(Annapolis, MD)- The J/111 continues to amaze those who've had the
privilege to sail one. Whether racing offshore in demanding conditions,
dueling around the buoys on classic "sausage" courses, or simply
daysailing and cruising with family and friends, J/111 may be one of the
most versatile 36 footers ever to come off the J drawing boards. Fast,
fun, easily handled by women and children the J/111 can be sailed
short-handed by a family crew. Recently, we discovered that an all
ladies crew were more than up to the task!Having fun with a number of their friends on the Chesapeake were Barb Whited and her friends on a weekend regatta. As she described, "we sailed the ladies spring race series. We did win the series, but it was closely fought. Most of the other boats rated over 160, but we left them in the dust after we all practiced for the first 2 races. The first day we had 2 - 4ths (last) while crew learned to work the boat and I got better jibing the boat. After that, we were 1st. We had 5 ladies and took a penalty for a male crew member since we just didn't have quite enough power with just the 5 ladies. My male helper cost me 5 more seconds (34), but we still won with 2 - 1sts, 1- 2nd, and a 4th. Threw out one race. Wind was blowing those 2 days, up to 20 on the second day. We had no problems handling the boat. We had a GREAT time. I was shocked to win since I gave the other boats so much time, but we left them in the dust on 3 out of 5 races." Read more of Barb's story here on the J/Blog. For more J/111 sailing information
