J/121 SAIL Magazine's March 2018 Cover Girl!(Boston, MA)- On the cover of the March 2018 issue of SAIL magazine is the exciting, new J/121 offshore speedster! There is also an in-depth boat review on the J/121 by the SAIL magazine editors. Look for it on your newsstands now. Here is what Adam Cort from SAIL had to say about the J/121:
“Every boat design strives for something new. But, a new kind of racing? In fact, that’s exactly what designer Alan Johnstone and the rest of the folks at J/Boats set out to do with their new J/121 one-design. In the process, they also just happened to create a boat that is both drop-dead gorgeous and sails like a witch— two reasons why it won SAIL magazine’s 2018 Best Boats award in the 30 to 40ft Performance category.”
Read the rest of Adam’s lengthy review on the SAIL magazine website here under “Boat Reviews” section.
https://www.sailmagazine.com/boats/boat-review-j-121
To learn more today about the exciting J/121 and the upcoming 2018 Open Course Racing Circuit, please take a look here.
Italian J/70 Class Update2019 J/70 Europeans on Lake Garda!
(Milan, Italy)- Breaking news! The J/70 Italian Class has been selected as the organizer of the 2019 J/70 European Championship that will take place from July 6th to 13th, 2019, in Malcesine, on Lago di Garda.
After the organization of the Audi J/70 World Championship, with 162 boats on the starting line, Italy will host another great event, with hopefully 100+ boats.
Lake Garda always attracts crews from all over Europe and is a perfect location for sailing, given the almost constant presence of the mountain “adiabatic” and thermal breezes; from the North in the morning and from the South in the afternoon.
The event will also be a perfect preparation for the J/70 Worlds that will take place in Torquay, England at the beginning of September 2019.In anticipation of those two events, the Italian J/70 sailing season for 2018 is gearing up for a busy summer. There are four events for the famous ALCATEL J/70 CUP. Last year, the circuit hosted over 100 crews and it is anticipated they will exceed this figure again in 2018. The four events are the following:
- 6-8 April ALCATEL J/70 Cup- San Remo
- 11-13 May ALCATEL J/70 Cup- Porto Ercole
- 12-15 July ALCATEL J/70 Cup- Malcesine- ALPEN Cup
- 7-9 September ALCATEL J/70 Cup- Trieste
Primo Cup- Trophee Credit Suisse Preview(Monte Carlo, Monaco)- Since 1985, top European one-design sailors are to be found in Monaco at the beginning of February to compete in this first event on the Mediterranean circuit.
As the Yacht Club Monaco continues to ramp-up its sailing programs, bringing life to the Principality’s harbor, the Club is set to host an armada of one-design elites for the 34th Primo Cup– Trophée Credit Suisse, February 8th to 11th. This year, the weather looks promising, with partly to mostly sunny skies, temperatures in the mid-50s F, and winds SSW 6-9 kts Friday, 12-16 kts northeast on Saturday, and 7-12 kt westerlies on Sunday.
With 400+ sailors from 12 countries participating, the event brings together top European teams and enthusiastic amateurs. It is always a great spectacle on the water off the grand and picturesque waterfront of Monte Carlo and the après-racing ambiance and experience ashore are simply world-class.
Without a doubt, the YC Monaco has established its positioning as a winter base for one-designs, particularly for the J/70 class that has been competing in the monthly Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series of regattas since October.
With thirty-eight teams (54% of the regatta), the J/70 is the biggest fleet with highly experienced teams from across Europe (Russia, France, Switzerland, Monaco, Germany, Poland, Italy, Great Britain) and South America (Brazil).The headliners for this event should be last year’s 2017 Primo Cup- Trophee Suisse J/70 class winners- Mario Sorensen Garcia’s MANDACHUVA crew from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and the current runaway leader of the YC Monaco J/70 Winter Sportboat series- Valerya Kovalenko’s ARTTUBE team from Moscow, Russia.
Challenging that formidable duo will be YC Monaco’s 2017 Yachtsman of the Year- Vincenzo Onorato sailing his famous MASCALZONE LATINO. In addition, past regatta contenders should also see other teams at the top of the leaderboard, such as Germany’s Gerd Knospe skippering SANNA R and Michael Grau helming PAINT IT BLACK; Italy’s Germano Scarpa on SPORTCUBE; YC Monaco’s own Stefano Roberti on PICCININA; Poland’s Pawel Tarnowski on APOTEX; and the fast Swiss crews- Nelson Mettraux’s CER APROTEC- VILLE DE GENEVE and Bruno Zeltner’s QUARTER2ELEVEN.
Meeting the professionals
The regatta kick-starts the Mediterranean racing season and is also a platform for meeting people and exchanging ideas. In this spirit, on Thursday at 5.30pm, the celebrated French sailor from Nice- Jean-Pierre Dick- will be presenting his new project, “Easy2Fly”- a one-design foiling catamaran. Of note for J/Sailors, “JP” was a long-time ferociously competitive J/24, then J/80 sailor, on the French and European racing circuits. That background and experience led to his equally tenacious “one-design” sailing style in the French and European multihull and Open 60 circuits- he’s famous for “not giving an inch” to his single and doublehanded rivals offshore!! A lesson well-learned in J/one-design racing!
The whole team recognized at prize-giving
Another special feature of the Primo Cup– Trophée Credit Suisse is that it rewards team-work. All crew members in the first three boats in each class receive clothing from SLAM’s Advanced Technology Sportswear!! For more Primo Cup- Trophee Credit Suisse sailing information
Quantum J/70 Winter Series Preview(Tampa, FL)- For the third and final event of the 2017-2018 Quantum J/70 Winter Series, the weather Godz are promising a “tour’de’force” for weather. Apparently, the Tampa Chamber of Commerce ordered (or bribed) the local weather prognosticators to let everyone know that Florida will deliver on it’s “postcard perfect” reputation as a winter haven for all those frozen “snowbirds” from up North. Mostly sunny skies, 60s F at night, 80s F in the day- what could possibly go wrong with that forecast? Perhaps, not bringing enough sunscreen and avoiding looking like a burnt rock lobster? With massive cold fronts whistling across the American Midwest, it appears all they are doing is sucking the warm Gulf of Mexico air to the north/northeast; the winds are predicted to be in the southerly quadrant all weekend, starting on Friday, and flowing warm & gently at 8-12 kts.
Considering that a record fleet of sixty-plus boats is registered, such a forecast must be a good thing. Many of the top boats in the USA J/70 class are participating. The question on everyone’s mind will be- can Joel Ronning’s formidable crew on CATAPULT pull it off this year and actually win the series?? Time will tell.
Making sure that Ronning will have to fight for every inch around the race track will be teams like Brian Keane’s SAVASANA from Boston, MA (winner of the first event in December); Darby & Jud Smith’s (daughter/father) AFRICA team from Marblehead, MA: Jack Franco’s FLOJITO 3 JT from Houston, TX; Kevin Downey’s MR PITIFUL from Seattle, WA; Oivind Lorentzen’s NINE from Greenwich, CT; Bennet Greenwald’s PERSEVERANCE from San Diego, CA; Peter Cunningham’s POWERPLAY RACING from the Cayman Islands; John Brim’s RIMETTE from Palm Beach, FL; Will Welles’ SCAMP from Newport, RI; and Bruno Pasquinelli’s STAMPEDE from Forth Worth, TX.The Corinthians Division has ten boats with strong contenders within the group, including past Winter Series winner Rob Britts on HOT MESS from the host club- Davis Island YC. Other contenders in the division could be two teams from Eastern YC in Marblehead, MA (hosts of this year’s J/70 Worlds)- Frank McNamara’s CHINOOK and Nancy Glover’s WINTERWIND. For more Quantum J/70 Winter Series sailing information
J/111 Northern Europe Circuit Announcement
2018 World Championship in Breskens, The Netherlands!
(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- The J/111 Northern European Class has a full program of events for 2018. The sleek, speedy, one-design 36 footer is the ultimate one-design flexible race boat. The Northern European circuit offers friendly, yet highly competitive, one-design racing over eight months. The showcase event will be the J/111 World Championship, to be held at WV Breskens, Netherlands from 22-26 August 2018.
Cornel Riklin's J/111 Jitterbug at full throttle (www.ricktomlinson.com).
“A fleet J/111’s planing across the Solent at 20kts is an awesome sight and one that we saw frequently at the 2016 World Championships in Cowes. We are looking forward to the same excitement for our 2018 season with the Worlds back in Europe again. While it is spectacular for spectators, it is much more fun when you are on board and you do tend to see J/111 crews smiling a lot,” commented J/111 Class Association President, Chris Jones.
Martin Dent's J/111 Jelvis in action at the RORC Vice Admiral's Cup (www.ricktomlinson.com).
The early part of the 2018 season will see the J/111s racing as part of the new Performance 40 Class, mixing it up with yachts of similar size and speed racing under IRC. J/111s will be out in force racing at the RORC Easter Challenge, Warsash Spring Series, and the Royal Southern YC May Regatta. The Van Uden Reco Stellendam Regatta in Stellendam, The Netherlands, will also feature J/111s in action.
Tight racing at the top mark (www.ricktomlinson.com).
In May, The first J/111 NE Class events will be the RORC Vice Admiral's Cup, followed by the J/111 UK National Championship, as part of the J-Cup, hosted by the Island SC. The Royal Southern YC's June and July Regattas will also be J/111 NE Class events.
Tony Mack's J/111 McFly (www.ricktomlinson.com).
In August, the J/111 NE Class has a mouth-watering program of events; Lendy Cowes Week will host the inaugural J/111 Euro Cup, followed by the J/111 Pre-Worlds, and the sixth edition of the J/111 World Championship, staged in Breskens, Netherlands. The schedule is outlined below:
- May 18-20 RORC Vice Admirals Cup- J/111 NE Class event
- May 25-27 J-CUP/ Island Sailing Club- J/111 UK Nationals
- June 23-24 Royal Southern June Regatta- J/111 NE Class event
- August 4-7 Lendy Cowes Week- J111 EURO Cup
- August 18-19 WV Breskens, Netherlands- J/111 Pre-Worlds
- August 22-26 WV Breskens, Netherlands- J/111 Worlds
For more J/111 Class sailing information
SCYA Midwinters J/70 Preview(Marina del Rey, CA)- For years, the Southern California Yachting Association (SCYA) has been hosting their annual “Midwinters” regatta in the middle of February, a kick-starter event for their incredibly long season of sailing across the “SoCal” region. More than a dozen sailing clubs/ yacht clubs have supported the program for the SCYA Midwinters, up and down a coastline of over 100nm.
This year, the extraordinary hosts at California Yacht Club in Marina del Rey are hosting the J/70s. There is an excellent turnout of teams, with a dozen crews participating in the inaugural season regatta.
The weather looks unusual with frontal systems that have been pummeling the Pacific Northwest affecting gradient winds in SoCal. Easterlies in the lightish range may be competing with the traditional onshore breezes from the SSW when things heat up a bit in the Los Angeles Basin… perhaps even some classic fog tossed into the mix.
Nevertheless, the weather won’t diminish the fun and satisfaction of the J/70 crews looking forward to their first test of the 2018 sailing season. Amongst the leading crews should be Steve Wyman’s NUNUHUNU, Jeff Janov’s MINOR THREAT, Curt Johnson’s AVET 2.01, young sailor Robert Garret’s SLOOP JOHN B, and the duo of Tom Jenkins & Eric Kownacki on DFZ.Note, it’s not surprising the J/70s have selected Cal YC as their principal starting point for the season; Cal YC is famous for their extraordinary red carpet treatment of regatta sailors, resplendent with “après-sailing” servings of daily food & munchies spreads and “micro-breweries” served by hosts/hostesses on the docks as boats arrive to tie up after a long day of sailing. For more SCYA Midwinters J/70 sailing information
“Can One” Evening Racing Announcement(Western Long Island Sound)- The “Can One Evening Race Association” is happy to offer a J/105 one-design start this season in their Thursday night series.
“Can One” is the largest weeknight racing fleet on Western Long Island Sound, with over 50 boats registered for the past three years. The 19-race series goes from early May to early September.
The fleet starts in the middle of the Sound at Can “1”, which is 0.8 miles NE of Execution Rocks- a central congregation point for boats from New Rochelle, Larchmont, Mamaroneck, and Rye; some even come from as far away as City Island.
In the past, some boats have even come from the Long Island harbors of Glen Cove and Manhasset Bay.
In 2017, seven J/105s participated in a huge division of boats rating between 87-96 PHRF. This year there will be a J/105 one-design start and the hope is to attract even more J/105’s.
“Can One” is open to all sailors from all across the spectrum of the compass rose- young/old, slow/fast, beginners/ experts, and not just yacht club members.
Thursday night racing is popular for many reasons, which include a limited time commitment, less intense courses, a chance to train new crew, capped off by watching the sun go down over the New York City skyline!
For more information, please contact J/105 owner Josh Burack who is a member of the Can One Board of Directors at email- jhburack@gmail.com.
J/Sailing News
The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
This past week was one of the “lightest” in terms of activity that we have seen in some time. Nevertheless, the action is heating up rapidly worldwide starting this weekend in the USA and Europe.Meanwhile, on the eastern part of the Mediterranean, we find the Club SAILFirst team hosting their first event of the J/80 Cyprus Championship, a series of four regattas held off Limassol, Cyprus in seriously sweet weather- warm, sunny, gentle breezes!
Read on! The J/Community and Cruising section below has many entertaining stories and news about J/Sailors as well as cruising blogs about those who continue to enjoy the Caribbean and the South Pacific, staying warm while others are trying to stay warm up north. Check them out! More importantly, if you have more J/Regatta News, please email it or upload onto our J/Boats Facebook pag Below are the summaries.
Regatta & Show Schedules:
Feb 9-11- Quantum J/70 Winter Series- Tampa, FLFeb 15-18- St Pete NOOD Regatta- St Petersburg, FL
Feb 17-18- SCYA Midwinter Regatta- Long Beach, CA
Feb 19- RORC Caribbean 600 Race- English Harbour, Antigua
Feb 23-25- J/70 Midwinters- Coconut Grove, FL
Mar 1-4- Heineken St Maarten Regatta- Simpson Bay, St Maarten
Mar 7-11- Bacardi Cup J/70 Invitational- Coconut Grove, FL
Mar 16-18- San Diego NOOD Regatta- San Diego, CA
Mar 22-25- St Thomas International Regatta- Red Hook Bay, St Thomas, USVI
Mar 29- Apr 1- Easter Regatta- Columbia, SC
Apr 12-15- Charleston Race Week- Charleston, SC
Apr 8-14- Voiles de Saint Barth Regatta- Gustavia, St Barth
Apr 26-29- J/70 Corinthian Nationals- Ft Worth, TX
Apr 28- May 4- Antigua Sailing Week- English Harbour, Antigua
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
Nikiforov Wins J/80 Cyprus Championship- Act I
(Limassol, Cyprus)- Club SailFirst is a unique organization located in the easternmost parts of the Mediterranean. It is a club that has a fleet of ten J/80 one-design class sailboats. Since 2012, they have been organizing many regattas on that fleet of J/80s, both for yacht clubs across Europe as well as corporate sponsors wishing for fun outings for their employees.
This year they have organized a fun winter/spring series called the “J/80 Cyprus Championship”. It has been a very successful gathering of international crews flying down to the island to participate in each event.
SailFirst’s club and program are located in a particularly attractive part of the Mediterranean. Their sailing area sits further east of Malta and enjoys abundant sunshine and warm waters- key ingredients for sailors currently sitting under grey cold skies across Europe!
The J/80 Cyprus Championship is an annual series of four regattas hosted by SailFirst Sailing Club at St Raphael Marina in Limassol, Cyprus. Participation is open for both experienced sailors and novices, as well as for existing crews or individuals.
The four events are January 20th to 21st, February 17th to 18th, March 24th to 25th, and a Championship Finale with dates t.b.d. in April.
For each weekend regatta, a minimum of three races is planned. The racing includes three windward-leeward courses up to 3.0nm each, plus a “coastal fun race” of 10-15nm (weather permitting) to give the fleet a broader experience for sailing.
The costs are simple enough. In fact, it’s incredibly compelling for anyone wishing a “fun-in-the-sun” break. For a single crew, it’s 70 EUR per regatta. For a skipper, it’s 150 EUR per regatta (e.g. wishes to be the “captain”). And, for an entire “crew” (4-5 crew total, skipper and all) it’s 350 EUR. For everyone, that includes one training day, the J/80 charter, organization & racing fee, refereeing on the water, and boat maintenance.
In other words, fly in, go sailing, leave! That is an AMAZING deal to sail in some of the most spectacular waters of the Mediterranean.
So, how are things progressing so far for Stage I that recently took place from January 20th to 21st? After six races, it was a “dead heat” for the top of the leaderboard.
Starting out fast with three straight bullets was Andrey Klochko’s crew from Ukraine. However, they closed with a 2-3-2 for 7 pts net. How can you possibly lose with such a great record?? Well, flip-flop that tally completely! In a simply astonishing turnabout of events, it was Evgeniy Nikiforov’s crew from Russia that started out with a 3-2-2, but closed with three bullets to win a tie-breaker on 7 pts net each! Ohhh, what heartbreak for Klochko’s crew, yet champagne celebrations for Nikiforov’s team.
Ironically, a very similar scenario played out for the balance of the podium. Who was going to get the Bronze? That, too, was determined by a tie-breaker at 16 pts each. Leading at first was Dmitry Narozhenko’s Russian crew with a 2-3-4-3. But, a closing tally of a 5-4 meant they fell into a tie-breaker with Turovskiy’s team. They had started off slowly with a 4-5-3-4, and then closed with a 2-3 to secure a surprising tie with Narozhenko’s team. In the end, it was Turovskiy’s team winning that tie-break on countback for 16 pts net each. Rounding out the top five was Alexander Balanyuk’s Ukrainian crew with 27 pts net.
Please contact Club SAILFIRST President Anatolios Spyrlidis for more information- email- info@sailfirst.com or Phone +35-799-494241. For more SAILFIRST J/80 Cyprus Championship sailing information
J/Community
What friends, alumni, and crew of J/Boats are doing worldwide
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* More often than not, we get some incredibly amusing and heartfelt stories, photos, and videos from various members of the J/World from all points of the compass, near and far.
One of the more amusing friends & family teams in that universe happens to sail a classic J/34 IOR design from the 1980s. A beautiful boat with sharp bow and long pointy IOR-type transom- reminiscent of her famous sistership- the incredibly successful SORC-winning J/41.
In this case, it is a crew from Lake Erie that is sailing the J/34 IOR boat called KNEE DEEP.
For readers of the J/Newsletter, they are a familiar group- a bunch of fun-loving sailors on Lake Erie that enjoys campaigning their light-air flyer on a lake that can appreciate such sailing qualities.
Here is the latest “home-brew” video from KNEE DEEP’s owners- Brett & Katie Langolf. As he says, “a friendly pro videographer shot a segment on our family and life on the J. Please use it wherever you need it- social, newsletter, etc! We hope you and the entire J/community enjoy what we do. We hope everyone has as much fun as we do on our beloved J/34- she’s awesome!
Have a great weekend and stay warm! Colder than a witch’s ‘you-know-what’ here in the bloody Midwest! Like hell has frozen over! Anyone need crew in Florida anytime soon!??”
Youtube sailing video Link:
https://youtu.be/iYBQfgNACMA
Instagram File:
https://instagram.com/p/BeteSArnTH-/
J/Cruisers
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/40 HERON REACH sailed by Virginia and Jerry participated in the Blue Planet Odyssey project from 2014 to 2015 over a seventeen month period.
Read their very well-done blog documenting their experience. In the Pacific basin, they traveled almost 15,000 miles from Bellingham to Tahiti and all points between. Check out what the cannibals great grandchildren thought of their ancestors, what it was like to trade for black pearls, the problem with the Great Garbage Patch, and how many days did it take to get through it, and much more! Learn more about their adventures and experiences on HERON REACH here.
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* Jim & Heather Wilson completed a circumnavigation of our "blue planet Earth" in June 2013 on their J/42 CEOL MOR. Said Jim, "The odyssey of CEOL MOR is over, for now. We completed our circumnavigation on our J/42 when we crossed our outbound track in Britannia Bay, Mustique. We were, however, still 2,000 nautical miles from home. So, we continued on through the Windwards, the Leewards, and then through the British Virgin Islands. After a farewell 'Painkiller' at the Soggy Dollar, and a last meal at Foxy’s, we made the 1,275 nautical mile passage to the Chesapeake and completed our port-to-port circumnavigation when we arrived in Annapolis on June 28, 2013. We had been away 1,334 days, completed 259 days of ocean passages, and sailed 30,349 nautical miles (34,925 statute miles). Read more about the Wilson's and their CEOL MOR adventures in their well-documented blog here.---------------
* The J/42 JARANA has sailed an epic voyage around the Pacific, the Atlantic, and now the Mediterranean. The crew consists of Bill and Kathy Cuffel, of Seattle, Washington. So far, their travels go way beyond Homer’s Odyssey! Their itinerary has included:
- 2009 - departed Seattle on a 3 year cruise of the South Pacific, sailing back from Hobart, Tasmania (Australia) in September 2012.
- The summer of 2014 they traveled north to Prince Rupert Island, crossed Hecate Strait to Haida Gwaii and had a glorious cruise down the west coast of Vancouver Island.
- 2015, after trucking the boat to Lake Ontario they traveled out the St Lawrence Seaway to the Canadian Maritime provinces and down the east coast of the USA, then out to the Bahamas.
- 2016 Winter they spent in the Bahamas, then crossing the Atlantic via Bermuda and the Azores to England and Europe.
- 2017 Winter they are in Lagos, Portugal, and in spring 2018 will be working their way into the western Med. Follow the Cuffel's and JARANA's adventures on their very well-documented blog here
* Bill and Judy Stellin, who sailed their J/42 JAYWALKER around the Mediterranean and Europe and back across the Atlantic for nearly three years produced a series of entertaining reading in their blogs/journals- they can be found here.The earlier journals have been compiled into two self-published books that can be found at: http://www.blurb.com. Search for "SEATREK: A Passion for Sailing" by Bill Stellin or William Stellin." And, they were featured in Wall St Journal about how to "retire and enjoy life with adventure". Fun reading for those predisposed to the "ultimate escape-- sailing"!
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* John and Mary Driver sailed their J/130 SHAZAM for extended cruising from June 2010 to July 2013. John and Mary finished their double-handed crossing of the Atlantic, landing in Portugal. Since then, they sailed from Portugal across the Mediterranean to Cyprus and explored the Turkish Coast. Read the latest news about SHAZAM's cruising adventures here.--------------
* Alan Fougere and family are back sailing their J/160 AVATAR. She will be in the Caribbean for winter 2017/ 2018, based at Proper Yachts in St John, US Virgin Islands.
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. The J/70 one-design speedster has become the world's fastest growing sportsboat ever!
Today, there are 13,500+ 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/70, J/80, J/88, J/92, J/95, J/105, J/109, J/110, J/111, 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 designs as evidenced by: 20 Boat-of-the-Year Awards; the SAIL Award for Industry Leadership; two American Sailboat Hall of Fame Designs; and five ISAF International One-Design keelboat classes (J/22, J/24, J/70, J/80 and J/111).
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.
Read Kimball Livingston's SAIL update on the J/Boats story- A Band of Brothers Add to Flipboard Magazine.
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