Wet & Woolly Warsash II

(Warsash, England)- To say there was a distinct turnabout in conditions for the second spring series race would be an understatement for the intrepid teams that gathered together to go sailing on the capricious Solent. From the “shorts & shades” balmy weather of a week ago, “wellies, woollies & slickers” were the chosen armour on a chilly weekend that brought a mixture of sunshine and heavy rain or hail showers and a strong breeze. Inevitably this took its toll on boats, equipment and sailors but the race officers set tight challenging courses keeping all the crews busy – and warm. To the course setters’ delight, this week the wind remained constant allowing true beats and runs for all classes throughout the morning.

Given a forecast north-westerly of 13-20 kts with gusts to 26 kts and just two hours after low water at the starts, the Black Group committee boat took up station at North Ryde Middle buoy. IRC1 and 2 were given a 16 mile course with 11 marks, alternating long and short legs. Although many starts were close, with jostling on the line, they were all clear. Tidal tactics were important crossing the main channel between Peel Bank and South Ryde Middle. The sun appeared from time to time but so did the lively squalls accompanied by rain and hail.

On the White Group sportsboat division for J/70 and J/80 the wind built from 14 to 20 knots in the half hour before Race 1.  Competitors stayed well back from the line, helped by the first of the flood tide.  All the same they were too close for comfort from the committee boat which weighted the anchor chain down and laid an inner distance mark. At times during the squalls visibility dropped considerably so that the committee boat lost sight of the windward mark at one point. At the latter part of the morning the wind dropped equally suddenly from 26 to 9 knots, making it all quite challenging.

At the J/70 start Boats.com (Ian Atkins) impeded JOSEPH’S COAT (Marie-Claude Heys) and so took a two-turn penalty but nonetheless went on to win this and the remaining two races. DJANGO (Malcolm and Tristan Jaques) took second in Race 1 and then Joseph’s Coat took seconds in Races 2 and 3.  The top three boats are quite close in the series standings, separated by only two points!  Simon Cavey’s JUST4PLAY still leads with a 1-1-1-5-3-3 scoreline for 14 pts.  Tied for second at 16 pts each are DJANGO with a 2-2-2-2-4-4 tally and JOSEPH’s COAT with 3-3-3-3-2-2 in six races.


After a tiring but exhilarating morning competitors were pleased to swap stories in the Warsash Sailing Club bar later where Jonathan Broad from Brooks Macdonald presented champagne to the weekly class winners. The Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series returns on 30th March with a reminder for competitors that British Summer Time starts that day too.  Thanks for contribution from Louay Habib.  For more Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series sailing information

Quantum J/70 Winter Series- Act III Preview

(Tampa, FL)- This coming weekend, the third and final act of the popular 2014 Quantum J/70 Winter Series takes place on Tampa Bay, hosted by the “sailingest yacht club in the south”- Davis Island YC.  From March 28th to 30th, the grand finale for forty-one J/70s determines not only the regatta winner, but the winner of the “whole enchilada”— the Overall Southeast Series Champion (plus J/70 World’s qualifying spots- 2 Open, 2 Corinthian).

For the past two regattas (one in January and the other in February), it’s clear the fleet has experienced a combination of crazy weather and different teams showing up to challenge regatta leaders.  The series leader (both “Open” and “Corinthian”) going into the weekend is local hotshot Rob Britts sailing HOT MESS from Davis Island YC with a total of 106 pts.  However, the HOT MESS team’s position is tenuous at best if you recognize who’s sitting just behind them.  The top four boats are just separated by 9 pts.  Two points back is Mark Ploch’s SUGAR DADDY from American YC with 110 pts total, third is Jud & Cindy Smith sailing AFRICA from Eastern YC with 112 pts and fourth is Rob Butler/ Martie Kullman sailing TOUCH2PLAY with 115 pts.  Fifth is the Werner/ Barnash team on SUPERFECTA from Rochester YC standing on 128 pts.  There is no question a premium will be placed on sailing fast, smart and consistently to simply hang with the leaders.  Expect to see the top four take the proverbial roller-coaster ride this weekend as the series championship is on the line.

With two Corinthian qualifying spots on the line, there’s a notable increase in this division going into the final regatta.  In fact, the fleet is split nearly 50/50 between the Open’s (21 boats) and Corinthian’s (19 boats). There have been much improved performances by some of the Corinthian teams over the past few regattas, particularly if you take into account those teams that have also sailed the Midwinters in Key West,  St Petersburg NOODs and Bacardi Miami Sailing Week.  Britts’s HOT MESS team is clearly leading the pack, but it’s encouraging to see John Brim’s RIMETTE crew from Fisher’s Island YC moving up the ladder along with Noel Clinard’s LOONATICTU and Blake Kimbrough’s NOSTALGIA from Fishing Bay YC.

New boats joining the ranks in the Open fleet are Tom Londrigan on POLARIS, Dan Cheresh on EXTREME and current J/22 World Champion Al Terhune sailing DAZZLER from Annapolis YC.  Perhaps the big question for the weekend is, will Joel Ronning’s crew on CATAPULT from Wayzata YC in Minnesota continue their winning ways (having just won San Diego NOOD last weekend)?  Or, will Henry Brauer’s SCAMP team, Mark Ploch’s SUGAR DADDY gang, Jud & Cindy Smith’s AFRICA crew or Al Terhune’s freshly-minted DAZZLER group hop atop the podium as regatta winners?

Perhaps the biggest challenge for all sailors on Tampa Bay this weekend will again be a less than favorable weather forecast.  With yet another “El Nino”-driven low pressure system driving across the southeastern U.S., the Friday/ Saturday forecast for thunderstorms and southerly winds of 10-20 kts may pose issues. But, Sunday at least looks promising with winds veering behind the front into the northwesterly quadrants with 8-15 kts winds.  Hopefully, the fleet gets in a full complement of races to complete what has been a fun series for the teams that have participated all winter.  For more Quantum J/70 Winter Series sailing information

CATAPULT Eclipses San Diego NOODs

(San Diego, CA)- The 2014 Sperry Top-Sider San Diego NOOD saw absolutely perfect conditions for the one-design fleets of J/24s, J/70s, J/105s and J/120s. Sunny skies, high 70‘s and breezes in the 10-15 knot range were around all weekend. The 17 boat J/70 fleet was the largest one-design fleet at the NOOD regatta, followed by the J/105s with fourteen.

The event began on Thursday for many of the J/70 sailors, as North Sails hosted an on-the-water clinic and took video during practice. The unique thing about the J/70 class is that it has a healthy mix of both amateur and professional sailors. The Pros have been great at helping the fleet really figure out how to sail the J/70, which has resulted in very close sailing. Thursday’s clinic had the J/70’s out sparring and working on boat handling, starting, and boat speed. On both Thursday and Friday, North Sails hosted a debrief after racing with Vince Brun, Chris Snow & Chuck Allen, along with videos and photos once again done by the pros at North Sails.

Friday came and the first day of racing saw light early morning breezes quickly fade as a strong sea breeze set in. Joel Ronning’s CATAPULT (from Minnetonka, MN), with local Coronado expert Willem Van Waay aboard, quickly jumped to a lead in the event with a strong 3-2-1 for the day. In a close second place, newcomer to the fleet, Joe Markee from San Diego YC, had his daughter Mandy and son-in-law Bill Hardesty, on board OHANA for their first J/70 race!

The conditions throughout the weekend were near perfect for sailing, with the trend of strong sea-breezes filling every day. The shifty South Bay made it possible to recover from mistakes and the fleet saw extremely close racing. There were multiple races where there were 5-7 boats literally overlapping at the finish, making it challenging for the race committee and very close racing throughout the fleet. In the end, the top five for the event were CATAPULT, followed by OHANA in second, Tom Garrett’s SLOOP JOHN B in third, Karl Pomeroy’s ZERO TO 60 fourth and the DFZ duo of Eric Kownacki and Tom Jenkins taking fifth.

The J/70 fleet in Southern CA has been growing rapidly in the past three months. There is an active group of fourteen local J/70’s with many more boats on the way. The fleet has a great list of planned High Point events which include: King Harbor Race Week, Yachting Cup, Long Beach Race Week, Fiesta Cup, Ahmanson Regatta, and J/Fest in San Diego.

Sailing alongside the J/70s in South Bay were the J/24s with a showing of seven good teams.  It didn’t take long for past J/24 NOOD Champion, Susan Taylor on TAKE FIVE, to get back into the swing of things and feel comfortable in the lead, winning four of six races to take home the crown.  Finishing second was James Barney’s CRITTER followed by John Cianciarulo’s ABOUT TIME in third.

A dominating final day of sailing in the J/105 class earned Gary Mozer and crew aboard CURRENT OBSESSION 2 the prestigious Overall Winner title at the Sperry Top-Sider NOOD Regatta San Diego. The Beverly Hills-based skipper made tactful decisions in the breezy conditions on San Diego Bay to claim top honors. As overall winner, Mozer and crew received an invitation to the Caribbean to sail against fellow NOOD Overall Winners.  After the first four races, Rick Goebel’s SANITY was tied for the lead with CO2 at nine points by virtue of having posted a 6-1-1-1 scoreline. However, ending the regatta with a 4-3 dropped SANITY into second place.  The tag-team of Tom Hurlburt & Chuck Driscoll on BLOW BOAT sailed a solid, consistent series to capture third.  They were followed by Jim Dorsey on WINGS and Steve & Lucy Howell’s BLINK!, fourth & fifth, respectively.  Watch the Sailing World video of Gary Mozer- the Overall Winner here.

The “big dogs” in the J/120 class had close racing with the top three teams, in particular, playing the children’s game of “chutes & ladders” just about every race.  One bad start, a blown tack, a lousy spinnaker take-down, all lead to catastrophic consequences in this tightly packed fleet.  In six races, four different teams won races and five boats had top three finishes!  Surviving the roller-coaster ride best was John Laun’s team on CAPER, taking their class by just 4 pts.  Mike Hatch’s J/ALMIGHTY rattled off a 2-2-1 in the last three races to climb quickly into second overall.  On the flip-side of J/ALMIGHTY’s rapid ascent was John Snook’s JIM dropping into third.  Fourth was Chuck Nichols CC RIDER and fifth was Gary Winton’s SHENANIGANS.

Finally, this year's San Diego NOOD also featured a one-day North Sails Rally Race.  On Saturday, March 15, Joe Dagostino, the owner of the San Diego YC-based J/105 VIGGEN (below left), hopped aboard to go sail the first-ever North Sails Rally Race, a one-day, random-leg, PHRF-scored race.  In the end, they enjoyed a fantastic day on the water and became the well-deserved winners with his friend Tom Fisher!
 

Also, new to the 2014 NOOD season is the “Local Boat of the Day” award presented by North Sails.  Designed to recognize a skipper who exemplifies superior local knowledge of the course as well as precise execution during their races, San Diego YC J/105 sailor Rick Goebel (above right), epitomized those characteristics on SANITY, also in the J/105 class, claiming this weekend’s distinction.   Sailing photo credits- Tim Wilkes (http://www.timwilkes.com) and Paul Todd (Outsideimages.com)  For more Sperry Top Sider San Diego NOOD sailing information

Warsash Sailing Series Springs Into Action

(Warsash, England)- The weather certainly took a turn for the better in the opening races of the Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series on 16th March 2014. With a clear blue sky and temperature soaring to 18 degrees C, the River Hamble suddenly became alive with keelboats making their way to the Solent start, dinghies competing in the Hamble Warming Pan event, plus cyclists and walkers on the riverside path.   Over 100 entries were sailing with good one-design fleets of J/70s, J/80s, J/109s and J/111s along with IRC handicap competitors like the J/92s, J/97s and J/105s!

Despite the gorgeous day, the breeze had tricks to play.  It was forecast to come largely from the WNW, the wind started at NNW and swung round to the southwest, making life very difficult for the course setters. Black Group’s committee boat set up station at Flying Fish buoy laying an inflatable mark for the initial windward leg for all four classes near Calshot buoy. As the J/109s and IRC3 approached, the breeze backed, turning the next leg from a run to a fetch across to Wight Vodka buoy close to the Bramble Bank. The wind was often fickle and patchy. All boats made slow progress against the tide towards Middle Bank. At the penultimate mark the race committee sensibly signaled a course change so that the final leg returned to a true beat.

White Group under CRO Peter Knight completed three races for each of the J/70 and J/80 classes. The first group enjoyed good clean starts all round with a couple of late arrivals just making it to the line in time. After a one hour race for the J/70s, a 100 degree wind shift caused some tactical quick-thinking for the J/80s. In the J/70s, Simon Cavey’s JUST4PLAY led around the course followed by DJANG (Malcom/ Tristan Jaques) and Marie-Claude & Paul Heys on JOSEPH’s COAT.  Amongst the J/80s, Ali Hall’s BOYSTEROUS took the gun ahead of the fast-closing BETTY (Jon Powell) and Patrick Liardet’s AQUA-J.  After this first round, the committee boat then moved close into the Meon shore.

Race 2 saw single individual recalls for both J/70 and J/80 classes as the wind became more variable, shifting south to SSW and dropping. The J/70 JOYRIDE retired after one lap with equipment issues. JUST4PLAY went on to another win but with the Jaques’s DJANGO just seven seconds behind, probably caused by returning to restart (although not in fact OCS). Race 3 saw JUST4PLAY “three-peat” in the J/70s, chalking up another win for the day to be leading the series.  In the J/80s, BETTY finally put a halt to BOYSTEROUS’s chance of a hat trick by taking the last race.

Back at Warsash Sailing Club, it was an ideal day to relax in the clubhouse garden watching the many craft on the river. Grainger Thomas from Brooks Macdonald presented champagne to the weekly class winners. After the weeks of wet and windy weather competitors and race officers agreed it had been a challenging and highly enjoyable start to this year’s series which continues next Sunday 23rd March 2014.   Sailing photo credits- Ian McLuckie.  For more Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series sailing information

“Trading Places”- Women Sailing J/70s

Why J/70 Sailor Suzy Leech is “Driving the Bus”
(Key West, FL)- In the March 2014 SAILING Magazine issue, Contributing Editor Betsy Crowfoot had a chance to catch up with Suzy Leech, a Jamestown, Rhode Island resident that has been campaigning her J/70 JUNKANOO.

In Key West Race Week, Suzy had aboard her team some very talented women sailors- in fact, they were the only all-women team sailing amongst the fleet’s eight women skippers (women skippers comprised 13.0% of the fleet!).

Joining Suzy were America’s Cup team-mates Katie Pettibone and Dawn Riley and also top-ranked 470 sailor, Elizabeth Kratzig.  Collectively, this crew had several decades of both top-level, Olympic class dinghy racing but also tens of thousands of miles of offshore racing experience.   Read more about Suzy's adventures in Key West and why they has had so much fun sailing her J/70 with some great women sailors!  SAILING magazine PDF here.

Sailing photo credits- Sharon Green/ Ultimate Sailing   For SAILING Magazine iPad subscription information

J/70 JENNIFER Wins The “Big Daddy”

(San Francisco, CA)- The Bob “Big Daddy” Klein Invitational Regatta is hosted by Richmond YC, on the eastern parts of the famous San Francisco Bay.  The event marks the first regatta of the sailing season for the East Bay contingent and generally sees an enthusiastic turn-out for the event.

With the rapid growth of the J/70s on the Bay (a dozen already and a dozen more on the way), it was not surprising to see nearly a half-dozen J/70s on the line for this early season regatta.

As can be the case for early season sailing on the Bay, chilly temperates, cloud cover and a “goofy jet stream” all lead to enormously variable conditions for the sailors.  In fact, it usually borders more on the variable side than a rock-steady blast from the westerly sea-breeze the Bay is renowned for.

As a result, this past weekend’s racing in the Big Daddy saw light and shifty (but warm) winds.  The J/70 crews were pressed into the all-too-familiar wind patterns of mid-winter sailing in SF Bay. The Bay's big breeze is dialing up soon. This is likely to be the last non-planning event for 2014!

Coming out on top of the pack was Chris Kostanecki’s JENNIFER, taking two bullets to seal their first win of the season.  Chris Anderson’s PERFECT WIFE took second overall and Mark Nelson’s SUGOI with the colorful neon green spinnaker took third.  Next up for these teams will be the popular J/Fest SF Bay being held along the spectacular waterfront in front of St Francis YC in early April.  For more J/70 Big Daddy Regatta sailing information

J/70 RASCAL Wins Bacardi Miami Sailing Week

(Coconut Grove, FL)-  Forty J/70 teams trekked to southern Florida for the fifth annual running of BACARDI Miami Sailing Week (BMSW) presented by EFG Bank, held from March 6-8 on Biscayne Bay. What’s not to like about the venue and sailing on the Bay with great breeze and sunny skies. There were 192 boats registered across six one-design fleets, with competitors from 15 foreign nations (Australia, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Ukraine) travelling great distances (at great expense) to compete against top American sailors.

The ever-growing popularity of the J/70 class was again in evidence at BMSW where entries were up over 100% from their strong debut in last year’s event.  The class had many of the leading J/70 teams participating.   On the first day in moderate 8-12 kts SSE breezes, Heather Gregg-Earl (Boston, Mass.), the 2013 J/70 North American Champion, posted finishes of 3-5 to take the overall lead with eight points.  BMSW defending champion Brian Keane (Weston, Mass.) had nine points, followed by Will Welles (Portsmouth, R.I.) with 11 points, and two skippers tied with 12 points each: Venezuela’s Victor Diaz de Leon and Peter Duncan (Rye, N.Y).

On a champaign sailing day with nice breeze and white caps flickering across sunny Biscayne Bay, only one race was sailed Friday in the J/70 fleet (much to the disapointment of many J/70 sailors).  Will Welles (Portsmouth, R.I.) took the win and moved from third into the lead of the overall standings, tied on points (12) with BMSW defending champion Brian Keane (Weston, Mass.) who finished third.  Peter Duncan (Rye, N.Y) finished second and stands third overall with 14 points, followed by Boston’s Heather Gregg-Earl who finished 14th and has 22 points.  Fifth in the overall standings with 23 points is New Orleans sailor Tim Molony who placed fifth in the race.  “Three general recalls this morning and a couple of black flags, so we held back, played the game and did not push too hard,” said Welles after today’s race. “In the big puffs we worked the main upwind and then managed the angles well on the downwind. With 40 boats it was good fun, really tight close racing.”

Sadly, day three was a “glass out” and no racing took place.  With scores of 10-1-1, Will Welles (Portsmouth, R.I.) took the win in the J/70 fleet with 12 points, winning the tie-breaker over BMSW defending champion Brian Keane (Weston, Mass.) who had finishes of 7-2-3.  Peter Duncan (Rye, N.Y) took third with 14 points; followed by Heather Gregg-Earl (Boston, Mass.) with 22 points; and Tim Molony (New Orleans, La.) with 23.

“Out of all the regattas this was a really great one to win,” said Welles.  “We had a great start, good team work, nice speed and a little luck. The first day we had about 10 kts, second day we had about 20 kts. So, I would say today [Saturday] they made a good choice to not race. Coming from Newport, we really love coming to BACARDI and we are so glad they invited the J/70  class to be part of it.”  Sailing photo credits- Cory Silken  For more BACARDI Miami Sailing Week information

Warsash Spring Series Preview

(Warsash, England)- It’s that time of year again on the wild & woolly Solent!  Time to remove the winter warps, dust off the old stallion, bend on the sails and take another spin around the cans.  Who has the Solent mark chart?  Anyone, anyone??  God Forbid anyone forgets that single most important bit of kit for navigating the zillion sponsored marker buoys deployed around the Solent.  For sure, veteran sailors of this local body of water are usually some of the world’s better sailors— damn hard to find all the marks for starters, but then one has to factor in massive currents, whirlpools, enormous 40 kt container ships bigger than skyscrapers zipping around the channels and sand banks like a “dodge’em ball competition” and the capricious winds & weather that are never, ever what was forecast.  While the UK MET Office is pretty good at weather forecasting most times, somehow that little river of water that flows between the Needles, across the Ryde Sands and past the Forts between the mainland and Isle of Wight often confounds even the savviest of meteorologists.

The Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series starts this weekend and runs all spring from March 16th to April 27th. The Warsash Sailing Club has a 50-strong race management team that is second to none, taking great pride in conducting fun, often challenging, races over the course of the series.  After all, it is Great Britain’s premiere season-opening event and nothing is spared to ensure the sailors go home happy with grins plastered on their faces (some might say that may have been induced by “Guinness”?).

The regatta attracts passionate sailors from across the UK.  Over 100 entries are registered with good one-design fleets of J/70s, J/80s, J/109s and J/111s.  Also sailing are J/92s, J/97s and J/105s!


The half-dozen J/70s have several new teams joining the fray.  In addition to Marie-Claude & Paul Heys on BRAVO JENNY JONES and Malcolm & Tristan Jaques on DJANGO, the class welcomes new Warsash entries like Colin Simonds’s DOOLALLI, Mike Flood’s J7T, Ian Wilson’s JOYRIDE and Simon Cavey’s JUST4PLAY.

As well as six Spring Series Sundays, the Spring Championship is being held over the final two weekends of 12th/13th and 26th/27th April. Warsash Sailing Club extends a warm welcome to all competitors at Shore House. A selection of hot and cold food is available each Sunday as well as two barrels of FREE BEER! Weekly class winners are also presented with a bottle of champagne by title sponsors Brooks Macdonald.  A free water taxi is in operation on Sundays before and after racing to and from berths up river as far as Port Hamble.  As was mentioned above, it’s just darn hard to beat such great regatta organization!  Sailing photo credits- Tim Wright/ Photoaction.com.  For more Brooks Macdonald Warsash Spring Series sailing information

San Diego NOOD Preview

(San Diego, CA)- The next installment of Sailing World’s NOOD Regattas will be taking place this weekend in San Diego from March 14th to 16th.  In addition to the one-design and handicap classes, a new “event” has been added into the mix, the “North Sails Rally Race” that takes place on Saturday only.  J/Sailors will be a significant component in the regatta, with forty-four teams participating in the large one-design classes of J/24s, J/70s, J/105s, and J/120s. J/Crews will once again be the “life of the party” at San Diego’s NOOD, as 44 “J’s” of 114 boats (39% of the fleet) will have over 250 crew members socializing around the expansive decks and lawns at San Diego YC.

The J/70s have the largest fleet in the regatta with sixteen teams hoping to grab one of the qualifying spots for the J/70 Worlds in Newport, RI this September.  There are several wily veterans mixed in with a host of new teams just starting their J/70 circuits this year.  Amongst the veterans, you have Joel Ronning’s CATAPULT crew from Wayzata YC in Minnesota, Eric Kownacki & Tom Jenkins on DFZ, Dan Gribble/ Kurt Weise on GO-RILLA, Jeff Brown from the host San Diego YC, Craig Tallman on JAYA, Bennet Greenwald on PERSEVERANCE and Karl Pomeroy on ZERO TO 60.  Amongst the fleet newcomers in the regatta are several talented teams from other classes that have hopped into 70’s for more fun in the sun!  Santa Barbara YC’s Scott Deardorff is campaigning CAKE this year (already entered in the J/70 North Americans in Rochester, NY), Beverly Burr is skippering CHICK BOAT from Westlake YC, Patrick Toole is driving ECLIPSE (another Santa Barbarian team that are also J/24 North American Champions!), Dave Vieregg is leading SOGGY DOLLAR, Scott Grealish from Portland, OR is skippering SPLASH and top J/105 sailor Rich Bergmann is sailing ZUNI BEAR.   For more Sperry Top Sider San Diego NOOD sailing information

J/70s Sailing Video- Mile-High Andes Mountains!

(Lake Panguipulli, Chile)- A new fleet of J/70s have been sailing on Lake Panguipulli high up in Chile’s Andes Mountain range.

This J/70 sailing video was taken during their recent Chilean LAND ROVER J/70 Nationals the weekend before last. Enjoy the spectacular scenery and nicely done footage.   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGiNSewrsH8

J/70 Gadgets & Mods

(Youngstown, NY)- Don Finkle at J/Dealer RCR Yachts has been sailing his J/70 JUNIOR for over a year with his family and friends, starting with the 2013 J/70 Midwinters at Key West.  Amongst other things, Don is always looking for ways to improve the overall experience of going to regattas, seeing friends and sailing fast, but comfortably.

Some of the upgrades they’ve employed are helpful for those first getting engaged in the whole program.  Here are Don’s commentary on the upgrades to share with all J/70 friends:

“The first is the J/70 mast stepper that was made by RCR’s Brian Buczak (initially designed & engineered by the J/Boats Team in Newport). We’ve now used it several times and it has made stepping and dropping the rig much easier to accomplish, especially if you don’t always have three people around to help.  As you can see from the picture, there is a wooden piece that sits on the stern rails and is fastened down to hold in place.  There is also a tall post approximately six feet high, with a trailer roller at the top (the key piece!), that fits through the cross beam that we clamped down on the motor bracket by using a c-clamp.  While down in Florida, friends of ours from the J/70 fleet stopped by as we were stepping the mast and commented on how easy it looked when using this contraption.  When the rig is down, we could very simply slide out the stepper and secure it to the trailer while the cross beam held the mast in place when towing.  We highly recommend using something like this and we’d be happy to show you the one we are using.

The other new upgrade that we are using is the soft deck installed on the floor of our cockpit.  We absolutely LOVED this addition.  The deck not only looks good but has great grip, wet or dry, and provided good cushion on the knees when in light air and kneeling on the cockpit becomes a necessity.  We’ve been told that the weight of the deck is about 3 to 5 pounds, but the benefits greatly make up for any added weight.  This past weekend in St Pete brought some bigger breeze on Saturday and we found ourselves on our side a few times.  At the angle of heel we would normally slip on the deck but we had no such issue with the soft deck.  There are several suppliers of these soft decks and we have not tested them all out, but the “Raptor” deck we are using has really worked out great.

J/70 @ Moscow Boat Show!

(Moscow, Russia)- With a successful launch of their J/70 program last year in Russia, the J/Russia dealer team of Grigory Aksenov and Dmitry Zaritckii have covered thousands of miles promoting the J/70 across Europe and Russia.  First sailing in the Y.C. Monaco’s Primo Cup in 2013, they returned again  in 2014 with two Russian teams for a weekend of great sailing and camaraderie with fellow J/70 sailors from across Europe.

This dynamic duo will again be presenting the J/70 at the Moscow Boat Show from March 11th to 16th and will likely take another “victory tour” around Moscow’s famous Kremlin Square, hopefully not in a blizzard like last year!  For an appointment or more information, please contact Grigory Aksenov at Kitira Ltd (http://www.kitira.ru), phone- +7-495-540-4529 or via email- aksenov.grigory@gmail.com  Sailing photo credits- YC Monaco/ Carlo Borlenghi.   For more Moscow Boat Show information

Giant J/70 Fleet Storms Bacardi Week

(Coconut Grove, FL)- Attracted by a highly-regarded race management team and the area’s renowned racing conditions, elite sailors will again be on hand when the fifth annual running of BACARDI Miami Sailing Week (BMSW) presented by EFG Bank is held March 6th to 8th for the International J/70 Class and five other classes, from the regatta headquarters at Kennedy Park in Coconut Grove.

There are 192 boats registered across the six one-design fleets, with competitors from 15 foreign nations (Australia, Bermuda, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Germany, Italy, Japan, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands and Ukraine) travelling great distances to compete against American sailors.

The ever-growing popularity of the J/70 class will again be in evidence at BMSW where entries are up over 100% from their strong debut in last year’s event.  The 40 boat-strong class will see Brian Keane (Weston, MA.) on SAVASANA work to defend his title against 2013 J/70 North American Champion Heather Gregg-Earl (Boston, MA.) skippering the famous MUSE and 2006 Audi Etchells World Champion Jud Smith (Marblehead, MA) driving AFRICA towards the front of the fleet.  Sounds like the Boston Mafia of sailing, perhaps? Maybe, may be not.  This trio of Boston-based teams will be up against a formidable array of talent as teams continue to focus on qualifying for the first J/70 World Championship being hosted in September by New York Yacht Club in Newport, RI.

On the short list of Top Ten competitors will be a “rogues gallery” of teams like BLACK RIVER RACING (Doug Strebel), 20/20 RACING (John Arendshorst), CONVEXITY (Don Wilson- class newcomer and past J/105 & Farr 40 Champion), EXTREME (Don Cheresh with Taylor Canfield- current USA #1 in Match-Racing), HOT MESS (Rob Britts- Corinthian winning team), GEMINI (Blane Shea- top young sailor from Chicago YC), LIFTED (Jim Cunningham- Jaguar Etchells 22 winner), PERSEVERANCE (Bennet Greenwald- multiple J/70 regatta winner), RASCAL (Will Welles- general rock-star), RELATIVE OBSCURITY (Peter Duncan sailing with the one and only

famous “Moose” McClintock), RIMETTE (John Brim- famous offshore champion on “monster” RIM), RUNNING WILD (Peter Vessella- some guy who knows how to sail STAR’s fast!), SPRING (Dave Franzel- a Corinthians winner), and SUGAR DADDY (Mark Ploch- who needs no introduction, but for those of you who are historians and not suffering amnesia, he’s the first J/24 Midwinter champion in 1978 with Stu J and two bro’s from Annapolis— pictured here!).

There are a number of foreign teams participating, many with World & European championship credentials as well as past dinghy & keelboat experience.  Do not count out these teams as top ten spoilers as some have the capability of, given the right circumstances, even podium finishes!  Amongst these teams “in the hunt” may be ROCAD RACING (Ingemar Sundstedt- Sweden), REX (Scott Weakley- Toronto, ONT, Canada), NN (Eivind Astrup- Krakeroy, Norway), BRA 493 (Jose Vita & Mauricio Santa Cruz- J/24 Brazil & World Champions- Sao Paulo, Brazil), ELUSIVE (Chuck Millican from Bermuda- past Sunfish North American Champion), SOS VENEZUELA (Victor Diaz/ Tomas de Hornos- recent J/70 Chesapeake champions), and TOUCH2PLAY (Rob & Sandy Butler/ Martie Kullman- a top Canadian team and also J/70 Great Lakes Champion).

As if notable teams in the fleet and foreign competition were not enough, the J/70 class has attracted numerous top women sailors that have proven themselves to be contenders, too.  In addition to Heather’s MUSE team (North American Champions), there’s Jamestown, Rhode Island’s JUNKANOO (Suzy Leech), Annapolis’s MOJITO (Cat Evans) and Chicago’s famous offshore team called NIGHTMARE (led by skipper Amy Neill).

During BACARDI Miami Sailing Week sailors will enjoy the hospitality lounge, BACARDI Rum tastings, as well as a special showing of the film “07-07-07 Amorita’s Unlucky Day”.  A special exhibit, “Wynwood Sails Color the Grove”, will feature the work of 10 artists of the graffiti and street art genre taking inspiration from the sea and sailing to create a work on canvas shaped like the jib of a sailboat.  The art will be displayed at Coco Walk, the iconic open-air shopping, dining, and entertainment destination in Coconut Grove.  In addition, select images from the previous regattas, from the lenses of respected marine photographers Franco Pace of Italy, Onne van der Wal and Cory Silken of the USA, will be displayed alongside the canvasses created specifically for “Wynwood Sails Color the Grove” to juxtapose “the City meets the Sea” for this unique art event.   For more BACARDI Miami Sailing Week information

J/70 West Coast Circuit Update

(San Francisco, CA)- The West Coast is getting busy, particularly since the hottest ticket in town is becoming the next boat and crew to qualify for the 2014 J/70 Worlds in Newport.  Fleet growth in San Diego/ Los Angeles in SoCal; in the greater San Francisco Bay area; and in the Pacific Northwest around Seattle, WA has increased dramatically in recent months.

San Francisco Report- from Sail California
“The J/70 class has grown rapidly on San Francisco Bay, with 11 boats already sailing and with more arriving all the time.  Most importantly, the J/70 Fleet 19 has outlined a great series of races that include the World’s qualifiers.”  Here are the events:

• Mar 8-9- Big Daddy Regatta- Richmond YC
• Apr 5-6- J/Fest San Francisco Bay- St Francis YC
• May 17-18- Elite Keelboat Regatta- San Francisco YC (Worlds Qualifier)
• May 31- Delta Ditch Run- Richmond, CA- Single-handed Sailing Club
• Jun 27-29- Long Beach Race Week- Alamitos Bay YC (Worlds Qualifier)
• Jul 19-20- High Sierra Regatta- Fresno YC
• Aug 16-17- Summer Keelboat Regatta- San Francisco YC
• Aug 30- Jazz Cup-  SBYC
• Sep 11-14 Rolex BBS StFYC
• Oct 25-26 Great Pumpkin RYC

Seattle Report- from Sail Northwest
“The Pacific Northwest has 3 qualifying spots! J/70 Fleet 17 has 2 qualifying berths at the Seattle NOOD's Regatta and one berth for the Northwest Championship (TBD).

And, if that isn't enough to entice you into competing in the exciting new sportboat fleet that is taking the country by storm you will also have your very own official Pacific N.W. J/70 Worlds photographer following you around the course in Newport, Rhode Island!

Jan Anderson (a renown Seattle yachting photographer) and her boat-boy “Skip” will be on site and making an effort to capture your boat in the excitement of sailing the first ever J/70 Worlds!

The J/70 is exploding in growth worldwide with 86 (nope, this is NOT a typo) boats racing Charleston Race Week. This is nothing short of amazing given that two years ago there were none in existence. J/70’s are reserved through hull #630 as of today! I can only imagine what will happen when McConaghy Boats gets up to speed with their production in China!”  Sailing photo credits- Onne Vanderwal/ Jan Edney

PILGRIM Takes Chilean J/70 Nationals

(Lake Panguipulli, Chile)- The inaugural Chilean J/70 Nationals took place this past weekend on one of the world’s most picturesque lakes.  Situated on the Puyumén Peninsula, Lake Panguipulli is surrounded by the majestic peaks of the famous Andes Mountain range.  While sailing in shirts, shorts, & shades, skiing on snow-capped mountains is happening in some of Chile’s famous ski resorts!

On the first day, the fleet of J/70 sailors were met by high temperatures, clear skies and moderate winds ranging between 7-11 knots from 250 degrees with minimal shifts of 10 degrees, conditions that were near perfect for sailing on the lake. In fact, the weather was so nice, a small navy of motorboats gathered around the fleet to watch racing for most of the day!


The R.C.’s P.R.O. managed to deliver three races and, when the results were tabulated, there were few differences between the teams.  The first race of the day began with a dominating performance by Nadja Horwitz, followed by Juan Eduardo Reid’s BLACK JACK and PILGRIM skippered by Benjamin Grez. In the last two races it was clear the PILGRIM/ MBI VOLVO team led by “los hermanos Grez” had figured out the formula for success and managed to score two bullets to take over the regatta lead with just 5 pts.  Eduardo-Reid’s team on BLACK JACK also sailed consistently well enough to hang onto second with a 2-3-3.  Another boat that also figured out the “formula” was Jorge Gonzalez and his team on ALLEGRO, posting a 5-2-2 to jump up to third place for the day.

The second day of sailing dawned with a gorgeous sunrise, but light winds that never exceeded 5-6 kts; it was clear the forecast was somewhat accurate and that meant it was going to be difficult to get in more than 2-3 races.  Despite a number of valiant attempts at getting more races going, the P.R.O. could only manage to get one fair race in for the day.  And, it was one unbelievably close race, clearly upsetting the standings for nearly everyone in the top three!

The team of Benjamin Grez, Christopher Grez, Miguel Perez and Jorge Lama, aboard PILGRIM/ MBI VOLVO just managed to stay out of trouble by finishing 4th in the last race to be crowned the first J/70 National Champions in Chile!  Just behind them by only one point was a tie-breaker, the result of a titanic battle for the silver between Gonzalez’s ALLEGRO and Eduardo-Reid’s BLACK JACK.  Getting the upper hand at the finish was the very happy ALLEGRO team, winning the race and, as a result, winning the tie-break on 10 pts to snag second overall.  Third place then went to the BLACKJACK gang.

The regatta was organized by the J/70 Class Chile and WindMade, with support from the Municipality of Panguipulli and LAND ROVER Chile as a sponsor.  Interestingly, this was also the first J/70 National Championship to be held outside American soil anywhere in the world!   Sailing photo credits- Berni Grez
For more J/70 Chilean Nationals sailing results.

J/70 Worlds Announcement

(Newport, RI)- The inaugural J/70 World Championship will be held in Newport, R.I. from September 8th to 13th and hosted by New York Yacht Club.  Races will be sailed on either Narragansett Bay or offshore on Rhode Island Sound, depending on weather conditions.  Principal hosting partner for the event is Sail Newport, where boats will be docked for the event.

Stu Saffer, the Event Chairman, comments: “New York YC is honored to host the inaugural J/70 World Championships in Newport, RI, this September. We look forward to welcoming sailors from around the world to Harbour Court, our on-the-water clubhouse, and hope they enjoy all the services and amenities our club has to offer. The initial growth of the J/70 class is remarkable, and we are anticipating an extremely competitive regatta on Narragansett Bay and Rhode Island Sound.”  Harbour Court will be the site for the skipper’s meeting and kick-off party, the Wednesday dinner and the Final Awards.

There is a fleet limit of 120 boats. Due to the high level of interest, qualifying events around the world will determine which teams get to sail in the World Championship. U.S. teams should visit the U.S. J/70 Class Association website (http://www.j70class.com) for detailed information on qualifying regattas. Foreign teams should refer to the International J/70 Class Association website (http://www.j70ica.org) for qualification and registration requirements.

Charter boats will be available for international teams, please contact Kendra at J/Boats (ph# 401-846-8410 or email- info@jboats.com) for further information. Rooms are being held at area hotels for Worlds competitors.  For more information on housing, qualifying or the regatta in general, please visit the J/70 World Championship website.