J/70 Liguria Championship Report

(San Remo, Italy)- Last weekend the final races were sailed to complete the first West Liguria Championships off San Remo— for many, it was the best winter sailing event in northwestern Italy.

The regatta saw steady northeast to easterly breezes blowing from 25-30+ knots for both days of racing. The J/70s delivered an extraordinary show of power & performance, sailing upwind against big waves at a very competitive speeds compared with bigger boats in the 35 to 45 ft size range.

With such strong upwind performance the J/70’s then hoisted their spinnakers and were literally flying downwind, holding the best breeze and angles, catching the big boats before the end of the downwind leg!

What was most impressive was the result of the second day, when the breeze was a little stronger and waves bigger: the small J/70 won “overall” for the day and, as result, finished second in the overall standings!  In Group “B” the J/70 was easily leading both days.  At the docks after sailing, many sailors came down to look at this little Speedster— all astonished!

Many thanks to Gian-Luca Grisoli, a new happy J/70 owner, for his experience in sailing such a wonderful regatta. And, a special and friendly thanks to Beppe Zaoli YCS President for the welcome hospitality to the new J/70 class in San Remo!

Quantum Key West Race Week Update

(Key West, FL)- The annual winter pilgrimage to the sunny, friendly climate of the Florida Keys in late January is showing healthy participation by J/Sailors!  This spectacular event presents world-class competition over five full race days. Entering its 27th year, Race Week offers exceptional racing and fun shoreside parties in wonderful Key West. The Florida Keys and Key West are the perfect southernmost vacation destination!  Yes, even the first J/24 Midwinters sailors in 1978 can attest to that fact!!

Premiere Racing’s reputation for excellent race management and regatta organization promises to deliver another great regatta and ideal winter get-away for all sailing enthusiasts.  If you haven’t already, make plans now to start off the New Year with the best sailing there is this side of the Caribbean’s aquamarine waters and warm, gentle trade-winds.

So far, 105 boats have signed up for Key West, with the two largest one-design fleets being J’s. The 64 J/Teams registered in four classes represent 61% of the fleet, a veritable J/Fest down in the Florida Keys!  By far the largest one-design fleet at the event, the forty strong J/70 Midwinter Championship fleet, already has representation from the USA, Canada, Mexico, Bermuda, Great Britain and continental Europe.

Head on down and join the fun!  Last year’s Key West was epic, 2014 promises to be even better!  Sailing photo credits- Onne Vanderwal.com   For more Quantum Key West Race Week sailing information

Hamburgers Masters Of J/70 Segel-Bundesliga!

(Berlin, Germany)- What began as a dream and passion to grow sailing across Germany became, for even the most diehard detractors, one of the most successful sailing projects ever launched in European sailing history.  Some may point to the Extreme 40 catamaran sailing series or RC-44 one-design series as examples of how to grow participation in sailing amongst the elite of the sailing world.  However, no one has demonstrated, until this year, how to grow sailing at a grass-roots level that was “all-inclusive” and fun!  Perhaps more importantly, make it a remarkable learning experience with many of Europe’s best sailors participating (e.g. Olympic Medallists and World Champions) and get everyone cheering enthusiastically for their respective sailing clubs to win!  That was the secret of the inaugural J/70 Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga sailing series held in five locations across Germany this past summer.

The exciting conclusion of the series on Berlin’s Wansee saw a bunch of northern “Hamburgers” trounce their “southern” friends from Berlin and points south in Germany.  And in the end, the eighteen sailing clubs/ yacht clubs and hundreds of sailors that participated from across Germany were all the real winners; each club saw tremendous interest grow in the event all summer long with many wishing to participate the next time around!

The finale on the Wansee took place in about as picturesque and dramatic a city lake-front as anyone could imagine.  It served as tremendous theater for the finalists to battle for not just the Berliner regatta honors, but the overall series honors as well.

The Berlin/ Wansee regatta saw tough competition, especially from the host club sailors that demonstrated excellent local knowledge of the tricky wind conditions.  Indeed, the first two places went to the locals, with the Schweriner YC team comprised of Ingo Koehn, Torsten Haverland, Lars Haverland and Uwe Thielemann winning an impressive series with seven finishes in the top three! They were followed by their colleagues at Verein Seglerhaus am Wansee with the team of Malte Kamrath, Ulrike Schumann, Frithjof Kleen and Nils Schröder.  Taking third was Lindauer Segler-Club, fourth was Norddeutscher Regatta Verein and fifth was Muhlenberger Segel-Club.

As a result of their fourth place finish in the Berlin/Wansee Regatta, the Norddeutscher Regatta Verein (NRV) team from Hamburg were declared the overall winners of the inaugural Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga series!  The NRV team that consisted of Johannes Polgar, Florian Spalteholz, Klaas Höpcke and Niklas of Meyerinck sailed a remarkably consistent series over the course of the five regattas, consistently finishing in the top five—  (Tutzing- 5th, Travemunde- 2nd, Hamburg- 1st, Friedrichshafen- 4th, Berlin- 5th). Their skipper, Johannes Polgar, said “we could hardly believe our luck! It was a crazy season for us! Fantastic that we were able to bring the trophy to our friends and members in Hamburg!”

Behind NRV in the overall standings and taking second prize for the series were the Wurttembergischer YC team. While sailing fast and smart in Tutzing (4th), Travemunde (5th) and Friedrichshafen (1st), their team members didn’t quite hit the ground running in championship form in Hamburg (7th) and in the Berliner finale (9th).

The biggest battle happened to be for the final position on the podium for the series with at least four teams  vying for the coveted bronze medal.  By sailing their hearts out in Berlin, the local favorites (Verein Seglerhaus am Wansee with skipper Malte Kamrath), rode their second place onto podium by a whisker!  The VSaW team started the series slowly in Tutzing, but closed with a flourish at Friedrichshafen (2nd) and Berlin (2nd) to claim the bronze for the overall series.

The balance of the top five were quite close, finishing just two and three points behind VSaW, respectively.  After starting the series quite strongly - Tutzing (1st), Travemunde (3rd), Hamburg (3rd)- the proverbial “wheels fell of the silverware shopping trolley” for YC Berlin-Grunau’s team.  The last two events for YC B-G were tough pills to swallow, having to count the Friedrichshafen (9th) and Berlin (12th) to finish fourth.  Just one point back was the very consistent team from Chiemsee YC, counting a Hamburg (2nd), a 5th and three 6th places to hang in for fifth overall.

After five months, it is quite clear the concept of the first Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga has been a great success. The acceptance of the first nation-wide club competition in Germany is very high amongst the sailing community. The five events that were held in the first year were dominated by local patriotism, passion, camaraderie and fairness between the sailors. So far, there are now more than 30 other clubs that are interested in participating for the 2014 sailing season!

Many happy memories were recorded for all of the sailors, the organizers, sponsors and the host clubs.  Below are the links to the photos and some nice sailing videos for each one of the events.

June 7-9- Tutzing/ Starnberger See
http://segelbundesliga.de/fotogalerien/tutzing/
http://segelbundesliga.de/fotogalerien/tutzing-tag-2/
http://segelbundesliga.de/fotogalerien/tutzing-tag-3/

July 19-21- Travemunde
http://segelbundesliga.de/mediathek/fotogalerien/travemuende/
Day 2- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfhhFYNsXTU
Day 3- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30Wikkt8jGk

August 30— September 1- Hamburg
http://segelbundesliga.de/mediathek/fotogalerien/hamburg/
Day 1- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u974BNOD0H8
Day 2- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OyZKlCmAuqg
Day 3- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u974BNOD0H8

September 27-29- Friedrichshafen
http://segelbundesliga.de/mediathek/fotogalerien/friedrichshafen/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QToUl73acWY

November 8-10- Berlin finale
http://segelbundesliga.de/mediathek/fotogalerien/berlin/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RZDIhI9WUr4

For more Deutsche Segel-Bundesliga sailing information

Sun & Fun Dominate J/Fest San Diego

(San Diego, CA)- After a weekend of everything J/Boats at San Diego YC’s J/Fest, the fleets of one-design J/120s, J/105s, J/109s and J/70s were blessed with nice breezes for all three days. The fleet of thirty-one boats were treated to the memorable San Diego YC hospitality that many sailors look forward to in this magical part of the sailing world.  It's no wonder that more US Navy flag officers retire to this corner of America than any other, the weather is amazing, gorgeous temperate weather, cool breezes and great sailing all year round.

The J/70s debut as a class with their five boat fleet was a lot of fun racing offshore on San Diego Bay.  Having been traveling to the last three major J/70 events on the West Coast, Dan Gribble's GO-RILLA, Eric Kownacki/ Tom Jenkins' DFZ, and Karl Pomeroy's ZERO TO 60 were likely to have the upper hand-- and they did.  Demonstrating excellent race course awareness, extraordinary speed and consciousness as well adroit boat-handling bordering on the professional level was the DFZ gang from Manhattan Beach YC.  Eric K and Tom J showed the locals how it's done, taking a 1-1-1-2-1 for a masterful win in the J/70 class.  Second was Gribble's GO-RILLA and third was Pomeroy's ZERO TO 60 going more like ZERO to 30-- next time Karl, prime the pump with "av-gas"! :)  Sailing photo credits- San Diego YC/ Bronny Daniels.  For more J/Fest San Diego sailing information

J/Fest San Diego Preview

(San Diego, CA)- The San Diego J/Fest boasts a long history of being one of the most fun and well attended regattas in Southern California.  And, it's exclusively for J/Boat owners! The regatta is open to one-design classes as well as a J/PHRF fleet!

Hosted by San Diego YC the J/Teams will enjoy three day of competitive, fun buoy racing from September 27th to 29th.  Friday is the fun, casual race around set marks and government marks, followed by two days of course racing on Saturday and Sunday.  Inside the bay will be the smaller boats (like J/22, J/70 and J/80) and offshore will be the larger boats (the J/105s, J/109s and J/120s).

While the sailing is always nice in sunny San Diego, J/Fest is perhaps most renown for its onshore festivities.  Saturday evening is the traditional J/Fest Party, basically a giant cook-out on the lawn with live music and lots of awesome swag and giveaways from the sponsors.  The fun factor is a key element of the event, a reason why over fifty boats have attended every year.

The J/105s have yet another great turnout with most of the top local teams sailing, including Chuck Driscoll's BLOW BOAT, Steve & Lucy Howell's BLINK!, Rick Goebel's SANITY, Dennis & Sharon Case's WINGS, Rich Bergmann's ZUNI BEAR, Jon Dekker's AIR BOSS and Gary Mozer's CURRENT OBSESSION 2 fro Los Angeles.

The J/120s have traditionally offered very tight competition with a modest-sized fleet.  Again, a number of local favorites are sailing and should be factors at the front of the fleet.  Familiar faces like John Laun's CAPER, John Snook's JIM, Chuck Nichols' CC RIDER, Gary Winton's SHENANIGANS and Mike Hatch's J/ALMIGHTY have all had their fair share of great performances in J/Fest.

The J/109 class will see past local and regional champions sailing again, including Gene Pitkin's GERONIMO, Rex Butler's JD, John Shulze's LINSTAR and Daylen Tercen's GREAT BALLS OF FIRE!

The J/70s will debut as a class and their six boat fleet should present a lot of fun racing on San Diego Bay.  Having been traveling to the last three major J/70 events on the West Coast, Dan Gribble's GO-RILLA, Eric Kownacki/ Tom Jenkins' DFZ, Karl Pomeroy's ZERO TO 60 and Craig Tallman's JAYA may have a leg-up on the fleet. Nevertheless, 70 sailors have proven they're climbing the learning curve fast in this simple boat, so expect to see good competition from Hugh Bennet on CHEETAH CUB and Sean O'Keefe on DECOLORES 3.  For more J/Fest sailing information, please be sure to contact Joanne O'Dea at joanne@jk3yachts.com.  Or, go to the San Diego YC website.

The B&G J-Cup Enjoys Dramatic Finale

(Plymouth, England)- With gusts close to 20 knots ripping through the race area in Plymouth Sound, the final day of the B&G J-Cup 2013, produced some ballistic action for the forty-five J/Teams that were in attendance. Hosted by the Royal Western Yacht Club, the J-Cup was also the venue for the Lifedge J/109 UK National Championship and the 2013 edition produced the closest finish in the 10 year history of the event. It was a fitting end to another fabulous weekend of sailing-- the sailors enjoyed near-perfect sailing conditions for most of the regatta, closing with an epic final day of sailing.

Day One Report:
The first day of racing could best be described as the "Champagne Opener".  A building sea breeze, topping out at 15 knots provided great sailing for the 300+ sailors that competed in four races, inside and outside of the Plymouth Breakwater. With several one designs taking to the race course, there was plenty of thrilling boat-on-boat action.

Ruairidh Scott, skipper of J/70 North Sails knows a thing or two about sportsboats. The Scot is a former J/80 World Champion and three time 1720 European champion. J/70 North Sails swept the board, scoring 4 bullets. Plymouth local, Nigel Passmore, was second and Mike Flood was in third position but the day belonged to Ruairidh Scott and a crack crew of Ben Field, Matt Curthoys, and Stuart Miller.

“It was a tricky day with a big range in wind speed and tuning the rig was made more difficult because of that,” commented Scott. “We started the day below our base setting (8 knots) and by the second race there were times when we should have had a stiffer setting but I always like to set the rig for the wind at the start. In one design racing, getting off the line in good shape is the key, it is easier to defend a lead than try and catch up and pass a competitor later in the race. The J/70 is a great little boat; simple but rewarding and compared to similar boats, the good thing about a J/70 is that it goes upwind quite nicely. The single spreader carbon rig is great for tuning but it is also forgiving as it is a stiff spar, so if you do get stuck on slightly the wrong setting the rig isn't going to break.”

Day Two Report:
Day two was perhaps the trickiest day for sailing on Plymouth Sound. In stark contrast to the previous day's sublime sailing conditions, racing was delayed by lack of breeze.  Eventually, everyone got underway in the early afternoon, once a light and just race-able breeze stabilized. All classes got one good race in but the second was abandoned, as light rain killed off the gradient wind completely.

In the J/70 Class, North Sails kept up their perfect scoreline but Nick Haigh's crew on Lightly Steamy was kicking themselves. “We got a great start by winning the pin end, which was a hard fought victory and we should have gone on to win the race but we made a school boy error.” confessed Nick Haigh. “We were a long way ahead and didn't cover North Sails, we managed to put ourselves in a wind hole and that was that. You don't expect to beat a class act like North Sails with that sort of mistake and I only have myself to blame. However, I think we had good boat speed today and we have learnt a few tricks upwind.”  In the J/70 Class, Nigel Passmore's Apollo was now second, after five races, with Mike Flood's J7t in third.

Day Three Report:
The final day of racing was filled with drama, with lots of anxiety faced by tacticians on how best to handle their blood-thirsty competitors in the 15-20+ kts of big breeze and big seas.

In the J/70 Class, Ruairidh Scott's J/70 North Sails conducted a master class of sportsboat racing, winning the class with straight bullets and a race to spare. However, it was a highly rewarding experience for the entire J/70 Class as the North Sails team were happy to share their knowledge dockside after racing. Nigel Passmore's Apollo 6 finished second and the young team on Mike Flood's J7t won the last race of the day to secure third for the regatta.

The official prize-giving was held at the National Marine Aquarium, Plymouth with a fine buffet supper celebrating the B&G J-Cup 2013. Surrounded by the UK's biggest collection of marine life, the regatta came to a close and the organisers are not aware of anyone ending up in the shark pool!  The organisers would like to thank the principle sponsors of the regatta; B&G, Fusion, North Sails, Fastnet, and Grapefruit Graphics. Thanks also to our supporting sponsors SLAM, Peters & May, Lombard, RS Divers, Ocean Safety, Lifedge and Harken.  Thanks for story contribution from Louay Habib.  J/Cup sailing video on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9obIieub90w    Sailing photo credits- Tim Wright/ Photoaction.com    For more B&G J/Cup Regatta sailing information

Annapolis Race Week Preview

(Annapolis, MD)- Annapolis Race Week is one of the premier sailing regattas in the Mid-Atlantic Region. It's sailed annually over the Labor Day Weekend (this year from August 31st to September 2nd) off Annapolis. CBYRA is happy to announce that its tent party and regatta headquarters will be again held at Annapolis' City Dock.  Utilizing the Susan Campbell Park as the shore-side venue has heightened visibility and attendance and by opening it up to the public, created a citywide festival type event oriented towards sailing!

There are more than fifty-seven J/Teams sailing out of eighty-three boats registered so far with J's representing the dominant brand at the regatta with over 70% of the fleet!

The inaugural J/70 one-design class has thirty-one teams competing, by far the largest class in the regatta, where many leading contenders are using the event as a tune-up for the upcoming J/70 North Americans in Annapolis in the end of September.  Amongst the notable teams (based on recent performances) are Joel Ronning's CATAPULT, Blake Kimbrough's NOSTALGIA, Bennet Greenwald's PERSEVERANCE, Martin Kullman's TOUCH 2 PLAY and Brian Keane's SAVASANA.  Two others to watch out for are Henry Filter on WILD CHILD and Peter McChesney on USA 209-- both college sailing All-Americans with enormous amounts of one-design experience under their belts. Three women skippers are also participating and have been demonstrating they are quite competitive at both a regional and national level, including Jenn Wulff on JOINT CUSTODY, Kathy Parks on SUNDOG and Catharine Evans on MOJITO. Sailing photo credits- Tim Wilkes.com   For more CBYRA Race Week sailing information

Verve Cup One-Design Regatta Preview

(Chicago, IL)- The Verve Cup Inshore Regatta is a spectacular sailing event that is hosted by the Chicago Yacht Club at Belmont Station from August 24th to 25th. Identical One Design classes compete for two days to determine which boat has the best skipper and crew; included are the debut of the incredibly popular J/70 one-design speedster and the classic J/24 one-design keelboat classes.

This year, the Verve Cup will be bigger than ever and is assured to be the best one-design sailing around the Chicago area. Featuring optimal late summer breezes, competitive racing, and the best race committee on the water, the Verve Cup delivers outstanding racing. Big name sponsors include AUDI Chicago, Mt Gay Rum and SLAM yachting gear.

The debut of the J/70 class is quite impressive in this regatta, having by far the largest fleet with over twenty boats participating.  The fleet has a national and international flavor to it with crews from all over America and Europe.  Top teams featured in this year's event include Joel Ronning's well-traveled CATAPULT team from Minneapolis, MN; Bennet Greenwald's PERSEVERANCE crew from San Diego, CA; Joe Woods's crew on RED from Torquay, England.  Several new teams are participating including Blane Shea's GEMINI and Richie Stearns' TYLISHAN-- both from the local Chicago fleet.  Sailing photo credit- Tim Wilkes.   For more Verve Cup Inshore sailing information

J/70 Stars at SAILFEST!

(Weymouth, England)- Fresh from her class racing debut AAM Cowes Week and the 2013 J-Cup, the J/70 Sportsboat will be making a star appearance at GJW Direct SailFest later this month. The team from Key Yachting Ltd (the UK dealer for the J/70) will be at the Weymouth and Portland National Sailing Academy on the afternoon of Friday 23rd of August until Bank Holiday Monday 26th of August and will be offering trail sails in the J/70 for anyone who is keen to try this hot little sportsboat for themselves.

GJW Direct SailFest is a brand new summer sailing festival which combines coaching, fleet and handicap racing on the Olympic waters in Weymouth. Inspired by the Olympic Games, SailFest presents the opportunity to race on the same waters with support from Olympic classes coaches. There will also be events for spectators on shore at WPNSA, including live video feeds from the race-track, workshops, demonstrations and the opportunity to get out on the water for a Try A Boat session. Anyone who is interested in sailing (especially those who are new to the sport and who are keen to give it a try) are invited to attend. You can see the full schedule of activities at SailFest both on and off the water at http://sailfest.sailracer.org

The J/70 is a 7 metre performance sportsboat. The first boat was built in 2012 and it has proved a phenomenal success with fleet growth both in the UK and around the world exceeding all expectations. It is an incredibly exciting boat to sail and has proved popular both with first time boat buyers and experiences racing sailors alike. It is fast and light, has lifting keel which makes the J/70 very easy to tow behind the family car and it planes in just 14 knots of breeze. Stable and manageable across the full range of wind-speeds irrespective of age or experience, the J/70 is the perfect family sportsboat and is an ideal option for those sailors who are considering the step up from dinghies to keelboats.

SailFest at WPNSA runs across the whole of the August Bank Holiday weekend and the J/70 will be available for visitors to the event to sail every day. If you would like to try the J/70 for yourself, irrespective of age or experience, Key Yachting and SailFest would be delighted to make the arrangements for you. Please just simply register your interest at http://sailfest.sailracer.org  or alternatively, give Key Yachting a call on 02380 455669 or email- J70@keyyachting.com.  For more information on the J/70 Sportsboat

J/Fest Southwest Success!

J/70s Debut, Enormous Showing for J/22s, J/24s(Houston, Texas)- Lakewood YC hosted the third annual J/Fest Southwest Regatta for sixty-two boats! Awesome atmosphere! Great band and free beer waiting for all the crews as they came off the water! Everyone is in party mode!

The focus of the J/Fest Southwest Regatta is to provide a Regatta venue that is extra fun for J/Boat owners, their family, and friends. While the racers are on the water, their spouses, children, family, and friends can enjoyed a myriad of activities and tourist attractions in the Bay Area.

One-design fleets that participated this year include the J/22s, J/24s, J/70s, J/80s, J/105s, J/109s and a J/PHRF class.  In the J/22s a great class of fourteen boats sailed with the local host team, BLACKBURN MARINE RACING skippered by Casey Lambert, simply walking off with the overall honors with four straight firsts for 4 pts.  Second was Fred Lindsey's team CACTUS JACK with a record of three 2nds and a 3rd for 9 pts.  Third was RICH SKANK sailed by Brant Koepke's team from Galveston Bay Cruising Association with three 3rds and a 2nd for 11 pts.

The J/24s had an excellent showing with sixteen boats participating.  It was a knockdown, drag 'em out fight for the top three with Corey Harding's team on HAPPY DANCE taking the gold with a 1-3-2-2 record for 8 pts to win by one point.  Second was Bryan Dyer skippering RUMLINE from Fort Worth Boat Club with a 2-1-3-3 tally for 9 pts.  Third was Stu Lindlow on TROPICAL AGGRESSION with a 3-2-1-4 for 10 pts.  Great racing to the end for this trio of teams!

The J/70s had their first one-design racing on Galveston Bay.  It was fun racing for all as the teams were all learning how to get the most out of their new boats.  In the finale, it was Bruce McDonald sailing ROGUE WARRIOR 2 from Houston YC that managed to score four 1sts and a 2nd for 6 pts.  Second was Jimmy Mitchell on BOOMTOWN from Fort Worth Boat Club that managed to wind a count-back tie-breaker based on most 1sts, etc.  Jimmy's 3-1-3-2-3 was good enough for 12 pts, overcoming Dave Hinrichsen's #51 that had three 2nds and two 3rds for 12 pts, too.

The J/80s had a great cross-section of sailors amongst the eight teams, including a team from Dillon, Colorado- Kurt Vanderwal on HENDRIX.  In some respects, this regatta was a great practice warm-up for local sailors all participating in the upcoming J/80 North Americans being held in Fort Worth Boat Club later in October.  Topping out the fleet was local J/80 champion sailor Jay Lutz sailed USA 803 with four straight 1sts!  Jay's performance was all the more remarkable considering the fact that they were up against another J/80 NA and World Champion, Terry Flynn and David Whelan, who ultimately finished second.  The Flynn/Whelan team sailed QUANTUM SAILS/ GULF COAST RACING to four 2nds to easily finish behind their local, friendly competitors.  Third was Alfred Poindexter sailing ANDALE that managed to just secure their position with a consistent 4-5-5-4 for 18 pts.

After the Fort Worth Boat Club's One-Design weekend and racing seminar, it was clear the ten boat class was going to have some very competitive racing as many of the teams had stepped up their game and were sailing their boats much more effectively and faster around the race track.  In the end, local rock star Bill Zartler on SOLARIS again proved to be the "wiseman" of the class and managed to sail to four 1sts and a 5th for 9 pts, easily winning their class.  Behind them was Greg Turman's HORNY TOAD, a well-sailed team that featured some great local talent from the Houston area; their 4-2-4-2-2 record for 14 pts was good enough for 2nd place.  Bill Lakenmacher sailed his RADIANCE to a third place position overall with an 8-6-3-4-1 record for 22 pts, showing improvement every single race.

The J/109s had one of their best showing in years with six boats sailing with one of the local host sailors simply dominating the fleet.  It was the HAMBURG "show" as Albrecht Goethe's teams led the fleet with five straight 1sts for a 5 pts total to win by a landslide.  Behind them was a real donnybrook of a fight for second place with Tom Sutton sailing his LEADING EDGE to a 2-3-4-2-5 record for 16 pts, to win a count-back tie-break based on 1-2-3 tally.  Losing that tie-break battle was Dave Christensen racing AIRBORNE into third place with a consistent 4-2-2-4-4 record also for 16 pts.

Finally, in the PHRF division, Doug Shaffer's beautiful J/122 GAMBLER sailed well as the "big boat" in the division to win with yet another "picket fence" performance- garnering four straight bullets for 4 pts to win class.  Second was Chris Alk's J/27 FOOTLOOSE with 11 pts.  Third was Bob Crutchfield's J/120 BLUECHIP with 18 pts.   For more J/Fest Southwest sailing information

J/Fest Southwest- Oct 13-14

(Houston, TX)- Lakewood YC on Galveston Bay in southern Texas along the Gulf of Mexico is again hosting the Third Annual J/Fest Southwest.  Open to all J/Owners, the focus of the J/Fest Southwest Regatta is to provide a Regatta venue that is extra fun for J/Boat owners, their family, and friends. While the racers are on the water, their spouses, children, family, and friends can enjoy a myriad of activities and tourist attractions in the Bay Area. Goodie bags for skippers will contain coupons for family fun.

One design fleets slated for the J/Fest Southwest Regatta include J/22, J/24, J/80, J/105 and the J/109’s. It will be a circuit stop for the J/22’s and the J/24’s. All J/Boats are welcome to race in the PHRF classes and in the J/Cruise class. Any J/Boat is eligible to participate, and the regatta organizers intend to offer several exciting formats for the non One Design racers. This year we expect to see a couple of hot J/70’s flying around as well!   For  more J/Fest SW sailing information

J/70 Demos "Big D"-> Dallas!

(Dallas, Texas)- For this coming weekend, J sailors and enthusiasts in the southern part of America can enjoy demonstration sails on the J/70 speedster at Dallas Corinthian YC on Lewisville Lake just north of the Dallas/ Ft Worth corridor.  No shoot-out at this OK Corral, just lots of fun people two-stepping around for a famous Texas hoe-down on the water sailing J/70s.  Beer. Brats. Chips. Tacos. Salsa. Jalapeños. Chocolate chip cookies and peppermint ice-cream for the kiddies.  Mom's would LOVE this place.  Head on down to DCYC and enjoy a ride on the J/70 to get hooked on sailing for life!  Make sure you let Scott Spurlin and crew know you're headed there! Scott- phone# 512-423-2179 or email- info@jboatssouthwest.com.  For more J/70 sailing information

J/109 Wins J/Cup Overall

J/111 J-DREAM Wins Tie-breaker!
(Southampton, England)- On Saturday morning the fleet at the 2012 J-Cup Driven by MIQ Logistics headed off the dock to complete the final races in this 63 boat regatta. Tony Lovell and his team from the Royal Southern Yacht Club ensured that each of the six classes got two races away in a northerly breeze, moving left and building to 22 knots in the gusts as the day developed. By 16.00 hours all J-Cup challenges had been settled, two National Championships had been won and the winner of the 2012 J-Cup had been decided.

Mike & Jamie Holmes team on Jika Jika had led the Lombard J/97 UK National Championship fleet from the start of the event. At the first gun on Saturday morning Jika Jika had 6 points on the sheet, Grant Gordon’s Fever was just three behind on 9 and Stuart Sawyer s Black Dog had 12. The team on Jika Jika have done plenty of sailing together over the last few seasons and two more race wins were the result on Saturday: Mike, Jamie and crew triumphed and won the Lombard J/97 UK National Championship convincingly with a net score of just 8 points. Fever took the silver slot with 15 points and Black Dog took the bronze medal and also the North Sails Boat of the Day prize for this class.

With 24 boats taking part the largest class racing at the 2012 J-Cup was racing for the J/109 UK National Championship supported by Sebago. Whilst Steven Tapper ’s Stalker had held the top slot for the duration of the regatta, they did not make it easy for themselves on the last day. In fact the top five boats in this fleet all had a monumental tussle on Saturday with three of them posting (and discarding) their worse results of the whole regatta. Not surprisingly and there were several changes in the rankings. Jonathan Calascione and Johnnie Goodwin’s Harlequin put in the best performance of the whole fleet with a 1, 2 score on Saturday and this earned them the North Sails Boat of the Day prize. Never having to count a score outside the top seven across the eight races sailed, ultimately it was the team on Stalker who finished at the top of the podium and who were pronounced the new J/109 UK National Champions, supported by Sebago. Harlequin took silver, Mike and Sarah Wallis took the bronze in Jahmali, Paul Griffith’s Jagerbomb was fourth overall and Tony Dicken’s Jubilee finished fifth.

David and Kirsty Apthorp’s J/111 J-Dream left the dock on Saturday with 9 points on their card, a two point advantage over Didier Le Moal’s J Lance on 11 points and nerves must have been jangling, especially when Race 7 (the first race of the day) was won by Jamie Arnell’s Jeez Louise, with J-Lance in second. Now the gap between J-Dream and J Lance was down to just one point. The final race of the series was smashed by J Lance and J-Dream took second. So… two J/111s on equal points at the top of the Class : exactly the same situation in which these two boats found themselves at Spi Ouest regatta earlier this year… This time however it was the J-Dream team who took the Class win on count-back. J Lance was second overall and Duncan McDonald and Phil Thomas ’ Shmokin Joe were third. J Lance won the North Sails Boat of the Day prize.

The J/133s and the J/122s raced in IRC 1 at the 2012 J-Cup and the predominantly Solent based fleet included Mick Holland and Carolyn Aylmer’s J/122 Majic form Guernsey along with Herman Bergshaven’s J/133 Madjus from Norway. Having led the regatta since Race 1 Ian Dewhirst and his team on the J/133 Jump stole the gold in IRC 1 finishing with just 8 points. Robert and Jackie Dobson settled for silver in their J/133 Jeronimo and Ivan Trotman took the bronze and the North Sails Boat of the Day prize in IRC 1.

Having had a sticky start to the 2012 J-Cup, the current holders of the coveted silverware Andy Howe and Annie Kelly found improving form throughout the regatta sailing their J/92 Blackjack in IRC 2. Scoring just four points in the final races on Saturday was enough to secure them the North Sails Boat of the Day prize but it was Richard Sainsbury’s team on his J/92 Bojangles who won the class overall from Blackjack in second and Richard Sparrows’s Who’s to No from Ramsgate in third place overall.

The J/80 Class all enjoyed the building breeze and planning conditions on Saturday, and Chris Ducker ’s SLAM finally found some decent form for which the crew were nominated as North Sails Boat of the day. Patrick Liardet’s Aqua J also had a fabulous day and won both races but neither SLAM nor Aqua-J were able to knock Stewart Hawthorn’s J’ai 2 Amours off the highest podium position and the results at the end of the day were J’ai 2 Amours in first, Aqua-J second and SLAM third overall.

The Prize-giving dinner and party for the 2012 J-Cup Driven by MIQ Logistics took place at St Mary’s Stadium on Saturday night and 400 competitors were in attendance. Prizes were presented by generous sponsors for first to third place in all classes and for first to fifth for the J/109 UK National Championship fleet. Following a very quick (and debilitating) round of SLAMbucca, armfuls of silverware, glassware, Wight Vodka and caps, SLAM clothes, bags, gifts and Harken goodies galore were offered up to those who were lucky enough to finish on the podium. Then, as has now become the norm at the J-Cup, a number of other very special prizes were also presented.

The Dubarry Boot for Endurance was awarded to David Richards of the J/109 Jumping Jellyfish. David and his crew are regatta stalwarts and do more racing, covering more nautical miles than most in their J/109 and if there is a J Boat regatta to be done, David will be there, fully supportive of the fleet and of the organising team. The second Dubarry Boot, this one for Outstanding Achievement, was presented to Jim Dick of the J/97 Jackaroo. Jim was the founding Chairman of the J/97 UK Class Association and has been responsible for building cohesion in the class and for championing one-design racing. He also won the Scottish Series overall in Jackaroo in 2011, helping in no small way to put the boat on the regatta map.

The Musketeer Trophy is presented for the best two boat team from differing classes and the scores are weighted according to the size of the Class in which each boat competes. This year it was won by the J-Dream (winners of the eight boat J/111 Class) and Harlequin (placed second overall in the 24 boat J/109 Class). The trophy itself is a beautiful silver double Champagne ice-bucket and the winners must return it topped with Champagne at the 2013 J-Cup.

B&G has been a principal sponsor of the J-Cup for ten years and this year a voucher for £3,000 of electronic equipment was on offer. This is clearly a major prize and it went to Mike and Sarah Wallis from Jahmali. Mike and Sarah are valuable long-term members of the J/109 Class; Mike sits on the Committee as the Technical Representative, Sarah organised the Class Party earlier this year. They are competitive racing sailors who each share their well defined sense of fair play and friendship with the other owners and crew in their fleet and are deserving and popular winners of the B&G prize.

In addition to all of the other prizes and trophies presented at the J-Cup, this year there was another rather special one to add to the list. ‘H’ Poole was a well known J Boat sailor, all round top bloke and friend to many of us in the fleet. He was tragically killed in a crash between two RAF Tornado aircraft a few weeks ago. Some of H’s closest mates and colleagues who were racing at the J-Cup wanted to present a trophy in his honour and it was a privilege to have H’s partner Beth at the party on Saturday to present the prize. It was awarded for an "individual performance by someone who knew no limits" and fittingly it was presented to Nick Cherry: erstwhile J Boat Sailor (who was racing with Jumping Jellyfish again this year) and who is a recently returned hero of the Figaro single handed series.

The overall and most coveted prize of the whole regatta is the J-Cup itself, a relatively modest piece of silverware by comparison with some of the other beautiful trophies which are contested at the event. In eleven years of running the J-Cup regatta, the J-Cup has never been awarded to the same boat or the same team, twice. A simple piece of silverware it may be but it embodies the soul of the J-Cup regatta and of the unique spirit of friendship, competition and camaraderie which exists between J Boat owners. The overall winner of the 2012 J-Cup Driven by MIQ logistics was Steven Tapper and his crew on Stalker. A determined and focussed progress up through the J/109 rankings over the last three years or so and now a National Championship win in a 24 boat fleet: yes, that’s an impressive result and an extremely deserving J-Cup win.

With thanks to all of the sponsors of the 2012 J-Cup, not least the title sponsor MIQ Logistics, but also to our supporting sponsors SLAM, B&G, North Sails, Dubarry of Ireland, Coast Graphics, Harken UK, Lombard, Sebago and Wight Vodka.  All of the results and information about the 2012 J-Cup Driven by MIQ Logistics can be found online at www.sailracer.org/jcup and the 2013 event will be held in the West Country in August next year.   Sailing photo credits- Tim Wright- Photoaction.com   For more J/Cup sailing information