean islands, in what is regarded as probably the finest sailor's play ground. By the morning of the second day, the wind direction had changed to southerly and windless spots were appearing all over the race course. And, that was all she wrote for a vast majority of the fleet. 
* Katie Burns ("KB24")- J/24 bow goddess. We had to include this heartwarming story about a U.S. Army veteran discovering what it's like sailing J/24s. Katie Burns, a.k.a. "KB24" on Sailing Anarchy provided SA updates on her recent escapades. Katie had this to say, "With the advent of some of the most advanced yacht racing in the world during the 33rd America’s Cup, I decided to start my 2010 sailing year quite a few steps back from the huge multihull monsters. If you guys remember, I had quite the ride in 2009. From sailing with Quantum Racing in the 2009 Audi MedCup to gaining a lot of sportboat experience on Pete Hunter’s Wairere, and the many other exciting opportunities I had (including working with Sailing Anarchy during the Melges 24 Worlds in Annapolis), I came out of 2009 with some definitive objectives. There were definitely a few times when I found that I was in over my head, but I persisted to pitch myself into every opportunity without abandon because I just have too much pride to do it any other way. The truth is that I discovered a newfound competitive edge in sailing last year, but I was struggling to keep up with it. And since I have a severe problem with not being really good at the things I like to do, I decided to start 2010 by retraining in technical knowledge. Here’s how: J/24 one-design racing.