Dave and Bill here hoping that 2011 is a year filled with great wind, calm waters and just an awesome time to sail. The J/30 Class had an exciting 2010 with accomplishments by J/30 sailors around the country. One noteworthy accomplishment was the second in class finish by J/30 Friction Loss from San Francisco to Kaneohe, Hawaii during the PacCup skippered by your California District Governor, Shawn Ivie. Another is the recognition of Whitney Kent from Milwaukee, a senior in high school who skippered J/30 Rafiki to capture a number of races with a young crew and was awarded the South Shore YC “Corinthian Yacht of the Year”. The J/30 Radiant Heat skippered by Tony Brogan made a heroic rescue of the Incisor crew when their boat capsized off-shore during the Southern Straits race in the Pacific Northwest. The level of discussion on the J/30 Forum has increased with sailors from all over the world exchanging sea stories, getting maintenance tips, coordinating cruises and scheduling races. There have been lively discussions on the district forums that are local to your area.

The J/30 Board of Governors met twice in 2010 and has followed up with actions that benefit the class. During 2010 the J/30 Class partnered with V-Sport, the J/Boat licensed apparel supplier to offer J/30 members discounts on J/30 logo merchandise that can be personalized for your boat. The class has also partnered with North Sails to offer J/30 flags available for purchase online. We also worked with US Sailing so that J/30 Class members can obtain a 20% US Sailing membership discount through the Membership Partner Program.

Our approach for 2011 continues on the focus over the past two years – people. All of the class efforts are about involving and recognizing our sailors to provide the best support we can. The J/30 Class is the 2nd oldest J/Boat class after the J/24 yet it has one of the highest levels of activity of all J/Boat classes. Our boats are cool, but the class is active and vibrant because the people are Awesome! Here is what J/Boats posted on their site about the J/30 Class – Bill Kneller and Dave Erwin, J/30 Class Co-Presidents have been doing a magnificent job re-connecting many J/30 sailors from across the country. The resurgent interest in the class is heartwarming to see and, more importantly, they’re having a helluva lot of fun!

The J/30 North American Championship continues to be the primary event where we get people together, and have the largest collection of J/30 sailors competing and having fun in one place. Steve Buzbee and the Blue Meanie crew successfully captured top honors in Marblehead at the 2010 J/30 North American Championship. The 2011 national level events are the Midwinters at New Orleans YC 9-11 March during the Mardi Gras regatta, and the North American Championship in Annapolis 16 – 18 September. Please consider racing with us at these events if you have not recently participated in one of our J/30 national level regattas. More information about logistics and loaner boats will be available as the organizing committee firms up plans.

We have spoken to each of your district governors and asked that a concerted effort be made to contact every J/30 owner in their district and ask “what do you want” so the J/30 Class can serve you better. We want to entice people to come out and play more. The J/30 Forum dedicated district sections allow people in each J/30 district to discuss items of interest and easily coordinate events in their region. J/30 owners who are registered on the forum have been added to their respective district groups, and receive automatic notification when a message is posted in their district forum. As new members register on the forum, they are added to the appropriate district group. The J/30 District Governors are “moderators” for their respective forums. There is contact information for the district governors both on the class web site and as a posting at the top of every district forum. Feel free to contact your district governor to help organize a social event, cruising, one design event, or get J/30s in your area together at a PHRF event. Many districts schedule social events with their annual district meetings. This is a wonderful opportunity to meet and connect with other J/30 owners in your area.

As our boats continue to age, there are many who have taken extra steps to preserve the legacy and material condition of their boats. There is a wealth of information on the J/30 Forum made possible by people who have shared information on core replacement, engine rebuilding, running rigging upgrades, deck repair, and the list goes on. There is no better place to look for your J/30 information than the class web site and forum. If it hasn’t been posted before, you’re guaranteed to get a quick response from somebody with an answer or idea for your question. If you have not registered on the J/30 Forum, you’re missing a great resource available at no cost for your use.

Finally, we will be sending out an email with a request for 2011 class dues by the end of January. Class dues will remain at $50 for each owner/co-owner and $25 for associate membership (crew members). If you have not received an email message by 1 February, please contact us to be sent a custom registration link for your boat. We ask that everyone please support the class and pay dues, so we can continue to build the momentum with resources such as the web site, forum and National Championship.

Happy Sailing!
Bill Kneller & Dave Erwin,
J/30 Class Association Co-Presidents