SAIL FIRST Sponsors ISAF Youth Worlds!

(Limassol, Cyprus)- Recently, Giannos Photiou, President of the Cyprus Sailing Federation, announced that SAIL FIRST has come on board as the title sponsor of the 2013 ISAF Youth Worlds and, in a difficult financial climate in the country, extended his special thanks to the company for their financial support.

With 358 sailors from 55 countries set to compete in Limassol Photiou said, "The ISAF Youth Sailing World Championship is one of the greatest sports events ever to be held in Cyprus and it is characterized as a small sailing Olympiad for ISAF Youth Sailors."

SAIL FIRST, based in the harbor of Paphos on the western end of Cyprus (the island itself is in the far eastern Mediterranean), have a fleet of 10 fully-equipped J/80s to make on-water activities available to those who want to get out sailing.  They organize and manage events at any level, including fleet, match and team racing events for both yacht clubs and corporate events.

With a full-time staff based in Paphos Harbour, Cyprus including two RIBs, racing buoys, and judging and technical support, it's simply a phone call/ email to SAIL FIRST to enjoy a weekend/ week-long event of sailing on the gorgeous eastern Mediterranean-- all year long with great winds, too!  Plus, you can be one-design racing with less than four hour flights from London, Frankfurt, Paris, Moscow and other EU cities and stay in 3-5 star hotels on the island! No need to live in cramped charter-boat cabins! Plus, it's a very convenient "two in one" holiday-- one with the family and the other-- your participation in the regatta!  For more SAIL FIRST J/80 one-design fleet sailing information

The Swedish Report on French J/80 Nationals

(Marstrand, Sweden)- The forecast before departure from Sweden did say the weather was going to be quite challenging- wave height of 5 meters and winds from the west over 17-20 m/s. It was admittedly a little nervous situation, we would drive 250 miles just to sit on the bridge and look out on a raging sea?  But it is an outdoor sport and weather is beyond our control.  If no sailing, we know the oysters will be excellent and we could get in a bit of sightseeing in the worst case.

Our team has not sailed together before, but we have sailed against each other many times across the race track.  This is a bit unusual for me, but it will be fun to do something else (tactics) while Lasse steers, Gitte trims and Pelle does strategy.

Douarnenez in Brittany is probably the nicest place we have sailed in, says everyone when we all arrive. After a great dinner, we look forward to the first race, but it does seem a bit windy.

At dawn on Thursday it was blowing about 15 kts, but gusting much higher, perhaps 30 kts.  It was even windier in the villages, it was raining too, so today's race is canceled. The French sailors are very unhappy, of course, even though the organizers say they must prioritize safety. A sensible decision, we think, although we would happily had sailed out of the protected harbor and into the Atlantic to give it a test.

On Friday, the wind has died down somewhat, so we get out and practice a little before the first start. After the start, we get going good. Up at the first rounding we're 7th with 73 boats behind.  Fun! But, the wind changes 30 degrees and those located on the other side get level or ahead of us while we get into the basement of the fleet! Ugh! But when you go planing along at 15.6 knots, it's hard to not smile!  So, for the next start, we are greatly stoked!

However, it was a tight start and when we dodge a boat before the start we collide with another boat!  Ouch! At the same time we smoke our forestay- gone!  So, when the wind is more than 10 m/s in the Atlantic we can't sail. I jump up and sit forward in the bow, holding the forestay while I get soaked to the skin-- ultimately we get towed into the harbor.

The rest of the day, evening and following morning are devoted to locate spare parts. The French are incredibly friendly and very helpful.  About 7 different sailors from other boats stay around and help us.  Finally, we find what we need in a small village about 1 hour away. By early morning the next day, everything is repaired-- thanks to our dear French friends.

Next race, we are well placed for the first beat, but a big left shift sends us down into the basement again. I have not seen such big wind shifts in the Atlantic before. And 20-30 degree shifts seem to be common here.  This place is worse than Ram in Sweden, but with fast-moving 3 meter waves!  We have some other top boats around us, there are several who have missed the big shift.  But soon, we draw level with the top boats and get a good race finish-- so it's still smiles all the way to the finish.

Today's last race would also be the last of the regatta.  On Sunday it "blew dogs off chains" and then some, so there was no sailing at all.

It is incredibly fun to sail in large fields and, although we were unlucky with the collision and weather, it is still worth the effort to get here and sail. It extends our short season and get a great sailing experience to think back to the dark winter months. The cost is not particularly high, rental boat € 1800, entry fee € 250, accommodation sleeps 4 (with breakfast) € 600 + travel. That is, about 8,000 SKR-- not bad for the experience, really!  Plus, the food and drink and friends were fantastic-- the best!  Until next time, friends!  Sailing photo credits- Jacques Vapillon

German J/80 Youth Team Report

* German J/80 Youth sailing team report- from Fynn Terveer- like their Long Island Sound youth sailing buddies, this German J/80 youth team has been having a fun and successful season sailing their boat "Bibelot GER 529".  Here's Fynn's report-

"Our team of BIBELOT GER 529 got funding from the German J/80 Class Association to participate in the 2012 German J/80 Open sailing circuit this season.  Some of you we have probably already met, others we have not met on the race course. Therefore I would like to report briefly on our crew.

Our crew is comprised of Malte Harneit (18 yrs old) on main sheet, Felix Stallforth (19 yrs old) on jib sheet, Patrick Flob (17) on the gennaker, and me Terveer Fynn, as skipper.  All of us have been sailing for about five years in the Kieler Yacht Club. Here Felix and Malte had been sailing 29ers for two years in the Kieler Yacht School. Good things have been happening there with great changes for junior sailors.  Patrick and I have sailed for five years and active in the yachting school, along with 35 other young members, we added four more boats and two dinghies.

As with most other J/80 teams, we are ready to race in the Schlei One Design Cup and at German Open in Flensburg. Furthermore, we are ready to sail in Berlin or Hamburg, provided there are enough sailing teams to race us!! We are looking forward to a fun end-of-the-season sailing program!  Best regards, Fynn!"

J/80 PRO-RIGGING Wins PalmaVela

(Palma de Mallorca, Spain)- Four days of picture-perfect sailing conditions have decided the winners of the 7th edition of the Mapfre PalmaVela regatta, which has gathered 115 boats of 16 countries in the bay of Palma.  It came down to the wire on the last day for winners in most of the 15 divisions at the 2012 Mapfre PalmaVela regatta, which began Friday with over 1.000 sailors representing countries such as Spain, Italy, Ireland, Russia, Virgin Islands, England, Sweden and Great Britain. The event is hosted by the Real Club Náutico de Palma, and is considered the first event of the Mediterranean sailing season.

The nineteen teams sailing in the J/80 fleet had excellent competition.  However, this time a new team took the honors at the top of the podium, local hotshot sailor Javier Sanz racing for Real Club Nautico Palma on PRO-RIGGING won the event easily.  Second was the "sponsor's" team, MAPFRE sailed by Carlos Martinez and third was past Spanish Olympic Gold Medalist, Jose Maria Van Der Ploeg racing NILFISK.  The American team on FIRED UP sailed a charter boat and managed a credible 7th, led by Gary Kamins and crew (Jay Lutz) from California YC and Houston, TX.

In the ORC fleet the J/145 ACE sailed by Fred Stelle with guest star Rod Johnstone had a fabulous time sailing and managed to grab a third overall in their division.

On the first day or racing, the forecast was for Westerly winds of around 15 knots all day, reaching 16-17 knots at 12:00, when the start of races is scheduled. The nice westerly breeze and clear sunny skies brought another great day of sailing for the season`s first event.  Of note, in the Soto 40 class the series favorite Iberdrola, with J/80 World Champion Pichu Torcida at the helm, showed they are in form and finished the day in the first position after the three races held today.  In the ORC 0 Class, Fred Stelle's J/145 ACE managed a 3-4.

On the second day of sailing, Southerly winds of 8 to 10 knots in the early afternoon cooperated to give almost all classes three races, although the breeze didn`t settle until later in the afternoon, 15:00 hours, when the clear sunny skies and 15 knots delivered picture-perfect conditions.  In the J80 class Javier Sanz`s Pro-Rigging skippered by David Madrazo clawed their way up to first after a great performance notching two first and a second place, leaving Jose María Van der Ploeg`s Nilfisk as runner up. The Spanish Olympic medallist posted a sixth, an eleventh - discarded- and a first.  In ORC 0, Fred Stelle's J/145 team on ACE repeated their performance from the day before, scoring a 4-3.

The third and last day of races started in tactically demanding conditions of 6 to 8 knots of Northeasterly wind and light overcast skies which prevented the breeze from pushing through until 14:00 hours, when a nice Southerly breeze stablished in the bay of Palma.  The J-80 class was a cause for joy at the RCNP for its President Javier Sanz`s PRO-RIGGING clinched the Mapfre PalmaVela Trophy in the One-Design class which gathered nineteen boats for this seventh edition. Carlos Martinez`s MAPFRE was second, whereas Olympic medallist Jose María Van der Ploeg`s NILFISK was third.  On the last day, Stelle's J/145 ACE in ORC 0 class managed a 3rd to clinch 3rd overall for the division.   Sailing photo credits- Martinez Studio   For more PalmaVela sailing information

Baltic Wharf J/80 UK Training

(Dartmouth, England)- Like their French and Spanish counterparts, the J/80 UK sailors are starting to "dial-up" their training programs this spring.  Four training weekends are planned for the UK fleet after Easter. They will include coaching for the fleet, tuning, boat handling practice, race work with the Race Management team for the Worlds and plenty of really good sailing.  It starts on 28-29 April in the Solent then transfers down to Dartmouth for the last three weekends of May.

The Baltic Wharf J/80 Training Program is precisely that: A coaching program which will be led by RYA/Olympic Sailing Coach Jim Saltonstall. It’s a series of training weekends designed to offer those skippers and crews who take part a real step up in performance in advance of the Worlds and a chance to learn the waters in which the regatta will be fought. One of the two final weekends will take place with the PRO and the full race team in attendance.  If you'd like to learn more about how to sail the one-design J/80 faster, please contact Becci Eplett (becci@keyyachting.com) at J/UK Key Yachting Group in Southampton, England.  Sailing Photo Credit- Peter Newton

J/80 Trofeo Maximo Bolado

(Santander, Spain)- The J/80 fleet in Santander enjoyed a good day of racing last weekend, vying for the Trofeo Maximo Bolado.  The high tide and northwest wind around 12 knots (which was subsiding throughout the afternoon), allowed the RC to locate a good race course up to the gorgeous moors that form the backdrop to the harbor.

The first race was dominated from start to finish by Alberto Padron at the helm. NEXTEL's Ignacio Camino was second. Third place was decided in the final meters in favor of VERIGUETO that had Santi Lopez-Vazquez at the helm, ahead of CROCS sailed by Javier Aguado. Finishing fifth was ECC VIVIENDAS, skippered for the occasion by Javier de la Plaza.

In the second race, it was FONESTAR with Peru Mujica at the helm, who led most of the race, but he hooked the anchor line of a mark and lost his position with an "auto-penalty", but managed to finish third despite the setback.

Overall, the thirty boat fleet is pretty tight with the Pichu Torcida's ECC VIVIENDAS leading the first trophy of the year with 15 points, followed by Ignacio Camino's NEXTEL which has soared to second place (18 points) and third is maintained Jaime Piris on FONESTAR (22). David Madrazo's GO FIT is fourth with 26 and fifth with 31 is CINCUA SOLUCIONES sailed by Toño Gorostegui and Alejandro Diaz.  For more Santander J/80 sailing information   Sailing photo credits- Chapifoto.com

J/80 TV- J80s Sailing off Spain

The J/80s sailing off Santander, Spain are starting to document some of their adventures sailing against one another.  Not a bad fleet to learn from! Just a few J/80 World Champions in Spain and the tops guys are from Santander-- including the two most recent J/80 World Champs.  Here are a selection of videos from various boats.

For the ESP 880 team- here's their commentary-  "Great sailing conditions. NW wind ranging 18-25 knots. Gusty with rain squalls. Recorded while attending regular fleet racing. Unfortunately, I lost a GoPro2 attached to the bow-sprit in the process. Don't worry, a new one is on the way!  Javier Lopez-Vazquez helming on ESP 880."  The skipper of NEXTEL ENGINEERING is Ignacio Camino and, of course, the leader of ECC VIVIENDAS is Pichu Torcida.  Good perspectives on sail trim, body movements, boat positioning on waves and boat-for-boat positioning- very informative and instructional!

Jan 30th sailing- ESP 880 sailing team
Jan 28th sailing- ESP 880 sailing team
Jan 28th sailing- NEXTEL ENGINEERING sailing team
Jan 28th sailing- ECC VIVIENDAS sailing team
November- J/80 Mundialito off Santander

J/80 Coupe de France- A Vintage Year

INTERFACE CONCEPT Wins, Three Women's Teams in Top Ten!
(Paris, France)- It was truly a vintage year for the J/80 class in France.  Strong turnouts at all major events.  And, the total number of French teams participating in this year's Coupe de France J/80 exceeded all expectations- 189 boats sailed, up 17% from 2010!  That's a remarkable performance given the economic and political times we live in today.  To provide you some context, the International J/80 is by far the largest European circuit of one-design keelboats- larger than all other sportboats combined!  And, it is the only national one-design keelboat circuit that has women's teams competing at the highest level of sailing in the sport- women's boats took three of the top ten in this year's circuit!

The 2011 Coupe de France included the following eight events:  Spi OUEST France, Valle des Fous Regatta, Grand Prix Ecole Navale Regatta, Grand Prix Crouesty, Deauville Open J/80, Pornic J/Cup, Telegramme Lorient Regatta and Nationals St Cast.

After sailing in a wide variety of weather conditions in a broad and spectacular array of sailing locations, the creme'd'la'creme of French J/80 sailors would surely rise to the top of the standings.  It takes talented teams that can weather the good, the bad and the ugly in terms of starts, mark roundings, wind shifts, currents, boat-to-boat tactics to do well in these types of series.

At the end of it all, Eric Brezellec sailing INTERFACE CONCEPT 2 proved his fantastic performance in this year's J/80 Worlds in Copenhagen, Denmark was no fluke.  Eric's team has been sailing consistently and it's clear the French J/80 sailing teams, in general, have stepped up their game to a world-class level.  Perhaps the motivation of a J/80 Worlds in Weymouth, England and the next worlds in France are helping the teams sail faster and smarter!  Nevertheless, congratulations are due to Eric's IC2 team winning and the rest of the top ten players:

2. CN ST CAST GRAND OUEST ETIQUETTES- Maxime Rousseau- 1st women's team
3. J'ILE DE RE- Christine Briand- 2nd women's team
4. VOILERIE ALL'PURPOSE- Sylvain Pellissier
5. ECOLE NAVALE CG29- Patrick Bot
6. CHARLY- Pierre Metais
7. INTERFACE CONCEPT- Jean-Charles Moriceau
8. GAN'JA- Luc Nadal
9. MARINE LORIENT TRI-UGENT- Gwénolé Bernard- 3rd women's team
10. BABY J- Jean-François Guionet

For more Coupe de France J/80 sailing information

JJ PALMENSIS Lanzarote Island Cup J/80 Champion!

(Lanzarote, Canary Islands)- For a fleet of twenty-five boats, it's hard to beat some of the world's best J/80 sailors in the windy, wavy conditions you often see for even the evening beer can racing off the Canaries.  Blessed with "super San Francisco" conditions- 15-30 knots, sunny, clear azure blue waters, it's hard not to like racing in these conditions, especially planing off the wind in clouds of spray.

Gustavo Martinez and team on JJ PALMENSIS found the racing and the conditions very much to their liking, they're proclaimed Champions and Kings of the J/80 World in the Canary Islands! They worked hard to earn the top of the podium over three weekends of sailing, ultimately, beating out past J/80 World Champion Rayco Tabares sailing the famous GRAND HOTEL ISLAS CANARIAS.   For more Lanzarote Island Cup sailing information.