The Sun Never Sets on J's Sailing Worldwide
March 10th, 2020. A day that will live in infamy. The day when the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the world was in a coronavirus pandemic scenario. In Rhode Island, we were locked down at home except for doing essential errands like go to the drugstore or the supermarket. Of course, with Newport surrounded by the ocean and blessed with amazing beaches, Ocean Drive, and state parks, going for a walk in fresh air was a God-send. Others were not so fortunate, which is why it seemed that Newport was soon overrun by escapees from the concrete canyons of big cities up and down the northeast coastline.With the infamous St. Patrick's Day celebrations just a week away, don't be surprised to see thousands of merry-makers out and about clearly suffering from cottage fever! C'est la vie, c'est la guerre. One hopes a "third wave" of the fearsome "mutants" doesn't wreck the party (as is happening today in Germany & France). A sobering thought to contemplate.
On an upbeat note, several one-design classes and offshore organizations have figured out how to run events and comply 100% with suggested guidelines for covid-19 mitigation. The Yacht Club de Monaco hosted their popular Primo Cup- Trophee Credit Suisse last weekend on Hercules Bay, just off the famous port of Monte Carlo. The J/70 fleet had a great time racing over the weekend.
Over in the Americas, the Long Beach and San Diego Yacht Clubs hosted their increasingly popular "Islands Race", an often-challenging offshore sprint going out around San Clemente Island. Enjoying the moonlit, starry night were a few J/crews.
Strong Worldwide Growth for J/99 Speedster!
(Les Sables d'Olonne, France)- Announced July 2018, international debut in Paris Boat Show in December 2018, then launched in January 2019 in Southampton, United Kingdom, the J/99 has garnered more than her fair share of accolades from the world's yachting press, the most prestigious "Best Boat" awards from various magazines, and most importantly, dozens of testimonials from her passionate owners from around the world.
After just two sailing seasons (including the highly abbreviated 2020 pandemic summer), the worldwide reach of the J/99 is somewhat astonishing- now sailing in 22 countries on four continents! Hull #100 should be building later this year! There are five or more J/99s in the following countries: France (12), Italy, Spain, Australia, Netherlands and USA (14). Here is the list of countries:
- Antipodes (Australia, New Zealand)
- North America (USA, Canada)
- South America (Chile, Peru)
- Europe (Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and United Kingdom)
- Asia (Hong Kong, Japan)
Pip Hare/ YACHTING WORLD review
According to Pip, “the J/99 is all thrills, no frills on board the versatile 32-foot offshore speedster.... within ten minutes our demure departure was all but forgotten as we came bursting out of Southampton Water, our senses assaulted from all angles by the bitter north wind and our 100m2 dayglo yellow spinnaker. As the sun rose, everything about the day and this little powerhouse of a boat became bright, sharp and dynamic. I don’t know what the rest of the world was doing at 0800 on that January morning, but we were having a blast.
The eagerly awaited J/99 directly targets a growing demographic of sailors who enjoy the fantastic short-handed racing scene available all across Europe.... from the first moment I stepped into the cockpit, this boat struck me with its no-nonsense approach. Sail handling is simple, the cockpit clean and well laid-out, the helm dynamic and responsive. Just cruising down the river, the boat felt light and seemed to directly translate every puff of wind into increased speed. Compared to the Class 40s I have spent much of the last two years racing, the J/99 felt like a go-cart – a promising combination of agility and power.” Read more of Pip's YACHTING WORLD review here
Andy Howe/ SAIL magazine review
"This boat is gonna create more temptation in sailors’ minds than one could possibly imagine. She’s been touted as a "market disruptor" by SEAHORSE Magazine and "versatile & exciting" by YACHTING WORLD as she sits proudly on their April 2019 magazine cover.
The all-new J/99, from J/Boats, checks more boxes than any boat they’ve produced in over 30 years, period.... the J/99 packs a lot of performance and versatility into a manageable size and budget.” Read more of Andy's SAIL review here
SAIL NORTHWEST Review
Some perspectives from Ben Braden after a San Francisco Bay sail on the 99.
"I was able to do a demo sail on San Francisco Bay awhile back on the first boat Sail California brought in to the West Coast.
That demo sail was great! From the east Bay in Richmond, CA, we went upwind around Angel Island, leaving it to port. We got some good puffs up by the bridge, then set the chute for the run back downwind towards the northeast Bay. She maneuvered well and reacted to the puffs, but not so much that you had to scramble to blow something.
She dug in and sped up in the puffs rather than dropping the deck down and spinning to weather. This is when I first thought "rails", she's stiff, like being on "rails", she just accelerates forward.
Pop the chute in 16+ kts of wind and she will slide off downwind, pushing 10 kts boatspeed easily.
The J/99 is simple to drive and smooth to recover when the new guy driving gets excited with things and stops paying attention.
Cool boat, stiff and responsive was my first impression." Read more of Ben's review here
J/99s Race-winning Performance in DUO CAT-AMANIA
The Duo Cat-Amania, the premiere doublehanded offshore regatta in France, was hosted by the Yacht Club Crouesty Arzon (YCCA). An amazing fleet of fifty doublehanded teams participated in the event. The regatta is a combination of round-the-buoys plus point-to-point offshore racing legs. The regatta started in Crouesty and headed to Quiberon. Then, from there they headed to Lorient. Next leg was then to Concarneau. Then, the fleet returned to Morbihan, with a stopover in Locmiquélic, then La Trinité-sur-Mer, then back to Le Crouesty for the finish!
The J/99 J-LANCE 14 sailed by Frederic Bouvier and Benjamin Dutreaux took the silver, while the J/99 GRASSI BATEAUX sailed by Olivier Grassi and Frederic Duthil took 5th place.
Bouvier commented on their successful regatta. "All the races counted in the general classification," explained Fred. “Despite one bad decision in one race- a 20th- we always finished in the top 5 in front of larger sailboats than ours. In medium wind conditions, which normally favor large boats, we were successful, and we managed to keep a good pace. Our second place reaffirms the versatility of the J/99 at all wind speeds and in all weather situations. The J/99 is a well-designed sailboat that is fully in tune for doublehanded sailing. The level of competition was extremely high in this year's Duo Cat-Amania. We are also delighted with the fifth place of another J/99, Olivier Grassi and Fred Duthil's GRASSI BATEAUX."
Perhaps most significantly from a competitive standpoint, the J/99s beat out a number of "professional factory teams" from the following camps- JPK (960, 1010, 1030, 1080), Beneteau (Figaro 2s) and Jeanneau Sunfast (3200, 3300, 3600). Read more of Fred Bouvier's commentary sailing the DUO CAT-AMANIA
KING OF BLUE Views on Winning IRC E- Les Voiles de St. Tropez
Owner Pascal Fan of the J/99 KING OF BLUE sailed "Les Voiles" with a largely family crew. Their performance was all the more remarkable considering they were up against a number of French offshore "factory teams" in their rather large division. Here's Pascal's commentary:
“We are very happy with our races at Les Voiles. This year has been very special for us. We bought the J/99 at the beginning of the year, before the Covid-19 crisis. We were only able to sail on board in regattas in the spring. In fact, during the Sémac Trophy, we were fortunate to have finished 3rd overall!
It is with great pleasure that we’ve participated in this 2020 edition of Les Voiles de St Tropez. We are so happy and so grateful to participate as a family and friends. During the various coastal races, we were around 3rd or 4th on the downwind tracks and 1st on the upwind tracks. Our J/99 KING OF BLUE is the real bomb! We were all delighted to sail on board! You really have to try it to enjoy!" Read more about the KING OF BLUE experience here
AUSTRALIA Offshore Doublehanded Domination
Sailing out of Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club in Pittwater (Sydney), Australia, our J/Dealer Ray and Sandra Entwistle have been sailing their J/99 JEDI as a doublehanded team.
After their first 20.0nm race, Ray commented, "...the J/99 is so easy to sail, perfectly balanced, highly versatile and comfortable. She was also very dry considering the lumpy seaway and simply carved her way through the swell. The race was tactically challenging as we had to keep out of as much dirty air as possible with so many larger boats around us. We popped the A2 for the return run, Sandra cross sheeted the kite sheets and enjoyed the ride home...”
Then, in their next trio of races, skipper Ray offered this view, ”...we've been lucky enough to experience the J/99 in many different wind and sea states and the results have been just as impressive. The first race in 8-15 knots and lumpy seaway, second race in 15-25 knots and very rough seaway, third race in light conditions and fairly flat seas. The J/99 has performed outstandingly well in this wide range of conditions, is incredibly easy to manage, and a real joy to sail.”
A Woman's Doublehanded Perspective
After a season of sailing the J/99 JEDI, Sandra Entwistle offered her perspectives.
"We’ve been practicing two-handed racing in our J/99 while joining in with fully-crewed fleet from the Royal Prince Alfred Yacht Club (RPAYC) Short Offshore Point Score (SOPS) series. While Ray and I have sailed together for many years, we haven’t seriously raced two-handed since 2008 when we owned our J/109 Sweet Chariot.
By no means am I a professional sailor or have any aspiration to enter the Olympics, I’m just keen to get out there and enjoy sailing. The J/99 is perfect for us as she can be easily sailed by two, large enough to race fully crewed plus has enough creature comforts down below for some family cruising.
Actually, in all honesty, I prefer racing two-up as I get to do a bit of everything – from tactics to jib trim to kite trim to steering and all the tasks to make that happen. Paradoxically, I find it less stressful with just two on board, the reason being that we ensure we are organized and prepared for what’s going to happen next, I know what Ray is going to do and vice versa."
Sandra goes on to exclaim what happened after a 2 hour upwind leg and rounding the mark.. "after hoisting the kite, we immediately got a gust and scooted down the swell doing about 17 kts – woo hoo! The J/99 is so stiff and balanced, at no time were we out of control or concerned. Speed is your friend when going downwind as there is less sheet loading.
...at then end of the run, we opted for a letterbox drop where the kite is dropped between the mainsail and boom and down the main hatch. That technique is by far the safest, easiest spinnaker drop for any shorthanded sailing team." Read more of Sandra's experiences and lessons-learned here
There are several entertaining and instructive sailing videos on J/99s on YouTube. Here's the latest from Chile.
Chile J/99 video on YouTube
If that video didn't get you excited enough to get on the water, enjoy this J/99 sailing videos playlist on the J/Boats YouTube channel For more J/99 shorthanded offshore speedster sailing information
J/70 Bacardi Invitational Preview
(Miami, FL)- This coming weekend, the Bacardi Invitational for the J/70 class takes place on Miami's Biscayne Bay, hosted by the Shake-A-Leg Foundation, with race management conducted by the Biscayne Bay Yacht Club.The twenty-four boat J/70 fleet has multiple teams with impressive pedigrees in this highly competitive class. Past J/70 World Champion Joel Ronning on CATAPULT has to be a front runner with back-to-back wins in 2019 and 2018, although he dropped to 4th last year.
In 2020 and 2019, Ryan McKillen and his team on SURGE had to settle for second place and will hope to improve upon that this year. Their target is firmly in sight, with a win at the recent Bacardi Winter Series 2, with new crew on board in the form of Olympian Lucas Calabrese, who may be the component to secure an upgrade.
Always sitting high up the leader board is Brian Keane and his SAVASANA team. He previously placed 7th and 3rd as well as securing top five finishes at the J/70 Worlds.
Pamela Rose and her team on ROSEBUD have been steadily advancing up the leader board, rounding out Bacardi Winter Series 2 in 3rd place, and clearly have the skill to stake their claim on the podium.
During the Bacardi Cup there will be a special tribute to honor the life and legacy of James ‘Ding’ Schoonmaker who passed away on January 19, 2021. It was the special friendship between Ding, Tito Argamasilla Bacardi, and Frank Zagarino who in 1962 brought the Bacardi Cup to Miami from Cuba, thus saving this unique and special regatta. For more Bacardi J/70 Invitational Regatta sailing information
Back to Racing for J/70 UK Class
(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- The J/70 UK Class is looking forward to an exciting season of racing for 2021. Following the UK Government announcement of the roadmap to cautiously ease lockdown restrictions in England and following guidance from the RYA. The J/70 UK Class will have some coronavirus protocols in place, and we are planning a full season of racing from April through to October.The 2021 J/70 UK Grand Slam Series will feature seven events with the best four to count, the J/70 UK Nationals will be a non-discard event and Grand Slam winners will be in both the Corinthian and Open Classes. Seven clubs will be hosting the J/70 UK Class: Warsash SC, Royal Thames YC, Royal Southern YC, Parkstone YC, Cowes CC, Royal Yacht Squadron, and the Hamble River SC.
The 2021 UK Grand Slam Series is expected to be the UK J/70 Class Qualifying Series for the 2022 J/70 World Championships in Monaco. Further details on the 2022 Worlds and UK Qualifying are expected from the J/70 International Class
Charles Thompson’s BRUTUS will be defending their win in the Corinthian Class for the J/70 UK Nationals and J/70 UK Grand Slam Series.
“I am sure I speak for everyone involved that it is fantastic to be looking forward to a full season of racing in the J/70 UK Class,” commented Charles Thompson. “Also, the training events organized by Marshall King are a great initiative, and the new sprint series is also designed to improve performance right through the fleet.”
The J/70 UK Sprint Series is a new and exciting edition to the 2021 calendar. Two days of weekend racing, hosted by the Royal Southern YC, will run from May through to September. With five short, sharp races per day, the series is designed to test raw speed and boat handling. The Sprint Series will also allow on the water coaching to add another dimension to the racing.
J/70 UK Class Chairman Paul Ward commented: “We are looking forward to welcoming all of the J70 fleet for this new race series format where the focus will be on improving our racing and sharing knowledge with all of the fleet. Working together to enjoy our racing and time on the water. “
With the J/70 UK Class craving to get out on the water, a big turn-out is expected for all of the events.
Follow J/70 U.K. Class on Facebook here For more J/70 UK Class information, including boat charter opportunities
Sailing Calendar
Mar 10-13- J/70 Bacardi Cup- Miami, FLMar 11-14- J/105 Midwinters- Seabrook, TX
Mar 18-21- J/22 Midwinter Championship- New Orleans, LA
Mar 19-21- San Diego NOOD Regatta- San Diego, CA
Mar 19- NHYC Cabo Race- Newport Beach, CA
Mar 25-28- SAIL 22 J/70 Invitational- Coconut Grove, FL
Mar 26-28- St. Thomas International Regatta- St. Thomas, USVI
Mar 29- Apr 4- BVI Spring Regatta- Road Town, Tortola, BVI
Apr 2-4- St Petersburg NOOD Regatta- St Petersburg, FL
Apr 8-11- Charleston Race Week- Charleston, SC
Apr 30- May 2- Annapolis NOOD Regatta- Annapolis, MD
Apr 30- May 2- J/111 North American Championship- Annapolis, MD
May 9-15- J/70 North American Championship- Annapolis, MD
For additional J/Regatta and Event dates in your region, please refer to the on-line J/Sailing Calendar.
G-SPOT Crowned Primo Cup- Trophy Credit Suisse Champion
(Monte Carlo, Monaco)- The 2021 pandemic version of the famous Primo Cup- Trophee Credit Suisse took place on the storied waters of Hercules Bay in front of Monte Carlo, Monaco. Hosted by the eponymous Yacht Club de Monaco, the fleet of twenty local J/70s enjoyed two-straight days of nice sailing. Here are the reports of what happened over the three days of competition.
Day 1- Gorgeous Easterly
A 6-7 knot easterly wind blew in across the Bay all day long. That enabled the J/70 class to complete three races in nearly ideal conditions. At the conclusion of the day's racing, it was Giangiacomo Serena di Lapigio's G-SPOT that came out on top ahead of the crew on CER-APROTECT and Loïc Pompée's SAILING RACING TEAM. In the Corinthian (amateur) category, Cesare Gabasio’s TINN J70, Stefano Roberti PICCININA and Thomas Studer's JERRY comprised the podium after this first day.
Day 2- Awesome Big Wave Planing Conditions
It was a fantastic day for competitors with a 15-knot easterly gusting to 25 knots with a slight chop, optimal conditions for completing three races back-to-back.
Leading the J/70s after day one, the men on G-SPOT kept up the pace and by evening they maintained their top ranking, just two points ahead of Ludovico Fassitelli's JUNDA-SUMU CAPITAL. Pompée's SAILING RACING TEAM remained in a provisional 3rd place. In the Corinthian category, Gabasio's TINN J70 topped the table ahead of Roberti's PICCININA.
Day 3- Fade Away Sunday
After two great days of racing, the easterly finally blew itself out as the front continued to move off to the eastern part of the Mediterranean. As a result, all races were canceled on Sunday despite an attempt to get the fleet mobilized.
“This year is very different, but it was important for us to maintain the link with members and keep some of our activities going, particularly as we prepare to host the J/70 World Championship next year,” explained Yacht Club de Monaco General Secretary Bernard d’Alessandro. “I also think it’s important for our young people to have an activity and maintain social ties. That is really essential for our club.”
As a result of Sunday's cancellation, the standing from Saturday evening stood. G-SPOT winning, followed by JUNDA-SUMUS CAPITAL and SAILING RACING TEAM. The Corinthians saw TINN J70 take the honors, followed by PICCININA.
PETITE TERRIBLE- ADRIA FERRIES Wins Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series
In the interests of fair play vis-a-vis the international teams who normally descend on Monaco for this regatta, results of the Primo Cup-Trophée Credit Suisse did not count towards the Monaco Sportsboat Winter Series. Therefore, the only results that counted overall were from Act 1 (14-17 January) and Act 2 (4-7 February).
Consequently, after 14 races, the redoubtable Italians on PETITE TERRIBLE- ADRIA FERRIES (skippered by Claudia Rossi) won the series quite handily. Rounding out the podium were two YC Monaco teams; Serena di Lapigio's G-SPOT taking the silver and Fassitelli's JUNDA-BANCA DEL SEMPIONE securing the bronze.
For more YC Monaco Primo Cup- Trophee Credit Suisse sailing information
J/111 Flies Around Islands Race
(San Diego, CA)- A full year ago in Spring 2020, Newport Harbor Yacht Club and San Diego Yacht Club hosted the Islands Race with a just a hint of the Covid-19 influence over our lives, one of the last “normal” regattas before the pandemic took over. A few weeks later as the 2020 Puerto Vallarta Race sailed down to Mexico, the US fully embraced the initial Covid-19 lockdown and sailing hasn’t been the same since. But with patience and planning, this year’s Islands Race brought 32 teams to compete in the 142-mile coastal race from Long Beach, around Catalina and San Clemente to San Diego. And for those on the racecourse at night, the offshore racing experience and competition were back in all its glory.Many teams have not had the chance to compete in this way in over a year, so the Islands Race served as its own competition and also training and preparation for teams set to compete in the 600+ mile race to Cabo in March, and the 2225nm Transpac Race in July. Fifteen of the Islands Race teams will sail the Cabo Race, and 20 will sail in Transpac this year.
Other than a half moon rising late in the night, the conditions were perfect. Conditions were nearly ideal for racing with a WNW breeze most of the day and evening. These conditions sent the fleet surfing quickly past the backsides of both Catalina Island and San Clemente Island. All boats were around the southwestern corner of San Clemente (Mark 3) by midnight. The sea state was also nice with mostly 6’ running swells and the occasional ‘growler’ in the night (a breaking wave astern that ‘roars’ ominously, especially loud when you can’t see them). From the turn at Mark 3, it is 71 miles to the finish, and it is a race with the sun. As soon as the sun rises, the wind across the 15-20 or so miles of ocean next to the coast tend to evaporate. Boats not finished by 6 am tend to struggle until the thermal breezes restart to fill that void around noon.
Every year, it is a challenge to coordinate the course around San Clemente Island with permissions from the US Military. You might not know it, but there are dozens of charted exclusion zones which the military deploy like a playbook in order to run specific training exercises all around S. Sometimes they are “on,” sometimes they are “off.” With the help of Range Schedulers, we wait until two weeks prior to the race to see if the exclusion zones are going to require a 3-mile, 10 mile or 20+ mile zone. This year was ten miles. For a wide-open ocean, it sure seems crowded sometimes!
The most notable performance by a J/Team was Doug Jorgensen's J/111 PICOSA. Enjoying the fast surfing and planing conditions at times, the flew around the track in 17 hr 37 min to correct out to 2nd place in ORR 4 Division. Then, in ORR 3 Division, Standish Fleming's J/125 NEREID took fifth place. Sailing Photo credits- Bronny Daniels/ JOYSailing.com. For more Islands Race sailing information
J/Community
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2016 J/95 Shoal Draft Cruiser For Sale
PRICE JUST REDUCED! This J/95 is a rare find, a nicely-equipped, fresh water, used J/95.The boat has been sailed only on Lake Winnipesaukee, with its short summer seasons, and crystal-clear water. The boat has been very lightly used, is well equipped, and found in perfect condition.
The only way to find a J/95 in better condition, would be to find a new one. The boat has only been sailed 3 years, and never raced. This is a unique find and includes a custom Hall Spar carbon rig!
Learn more about this cool J/95 shoal-draft cruiser here
J/24 Lake Garda - a Phoenix Arising from the Ashes
Here is an amazing "Throwback Thursday" story for you armchair sailors.J/24 ITA-85 was built in 1982 by J/Boats Italy in La Spezia, the super yacht building capital of Italy just southeast of Genoa.
In September 2017, this particular J/24 sank on Lago di Garda in a huge storm that produced hurricane force winds of 70 knots in nearly an instant...your basic "microburst". It was a wall of water and wind whistling down out of the famous Italian Alps and ripping down the lake with great ferocity.
The fleet of J/24s racing on Lake Garda were caught nearly without any warning. Most of the fleet got knocked down and got their sails down. But, ITA 85 was caught with their mainsail up and their spinnaker flying. Not surprisingly, getting hit by a 70-knot microburst would flatten any boat.
The J/24 went down in over 240 meters (770 feet) of water with its mainsail "flying" and spinnaker still rigged on deck and spinnaker pole on the mast...exactly as it was set before the sinking. Thankfully, the crew was safe and were immediately rescued.
The boat was salvaged by deep-sea recovery specialists using sophisticated sonar and a submersible ROV (remotely operated vehicle).
Here is the YouTube video of that J/24 rescue.
In short, once the boat was found and marked on GPS, the team waited for a calm day to do the rescue effort. The ROV went down with two ropes with large hooks attached. The ROV's articulating arm attached each hook (one to the forestay and another to a rope loop) and slowly pulled the boat to the surface. Once the mast breached the surface, divers attached inflatable bags all around the boat, inflated them to get the deck above water and pumped her out. Soon after, with mainsail still flying, the boat was towed back to the harbor. After a bit of a clean-up, she was good to go again and is still sailing on Lago di Garda! A true "phoenix arising from the ashes"!
According to J/Boats Italy founder Paolo Boido, "Thanks to Bob and Rod Johnstone who designed such a strong and lovely One-Design boat.
Also, thanks to my team at J/Boats Italy who built the boat, so well-built and strong, able to survive the heavy water pressure in depths of more than 240 mt (770 feet). That's about 23 ATM (atmospheres at sea level) or 341 PSI.
Amazingly, there was no damage to the mast, all shrouds were fine, the turnbuckles all worked, so did all the Harken blocks and even the Harken winches! We were shocked there wasn't more damage. It seems the ice-cold fresh water on Garda acted like a "preservative". The owners were so grateful to the salvage team and love sailing their beloved ITA-85 today!"
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