J/88 Eclipses Midsummer Solo Challenge

 

(Marstrand, Sweden)- Scandinavian sailors were recently treated to the annual Midsummer Solo Challenge, an overnight race for singlehanded sailors in an around the famous, picturesque, archipelagos of Sweden on the Baltic Sea.  

The purpose of Midsummer Solo challenge is to have a great time together with other solo enthusiasts with a strong focus on the social part (not this year for Covid-19 reasons). And, we hope that all participants get to expand their comfort zone and enjoy fun sailing. To remove as much as possible of the competitive aspect of the race, we play by the following basic rules:

• Colregs are used, not racing rules
• Boats are divided into different classes based on hull length
• No handicap system (apart from hull length)
• No prize giving ceremony, just a t-shirt & beer, plus bragging rights

This year, more than 100 boats had signed up, including boats from other countries such as Norway, Denmark, Germany, Poland, and the Netherlands. However, when Covid-19 struck, the Swedish Sailing Federation made the decision that only boats from the local area were allowed to participate in any sailing events. In the end there were fifty-nine boats at the starting line.

The course is 123.0 NM and has only 4 marks, all port roundings. It goes through the most beautiful parts of the Swedish archipelago during daytime and when the night comes you’ll be sailing on open water.

Check out this video from last year’s event to see how awesome it is, it is truly a must see.

Start to Mark 1 @ Lysekil
Before the start, most sailors decided to play it safe. The forecast was reaching in 15-18 knots of wind with gusts hitting 30 knots. Most boats started with full main and the big jibs. While "sail crossover" charts indicated that Code Zero's would have been the weapon of choice, very few bothered to try it. In fact, a number of boats had the first reef in their mainsails. Once past the opening of the Marstrand fjord, a few boats did hoist and unfurl the Code Zero's- like J88.SE sailed by Jonas Dyberg. Gusts up to 25 knots from TWA 100-110 hit and the boat really took off.

Approaching Gullholmen the wind angle became tighter and was now around TWA 70 so the Code Zero had to be furled. Once past Gullhomen, the wind shifted, and it was full upwind all the way to Mark 1 but there was never a need to tack. Just before Mark 1, the gusts were hitting close to 30 knots, but the boat was still fully manageable under the jib and reefed main, still no drama.


Mark 1 to Mark 2
From Lysekil to Smögen some boats ran with jibs or Code Zero. The wind was shifting quite a lot, wind strength was around 15 – 20 knots and the gusts was close to 30 knots. The TWA was anything from 95 to 135 degrees.

From Smögen to Fjällbacka it was tight reaching, steady winds of around 20 knots gusting 30. Just after Smögen, the leader of 25-30 ft class Dyberg in his J/88. 


Mark 2 to Mark 3
Going from Mark 2 to Mark 3 was pure pleasure for most sailors. Many deployed their Code Zero's and the J/88 was cruising along at 7 to 11 knots, depending on the conditions for wind angle and breeze.


Mark 3 to Mark 4
This was a long leg, about 56.0 NM. Unfortunately, the wind angle was too tight for the Code 0, the TWA was anywhere from 65 to 90 degrees and the windspeed was anywhere from 11 to 22 knots with a few gusts of 30 knots. Back to full main and jib-only. 


Mark 4 to Finish
As it was a northernly current, most skippers decided to stick to port tack to get maximum lift from the current and head towards shore. Once you got out of the current, it was time to tack short-tack into shore to the finish line past the Marstrand Fort. 


In the end, the J/88 named J88.SE, owned by Jonas Dyberg won the 25 to 30 ft Class and was 14th overall in a fleet of 52 boats...only a handful of 34 to 45 ft boats beating him boat-for-boat...all more than 6 feet longer!

"It was a “super-fast” race this year since we had strong winds from ashore and therefore beam reach most of the race. I could not use any of my kites," commented Dyberg.  


Peter Gustafsson, who normally would sail J/111 BLUR in this race took some pictures you find them here on Facebook.   There is also a nice sailing video sequence of my J/88 here.  One of my own movie sequences can be found here.  The highlights video from the race done by the organizer/sponsor you can see here.  For more Midsummer Solo Challenge sailing information.


Check out this very cool, transom-hung J/88 rudder autopilot install!
According to Jonas, "inside the boat the drive unit is a Simrad DD15 (I think this is a Jefa unit but just Simrad branded). And, the control unit is a Raymarine ACU 200 with P70 control panels. I also added a wireless Raymarine S100 remote control, but do not use it as much as planned because it has limited function compared to the P70 panels. This setup is a life-saver for single or double-handed sailing- a fantastic performer!"Add to Flipboard Magazine.