JOCONDA Scoops Italian J/80 Winter Championship

(Santa Margherita Ligure, Italy)- Over the course of the four weekend winter series held on the beautiful waters and bay off Santa Margherita and Portofino, Italy, it was pretty clear that JOCONDA was sailing strongly and was determined to finish well in their series.

The regional J/80 fleet saw testing conditions over the course of the series, with relatively light breezes from the southern sea-breeze quadrants most of the time.  In the end, with eleven races sailed,  JOCONDA won the Winter Championship Trophy Miramare!

In second place in both rankings was JENIALE, which was lacking in consistency and good performance.  MONTPRES was sailing well and managed to sail to third place while J-BES managed a fourth.
For more J/80 Italian Sailing information

MANDOVI Leads El Trofeo Primavera

GO FIT Leads Trofeo El Mundo Cantabria
(Algorta, Spain)- The J/80s in Spain continue their spring series in their various sailing regions.  Held over several weekends, these regatta serve to warm-up their teams to world-championship calibre in a very short period of time-- all possible due to the high level of talent in their fleets, giving many sailors the chance to practice and train hard against Olympic and World Champions!

In the Trofeo Primavera being sailed off Punta Galea near Algorta, Spain, the MANDOVI team is setting the pace, having won two races last weekends.  MANDOVI now sits in first place with only six points followed by JET SET and FREUS that are tied on ten points each.

Over in Santander, the J/80s are racing for the title of Champion of El Trofeo El Mundo Cantabria-  in short, "Champion of the Cantabrian World".  A bit tongue-in-cheek, of course, but no less fun and serious for the top teams practicing for the upcoming worlds just under two months away in Dartmouth, England.

After last weekend's racing, it is David Madrazo's team on GO FIT that is leading with a strong, consistent performance of a 7-2-2-1-2-2 for only 9 total points.  Immediately behind him are two J/80 World Champions, with Ignacio Camino on NEXTEL ENGINEERING with a 5-3-1-3-8-3 for 15 pts, good enough for second place, and Pichu Torcida on ECC VIVIENDAS in third with a 1-20-5-7-4-1 for 18 pts.  Rounding out the top five are Jesus Gonzalez on RAITAN with a 6-17-7-2-6-5 for 26 pts in fourth and in fifth is Tonio Piris on the familiar YATES Y COSAS, starting out strong with a 3-1-4-5 but DNC'd the last two races for a total of 43 pts.  For sailing photo credits in Algorta- Patricia Merino Fotografía  For J/80 Spain sailing results

J/Teams Sailing PalmaVela

(Palma de Mallorca, Spain)- 116 boats, 1,000 sailors, 16 represented countries and 15 divisions make up the impressive line-up of the 2012 Mapfre PalmaVela regatta, the principal opening event for the 2012 sailing season on the Mediterranean. During the four next days, 15 divisions will be competing on four race areas distributed throughout the bay of Palma, probably one of the world's most famous sailing areas.

The J/80 fleet will have nineteen teams and will feature the participation of Olympic champion and winner of the last edition of the Copa del Rey Audi Mapfre, José María van der Ploeg at the helm of GREAT SAILING as well as past winner of the PalmaVela, Carlos Martínez sailing MAPFRE.  Sure to give them a good-ole fashioned run-for-the-money will be Gary Kamins and crew (Jay Lutz) from California YC and Houston, TX.

In the ORC fleet will be the J/145 ACE sailed by Fred Stelle that has on-board a great crew, including J/Boats designer Rod Johnstone.  Since they're the "small boat" in a big-boat class, life could be interesting chasing down the big-boys when the sea-breeze builds on a choppy, wavy bay off Palma.  For more PalmaVela sailing information

Spectacular Sailing At SPI OUEST France Regatta

J/111 J-LANCE 7 & J/80 INTERFACE CONCEPT Winners
(La Trinite sur Mer, France)- The weather was challenging- ranging from sunny and windy to grey, cool, light and shifty.  Nevertheless, the host club, the Société Nautique de la Trinité-sur-Mer, masterfully orchestrated a fabulous, gracious and excellent competition across the board for the enormous 438 boat fleet and the giant J/Classes. In short, one of the most famous spring regattas in the world lived up to its billing as one of the premiere sailing events on the international sailing calendar.

In one short burst of spontaneous combustion and energy, the quaint, lovely little seaside town called La Trinite sur Mer on Quiberon Bay became a bustling metropolis for some of the world's best sailors in both offshore sailing as well as one-design classes.  All the boats that participated were in for a challenging four days of sailing: great 20-25 kt sunny breezes the first day, two days of cloudy, grey shifty sailing, concluding with another partly cloudy windy day for the finale.  For many of the classes, the regatta outcome was not determined until the last day.  The huge J contingent of 141 boats (32% of the fleet with J/Boats being the largest brand in the regatta!) from across Europe and the U.K. had a wonderful time.  Nine J/111s sailed their first European One-Design event and the 119 J/80s were treated to a tour'de'force by a renown French sailing team.

For the J/111 class, the racing could not have been any closer.  Literally, the outcome came down to the last leg of the last race to determine who would win!  And, even crazier was the fact that the winner was determined on a tie-breaker!  Prophetically, it became a titanic battle between one of the top offshore French sailing teams led by Didier LeMoal on J-LANCE 7 and the #1 British J/109 offshore team that has now hopped into the J/111 class- the team of David & Kirsty Apthorp on the famously-named J-DREAM.  The regatta went down to the wire for the top three boats.  After six races, J-DREAM was a leading with a 2-1-2-3-1-1 record for only 10 pts, J-LANCE 7 was in second with a 1-3-3-2-2-2 for 13 pts and third was John Van der Starre's XCENTRIC RIPPER with a 3-4-1-1-3-5 for 17 pts.  But, the last four races changed everything for this group.  Didier's team on J-LANCE 7 managed to finish off with a 1-1-3-1 to J-DREAM's 8-2-2-2 and XCENTRIC RIPPER's 2-5-1-3.  As a result, J-LANCE 7 won the tie-break on most 1sts to win the class with J-DREAM second and XCENTRIC RIPPER third.  Rounding out the top five were two other French teams, Stephen Blanchard's LE JOUET in fourth and G. Thomas' ALPHALINK EXTREME YACHTING in fifth.

The J/111s enjoyed excellent media coverage of their event, thanks to BLUR.SE founder Peter Gustafsson (he was sailing his brand new J/111 BLUR!).  For a preview of what it's like to sail the J/111 in tight-quarters one-design racing, see these videos edited by Peter's friend Stefan Blom on VIMEO and also read John Van de Starre's report from X-CENTRIC RIPPER below in the J/Community section.

VIMEO - Day One/  Day Two/  Day Three/  Day Four

Without question, the dominant one-design class in SPI Ouest France were the 119 J/80s-- by far the largest one-design class the SPI OUEST Regatta has ever experienced for several years in a row. Why?  Because they're having fun and it's a simple sportboat to sail in France!  Considering the strength and the depth of experience seen at this year's world-class event, it was remarkable to see one team simply dominate the racing over a wide variety of sailing conditions.  The top Frenchman at last year's J/80 Worlds in Copenhagen, Denmark simply demonstrated speed, smart tactics and great boat-handling-- congratulations to Eric Brezellec and crew on INTERFACE CONCEPT for a fantastic sailing series-- hard to beat a record of 1-2-7-1-2-1-7-4-1 tossing a 7th for an aggregate of 19 pts!  Nevertheless, while Eric's was a dominating performance, two other top French teams were giving him a "run-for-the-money".  Coincidentally, like their big brother J/111 teams, they also had to settle for "who-beat-who" on a tie-breaker!  Second was Vincent Vandekerhove sailing DUNKERQUE PLAISANCE to an equally strong 6-1-1-7-bfd-1-1-5-2 record for 24 pts.  Were it not for a BFD in race 5, Vincent and the very fast, smart-sailing DP crew might have won the regatta outright.  Third was Nicolas Lunven sailing GENERALI to an incredibly consistent 2-16-2-2-3-3-2-6-4 also for 24 pts.

Congratulations must go out to the top women sailing team that was led by the French team of Maxime Rousseaux on CN ST CAST- GRAND OUEST ETIQUETTES, finishing 4th overall out of 119 boats!  She ended up defeating a number of Olympic Medallists, World and European Champions along her route to to the top five.  Fifth behind here was French J/80 Champion Luc Nadal on GANJA.  Top British team was Royal Southern YC's Kevin Sproul sailing ULTIMATE SAILS to sixth and top Spanish team was Inigo Jauregui on GOLD SAILING in eighth.

The J/122s and J/133 had a tough road to drive in a very competitive 32 boat IRC 1 Class.  In the end, the top J/122 was MADE IN LOVE (J. Patier) finishing 7th, followed by another J/122 JOLLY JOKER (R. Marchais) in 12th.  Ending up 13th was Yves Grosjean's J/133 JIVARO and just behind them was the J/122 NUTMEG IV (F. Lognone) in 16th.

Finally, in the largest IRC fleet, IRC 4 class with 64 boats, the J/97 MISPICKEL V sailed by B. Fagart managed to finish 6th despite a "slow start" in Races 1 & 2 and a bad race 8. Otherwise, the MISPICKEL V team were on track to be a regatta leader with a 4-2-8-1-4 for one of the best records in the fleet!  "Next time" promised the crew!   For more Spi Ouest France sailing information

J/80 Italy Winter Championship

(Santa Margherita Ligure, Italy)- The J/80 class in Italy continues to enjoy a passionate following of sailors, much like their J/24 brothers.  This year, the J/80 Winter Champion was JOCONDA.  After sailing four weekends (from February to April 1), the local J/80 fleet was pleased to have lots of races on the water in front of the Hotel Miramare and the beautiful bay of Santa Margherita (just around the corner from a very famous sailing "water-hole" known as Portofino).

The racing was tight for the fleet but it was clear that JOCONDA's team had the upper hand over this year's winter sailing season.  After 11 races JOCONDA proved they were worthy of being crowned the Winter Champions of the Trofeo Miramare.  In second place was class evangelist and long-time support JENIALE!  Third in the standings was MONTPRES.  For more J/80 Italy sailing information

Tabares Wins Hotel Princess Yaiza Cup

(Lanzarote, Canary Islands)- The Fifth Princess Yaiza Cup, emblematic in many respects of the Canary Islands J/80 Champion, was hosted this past weekend by the Real Club Náutico Arrecife Nautica on the spectacular and windy waters off the islands.  Presiding over the festivities and the regatta was none other than Princesa Alexia herself, saying to the teams at the start of the regatta, "I wish everyone lots of luck, enjoy fair winds and show a lot of sportsmanship!"

The first day of racing saw the fleet experiencing up to 19 knots of breeze and the offshore trade winds built up strength over the course of the day.  It was pretty clear from the outset, the fleet of twelve boats was going to have to figure out how to overcome the dominance of former J/80 World Champion, Rayco Tabares sailing the famous Canary Hotel Princesa Yaiza.  They didn't.  As Rayco's team led from the outset.

By the second day average winds were 25-28 knots gusting to 30 knots plus-- just your average Canary Islands sailing day, as Ken Read of PUMA Volvo 70 fame acknowledged after months of practice there prior to the start of the Volvo Ocean Race (quote- "I thought the roof of my condo was blowing away each night!").  Nevertheless, after contemplating for awhile the decision to go sailing, even the hardiest souls admitted it might be a bit much for most of the fleet, so the RC/PRO wisely cancelled sailing for the day.

As a result, the winner of the regatta was Rayco Tabares, the 2009 J/80 World Champion in Santander, Spain.  Second just one point back was Rafael Lasso.  Third on the podium was a family affair- Carlos Morales sailing with his three brothers, Alejandro, Gonzalo and Miguel!

On March 23, 2012 the President of the Real Club Nautico de Arrecife Jose Alvarez Juan Padron with SAR Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark presided over the awards ceremony in which different crews winners received recognition in the presence of different authorities, representatives of the different ports of Lanzarote, other competitors and attendees.

Rayco Tabares said, "I am very happy to have won my third Cup in honor of Princess Alexia with my team, this year we missed a lot of people, but otherwise all participants showed a very high level of competition with excellent crew. We are preparing for the World Championship to be held in England in June and this kind of racing can help us confront these challenges.  The northeast wind (typical of Arrecife) of the race was suitable for testing and competition, we were all very evenly matched and that is reflected in that nothing separates us from one point between each of the first four boats.  I am more than satisfied with my team after the bad start (ED NOTE- they "shrimped" their spinnaker).

Carlos Morales on the third place IKOS Crew said, "The most important is that the first four teams were just a point apart each, it shows that there was a very similar level.  We had a very good race, so I'm very happy and is a good result.  This race is special because it is named after my wife and it is great to participate. In this edition I have the luck to have had a crew of my three brothers Michael, Alexander and Gonzalo. Is the first time we sailed the four together and the experience is more than positive because we enjoyed together, so hopefully we can repeat soon."  For more Spanish J/80 sailing information

SPI OUEST France Preview

(La Trinite sur Mer, France)- Perhaps one of the most significant rights of spring every year in the sailing world in Europe has to be the famous SPI OUEST France sailing regatta held in the quaint, lovely little seaside town called La Trinite sur Mer on Quiberon Bay.  The ambiance is renown, the restaurants delicious, the wine even better, and the international gathering of sailors from all points of the compass make for a highly entertaining venue.  The beautiful harbor often has some of the elite monster multihulls parked stern-to on the main quay (the 130 footer Banque Populaire or 100 footer Groupama, for example) and, due to their enormous popularity the 100+ J/80s are parked on the other side, a commanding presence at the heart of Grand Prix French sailing.

This year another good turnout was anticipated.  A total 438 boats of which 141 (32% of the fleet) are J sailing teams are coming in from across Europe and the UK.  Nine J/111s will be participating in their European One-Design debut, 116 J/80s are racing for class honors and sixteen J/Teams are sailing in the four IRC handicap classes.

Starting with the J/111 class, nine boats are represented from across continental Europe and the UK.  So many of these teams have never sailed against one another it's impossible to make any predictions as so many are well-sailed.  Most certainly all the teams will have steep learning curves as they learn to extract maximum performance from their J/111s race-to-race. There are three French teams, LE JOUET (Stephane Blanchards- must see his website- http://www.lejouet.eu), J-LANCE 7 (Didier Le Moal) and ALPHALINK EXTREME YACHTING (G. Thomas).  Two teams are from the United Kingdom, including J-DREAM (the champion J/109 team of David and Kirsty Apthorp) and OJE (A Hill).  From Benelux are two entries, XCENTRIC RIPPER (John Van der Starre and Robin Verhoef from the Netherlands that sailed the Fastnet Race Doublehanded) and DJINN ( Jean-Patrick Smal) from Belgium.  Long distance awards will surely be contested between JUSTICE (B. Flavio) from Italy and BLUR (Peter Gustafsson's J/109 champion team from Sweden).  For a preview of what it's like to sail the J/111, see the BLUR/Peter montage video-- totally cool!!

The dominant one-design class in SPI Ouest France are the 116 J/80s-- easily the most consistent and largest one-design class the SPI OUEST Regatta has ever experienced over the course of three decades of hosting this famous regatta.  Like their J/111 big brothers, it's going to be pretty hard to determine who's going to the dominant teams, but certainly there are a few standout J/80 sailing teams that are worth mentioning that will factor into the leader board.  From France, you have renown class leaders like GANJA (Luc Nadal), ATLANTIS (Louis Sambron), INTERFACE CONCEPT 1 & 2 (Eric Brezellec and JC Moriceau, respectively) and TBS (Pierre Follenfant-- perhaps the "sleeper" in their group of world-class sailors, Pierre is a former 470 and Flying Dutchman champion).  From Italy you have their class leader JENIALE! sailed by Massimo Rama.  The Spanish contingent have nearly a dozen boats sailing with one of their top boats in attendance, GOLD SAILING skippered Ignacio Jauregui.  The host of the 2012 J/80 Worlds are the United Kingdom and their contingent is pretty strong, including ULTIMATE SAILS (Kevin Sproul, a multi-class champion), RAF BENEVOLENT FUND (Terry Hanlon of the British RAF Sailing Team) and BALTIC WHARF LTD (Henry Bomby, a top youth sailor in the UK).

The IRC Handicap rule grouping has significant competition across all four classes- IRC 1 to IRC 4.  In the 32 boat IRC 1 Class, the big J's are sailing with the J/133 JIVARO leading the charge sailed by Yves Grosjean, followed by a very tough group of J/122s, including NUTMEG IV (F. Lognone), JOLLY JOKER (R. Marchais) and MADE IN LOVE (J. Patier).  Given a good series, any one of these boats has proven over the course of time at various events around France, Italy, the UK that they can win.

In the 32 boat IRC 2 class, the top J is the J/120 RHAPSODIE V (J Godet), with two J/109s taking chase in the form of POULICO 10 (CV Arcachon) and FRANJPANE (P. Mouret), followed by the J/105 J-SQUARED (V. Jomier).

The 46 boat IRC 3 fleet has the J/92s UNISAILS BAINBRIDGE (SP Quiberon) vying for honors against a fellow J/105 MISS J (F. Guillemot).

Then, in the largest IRC fleet, IRC 4 class has 64 boats battling amongst the a wide range of boats, from the J/24 up to the super-fast J/97.  If things go well, the J/97 may prove again that it's the master of its domain, this time the J/97 MISPICKEL V sailed by B. Fagart will be up against some formidable competition.  Thrown into the fray doing battle against all the "modern" boats is the "classic" J/24 with four of them competing against the big boys, including J'ADORE (E. Richard), JINETTE (C. Gury), MARTA (P. Lemaistre) and INSULARIS (A. Garcia).  For more Spi Ouest France sailing information

Piris Wins J/80 Compesca Trophy

(Santander, Spain)-  Thirty one boats competed in one of the first major trophies of the famous J/80 Santander fleet sailing season-- the Trofeo Compesca.  The Cantabrian fleet takes no prisoners, amongst them are multiple J/80 World Champions, Olympic and European Champions.  In the end, Tono Piris too his crew on YATES Y COSAS to a one point victory over current 2011 J/80 World Champion (Copenhagen, Denmark) Ignacio Camino's famous NEXTEL ENGINEERING.  Third was yet another 2010 J/80 World Champion (Newport, RI), Jose Maria "Pichu" Torcida's ECC VIVIENDAS.   The fleet enjoyed good weather, sunny days, and plenty of wind over the course of three weekends of sailing.   For more Spanish J/80 sailing information

LE TIGRE Wins Epic Bacardi Cup

(Miami, FL)- The Bacardi Miami Sailing Week could not have wished for better, more extraordinary "postcard"-type sailing conditions-- some even called it "epic". In fact, in some respects for the International Star fleet with multiple Gold Star World Champions present, it may be been "too perfect".  With a massive High weather system slowly moving offshore to the North and a large Low depression Southeast, the regatta organizers had a remarkable string of six-plus days of strong winds from the easterly quadrants (NE to SE) blowing from 8 to 30 knots.  For the Stars, Tuesday and Wednesday were cancelled due to 20-30 knot winds-- perfect J/80 sailing weather, of course!  By Thursday the winds had abated enough so the J/80s could enjoy three straight days of simply picture-perfect sailing.  In the end, Glenn Darden's team on LE TIGRE simply "ate everyone's lunch", sailing to dominant win in the J/80 class.

On the first day of sailing, the all-American fleet of nine J/80s were led by Glenn's LE TIGRE team from Forth Worth, TX with five points after winning the second and third races of the day.  Gary Kamins (Pacific Palisades, Calif.) on FIRED UP was second with eight points on finishes of 2-4-2, followed by Rick Schaffer (Ft. Worth, Texas) with 13 points on finishes of 4-6-3.  Fourth overall was Henry Brauer (Marblehead, Mass.) on RASCAL after finishes of 6-3-5 earned 14 points.  Nizar Abuzeni (St. Paul, Minn.), won the opening race of the day which he followed with finishes of 7-8.  Abuzeni was fifth overall with 16 points.  On this day, the fleet was treated to 18 to 25 knot winds and wild and woolly planing runs, making the weather legs the time to recuperate for the crew in preparation for the next 12-16 knot "planing mode" run.

By the second day winds had moderated to "only" 14-20 knots, ensuring the crew's supply of "vitamin A" (a.k.a. Advil or Aleve) would be put to good use again to alleviate sore muscles, backs and arms!  Glenn and the LE TIGRE crew continued to lead the standings after winning back-to-back races which he sandwiched between finishes of second and third.  It was a tough four-race day that started early at 1030 hours!  Darden had only nine points to the 19 of Gary's FIRED UP team who finished 4-6-3-4.  Rick Schaffer (Ft. Worth, Texas) placed 3-7-9-1 and was tied on 24 points with Henry Brauer's RASCAL team who posted finishes of 8-3-2-5.

Brian Keane moved up a spot to round out the top-five with 25 points. 'Today we had less breeze but conditions were challenging with lots of wind shifts,' said Glenn Darden. 'I would say that this was the biggest challenge to overcome. Luckily our tactician did a great job in searching for the breeze. We also had good starts and these are the secrets of the day.  For tomorrow (Saturday) the strategy is to keep the momentum with my team. We've been sailing together for three years and hopefully this will get us on top tomorrow night."

Three final races were sailed by the J/80 fleet to complete their series debut.  Glenn's "Tigers" led the standings all the way to the win, which he wrapped up without needing to sail the 10th and final race.  Darden won the first two races of the day, and discarded the 10 points from not sailing the final race to net 14 points for the series.  Henry Brauer's RASCAL team made the biggest move of the regatta, moving up from fourth overall to second with 30 points after finishing with a strong 3-2-1 on the final day.  Gary Kamins FIRED UP crew with 4-5-5 ended the series with 33 points, followed by Rick Schaffer with 41 and Nizar Abueni with 44.

“Sometimes it looks easier than what it is,” said Darden.  “Today we had much lighter wind and wind shifts that made it challenging.  We had to work for our wins, but we are very pleased for the victory.  I'm also very pleased to be in Bacardi Sailing Week, and, looking forward to next year, I most certainly will recommend it to other competitors and sincerely hope participation will be up next year.  I look forward to the event ceremony and dinner, Bacardi style!”  For more Bacardi Sailing Week sailing information

J/80s Hong Kong Host World Police Sailing Championships

(Hong Kong, China)- Royal Hong Kong YC, Hebe Haven YC, Aberdeen Boat Club and the Hong Kong Police Sailing Club are co-hosting the World Police Sailing Championships on the emerald green waters of Hong Kong's southern side of the island- the Middle Island facility for RHKYC.  The event will be sailed on the International J/80s from October 21st to 27th.  All participants must be a serving, or honorably retired, Police or Law Enforcement officer (or civilian staff) in their respective countries.

Accommodation will be provided within the Hong Kong Police College Aberdeen Campus Officers’ Mess and comprises of 40 single rooms and 10 double suites.  $37,000 HKD = $4,700 USD (about 7.75 exchange)- and for that you get a J/80 one-design sailboat with sails, food, breakfast, lunch, dinner and accommodations for ONE WEEK for four people!!  Wow. Thank Goodness our security forces know how to take care of our security needs, but more importantly ALSO know how to sail and have fun!

So far, it looks like over a dozen teams are committed to this event from around the world, including teams from Switzerland (2-3); Germany (2-3); Amsterdam, Netherlands; Dorset, England; Lancashire, England; Hong Kong; Macau; Qingdao; Shanghai; and Beijing.  For more J/80 World Police Sailing Championships

2013 French J/80 Worlds In Marseille

(Marseille, France)- After consideration of many extraordinary venues, the 2013 J/80 Worlds will be sailed in Marseille, France from 7-13 July. There are a number of reasons behind this decision, including strong community involvement from the city of Marseilles, long known for its support of top sailing events; professional race management; and a fantastic sailing site renowned for good weather during the time the World's will be sailed.

Ultimately, Marseille is a historically significant site which has been geared up for sailing for many years. Hosting the Louis Vuitton Cup, the Tour de France La Voile and Grade 1 Match Racing, to name just a few events, this year Marseilles is also a host venue for the MOD-70 series (the big 70 ft carbon composite one-design trimarans)--- clearly, Marseille is not just a place where you go to lap up the warm sunshine.  For more information, please contact:  Ludovic Gilet, President of the French J80 Class, ludovic.gilet@classej80france.com or phone- +33 (0)6 07 57 30 40.   For more French J/80 Worlds sailing information

J/80 Winter Championship Santa Margherita Ligure

(Santa Margherita, Italy)- Just down around the corner of the famous little harbor called Portofino lies the cosmopolitan town called Santa Margherita.  Some may think it's renowned for that Italian pizza called "pizza margherita" (tomato, basil and mozzarella), but it is perhaps more famous for some of the great sailors that have come out of this corner of Italy.  Locally, the J/80 class has grown over time and have a loyal, highly devoted, following of sailors who often enjoy their winter sailing as much as their summer sailing.  Winter offers LOTS of wind, for the most part better sailing versus the rather sybaritic, laid back sailing often seen in the summers.

After the first of their series of Winter Championship races, which has seen everything one might imagine for weather, the J/80 teams still turn out to have some fun! Perhaps the best part is that after going around the course for the last race of the day, the teams finish off the Grand Hotel Miramare and retire for great food and drink afterwards.  One can only imagine.  Pizza margherita?  Maybe.  Calzone, better.  Delicious chianti red wine, much better.  Toss in some locally, fresh caught, spicy calamari-- the best!

So far, JOCONDA sailed by Paco Rebaudi is leading the fleet, followed by J-BES GARIBOTTO skippered by Enrica Bertini and in third the most famous, long-distance traveler, JENIALE RAMA.   For more Italian J/80 Winter Championship sailing information

GILL Partners with J/80 France

(La Trinite sur Mer, France)- The J/80 Class France has announced a partnership with GILL and twelve of GILL's dealers-- reserved solely for J/80 sailors, a selection of the latest GILL technical products. All these products display the colors of the J/80 Class France and are offered at exceptional prices.

By partnering with the J/80 Class France this iconic brand of sailing confirms its commitment to those that sail throughout the year in the Basque Country through Dunkirk and Brest, but also in the Mediterranean, as well as in the J/80 Cup circuits both offshore and in Match Racing.  This initiative demonstrates the desire of the J/80 Class France to offer even more to those who sail in J/80, please learn more about the three collections offered by GILL France (1- Race/ 2- Keelboat Racer/ 3- Dinghy)- http://www.gillmarine.com/fr and for the J/80 Class France clothing especially designed for J/80 sailors- please visit- http://www.classej80france.com/Services/vetements.php

Last note- for those who wish to have their J/80 GILL delivered in time for SPI OUEST France, you must place your order no later than Saturday, March 3 at one of the GILL dealers selected as partners!

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/80s Sailing Grevelingen Cup Practice

* J/80 Grevelingen Cup Regatta in The Netherlands are having fun getting themselves up to speed in the middle of the European winter.  Conditions have been less than ideal, but they did manage to get some good "GoPro"-like video of their racing.  You can watch some of it here:

YOUTube video---http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4w1KKeVJ7wU

J/80 French Teams- Sportboat + Training Regatta

(La Trinite sur Mer, France)- The J/80 teams in France are starting to dial-up their training programs for 2012 with a focus to get all boats up to speed in time for the early start of the J/80 Worlds in Dartmouth, England in June.

For the second weekend of training, seven enthusiastic teams showed up for a combined weekend of training on Saturday with a Sportboat Regatta on Sunday.

Saturday's sailing was simply fabulous.  Under a wind veering north-northeast from 6-12 knots, flat water and glorious sunshine, the fleet practiced sailing maneuvers and then worked on various starting situations.   At the end of the session, the skippers and crew met for a debrief with their coach and speaker Walter Arnaud (winner of a Spi Ouest France in J/80).  A video of the day is available on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlblKR75rlQ

The Sportboat Regatta on Sunday was excellent training for all the crews.  Three windward-leeward races were held in a wind veering north-northeast 4-10 knots under sunny skies.  In the end, the top three J/80s were 1st SENJI, 2nd J-VENTURE and 3rd GREEN RIBBON.  To learn more or participate in the final training weekend email- arnoskipper@yahoo.fr  For more J/80 Challenge Sportboat Regatta sailing information   For more J/80 France Sailing Photo galleries

J/80 + SLAM for Worlds 2012

(Darmouth, England)- SLAM UK has this week confirmed major sponsorship support for the 2012 J/80 World Championship, which will now be "Powered by SLAM". The regatta will take place between the 9th and 15th of June and will be jointly hosted by the Britannia Yacht Club, the Royal Dart Yacht Club and the J/80 UK Class Association.  Both the Opening Ceremony and the Prize-giving Ceremony for 2012 J/80 World Championship Powered by SLAM will take place at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth, Devon.

In addition to significant financial support for the regatta, the partnership with cutting edge sportswear company SLAM UK will bring style, flair and inimitable glamour to the event, along with real and quantifiable added value for the competitors of the 80 teams which are predicted to travel to the UK this summer to compete. Not only will competitors be able to enjoy the tangible benefits of SLAM UK’s investment in the Championship, but they will also witness first-hand the competitive edge afforded on the race-track by this technologically advanced clothing range; Chris Ducker, owner of SLAM UK, will also be racing his brand new J/80 at the Worlds.

Chris Ducker explained his passion for SLAM and his commercial desire to be involved at a grass roots level with the J/80 Worlds: ‘I am delighted to have an opportunity to work with the Key Yachting team and for SLAM to sponsor the 2012 J/80 Worlds; this will certainly be a fantastic event on and off the water. I look forward enormously to sailing and socializing in the J/Community throughout the 2012 season.’

At the London Boat Show in January, SLAM UK was appointed official clothing partner of Key Yachting Ltd.  Paul Heys , Managing Director of Key Yachting explained ‘There is a strong parallel between the design credentials of the SLAM technological clothing range and J/Boats, not least in the fundamentally intelligent and performance oriented design. I’ve worn SLAM kit on the water for a number of years and it unfailingly delivers the results one expects. This new partnership is great for Key Yachting and it will also prove extremely valuable to our clients during the coming year. Competitors at the 2012 J/80 World Championship Powered by SLAM have a real treat in store.’

Entries for the 2012 J/80 World Championship are rolling in at serious pace now. The online entry system at http://www.j80worlds2012.com is easy to use, the entry fee represents real value for money and Brittany Ferries has offered discounted pricing for J/80 teams traveling to the UK from the continent. February may be frosty but the competition in Dartmouth in June is looking hotter than ever.

For those of you who may not be familiar with SLAM's participation in sailing, their mission is to conceive, test, and produce advanced technology sportswear in order to improve the performance of sailors and to create a nautically-inspired sportswear collection for everyone with a passion for the sea.  Selected by many of the world's top sailors and competitive racing teams, SLAM sailing gear not only protects against the worst of the weather but, at the same time, allows for maximum comfort and freedom of movement.  You can learn more about SLAM's sailing products here- http://www.slamuk.com

For more information on the J/80 Sportsboat or the 2012 World Championship Powered by SLAM, please contact Becci Eplett of the J/80 UK Class Association at becci@keyyachting.com.

J/80 Grevelingen Cup

(Marina Port Zelande, Ouddorp, Netherlands)- Over the course of the second weekend in January, the J/80 fleet in the Netherlands have their sites set on a good showing in this summer's J/80 World's in Dartmouth, England.  Like their French sailing friends to the south, they recognize the opportunity to grow their fleets, increase overall participation and have some good performances to show for their efforts.   Even further south in Spain, the evidence is abundantly clear that organization coalescing around several key events with training/practice weekends designed to get "everyone" up-to-speed makes an enormous difference for even the top crews! That the Spanish J/80 class has created several J/80 World Champions is no accident.  They have fun sailing and, most importantly, make sure that no one is left behind.  No prima-donna's there, that's for sure (must the sangria and tapas)!

As was reported this past week from J/80 sailors at the Grevelingen Cup, "training is clearly starting to bear fruit.  In the Grevelingen Cup last weekend, the fleet of fourteen boats sailed very close together.  How you finished was determined by meters or less for the top five positions.  That's great racing!"

For 2012, the J/80 class in Belgium and the Netherlands have a number of objectives to continue growing the class and participation in major events.  One of those is to grow a fleet of ten boats in the northern Benelux areas.  As a result, the summer 2012 sailing season is envisioned to encompass the following events:

February- Grevelingencup Series

March- last Grevelingencup plus awards.  JOIE de VIVRE proposes sail training between the G-Cup matches, time and place TBD.

April 28-29- Almere Regatta Muiderzand. Berths for the entire fleet in the harbor are "FREE"! Working on "free beer", too.

June-August- Naarden- sailing Wednesday "beer-can" races, minimum 5 J/80s present. Create a Netherlands/ Benelux Nationals.

Please contact us at the J/80 Benelux/ Netherlands class association.   For more J/80 Grevelingen Cup sailing information   For a nice video on J/80 sailing the Grevelingen Cup.

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