Bill here wishing everyone a Happy New Year! We had another great year for the
J/30 Class in 2013. Our class has 65 official active class members, 86
US Sailing members and has captured fleet information for 526 J/30 hulls. Our fleets continue to be recognized by
J/Boats,
Sailing Anarchy, Spin Sheet and across the world.
The
J/30 Class is built on the foundation of sportsmanship and friendship. I continue to see the support of others through forum postings and on the water. We have a wealth of experience in the
J/30 Class where different people across the country are able to reach out when asked to help new & experienced sailors with all aspects both on and off the water. The bonds of brotherhood formed in this class provide lifelong friendships.
During 2013, we supported J/30 sailing experiences to reach more parents and children through support of the National Sailing Hall of Fame to help local educators who are using sailing to teach math and science by giving connections to our sailing community. This was started by Dave Erwin reaching out to help NSHOF educators achieve learning objectives though use of our J/30s. Ron Anderson of the Chesapeake fleet provided support for this effort. J/30 sailors also gave back to the community by supporting fundraising efforts associated with various regattas associated with the Leukemia Cup (Leukemia & Lymphoma Society), Sail for Hope (Wounded Warrior Program & American Red Cross), and Hospice Regattas.
There are a few areas noteworthy to highlight for recognition during the past year.
RECOGNITION: J/30 Presidents' Recognition Awards2013 North Americans - Steve Buzbee with the
Blue Meanie crew a won the J/30 North American Championship hosted by
Barrington Yacht Club on Narragansett Bay. This is the second time
Blue Meanie has captured the J/30 North American trophy.
Picture Courtesy of
Barrington YC Photographer Rob Migliaccio J/30 Programs traveling the longest distance to attend NAs: Russ Atkinson's Rockwood, MI based program trailered his boat
Wildcat over 1000 miles for the second year in a row to compete in the J/30 North Americans. Russ's effort and commitment to the
J/30 Class is really appreciated.
Picture Courtesy of
J/30 NA Official Photographer Spectrum PhotoJ/30 Loaner Boat Program: Special thanks to Georges & Catherine Brun-Cottan for loaning their boat
Footloose to Randy Boyles and the North Carolina based crew of
Rocket J. Georges & Catherine delivered their boat over 100 miles each way from the Boston area to Barrington, RI to make this happen. This enabled the class to have a North Carolina based boat participate in the J/30 North Americans for the first time since 1989. Georges was a member of the
Rocket J crew.
Picture Courtesy of
J/30 NA Official Photographer Spectrum PhotoMost Effort Exerted to Participate in the NAs - Without a doubt, John Dennerlein and his
Presto crew from Raritan Yacht Club deserve this award. Presto was significantly damaged during Hurricane Sandy. John worked feverishly to replace the mast and repair the hull and deck to refloat and attend this regatta. Less than 24 hours before he sailed
Presto to deliver from New Jersey to Narragansett Bay, John was doing major hull repair work. He arrived just in time for measurement on Thursday of the regatta.
Picture Courtesy of
J/30 NA Official Photographer Spectrum PhotoMost Prolific on the J/30 Forum - As class president, I will disqualify myself due to all the class business posts and recognize Vic Farmer of
Vee Jay (hull 505). Vic posted numerous Vee Jay videos training the next generation of sailors, helping in the Blind National regatta on J/22s and keeping older sailors occupied! Vic has a wealth of knowledge posted on maintaining his boat(s). He recently sold
Vee Jay 2 (Hull 526) to Michael Lusty who had his J/30
Belle Faster split in two during Hurricane Sandy.
Picture Courtesy of
Captain Vic's BlogIf you would like to recognize a
J/30 Class member for accomplishment visit
this forum thread.
OUR SPONSORSThe
J/30 Class would like to recognize those businesses that sponsored us during 2013. Without this sponsorship, we would not have the resources available to bring you the website, forum and regattas. Our Sponsors include:
West Marine,
North Sails,
Quantum Sails,
J Boats,
Waterline Systems,
J World Sailing School,
New England Ropes,
Oldport Marine Services,
Hall Spars,
Challenge Electronics,
Weather Routing Incorporated,
Pusser's Rum,
Stanley's Boatyard,
Southcoast Health System,
Blount Fine Foods,
Foley Fish, and
Sandy BottomNORTH AMERICANSCongratulations to
Blue Meanie skippered by Steve Buzbee to win the North American Championship hosted by
Barrington Yacht Club. Second place went to
Evelyn skippered by the Northern New England District Governor Luke Buxton. Class Measurer Charlie Stoddard skippered
Falcon from the host yacht club to a third place finish. Clare McMillan also from
Barrington YC skippered
Wicked to the fourth place finish. Rounding out the top five was Carl Sherter from
Cedar Point YC who skippered
Fat City. Carl has the honor of having skippered in the most J/30 North American Championships.
There were six of the nineteen boats and crews that participated in the NAs for the first time. These include Kevin Dakan (
Blitz) from Warwick, RI; Jim & Chris Buydos (
Magan) from Branford YC in CT; Jon Burt (
Margay) from
Hull YC in MA; Randy Boyles (
Rocket J) from Pamlico Sailing Club in NC - enabled by Catherine & Georges Brun-Cottan (
Footloose) of Cottage Point YC in MA providing the loaner boat, and John Dennerlein (
Presto) from Raritan YC in NJ.
Picture Courtesy of
J/30 NA Official Photographer Spectrum PhotoThe 2014 North American Championship will be hosted by Cedar Point Yacht Club in Westport, CT September 11-14. The official regatta page is
http://j30.us/na2014/ which will have registration open shortly. The J/30 North American Championship continues to be the largest venue of J/30 sailors sharing ideas and stories.
COMMUNICATIONSThe
J/30 Forum continues to be the official communications medium for the
J/30 Class. We continue to have discussions from sailors from all over the world exchanging sea stories, posting videos, sharing photographs, getting maintenance tips, coordinating cruises and scheduling races. Don't forget to check out the discussions on the
district forums that are local to your area.
Since our boats are one year older, 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. If you have not registered on the
J/30 Forum, you're missing a great resource available at no cost for your use.
Don't forget to engage and speak to your district governors and ask "what do you want" so the
J/30 Class can serve you better. Create opportunity to meet and connect with other J/30 owners in your area.
MERCHANDISEThe
J/30 Class continues to partner with
V-Sport, the J/Boat licensed apparel supplier to offer member
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 offer both the large battle size and smaller back stay flags. In 2013 the
J/30 Class Association partnered with
West Marine and is now a member of the West Marine affiliate program. You can support the
J/30 Class when you make your West Marine purchases online. The
J/30 Class Association receives a percentage of sales from your purchases when you click through from our website you are directed to the West Marine website with a cookie that identifies you as a J/30 affiliate. You can also use any discounts that you may be authorized. We will keep a link visible on the J/30 website and on the
J/30 Forum so you can easily locate the click through link.
The
J/30 Class continues to partner with Boat US so that
J/30 Class members receive a 50% discount on their annual Boat US membership as described in the
Members Only section of the J/30 forum. We are also offering a
US Sailing membership savings ($10 discount for individuals, $5 discount for youths, $15 discount for families) through the Member Value Program- those who pay
J/30 Class dues online and enter their
US Sailing number get a custom link with their data already entered to get this discount.
ANNUAL MEMBERSHIPThe class will be sending an email with a request for your
J/30 Class record update and 2014 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). We also have a Junior Membership category for crew members who are age 16 or younger. We hope this category will encourage Junior sailors to be recognized and added to the fleet roster. It is intended that when Junior Members pass the age of 16, they will become associate members, and eventually J/30 boat owners. The Chesapeake and Gulf Coast fleets will pay optional national and local dues using the national fleet tracking and renewal process. This helps us in so many ways to keep fleet information current while offering a service for local fleets. 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.
FINAL NOTESOn a personal note, the
J/30 Class has been a wonderful experience for me. I first started racing on Rhapsody in 1996 and became its owner in 2003. I made friends all over the world through my involvement with this class. I have been blessed with a wonderful family and friends. Both Cindy & I recently retired and now have the time to do whatever we want, whenever we want. I am now the proud owner of two
J/Boats - J/30
Rhapsody #348 and J/109
Vento Solare #266. Cindy & I intend to cruise on
Vento Solare and I will start splitting my race time on these two boats in 2014. I have a co-owner on
Rhapsody who has agreed to buy the boat after the 2014 North American Championship in September at
Cedar Point YC. I intend to have both boats there with J/109
Vento Solare as our floating hotel. This is my final New Year message to the
J/30 Class.
I want to personally thank Dave Erwin who served as co-president with me from 2009 to 2013, and who has worked diligently behind the scene for the past few years to run our website and push the class forward with major initiatives. The success and resurgence of the
J/30 Class is a direct reflection on Dave's efforts. I would also like to thank all of the J/30 Board of Governors I have served with throughout the years. Without the work and dedication of these individuals, we would not have the successful class that exists today. The class will have the opportunity to elect a new president at the J/30 NAs in September. I look forward to serving the class until then and providing a meaningful transition to the new class president.
Happy Sailing!
Bill KnellerRhapsody J/30 #348Vento Solare J/109 #266