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J/111- It's a Beauty and She Flies!
(Bristol, RI)- Fresh out of the molds and seemingly ready to take off is J/111 hull numero uno at CCF Composites operations in Bristol, RI. The first boat will spend the summer in Newport, RI sailing locally and moored in Brenton Cove, just off the New York Yacht Club Harbour Court docks. The second boat is going to Chicago to sail the renowned 290 nautical mile sprint- the Chicago-Mac- at the end of July with a cracker-jack crew that won last year's event overall. Peel your eyes away from your work screens and take a look at this gorgeous hull, sweeet lines and curvy, firm buttocks- she's a keeper, fun, fast and great-looking! You can see more revealing shots of the first J/111 hull here.
J/80 Wins Asia's ABMA Sportboat Class Award
(Shanghai, China)- The awards and enthusiasm for the J/80 class continue to roll in, a phenomenal achievement for the world's largest ISAF International sportboat class and a boat first designed in 1993 to grow the sportboat revolution worldwide. This past week, the Asia Boat Marine Association voted on the "Best Sportboat for Asia", a category that had a slew of other well-known sportboats competing. The J/80 received five of ten votes while its erstwhile competitors received only one or two votes each! The four reasons mentioned by the ABMA Committee that strongly influenced the voters were:* New Hong Kong Fleet
* Use of the J/80 in the Asian Games
* Production in Xiamen
* Overall an all-around performer meeting the sportboat and daysailing requirements.
For more information on the ABMA Sportboat Sailing Awards
J/100 Classic Daysailor Growing Worldwide
(Newport, RI)- The reaction most sailors have when seeing the J/100 for the first time is often one of wonder and day-dreaming about taking off with a friend or loved one for a gorgeous evening sail. Interest in the J/100 is going strong and with three new boats going to Long Island Sound and one to Sydney, Australia for summer 2010! The most exciting development is the addition of the new bow sprit package, which was first installed on the J/100 recently shipped to Sydney, Australia. The J/100 sprit extends to 5.5' in front of the headstay (or 4.25' in front of the stem) and allows the kite size to increase from 80m2 to 89m2, or the same size as a J/105 class kite. The Australian J/100 will be displayed by Ray & Sandra Entwistle (of Yacht Spot) at the Sydney Boat Show in July, while another J/100 sporting a spectacular AWLGRIP black hull will display at the Newport Show this September. For more J/100 sailboat information. Regatta & Show Schedules:
Apr 9-11- J/Fest San Francisco- St. Francis YC- San Francisco, CA- http://www.stfyc.orgApr 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/nood_regatta.jsp
May 18-23- J/24 North Americans- Seattle YC- Seattle, WA- http://www.j24northamericans.com/
May 22-23- Race For the Case- Lloyd Harbor YC, Long Island, NY- http://www.lhyc.org/
May 27-30- J/80 Copa Espana- Barcelona, Spain- http://www.rcnb.com
Jun 4-6- J/MedCup- Ill de Porquerolles (Hyeres), France- http://www.k-yachting.com
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
Spring sailing continues its frenetic pace filled with stories of unusually great sailing or, conversely, remarkably difficult (e.g. bad) sailing. What else is news? It's spring! The European contingent of J sailors seemed to have their fair share of everything, but mostly good. The Warsash Spring Series now continues in the challenging Solent after their Easter break. The Spanish are flying around in their J/80s and watching one of their J/80 friends dash across the Atlantic on an IMOCA 60. The start of the World Match Racing Tour off Marseilles, France featured a matched fleet of J/80s. The Americans had two great events on opposite coasts. Charleston hosted a fabulous Race Week where one-third of the 180 boat fleet were J's of various sorts. St Francis YC hosted the J/Fest West in the Bay in somewhat uncharacteristic weather. Across the Pacific, the Asian J sailors on-board a J/145 and J/109 took a slow route not to China, but from Hong Kong to the Philippines in the Rolex China Sea Race. 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. Photo credit- Gilles Martin-Raget
J/Fest West 2010
Stormy, Grey Weather Thrashes the Bay
(San Francisco, CA)- The fleet of J's that gathered together for this year's J/Fest were greeted by stormier than normal weather and with breeze directions that were nowhere near the norm for San Francisco Bay. Here's an account of what it was like to race in the J/105 fleet from the winner, Bruce Stone sailing his boat ARBITRAGE- "It rained and was cold and gusty, up to 25 knots, out of the southeast, so they put the starting line between Harding Rock Buoy near Angel Island and Alcatraz, and ran us to the south near Aquatic Park, a routing I have never done before, across the shipping lanes and across the tide...and the wind near the shore was in the 8-11 range so setting the rig tension was tricky. Needless to say it was our kind of cockamamie race. We had a good start, duked it out with 4-5 boats who also sailed well, and ultimately won the race. It rained quite hard toward the finish, the front went through and they sent us home. The wind died after we hit the dock!"
In the 22 boat strong J/105s it was a donnybrook as usual for the top five sailors. Who won was determined by the finish of the last "cockamamie" race with St. Francis YC's ARBITRAGE avoiding a bad race and just beating Tiburon's Scooter Simmons on BLACKHAWK, getting a first to Scooter's ninth. Bruce's team on ARBITRAGE won with a 1-6-3-1 1 tally, beating by four points Scooter Simmons sailing BLACKHAWK with a 4-1-1-9 record. Lying third was Phil Laby and Rick Pipkin's RACER-X from Alameda just two points back....again with a mathematical chance to win in the last race despite their 9th place in the third race.The J/120 class also saw spirited competition with eight boats. Racing with several "ringers" from the New England area was Northeast Harbor's Steve Madeira on MR MAGOO, winning by just two points over Harry Lewis' team on CHANCE from San Francisco (see the J/Calendar photo of them!). Both boats had nearly identical records, MAGOO with a 1-3-1-1 record and CHANCE with 3-1-2-2! Just off these two boats blistering pace was Don Payan's DAYENU from San Francisco with a 2-4-5-3 score to capture third on the podium with fourteen points.
The J/24s had a blast as usual amongst the seven boats. Berkeley's Mike Whitfieldon aboard TMC RACING won with a strong 1-1-2-1 record, winning by five points over Darren Cummings' DOWNTOWN UPROAR from Treasure Island with a 2-2-3-3 score to garner second place and Don Taylor's ON BELAY from Brickyard Cove finishing with 4-4-1-2 to get third overall.
The J Handicap fleet had six boats. The winner was definitely not determined until the closing minutes of their last race. The J/22 called CHEESEBURGER became the giant-killer in this fleet. The CHEESEBURGER gang led by Peter Lane from Paradise Cay won on a squeaker, and a tie-breaker, over Trig Liljestrand of Belvedere Cove on RAGTIME, the super-fast J/90- a downwind flyer in most conditions. Third was Cam Lewis of Monterey, CA sailing his J/22 TRINITY. For more J/Fest sailing information
Gorgeous Charleston Race Week
J Sailors Love Southern Hospitality!
(Charleston, SC- Apr 9-11)- After the first two days at 2010 Charleston Race Week brought winds of up to 20 knots, the final day of racing eased up to just 8-12 knots of warm wind blowing across the harbor. For the 184 teams competing, not a frown was seen on the hundreds of faces at the awards ceremony on Charleston Harbor Resort & Marina's sandy beach. "The city, the weather and the event organizers couldn't have presented this town any better," said local sailing coach Ryan Hamm, whose J/24 PIGS FLY TOO finished in 6th place. "The competition is stiff, and it's great to see so many sailors learn to love Charleston.Chilly temperatures greeted the record fleet of racing sailboats on Friday. Braving 55 degree-morning temperatures and a wind-chill driven by the 20-knot breeze made the racing "a serious adrenalin rush", as competitor Peter Crawford put it. Temperatures reached the 70s by noon, providing picture perfect sailing conditions to start race week off with a bang. "I don't know if conditions could be any more perfect than today," said Christof Wieland, who traveled all the way from Germany to compete in his second Charleston Race Week. By Saturday morning, more nice wind, warm sun and waves graced Charleston with picture-perfect conditions. For the second straight day, winds up to 20 knots propelled the J fleets across all four courses. Sunday dawned with a big change to the previous two extreme sailing days, with just 8 - 12 knots of warm wind blowing across the harbor.
The J/80s had a tough twenty boat fleet, with many serious North American and Worlds contenders vying for the top spots. After the smoke cleared, past World Champion Kerry Klingler skippering LIFTED just beat out the Roger/Welan team sailing B-TEAM on a tie-breaker, each finishing with 22 points, taking seven first places of the ten races between them. Key West Race Week winners Glenn Darden and Reese Hillard finished third in LE TIGRE, fourth was Bruno Pasquinelli on TIAMO and fifth was Henry Brauer and Will Welles on RASCAL.
The seventeen boat strong J/24 fleet had a great turnout for this event and they certainly enjoyed the breezy conditions racing inside Charleston Harbor. Chip Till on MURDER INCORPORATED managed to hang onto the lead on the last day to win by one point over Joe McDonald on REX. Chris Jankowski finished third. The top three were a tough bunch, garnering all ten first places distributed amongst them!
The J/105s had a small but highly competitive class of six boats. The top three were trading off the fleet lead all three days, race to race. At the end of their scrum, Jackson Benvenutti's LITTLE BOOTY prevailed on yet another tie-breaker over veteran J/105 campaigner, Damian Emery and the beautiful flag blue hulled ECLIPSE. Bill Zartler and crew aboard SOLARIS sailed great on the last day, getting two bullets, but not enough to take on the fleet leaders, finishing just three points back in third. Like the J/24s, this tough bunch took all eight firsts places in the regatta.
In the first ever IRC fleet at this race week, the J/122 TEAMWORK that won last year's handicap class sailed nicely to finish third overall. Seemingly, the crazy currents, tide lines and wave conditions conspired to favor the larger boats, the winner was a custom IRC RP52 called VINCITORRE with straight firsts.
In PHRF A, Will Hanckel's J/120 EMOCEAN sailed the offshore course, finishing just one point out of first. On the last day, a soul-satisfying 2-1 got them into the hunt, but not enough to win the event, having to settle for second place. In PHRF B, Willy Schwenzfeier's J/35 ARROW had fun sailing to a fourth overall. In PHRF D, the three masthead J/29s were having a ball racing against each other. At the end, Jim Mackevich's FOR SAIL beat out perennial Key West Race Week participant (and often winner) Steve Thurston's MIGHTY PUFFIN from Rhode Island. Miles Martschink's MONGO didn't sail the first day but still managed a fourth in fleet. For more regatta/ sailing information on Charleston Race Week.
Warsash Spring Series Week 4
(Hamble, So'ton, England)- Back after an Easter break, the Warsash Spring Series continued on April 11 with the entries topping 200. There were challenging conditions for Week 4 with the wind ranging between 9-14 knots. The general mean direction was from the northeast, but local conditions prevailed on the three separate race tracks. Jon Spencer, in charge of the White Group J/80s was closest inshore and reported the wind moving to the east each time it faded. In the middle of the Solent at ‘Flying Fish’ buoy, Black Group CRO David Greenway found the wind sufficiently stable to set the same basic course for all the keelboat classes, with only a minor adjustment for the smaller boats. The only interruption to a smooth start sequence came between the J/109 and IRC3 starts, when a second outer distance mark was laid to achieve a square line. IRC1 got away on time and JINJA, Ian Matthews’ J/122, took a flyer from the pin end of the line and established a winning lead within the first 10 minutes of the race. JINJA is the fourth different winner in IRC 1 so the class is wide open with two races to go. Another J/122 JOLLY JELLYFISH has sailed consistently well to remain second overall in the series standings.
Unusually, the highly competitive J/109 class was slightly reluctant at the start. This gave David McCleman helming OFFBEAT, who had perhaps been watching the earlier starts, the golden opportunity to grab the favoured position at the pin end. He achieved an immediate lead. David Apthorp on J/DREAM gained on the first beat and, although never far away, could not get close enough to cause danger. The seventeen J/109s saw Kirsty and David Apthorp's J-DREAM continue to separate themselves from the pack with a 1-2 this past weekend to be ahead by ten points. David Mcleman's OFFBEAT has jumped into second ahead of James Arnell's JEEZ-LOUISE.
IRC3 and the combined J/105 and J/92 starts were subject to individual recalls. As the wind lightened towards the Island shore, rounding Prince Consort buoy against the tide caused a few problems and the fleet became very spread out. JIKA-JIKA, the fast J/97, took second place on handicap. Charles Wittam’s Juno has now won three of the four races and holds a good lead in the class. At the back of the fleet Domaine and Gambit ran out of time but benefited from the “out of time” provision in the Sailing Instructions.
The combined J/105 and J/92 starts were subject to individual recalls. As the wind lightened towards the Island shore, rounding Prince Consort buoy against the tide caused a few problems and the fleet became very spread out. The J class was finished early at the last windward mark. Rob Dornton-Duff in his J/105 JAVA ended a run of third places with the J/105 win. Things are extremely tight at the top of the leader board. Anyone who can put together two more good results over the remaining two weeks could change things dramatically. For J/105s, there is still what amounts to a three-way tie for first place. And, they're still only separated by a point! Chris Jones JOURNEYMAKER 5 is now third in a tie for second with Paul Griffith's FAY-J and Rob Dornton-Duff's JAVA that was in third is now first! The battle continues, more news next week...hold on to those keyboards!
On the same course, the J/92s continue to have very tight class racing amongst the top competitors. Leaping into the overall series lead after a slow start is Bill Howard's WIZARD. Yes, it did take some mastery of Hamble/ Solent wizardry to win two races in a row against this hard fought class. The trio of Andrew, Matt and Peter Campbell sailing JAMMIN are now down to fourth. Dominic Horner's JEKYLL in second and Rory and Cathy Staunton on JAYA are third. Anyone who can put together two more good results over the remaining two weeks could change things dramatically.
The J/80s are also having some great one-design racing in a wide variety of conditions. Not sailing this weekend was Terri Palmer on JUST DO IT dropping to third in the standings after a dominating performance the previous weekends. The fly-boys on TEAM SPITFIRE are now in first after some good sailing, just leading John Cooper's OI! John Cooper in Oi! took the first race but the RAF TEAM SPITFIRE made the best start of the second race. They managed to stay ahead of both OI! and Charles Somerset’s LOUDWATER down the run but a poor spinnaker drop let both the others through. At the same time, Katie, working foredeck on Jannine Stoodley’s WAIRUA thought of having a quick swim but after testing the water temperature decided against it and stayed on board. At the end of the third beat, JAVA NANO had made up a large deficit to round the mark in the lead but a poor tactical decision on the final run put her back in the pack. In the end, LOUDWATER took the gun a few boat lengths ahead of OI! TEAM SPITFIRE had their revenge in the final race establishing a small lead to the finish. LOUDWATER and OI! finished virtually level, only two seconds separating them. Full sailing results on the Warsash Website Sailing Photos by Eddie Mays
ECC VIVIENDAS Wins J/80 AVEGA CUP
(Santander, Spain)- Thirty two boats participated in the coveted J/80 AVEGA Cup in Santander. The event is widely popular because the winners get to take home HUGE new LED television sets to enjoy with family and friends those popular futbol (soccer) matches so prevalent in Spain and Europe. The picture here is of José Manuel Sansalvador, CEO of AVEGA SRL, along with the winners of the biggest TV, Pichu Torcida and crew from ECC VIVIENDAS. They sure are happy aren't they? After two very nice days of sailing in the beautiful waters off Santander, Pichu's crew won by six points over his arch competitor BANCAJA sailed by Javier López-Vázquez. There was a big point jump after the leaders up to NEXTEL ENGINEERING raced by Ignacio Camino, fourth was GRUPO RHIN skippered by Angel Herrerias and fifth was a regular front-runner in this fleet, FUNDESTIC capably steered by Toño Gorostegui. For more J/80 Spain sailing info.
Slow Rolex China Sea Race
(Hong Kong, China- April 5)- The 25th China Sea Race started Thursday 01 April 2010, from Victoria Harbour, Hong Kong and sent the fleet across 565 nm course across the straits to Subic Bay in the Philippines. The prevailing strategies are to do whatever it takes to get across the straits fast then the issue becomes what to do with the Philippine coastline, stay in our stay out offshore to get the best winds-- and it changes a lot from year to year. As one of the sailors said about this year's conditions, “It was very unique in that there were very light winds on the first day, and strong winds on Friday afternoon and Saturday. It was exciting in the sense that you have to prepare your route and where you’re going to have your landfall. It paid off in that we were more east compared to the others in our division, so we were able to get the land breeze earlier.” Another navigator said, “We always planned to go north then come south, but we actually had to do an ‘S’. Our plan was to stay high, but we knew from the weather on Thursday night that a big surge would come through. Our plan was just to bear off and go with our max VMG with the surge. It was very frustrating sitting around yesterday, and we caught a corridor of wind and we were desperate to get to the land by dawn, but we didn’t make it. We knew there would be no wind out on the sea and we wanted the land breeze. So we had to struggle; we would go along the coast and sail into each bay – there was more wind in the bays than outside, so we scalloped our way down the coast.” Having a bit of struggle with this year's navigational challenge were the two J's racing across this Asian offshore classic. The J/145 RED EYE sailed by Paul Leese and Wayne Thompson- finished 4th in IRC Racing B, they were also 10th boat across the line behind a fleet of very fast vintage TP52s. The J/109 WHISKEY JACK that sailed well by Nick Southward in the 2009 Asian offshore series faired not much better, getting a 4th in IRC Racing C. For more Rolex China Sea Race info.
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* Of interest to those who follow the French offshore sailing scene were some of the notables racing J/80s at SPI OUEST the previous fortnight. Sailing with J/France West Brittany dealer, PL Yachting, was the famous French offshore sailor "Nicolas Troussel", the past Figaro race winner and offshore Figaro annual championship winner. Also joining them in the 93 boat J/80 class was Jean Galfione, the old French Gold Medallist at the Olympic Games (pole vaulting)! Apparently, Jean said handling the J/80 foredeck duties with a carbon pole, the horizontal variety, was "tres simple"!
* Ken Read and the Volvo 70 PUMA are preparing for another rock around the clock! Good Luck! PUMA announced last week that it will participate in the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-2012 after placing second overall in the 2008-2009 competition. Led by Kenny in the last race, Ken will again be in charge of the PUMA Ocean Racing team, and shares his thoughts about the team, the lessons learned in the last race, and how they seek to improve for the next race. Scuttlebutt has an interesting series of interviews with Ken here.* J/80 Across the Atlantic? Seriously? Why? Here's an amusing story about sailing a J/80 on the old "trade-winds" route from Europe to the Caribbean, going by way of the Azores and the Canaries. Follow the adventurous blog of two Swedish J/80 sailors, Andreas and Jens, a fire-fighter and IT consultant, respectively. "The idea of sailing to the West Indies was born during a warm summer night on our way to Fårö, Sweden. A J/80, is an eight metre long
racing boat with the same conveniences as a two-man-tent and is so fast that it even leaves some 40-feet boats behind. J/80 boats have been sailed in races like Gotland Runt and other ocean races many times but still, no one has crossed the Atlantic Ocean in one. We will change that during the autumn 2007. So follow us during our preparations and also during our journey to the West Indies in one of the smallest racing boats!" They're now down in Los Roques/ Tortuga off Venezuela having a scream cruising, fishing and kite-boarding. So, Ken, maybe you should get these guys to sail with you on the Volvo 70 PUMA! Clearly, a luxury yacht ride compared to a J/80, eh? Could even use their "rubber-band auto-steering" innovation, too, that works surfing down waves up to 20 knots! This story had me in tears laughing. http://adventure.roxen.com/
* Can The Favourites Win Match Race France in Marseilles on J/80s? Not. Instead, it was "Local French Hero Reverses History!" Here's the report from the WMRT. "Twelve skippers went to Yacht Club Pointe Rouge, Southern France for the start of the 2010 World Match Racing Tour (WMRT). The first of this 10 event global series starts in Marseille and will count towards points for the ultimate prize of becoming the 2010 ISAF World Match Racing Champion. With a daunting line up of skippers including seasoned World Champions, Olympic medal holders and adrenalin-fuelled youngsters, any skipper lining up to perform pre-start tactics would have to be confident of their match racing prowess and boat handling abilities onboard the J/80 yachts. The J/80 will provide a lively model for the skippers to race, a design that works for dinghy sailors as well as big boat racers making tight boat maneuvering during the pre-start achievable for all skippers. The J/80 cockpit is also spacious for the four person crew to perform their jobs to the best of their ability, involving constant alteration of sails, body weight and vantage points to see the competing boat's next move. The J/80's will be raced asymmetrically for this event so it will be interesting to see if those skippers who have previous asymmetric experience will have an advantage on the downhill legs." 
As the regatta unfolded, it was clear that strong dinghy sailors had an advantage. Here's what happened, "Stage 1 of the ISAF World Match Racing Tour (WMRT), has put a new twist on an ancient maritime tale. The scenario of English sailors battling French sailors is reminiscent of the famed 1805 Battle of Trafalgar when UK’s Lord Nelson defeated Emperor Napoleon of France. Ben Ainslie (GBR) TEAM ORIGIN took on Mathieu Richard (FRA) French Match Racing Team. The French local, Richard, took a convincing victory winning both of the final two matches raced under a testing 6-7 knot westerly. Richard celebrated with local Marseille supporters, who were quick to take to the water in boats of all sizes."Mathieu Richard, who is also tactician for the French America’s Cup syndicate, ALEPH, observed, “We had a slow start to the regatta, but a slow start motivates you to really improve when it counts.” Ainslie sees his time invested in attending WMRT events as a profitable way to keep his match race training fresh, “My ultimate goal for the ISAF World Match Racing Tour events is to improve my match racing skills and rules knowledge”. The Tour forms an important ingredient in Ainslie’s long term America’s Cup ambition with TEAM ORIGIN. Richard advanced to the finals by beating Francesco Bruni (ITA) 2-1, while Ainslie bested Paolo Cian (ITA) by a similar score. Bruni beat Cian in the single race Petit Final. For more info sailing J/80s in the World Match Racing Tour
* Speaking of J/24s, here's an amusing pitch from the Australian J/24 Class, titled "A Strange Paradox". As Australian J/24 class leader Simon Paine describes it, "In a world that is constantly changing and becoming more expensive, one keelboat class offers you the opportunity to cruise and race for under $20,000 AUD (note- they're even cheaper in America). A class that offers fleets all over Australia and an international fleet of over 5,500 boats. You guessed it – the J24. And it’s making a big come back as people realize the unique potential of this little boat. 24 ft with a main, jib, genoa and kite, five crew, 4 bunks and an icebox. 24 ft of competitive excitement. And they are everywhere and compared to Etchells, Sportsboats and other similar sized keel boats – they’re as cheap as hell!Some call it old – it is, same age as the Etchells.
Some call it slow – it isn’t, Div 3 of this years Spinnaker Cruising (Racing class) at Geelong Audi Week (the biggest class available), 56 boats and J/24s gained 3 First places and a Second over the line in the 4 races held, even though it was the smallest boat in the fleet (beating boats 12ft longer over the line). It isn’t a sports boat speedboat, but it is a one design that doesn’t get out designed and out dated.
Some do call it outdated – it isn’t in fact, in a handicap or measurement class it rates so well they hate us entering – we tend to win. We still put 90 odd boats on the start line at most world champs.
So what other one design keelboat is there for under $20,000 AUD with all these benefits you can get into and race competitively (or cruise), in a fleet around Australia?
You’re right – there isn’t another one.
Some people call it all sorts of names--- but, we simply call it the J/24!
We’re putting "stars" into--- reasonably priced--- boats!"
Take a look at how they're promoting J/24 fun and "class" in Australia. Good on ya mates! http://j24australia.com.au/
Featured Boat
Gorgeous J/133 SOFIA in Europe
The ideal mid-40s length racer/cruiser, winner of The Sailing World Magazine Overall Boat of the Year and many other international plaudits, the J/133 is a yacht with the stability for short-handed cruising, race winning speed under IRC and the durability you would wish for rough offshore passages. Add in the retractable carbon bowsprit and flying and handling the asymmetric kite becomes playground simple!The J/133 combines cruising comfort with more powerful performance ratios. The easy to manage sailplan allows fewer and less experienced crew, and the extra rig power afforded by a low VCG keel and standard carbon mast will maximize performance across a wide spectrum of conditions.
Since her introduction, J/133 has established a winning record in some of the highest profile PHRF & IRC events around the world including class wins at Key West Race Week, Spi-Ouest Week in France, and she has been the best performing boat in the RORC series overall in 2007 and again in 2009. In the UK J/133 owners also enjoy Class events.
The J/133 also has full interior accommodation with 3 cabins. There is plenty of space for getting comfortable inshore or offshore with proper offshore galley, nav station and companionway designs, lots of grab rails, large sea-berths, comfortable well ventilated cabins and a warm varnished wood finish.
SOFIA is a fantastic J/133 with many upgrades/modifications to provide an amazing boat for short-handed sailing with her asymmetric spinnaker. SOFIA was Winner of Round Gotland Race in her class 2007 and 2009. For more information, please visit: http://www.j-uk.co.uk
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: http://www.jboats.com/intro.htm
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