J/111 One-Design SummerJoin Us In Great Lakes or Northeast!
(Newport, RI)- With sufficient J/111's delivered for fleet racing, J/111 One-Design activity will commence in several significant events coming up on the 2011 summer sailing calendar. For starters, J/111 Fleet #1 has been awarded to the Chicago fleet. And, they will be sailing their first one-design event June 4-5 out of Chicago YC. A J/111 start in CYC's "Colors Regatta" for the six boats sailing on Lake Michigan will be an exciting milestone for the 111 class. A 111 one-design "launch party" will be held at Richie Stearns home Friday evening, June 3rd.
Additional Fleet #1 activities on Lake Michigan include eight boats racing as a class in the famous Chicago-Mackinac Race, a 289 nm blast north up Lake Michigan to Mackinac Island- famous for horses, fudge, bikes and the "Pink Pony". After the Mac Race, the J/111 Fleet will gather in Harbor Springs, MI for the "Ugotta Regatta", with a one-design start in one of the most beautiful bodies of water to sail on the planet.
In the Northeast, a trio of J/111s will be participating in the New York YC Annual Regatta June 10-12 in Newport, RI sailing in Rhode Island Sound southwest of Castle Hill Light. Then, six or more J/111s will sail one-design as a sub-class in PHRF at the Rolex Storm Try Block Island Race Week from June 19-24. A week's worth of fleet racing on the J/111 will be a lot of fun. Everyone will have steep learning curves as matched boats learn how to tweak sails and rigs to go faster. Recognizing its speed potential off-the-wind, many of the teams can't wait to sail the J/111 in the famous Around Block Island Race, about 29 nm around the navigation buoys ringing the island. For more J/111 one-design sailboat information. Sailing photo credit- Billy Black
J/111 "Walk-through"- Insider's View(Charleston, SC)- For those of you who have not seen the interior and exterior features of the J/111, we took the opportunity during Charleston Race Week to have Alan Block of Sailing Anarchy's OTWA to do a "walk-through" of the J/111 with one of our J/Boats representatives. Take a "wander" throughout the J/111 with Alan and crew and learn a few more things about this wonderful boat and find out why 111's current owners are so excited about sailing their boats. Please watch this sailing video from BlockSail Productions.
Seattle NOOD Regatta Preview(Seattle, WA)- The fourth of nine events in the 2011 Sperry Top-Sider NOOD series begins this Friday in Seattle. More than 150 teams in 22 divisions will be racing on Puget Sound. Last year's overall champion, Michael Johnson, returns with his HOT PURSUIT team to the 11-boat J/24 division. Says Mike Lovett, "I had the chance to meet Johnson at last year's NOOD Championship in the British Virgin Islands, and when we parted ways in Tortola, he mentioned he was planning to sail the J/24 World Championship this November in Buenos Aires, Argentina. If that's still the plan, you can bet Johnson and company will be in fine form as they prepare to head south."
J/80s have a solid fleet of boats with contenders distributed amongst the near dozen boats sailing. Hard to tell if the good money goes on CRAZY IVAN, HEART ATTACK, FEARFUL SYMMETRY, SKYE ROCKET or TAJ MAJAL. With names like that, betting is good that someone from that lot will win!
Last year, the J/105s saw a closely fought series and a run for the gold between JADED and LAST TANGO. However, without these two contenders sailing this year, it looks like Erik Kristen's JUBILEE from CYC, Robert Blaylock's USAWI from SBYC and Lorenzo Migliorini's ALLEGRO VIVACE from CYC will be dueling for the top three spots.
The J/109s are rockin' and rollin' again and it looks like David MacLean's ILLUSIONIST sailing from CYC and J-TRIPPER sailed by the Nordquists from Seattle YC may be amongst the contenders to take honors in this fun-loving one-design/ cruiser/ racer class.
The J/24s have more than a dozen entries and certain to be amongst the contenders will be last year's winner, HOT PURSUIT sailed by skipper Mike Johnson from Corinthian YC in Seattle. Sure to be factors in the racing and vying for honors on the podium will be last year's third place team, SELF ABUSE skippered by Harry Dursch from Corinthian YC in Seattle as well as fellow CYC member Scott Milnes sailing TREMENDOUS SLOUCH. Thanks for contribution from Mike Lovett- Sailing World- For more Sperry Topsider Seattle NOOD Sailing information
J/80 Best Sportsboat in China(Shanghai, China)- This past week saw over 27,000 visitors from 70 countries attend the largest boatshow in China, the China International Boat Show in Shanghai. Considered the most prestigious in all of China, the event also hosts the Asia Pacific Boating Awards. With over three dozen panelists selecting the winners for each category, it was not surprising that the creme'd'la'creme rose to the top. Winner of the this year's CIBS Best Sportboat Award was the International J/80, recognized for being the world's leading one-design sportsboat class with over 1,600 boats competing worldwide. J/80 is also the premier sportsboat in China. On hand to accept the award was J/Boats China's representative Jimmie Johnstone.
For more J/80 sailboat information
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
It's hard to imagine the summer solstice of June 21st is nearly around the corner. Longest day of the year for sailors up "North" and shortest day of the year for our sailing friends "Down Under". Winter down "South" must be an oxymoron, as sailing seemingly never stops in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Australia and New Zealand-- no wonder they keep producing some fast, smart sailors! The Midwest and Northeast of America have been caught in the grip of a stormier and colder than normal spring, producing record tornados so far for the year! Getting blown out on at least one day of racing were the LayLine J/24 USA Nationals down in Dallas, TX. Off in the northeast, the J's had a rollicking good time in Larchmont Yacht Club's Edlu Distance Race. On the opposite coasts, good breezes settled in to rocket to events to new course records, one down south in California called the "Hard-way Race" (more on that later) going from Santa Barbara to Ventura, California. In the cool, rainy northwest, the Oregon "ducks" flew north on their boats to visit Victoria, British Columbia in their Oregon Offshore Classic. In the European theater, J/80s had an Italian Championship in picturesque Chiavari, Italy and J/80s were sailed in the first event for the World Match Racing Tour in Marseilles, France (always sunny there!). The J/97s were having a great time winning to big events in the United Kingdom, one in Kip, Scotland and the other in Sussex, England. Finally, the RORC had another tough race for their Points Series, the De Guigand Bowl Race. Read on! The J/Community and Cruising section below continue to enjoy the Caribbean and the South Pacific, staying warm while others are trying to stay warm up north. Check them out! More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook page! Below are the summaries.Regatta & Show Schedules:
May 20-22- STS Seattle NOOD- Seattle, WA- http://www.sailingworld.comMay 27- STC Block Island Race- Stamford, CT- http://www.stormtrysail.org/
Jun 3- Annapolis-Newport Race- Annapolis, MD- http://www.race.annapolisyc.org
Jun 3-5- Detroit STS NOOD Regatta- Detroit, MI- http://www.sailingworld.com
Jun 4-5- J/111 One Design- Colors Regatta- Chicago, IL- http://www.chicagoyachtclub.com
Jun 4-5- Cal Race Week- Marina del Rey, CA- http://www.calyachtclub.com
Jun 10-12- J/111, J/122, J/105 NYYC Annual Regatta- Newport, RI- http://www.nyyc.org
Jun 12-19- Rolex Giraglia Cup- Genoa, Italy- http://www.yachtclubitaliano.it
Jun 18-22- Kieler Woche Regatta- Kiel, Germany- http://www.kyc.de/
Jun 19-24- J/111 Block Island Race Week- Block Is, RI- http://www.blockislandraceweek.com
Jun 19-24- J/122 North Americans- Block Is, RI- http://www.blockislandraceweek.com
Jun 19-24- J/109 East Coasts- Block Is, RI- http://www.blockislandraceweek.com
Jun 23-26- Bacardi Newport Sailing Week- Newport, RI- http://www.newportsailingweek.com
Jun 24-26- Long Beach Race Week- Long Beach, CA- http://www.lbrw.org
Jun 25-26- San Francisco STS NOOD Regatta- San Francisco, CA- http://www.sailingworld.com
Jun 29-Jul 2- J/80 Pre-Worlds- Malmo, Sweden- http://bit.ly/mRZVdv
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
Brazil Wins J/24 US NationalsThe Famous BRUSCHETTA Wins By A Nose
(Dallas, TX)- The crews that showed up for this year's version of the J/24 Layline US Nationals were in for an experience no one bargained for. As the fleet assembled at Dallas Corinthian YC, Mother Nature was brewing a storm of simply epic proportions off to the West. By Wednesday, it was clear there was going to be no sailing. It was blowing so hard with thunderstorms, line squalls and God's lightning bolts spraying everywhere, that people's shows were getting blown across the parking lot! Forget about "dogs blowing off chains", this was human stuff flying everywhere! By Thursday it was clear it was going to be just as crazy, so not much happened in the way of racing. However, Friday worked out nicely and the fleet were treated to some terrific sailing. By Saturday, the weather was nearly post-card, chamber of commerce perfect, with strong, shifty breezes and sunny skies.
Perhaps the story of the regatta was how a nice Brazilian guy named Mauricio Santa Cruz could show up on a lake in Texas, figure it out, then squeak by at the end, on the last day, to win the US J/24 Nationals by one point! Must've been a cliff-hanger for the entire top five going into the last two races of the regatta. Literally, anyone could've won! Competing for those five spots were Mauricio on BRUSCHETTA, Bob Harden on MR HAPPY, Roger Harden on NEW RULES, Dave Irwin on IBAJ 2 and Jorge Murrieta on BMW/ SCAPPINO from Valle de Bravo, Mexico. By winning the last two races, however, Mauricio and his Brazilian crew took the regata from Bob Harden on MR HAPPY. In fact, it was Bob's regatta to lose, as leader of the J/24 pack at the beginning of the day. 
In the end BRUSCHETTA had 28 points, Bob's HAPPY gang had 29 points due to a 7-9 for their last two races. Third was Roger Harden on NEW RULES, sailing to a 2-5 to end up with 30 points. Fourth was Dave Irwin's IBAJ 2 sailing to a 3-8 to get 31 points. And, Jorge's BMW/ SCAPPINO finished fifth due to a 5-2 for a total of 35 points. Imagine that, only seven points separated the entire top five! Just a wee bit of anxiety for the tacticians and even a few catatonic skippers wondering how they'd been beaten and twisted to a pulp to end up where they did! Great racing and good times for the J/24 sailors in Dallas. Pictured above was Mauricio's fan club from Brazil! As usual, the DCYC hosts were simply fantastic. For more Layline J/24 USA Nationals sailing information Sailing photo credits- McDonald Photos of Dallas, Texas.
French Win J/80 WMRT #1(Marseilles, France)- Damien Iehl and his French Match Racing Team made the perfect start to their World Match Racing Tour season after defeating Bertrand Pace's Aleph Sailing Team in an all French Final at Match Race France in Marseille. Surprised? Most French sailors in J/80s wouldn't be. After all, only 107 J/80s recently sailed Spi Ouest-France. Many French sailors are fast in J/80s.
This was Iehl's second ever victory on the World Match Racing Tour following his win at Match Race Germany in 2008 (also in J/80s) and his early justification for being awarded a Tour Card for the 2011 season. The victory caps a week in which the Frenchman has been in majestic form, firstly by Qualifying in second position, then defeating the 2003 Tour Champion Jesper Radich (DEN) 3-1 in the Semi-Finals and finally Pace in the first all French Final on the Tour since 2007. Sailing Photo by Nico Martinez/ www.nicomartinez.com. Sailing Photo Gilles Martin-Raget / Match Race France
J/97 JACKAROO Wins Kip Regatta(Glasgow, Scotland)- The report from the northern parts of the UK are encouraging. Seems that distant Scottish relatives of the Johnstone clan are doing well, despite not wearing their lucky "kilts" during their races offshore in the cool weather. Nevertheless, J/97 UK Class Chair, Jim Dick and his crew on the J/97 JACKAROO just won their class and the overall prize at the Kip Regatta in Glasgow. Jim was sailing with Pete Cameron who runs Key Yachting Scotland in Kip Marina. This was the warm-up event for the crew in advance of the much larger Bell Lawrie Scottish Series which takes place over the next Bank Holiday weekend. Pete's report follows:
"Day one race one mixed bag of weather from the North West mostly moderate 10-16knots with occasional showers. Bit of ping pong with an A31 ‘Imadginn’ beat us over finish line by 3 seconds but murdered him on corrected time giving us our first first. For race two still NW slightly less wind 8-12 knots. Out of there like we stole something leg ahead by second beat when wind was sucked off the race course we were just in the new breeze at windward side of course nearing the weather mark rest off fleet becalmed and unable to round the previous lee-ward mark when committee got trigger happy and abandoned the race. (at least 20 minute lead on fleet at this stage would have been another bullet) but hey ho moral victory. For the third race of the day, wind back up 14-16 knots, more wet stuff also still NW. Good start achieved some separation race stayed that way till finish commanding lead first over water and solid first. Two out of two on race day one.Day two race one weather 20-25 knots SW and raining on biblical proportions (proper Ark weather Noah could have competed for this one). Good start from the Captain out to left of course from pin end first tack 10 boat lengths ahead of A31 and pulling out further every minute. The A31 then ducks out of the regatta. Held lead for rest of race over water and another solid first. Just one more race for this day! Last race SW 22-27 knots and I can’t use the language required to express the rain in front of a Lady like yourself--- even the fish had umbrellas!!
Had what we thought was a good start again to the side of the course fleet split and we pushed our bow out front on the left side fleet sadly the gain was to the right side of the course out in the wind and tide at weather mark a Sigma 38 ‘Enigma’ an Elan 333 ‘hoo haa’ and ‘Jaywalker’ were 10 boat lengths ahead of us picked off the Elan by bottom mark and closed the gap on Jaywalker and Sigma 38. Captain not so happy though on the next beat we pulled gap back to a matter of a boat length on Jaywalker just nailing him at the tack onto weather mark. Captain got the red mist now big a sail on last downwind plenty of double figure surfing a very neat dual with Sigma 38 and we took an overlap into bottom mark rounded first onto last beat and pulled our time out on the leg to the finish first over water and first on time. For the prize giving, first in class and first overall discarding a first. All in all a good weekend at the coal face. Regards- Peter" For more J/97 sailboat information.
OLJ SPIRIT HATAMURI Wins J/80 Italians(Chiavari, Italy- May 13-15)- In their usual sublime, easy-going but elegant style, the Yacht Club Chiavari hosted the J/80 Italian Championships. The fleet was blessed with nice weather, warm temperatures and nice breezes across the Mediterranean Sea. It was a closely fought regatta for the top two and perhaps an even tougher fight for third spot between three boats over the course of seven races. The first day was light offshore scirocco breeze of only 5-8 knots that died in the afternoon, permitting two races to be run. On the second day, more scirocco breezes from ESE of around 150 degrees and never more than 10 knots, but it was sufficient to get in three races. At the end of the day, it was time to return to port and happy hour at the Marquee Club, with beer, white wine, peas, salami and cheese for everyone! The third day started out with storm conditions blowing 30-35 knots from the northeast and raining, a classic winter day in Italy. The Race Committee at YCC wisely decided to postpone racing and were rewarded with a great day for sailing by midday, winds 15-25 knots from the northeast with 30 degree shifts.
Winning this year's event was Federico Rajola sailing OLJ SPIRIT HATAMURI, managing the win the last race of the series to post a score of 1-6-1-1-3-2-1 for 9 points (dropping a 6th). Losing out in the last race was the regatta leader at the time, Carlo Cesaris sailing J-VIVADO. Carlos and crew sailed a beautiful series but simply lost it in the end, getting a 2-2-3-2-1-1-6 scoreline for 11 points (also dropping a 6th!). Fighting it out for the bronze medal on the podium were past winner Massimo Rama sailing his well-traveled JENIALE!, Paolo Montednonico skippering MONTPRES and Giorgio Guzzi steering ORSO J. Going into the last race, it was anyone's guess who would triumph in this horse race. In short, they nearly all managed to tie each other in a three-way tie for third! But, it was Massimo's JENIALE! that withstood a last minute dash of his competitors to secure a third with a scoreline of 3-5-2-3-4-4-5 for 21 points. Tied for fourth and winning the tie-breaker was Paolo's MONTPRES with a 6-1-4-6-12-3-2 tally for 22 points. On the losing end of that stick was Giorgio's ORSO J with a 5-3-5-4-2-7-3 for 22 points. For more J/80 Italian Championship Sailing informationJ's Sweep Edlu Distance Race
J 35 footers Win Class & Overall
(Larchmont, NY)- The 56th Annual Edlu Race started on May 14th for IRC and PHRF boats might as well have been labeled the "J/Fest Distance Race". The course is 32 miles from Larchmont Breakwater to Gong 11B off Eaton's Neck and back. It was clearly to the liking of the many J crews that were racing in both IRC, PHRF and PHRF Double-handed divisions.
In IRC 1 Class, Ron Richman's J/133 ANTIDOTE was 1st in class and 9th in fleet. Just behind them was Jan Smeets' J/133 BACCHANAL with 2nd in class and 10th overall. Third as Harry DeVore's J/44 HONALEE, fifth was Colin McGranahan's J/130 DRAGONFLY, sixth was Tom Carroll's SIREN SONG and seventh George Petrides modified J/120 AVRA.
IRC 2 Class was dominant overall in this year's race, how you finished in also seemed to dictate your overall fleet position, too! IRC 2 was won by Carl Olsson's J/105 MORNING GLORY, winning by just 5 minutes corrected over Paul Steinborn's J/109. Lying third was Mark Parry's and Lawrence McGrath's J/35 BLUE MOUSE. Fifth was Bob Schwartz's J/109 NORDLYS.
In PHRF A, Christian Uecker's J/92 HOUND DOG managed to pull of a third in division. And, in PHRF Double-handed division, a sistership J/92, THIN MAN sailed by Todd Aven won class! Third was Greg Imbruce's J/109 JOYRIDE and fourth was Andrew Berdon's J/109 STRIDER. Special mention must be made of the J/122 PATRIOT, rumor had it that Sandy Weil and Andy Giglia had a great time and were looking forward to next year's edition already, citing the fact that this year was "simply practice". For more Larchmont YC Edlu Distance Race sailing information
The Royal Wedding J/97 Sussex Regatta(Shoreham, Sussex, England)- Wedding regatta? Not really. Royally fun? You bet. Prince William and Harry ever sail J's on the Solent? Absolutely! Many times. Nevertheless, the Sussex Regatta was held over the Bank Holiday weekend (the wedding one) at Shoreham, with all due respect to Prince William and Princess Katie. It was a two and a half day affair starting on the Friday afternoon with two races which quickly indicated who was in the frame. It was Graham Allen’s J/97 JENERAL LEE and the venerable J/92 WHOSE TO NO (owned and skippered by Richard Sparrow) in the top slots. JENERAL LEE managed to bank two wins on the first day capitalizing nicely on the crew shortages on the J/92 and others (yes, that wedding problem again!)
The wind on the Saturday was starting to build with gusts over twenty knots from the north east, which meant flat seas and good racing. Robin Harris on Captain Fantastic warned the opposition that his cavalry had now arrived and so the battle was really on, and he was right! However, JENERAL LEE managed the win in Race 3 but was pushed hard by WHOSE TO NO in second place with Captain Fantastic close behind in third. Race 4 saw the charge of the ‘Eastbourne Brigade’ with WHOSE TO NO taking the win. So now JENERAL LEE had to give his troops the rallying cry to take on the combined colonial armies of Ramsgate and Eastbourne! And what a great fight it was, nip and tuck all the way with the three boats finishing one second apart on corrected time. The JENERAL took the win from The Captain with WHOSE TO NO in third.
It was all too much for JENERAL LEE in the first race on the final day and Captain Fantastic put down his marker for the day by taking the win and still fighting hard against WHOSE TO NO in third. The final race on the Sunday saw a further increase in the wind which was now gusting in the mid twenties with a more easterly flow kicking up some waves. The JENERAL crew were keen to finish in a flourish but obviously the other two contenders were in no mood to let them. Captain Fantastic made a good start got to the windward mark first with the two Js snapping at his heels on the run, however JENERAL LEE's running kite blew out of its tapes in a gust and the J/92 took maximum advantage going through the gate just behind Captain Fantastic.In the last downwind run of the regatta The JENERAL made up ground now using a heavy kite and managed to snatch second place after WHOSE TO NO's great run ended with a problem with his jib forcing him past the mark. Captain Fantastic took the final win by two minutes but it was not enough on the points tally leaving JENERAL LEE in first on 6 points with Captain Fantastic on 8 and third on 12 was WHOSE TO NO. The final tally gave the overall IRC Class Cup to the J/97 JENERAL LEE. For more J/97 Royal Wedding Sussex Regatta sailing news.
J/30 Crushes Santa Barbara-Ventura Dash(Santa Barbara, CA- May 14, 2011) - Steady wind allowed for new course records to be set in the Hardway Race. Dr Laura Schlessinger established a new course record for the 67 nautical mile course from Santa Barbara to Ventura "the hard way" (hence name for the race), around Santa Cruz Island. Going offshore can be quite lumpy and miserable despite the fact that you're only a few miles offshore from sunny Santa Barbara, retirement home of famed American TV Star Oprah Winfrey and famous radio "psychologist" talk show host Dr. Laura.
Sailing the "hard-way" course and hanging tough was Santa Barbara YC's Larry Leveille racing his famous J/29 masthead RUSH STREET. Their efforts weren't for naught, getting yet another piece of silverware to add to their enormous collection at home, finishing second in PHRF B class. We think Larry may pave his driveway with silverware soon, easier to maintain than dirt or black top!
Sailing the "easy-way", frolicking down the coast was Mike Leary's J/30 PANGEA from Ventura YC. Mike and crew decimated the PHRF A Coastwise division, winning class by nearly 30 minutes on corrected time! Who says a J/30 can't still go fast!? Finishing just ten minutes in front of them on elapsed time was the J/92 DOUBLE DOWN sailed by Brian Kerr. However, Brian's team didn't get enough time to overcome PANGEA on handicap, so ended up second overall in class.
In the "easy-way" Non-spinnaker division was Mike Hopper's J/22 MAJIC DRAGON from PBYC, getting a 2nd in class just five minutes off the pace to collect gold! For more Hardway Race sailing information
Tough RORC De Guigand Bowl RaceJ/111 3rd in Class Beating Upwind!
(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- The De Guigand Bowl race provided another exciting chapter in the 2011 RORC Season's Points Championship. The RORC Race Committee decided to send the fleet on an upwind start, westward out of the Solent, before turning east, down the south side of the Isle of Wight and offshore after St. Catherine's Point, to a top mark mid-Channel: the Greenwich Light Vessel. The fleet then turned for home, a grueling 50-mile upwind leg to finish back in the Solent. Most of the fleet enjoyed a tactical race with many twists and turns along the way.
The start off the Squadron Line was a gentle one with ten knots from the northwest, however as the fleet entered the Western Solent big gusts and wind shifts had the fleet concentrating on sail trim. The breeze built as the fleet turned east and with an increased sea state, the competitors in the De Guigand Bowl Race enjoyed some fast running conditions before blasting offshore bound for the Greenwich Light Vessel. With blues skies punctuated by scattered clouds, the 71-strong fleet enjoyed a day of fantastic offshore action. Just before sunset, the breeze shifted north and colder air, often in excess 20 knots, gave a chilling night sail. By dawn the breeze had abated somewhat and returned to the northwest and by early afternoon, the majority of the RORC fleet had been accounted for.
In the IRC 1 "Big Boat" division, the two J/133s ended up dueling each other for bragging rights at the Squadron bar. In the end, Neil Martin's JAMMY DODGER finished 5th in class and David Ballantyne's JINGS finished 6th.
In IRC 2 division, the J/111 sailed a tough race, sailing mostly on the wind "white sail" power reaching/ beating or pounding upwind in steep, choppy seas and shifty winds. Nevertheless, Niall Dowling and crew on ARABELLA sailed well to finish third overall in their division of 15 boats, beating IMX 40s, Beneteau 40.7s, Archambault 40s and a raft of other IRC-enhanced boats.
The IRC 3 division might be called the J-35 footer class. With several J/105s racing along with a competitive group of seven J/109s, it was not going to be easy to lead this division home. In the end, Nick Martin's J/105 DIABLO-J was top J in the division, getting a 4th in class. Following him was Frenchman Yves Dervieux sailing his J/109 BOTEZ COAT IV into 5th just under 8 minutes back on handicap time. Seventh was Greg Nasmyth's J/109 JARHEAD, 9th was Nikki Curwen's J/105 VOADOR and filling out the top 10 in 10th place was Dave McLeman's J/109 OFFBEAT. Story contributed by Louay Habib/ RORC. For more RORC sailing information
"Moby Dick" Stars In Oregon Offshore Race??J Fleet Sails Fast, Safe & Place
(Portland, OR)- If you recall last year's reports, this can be one incredibly tough offshore race. The Oregon Offshore Yacht Race, run every May from Astoria, Oregon to Victoria, BC, Canada is sponsored by Corinthian Yacht Club of Portland with support from the Royal Victoria Yacht Club. The race often acts as the "feeder" race for the Vic-Maui and other offshore events like Seattle's Swiftsure Classic.
Forgetting the rather capricious weather these sailors often encounter, the marine life can be equally as thrilling, or dangerous, ranging from monster killer whales to big fat round cute seals to even more massive whales of various types sleeping on the surface or merely jumping around for joy. Sometimes they show up unexpectedly, like breaching near a sailboat in an apparent mating ritual.
This year, it was a "whale of a time" for one boat, a "Moby Dick" story in the making. Their hair-raising story by crew-member Ryan Barnes was simply remarkable. Said Ryan on a posting to Sailing Anarchy, "We were racing in the Oregon Offshore International Yacht race in 20 kts of breeze with 1.5 oz kite up. About 30 minutes after the start a grey or humpback whale approximately 30 feet in length breeched off our starboard beam and hit approximately halfway to three quarters up our rig past first spreader, then rolled off the starboard side of the boat, taking out the lifelines and crushing the toe rail as well as dropping the whole rig--- rig is gone/ deep sixed after cutting it away, lifelines are destroyed, toe rail bent/ flattened on starboard side deck, fiberglass cracks on the topside starboard v-berth, fracture cracks around starboard cabin windows, bow pulpit bent and toe rail delimitation around 60% of the boat! No water leaks, except when the coast guard towed us at 18 knots against an ebb tide across the columbia river bar, which was a little fast, but got a new speed record on the boat! Lots of kudos to our coast guard though, those guys are awesome! No injuries, everyone is safe."
Thankfully, the J fleet contingent managed to avoid the whale carnage and sail fast into Victoria Harbor. Leading the J pack home was Scott Campbell's J/46 RIVA to finish 2nd in PHRF A class. Third was the J/122 ANAM CARA sailed by Tom Kelly. In PHRF B class, Tom Keffer's J/42 VELOCITY finished 2nd in class and sailed a good race, one of the fastest Oregon Offshore classics ever.
J/Community
What friends, alumni and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
* WANTED!! J/160 FOR PASSAGE-MAKING! The J/160 is one of the most sought after performance cruisers ever designed and I have a BUYER! If you own a J/160 in good condition (preferably on the east coast of the US) and are willing to sell, please contact Tom Babbitt, East Coast Yacht Sales, 207 236 8656, or tom@ecys.com.
* David Aisher's J/109 YEOMAN OF WIGHT sailed the Cervantes RORC race. For the first race of the RORC European season, John Loden went on board as videographer to do a video documentary of the experience. YEOMAN OF WIGHT was lent to the British Keelboat Academy, sailing her were a crew of 7 led by Henry Smith on their first full offshore race together. Their objective was to be the first J/109 over the line and very creditably, against tough competition, they achieved this, also coming 3rd in IRC3. You can see VIMEO video here: http://vimeo.com/23302669
The J Cruising Community
J Cruisers continue their adventures around the world, below are a selection of most excellent "blogs" written by their prolific publishers. Some terribly amusing anecdotes and pearls of wisdom are contained in their blogs. Read some! You'll love it.* The J/42 JARANA continues their epic voyage around the Pacific. Continue to read about Bill and Kathy Cuffel's big adventure cruising the South Pacific headed for New Zealand. Their blog is here: http://www.svjarana.blogspot.com/
* Prolific writers, Bill and Judy Stellin, sailed their J/42 JAYWALKER around the Mediterranean and Europe and back across the Atlantic for nearly three years. Their blogs/journals can be found at- http://blog.mailasail.com/jaywalker. The earlier journals have been compiled into two self published books which can be found at: http://www.blurb.com. Search for "SEATREK: A Passion for Sailing" by Bill Stellin or William Stellin." UPDATE- Just a short note to update from Bill- "Our cruise began in May of 2000 and ended in May of 2008, some 8 years later. I have just finished and published my third and final book covering the last three or so years including our double handed crossing in 16 days and one winter in the Caribbean. Like the others, "Sea Trek- A Passion for sailing- Book III," can be found at www.blurb.com. Thanks, Bill and Judy"
* John and Mary Driver are sailing their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising in the Atlantic basin. At this time, John and Mary finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal on their J/130 Shazam after completion of their ARC Rally. Read the latest news at http://www.sailblogs.com/member/shazam/.* Several J/160 owners are island hopping across the world's oceans, fulfilling life long dreams to cruise the Pacific islands, the Caribbean islands, the Indian Ocean and all points in between. Anyone for Cape Horn and penguins?? Read more about their adventures and escapades (like our J/109 GAIA, J/42s PAX and JAYWALKER and J/130 SHAZAM friends above).
- SALACIA, the J/160 owned by Stephen and Cyndy Everett has an on-going blog describing some of their more amusing experiences (http://www.salacia1.blogspot.com).
- Bill and Susan Grun on the J/160 AVANTE are also sailing in the Pacific archipelago, read more about their great adventures on their blog (http://web.me.com/susangrun). Check out there recent travels- now past Fiji!
- Eric and Jenn on the J/160 MANDALAY also sailed the Pacific archipelago, read more on their blog at http://www.sailmandalay.com. Eric and Jenn are J/World alumni took MANDALAY up and down the West Coast (Mexico, CA)
, then to the South Pacific and New Zealand. MANDALAY is back in San Francisco now, and in the J/World fleet--she is available for skippered charters, private instruction, and corporate/executive groups.* The J/109 GAIA (seen right in the Java Sea) was sailed by Bob Riggle and Phyllis Macay around the world. In February 2011, their cruising adventures came to an abrupt, sad ending. As a tribute to them and their cruising friends worldwide, we hope their chronicles on their GAIA website remains a tribute to their warm-hearted spirits- read more about why many loved them dearly and will remain touched by their loving spirit forever- http://www.gaiaworldtour.net/
