Back in the '80s I used to wonder why the J/30 became a successful one-design on the Chesapeake and elsewhere while the J/29 did not. Also used to think if
J/Boats had made all the J/29s masthead/inboard instead of the mix of fractional/masthead/inboard/outboard we'd all be sailing them instead. About ten years ago I realized, to my surprise and despite my overwhelming orientation to racing, that the J/30's selling points are the inboard, head, and a bit of headroom below. This was affirmed the first time I sailed a J/29, which as I've said is only marginally bigger below than a J/24. It has also been among the reasons I've been reluctant to go down to J/22 or up J/105, both of which now have more boats racing one-design in Annapolis.
