Ken Read and Doublehanded Racing Perspectives

(Newport, RI)- an interview by Dave Reed from Sailing World

Ken Read, one of the ­biggest names in sailing, admits he’s seen the light. Looking out from his ivory tower at the top of the sport, the 58-year-old ­yachtsman’s view has been clouded by the ease of his grand-prix lifestyle. Jetting into super yacht regattas in the Med and tearing across open oceans on a 100-footer was easy for this guy.

In the distant past are the experiences that made him the natural sailor he is today. Back when he was ­making a name for himself in the J/24 class and racking up five J/24 World Championships and scoring a Rolex Yachtsman of the Year or two, he and his buddies had to do things themselves.

Then, came America’s Cup gigs, big-boat programs, two Volvo Ocean Race campaigns, and his ascent to the top of the food chain at North Sails. Charmed life and all, Read is now back in the trenches, among the mere mortals of shorthanded sailing, feet-first into the next big thing. With a stock 33-footer on loan, Read teamed up with professional navigator Suzy Leech to give coed doublehanded racing a shot in Florida during January’s Fort Lauderdale to Key West Race. They won their two-boat division, but more important, Read says, they had fun. The sailing was the easy part. Getting to the start—not so much.

How do you go from maxis and super yachts to this double­handed offshore thing—a 100-footer to a pint-size 30-footer for two?

KR: When it comes to projects that I think are good for the sport, I like to get involved, especially if it can help build a little bit of momentum in a sport that’s in desperate need of renewed momentum. Time is a prohibitive factor in sailing today; the amount of time it takes to go racing is just too much. It’s not only the time to participate. It’s all the preparation. If there’s one thing I’ve learned recently, it’s that putting together a two-­person team in a semi-stock boat is way easier than recruiting eight or 10 of my buddies and hoping like hell they show up. Not to mention the flights and food and logistics and hotels and the personalities and the WhatsApp group ­messages—it is bloody hard.

Is it really that much harder today to go racing? Back when you were campaigning big IMS boats, you didn’t have the tools that simplify things today.

KR: Yes, that’s true, but I think there’s more competition for our time now. Also, there’s been an interesting by-product for me from this whole doublehanded experiment. I started in dinghies, then went to college and sailed in little boats, and then I graduated to J/24s. I did everything myself. I bought the boats, I rigged the boats, I faired the keels— half the time at least. We did everything ourselves, and we figured it out. I got the van, made sure it was full of gas, paid the entry, got the hotel rooms, or found people’s couches to sleep on. Whatever it took, I was in charge. Then, I got very good at delegating. We graduated to the next level, and all of a sudden, I’ve got a couple of people helping. By the time we got to the America’s Cup, the Volvo, the Comanche and the big programs like that—I got a staff. To enter a regatta and get support, I’ve got staff. And I mean staff. Now, with the doublehanded stuff, all of a ­sudden, I have no staff.

It’s been a real wake-up call for me to try to enter an event, to get a boat measured, get it to the starting line. To figure out how to get it all together to do a short, little distance race—it’s too hard. And we wonder why more people aren’t signing up for events. I’m ready to sit down with anybody who wants to talk and figure out how to make signing up and getting to and participating in a sailboat race way easier.

But it’s all online and ­paperless nowadays. What exactly is so hard?

KR: Yes, getting a certificate is probably as easy as you can get, but the fact that there’s still IRC, ORR, ORC, ORC Club and PHRF is obscene. Someone with common sense needs to stop the madness. We should all be sailing under one rule and get over it. Until rating rules are not-for-profit, we’re going to continue with too many rules, and it’s going to be wild frustration for everyone. I mean, I have to get multiple sail certificates because a code-zero “tweener” doesn’t measure in for IRC, but it does for ORR? It goes on and on.

The fact that the Fort Lauderdale to Key West Race (which is only 150 miles and within the sight of land the entire way) has an ocean-race classification is simply crazy. It adds another layer of onboard safety equipment that isn’t even close to being needed. I know there’s a great reason for all of this stuff, but it is too hard, and until we can simplify everything, it’s not going to improve. It’s been a great lesson learned for me to not actually have staff and have to do it myself.
I want to be seen as the latest person who finally woke up one morning and said: ‘Hey, you know what? These people aren’t crazy. This is a lot of fun.’ I’m excited, and this is something completely different for me.

The volunteers who are ­putting these races together are doing a phenomenal job, by the way. They’re not making the rules, but common sense has to prevail at some stage. Shame on me for not doing this sooner and realizing how good I had it. I give a ton of credit to all these volunteers for knowing what they’re getting themselves into, which is probably months and months of complaints and questions from people like me trying to figure out how to ­register for the race.

This discussion of having too many rating rules has been on-going— for a long time.

KR: Yes, but in the Key West race, for example, there are 35 boats registered, sailing under ORCA, ORCB, PHRFA, PHRFB, ORC double­handed, ECRA Performance Cruiser. I don’t even know what that is. So, there are essentially four rules for 35 boats. That’s crazy. If we’re going to get people to want to do this more, we’ve got to make it easier for everybody. Make it easier to sign up and get measured—and don’t get me started on the required equipment. For a 150-mile race, it just seems like overkill to me.

Is this what you’re hearing from customers as well?

KR: All the time. I know I’m going to get a lot of grief for saying stuff like this by the many people who’ve been working on these systems over the years, but I don’t think anybody would disagree with the fact that it’s just bloody hard. We, as a sport, need to figure out how to make it all easier.

What makes you so certain doublehanded sailing will catch on in the United States, with or without Olympic appeal?

KR: There have been plenty of ­people doing doublehanded racing and preaching about it for a long time, and maybe we’re all finally starting to listen. There are a lot of people who may be interested in this, and the more the merrier. If boats like the J/Boats and others are fun to sail and safe offshore, then even more regular sailors will get involved.

My reason to do this really has nothing to do with the Olympics. It has to do with trying to grow an aspect of our sport here in the United States that I think has real potential. Maybe I can use my name a little bit in order to gain a little more momentum. It takes people like us to stand up and shout from the rafters and hope somebody is listening. I want to be seen as the latest person who finally woke up one morning and said: “Hey, you know what? These people aren’t crazy. This is a lot of fun.” I’m excited, and this is something completely different for me. Remember, you’re talking to a person who got so sick of windward and leeward sailing, he sailed around the world twice. I’m not afraid to switch it up. Add to Flipboard Magazine.

J/41 SOUAY1 Tops Samui Regatta Racing Class!

(Samui, Thailand)- Recently, it was a “life-time” moment on the J/41 SOUAY1 in the Samui Regatta 2018 for Jean Rheault (owner) and his friends.  Here are Jean’s comments:

“The Samui Regatta (http://www.samuiregatta.com) is a major event in the China Sea, located in the Doldrums latitudes, with light winds and a few violent clouds and thunder showers in the mid-afternoons- typical of our climate here.

As a boat owner, I had the great happiness to have my J/41 SOUAY1 sailed singlehanded up to Thailand. I also felt very proud to invite guests for a ride on her after I installed a full teak deck with an integrated elegant and comfortable teak cockpit (all Burma teak, of course, of the best grade possible I could find!).

But now, my happiness was to invite offshore sailors to join my team and, hopefully, sail her fast and smart.

To keep weight low, the strategy was to have a limited crew for the Samui Regatta.  We had aboard:

• Ray Waldron, an Australian wave surfer, who also races his Etchells,
• Cedric Rimaud, a passionate French owner of three classic 6-meters, and
• Guido Wedekind, a German professional fighter, who lived for years on his 54 ft wooden sailboat.

The multiple tasks required for around-the-cans racing placed a very high demand for the small crew on our old 41 ft IOR One Tonner- designed by the famous J/Boat co-founder, Rodney Johnstone.

Nevertheless, I am sure you can imagine the satisfaction of everyone onboard our SOUAY1 after a week of sailing the regatta- winning six of seven races!  We even crossed ahead of several modern IRC designs in some of the races with light wind spots and tidal current.  The old J/41 is quite fast in that light air, flat-water conditions!  She is perfectly suited for those conditions here because we see a lot of it throughout the year (monsoon season, notwithstanding!).

We hope you enjoy some of the photos from our experiences sailing the famous J/41 here in our waters off Thailand and winning the famous Samui Regatta Cup.  Wonderful boat. Fantastic, fun crew!  Thank you all.”  Thanks for the contribution from proud J/41 owner- Jean Rheault.

Buzzards Bay Regatta Preview

(Dartmouth, MA)- The 43rd Buzzards Bay Regatta, will be held August 7-9, 2015 at the New Bedford Yacht Club in Dartmouth, Massachusetts. As they have for decades, the New Bedford YC will once again roll out the red carpet for legions of sailors from across the New England coastline to sail in all manner of boats, big and small, dinghies to offshore keelboats and everything in between.

What’s the attraction of Buzzards Bay to sailors for all those years?  Plain and simple.  Wind and waves.  And, plenty of it.  Buzzards Bay is the East Coast’s version of San Francisco Bay.  While Newport and Narragansett Bay are no second cousins to Buzzards in terms of generating great sea-breezes, there’s no question if it’s blowing 10-15 kts further West, it’s at least 15-20 kts or more in Buzzards. Hoping for fair winds and plenty of breeze will be the regatta’s PRO- Blair Tracy of NBYC. In addition to the one-design classes, NBYC and BBR are also hosting the PHRF New England Championship.

The J/80 fleet of Buzzards Bay is showing up en’masse with a total of eight crew participating from the host NBYC as well as from Beverly YC just down the Bay.  Watch out for Mike Sudofsky’s FOUR SPACIOUS GUYS building on their season-long campaign of sailing both J/70s and J/80s in major events around the globe.  They will be chased hard by teams like Peter d’Anjou’s LE TIGRE, Scott Miller’s NEXT ADVENTURE and Jim Tomlinson’s AEGIR.

An extraordinary 16 of the 25 entrants for the PHRF New England Championship are J/Teams (64.0% of the fleet)!  At the top of the heap handicap-wise is Jim Shachoy’s J/122 AUGUST WEST, the recent winner of the New York YC IRC East Coast Championship.  A duet of J/111s will be hounding the AUGUST WEST team; Doug Curtiss’s WICKED 2.0 (a past BBR winner) and Sedgwick Ward’s BRAVO.  In turn, they will be chased by Mark Verville’s J/120 ISURUS and five J/109s, like local hotshot Ted Herlihy’s NA Champion GUT FEELING.  A classic J/41 will be in that mix, Davis Sanford’s BACCHAE from Beverly YC.  Another classic that loves Buzzards Bay conditions will be Diana & Tom Sutton’s J/35 LEADING EDGE from Houston YC.  The newest kid on the block challenging all comers will be Doug Newhouse’s J/88 YONDER from SAIL Newport.  Hot on their heels will be two J/105s- Richard Fontaine’s GOOD TRADE and Ed Lobo’s WATERWOLF.  Finally, twin J/30s round out the class; watch out, they’re the sleepers in this crowd- the two Ken’s, Deyett on JEROBOAM and van Colen on MOODY BLUE never shy away from a fair fight in good breeze on the Bay!

In PHRC Cruz mode all weekend will be Al Signorella’s J/100 SUNDANCE from New Bedford YC and Steve Dahill’s J/35C RIVA from Beverly YC.  For more Buzzards Bay Regatta sailing information

Sails For Sustenance!

(Chicago, IL)- Join Us for a Fun Night Out!!  Hello J/Sailors! North Sails is proud to host a fund-raising event with Sails for Sustenance on January 28, 2015 at our loft at 1665 North Elston, Chicago, IL. Because many of you have generously donated to this program in the past, you are familiar with the organization. For those who have never heard of Sails for Sustenance, they collect donated sails and take them to fishermen in Haiti to re-purpose for their livelihood.

We plan on a fun evening of food, music, Hawaiian dance lessons, live & silent auctions, and North Sails President Ken Read will give an update on the Comanche project and speak about the Volvo Ocean Race and America's Cup - all to benefit Sails for Sustenance. We hope to see you on January 28 for a bit of much-needed Wednesday night sailing fun. And please pass on the invitation to other sailors you know!  By the way, mention to Ken you saw this invite on J/News & Facebook and he promises a free, personal Hawaiian dance lesson!!

Ticket price is $50/person and all proceeds go to Sails for Sustenance. Limited tickets available- Please email questions to midwest@northsails.com.

J/Sailors Leading the Charge off Nantucket.

(Great Harbor, Nantucket)- It’s all about “Competition, Contribution, Camaraderie!” It’s the quintessential New England summer scene: a fleet of classic yachts parade past a picturesque lighthouse en route to the race course, their American ensigns streaming in the stiff breeze.

On August 14th and 15th, a handsome pack of IOD sloops will slice through the waters of Nantucket Sound, in the capable hands of accomplished skippers and crew, each under the sage direction of a world-famous tactician.

This is the 10th installment of the IOD Celebrity Invitational, a unique regatta that pairs 14 visiting and local teams with 14 of America’s top sailing talent as tacticians. The two-day event is a signature feature of Nantucket Race Week, a weeklong celebration of sailing for all ages that benefits Nantucket Community Sailing (NCS), the non-profit that promotes the island’s maritime tradition by making sailing accessible and affordable to all.

The Nantucket International One Design Fleet Association provides its fleet of 15 identically matched fiberglass sloops, and many local sailors to stage the racing. One boat is reserved as a spare.

“The IOD’s are not a new design, but perfect for Nantucket conditions. They are all very even in speed and provide a wonderful test of sailing ability,” says Tom Whidden, a veteran and longstanding supporter of the Celebrity Invitational. In the past he has brought his vast experience – including multiple America’s Cup campaigns – to Nantucket as a celebrity tactician. This year he serves as the IOD Celebrity Invitational’s Honorary Chair. “This will continue to be one of my favorite regattas.”

The roster of tacticians reads like a Who’s Who of sailing, representing America’s Cup Hall of Famers, World Champions in multiple classes, medaled Olympians, collegiate All-Americans, and more than a few sail makers.  NOTE- Literally ALL tacticians have J/Boats experience at the local, regional, national, continental or world-levels on their C.V.!!  Here is the cast of characters frequenting downtown Nantucket this weekend:

Josh Adams (three time collegiate All-American), Jim Allsopp (Star World Champion), Peter
Bromby (four Olympic Star campaigns), Robbie Doyle (twice Sears Cup winner), Dave Franzel (Sonar World Champion), Phil Garland (twice winning navigator in Fastnet Races), John MacCausland (Star World Champion), Mark Reynolds (four Olympics, three medals), Dawn Riley (four America’s Cup campaigns, 1992 win), Jud Smith (Rolex Yachtsman of the Year), Mike Toppa (six America’s Cup campaigns, two wins), Dave Ullman (470, J/24 and Melges World Champion), Will Welles (J/24 National Champion), and Jon Wright (five America’s Cup campaigns, three wins).

“What’s really impressive to me is the commitment of the celebrities to come and, for many, to return multiple times for the honor of helping out NCS in its primary mission of teaching people to sail,” says event co-organizer Bill Druckemiller. “The number of America’s Cup, World Championships, Olympic medals is really astounding, and they give their time cheerfully.”

The philanthropic sentiment doesn’t seem to deter the competitive spirit. “The racing is close and there is a lot of it. Believe me, it isn’t easy. I have never won the regatta because the competition is really tough,” says Whidden.

An impressive line-up of skippers further validates the event’s “Celebrity” title. Entrants include Gary Jobson (America’s Cup-winning tactician), who will also serve as Honorary Chair of Nantucket Race Week 2014 and Heather Gregg-Earl (J/70 North American Champion in 2013).  For more Nantucket Race Week

J/41 Wins Pattaya TOG Regatta!

(Pattaya, Thailand)- Jean Rheault, the owner of the J/41 SOUAY 1 in Pattaya, Thailand recently sent us a report of their sailing experiences:

“The J-41 “SOUAY 1” team got inspired this year and managed to get a 1st at the Pattaya TOG Regatta in Thailand! Once a year, the Asian Grand Prix Circuit makes a stopover in Pattaya, the southeast part of Thailand, where the China Sea is at 30 C, with 6-12 Kts of wind 80% of the time, and daily squalls rolling the area with 20-30 kts to add spicy trills.

This year, a few remarkable top gun sailors joined the cockpit of the classic J-41; Phil Auger, one of the Kiwi Sport Boat National Warriors, who is opening a sail-loft in Langkawi, as well as Marco Belonje, who built his success in the One-design Asian sailing circuit.

These two leaders did great on the tactics and the sail-trimming, leading the entire team, and helped bring “SOUAY 1” on the top podium position at the TOG 2014, IRC3 Division!!

The great thing about yachting, is the inspiration that can catch not only sailors, but someone like “Tangmo”.  She is a painter and she was also very touched during a sunset sailing ride with the big red asym spinnaker flying on the J-41.  She later made an emotional painting of “SOUAY 1” and presented it to us at the yacht club.

It brings great happiness for me, to share with the J-Boat gang and sailing friends around the world, this satisfaction, to bring on their boats any type of people, who get inspired by these moments on the ocean, especially to a point they try to surpass themselves!  Fair winds, “Thai Sailor Jean”

J/41 SOUAY1 Loves Samui Regatta

Just 5 Days Sailing, 7 Nights Partying
(Samui, Thailand)- The brochure is apparently quite accurate.  5 days,  7 nights of bacchanalian fun and merriment.  "Come and enjoy the final regatta of the Asian Yachting Grand Prix in Koh Samui.  Go out on a spectator boat, party with the sailors, enjoy the super car rally, play golf, watch the swimwear fashion show and enjoy the gorgeous island of Koh Samui. Bring your friends, bring your family, but just don't miss this fantastic event!"  Yes, that's what the brochure says.  Believe it, a "must sail" event on anyone's "bucket list".

Starting at the end of May, for one week each year the normally tranquil waters around Koh Samui comes alive with top level yacht racing. Thirty yachts descended on the tropical resort island, deep in the South China Sea to contest the Sawadee.com Regatta and the season ending AYGP Championship. Better known as a high end tourist destination and neighboring Ko Pangan for its full moon parties, the regatta organizers are also engaged the local community by promoting a Supercar Rally, Fashion shows, Property Exhibition and transforming the event into a Luxury Lifestyle week. Sailors celebrated the 10th running of the regatta, a mixture of passage and buoy racing in conjunction with a variety of great parties held at some of the classiest resorts on the Island.

Sailing in the event were two well-known J's that sail and race in the region.  One is Jean Rheault's beautifully re-conditioned J/41 One-tonner SOUAY1 sailing IRC 2 and the other is Rick Poulson's snazzy J/130 JING-JING sailing IRC 1.  

On the first day of racing, the fleet was greeted with 10 knots from the South.  The fleet sailed briskly away on windward/leeward courses. Although as the overcast sky lifted the breeze started to fade as Race 1 was coming to a conclusion and the 12 o'clock WindGURU bewitching hour was fast approaching. As the wind became unstable and started to clock around there was a lengthy two hour wait before the race committee could get Race 2 underway. All skippers were keen to get going and the crowded starting line in Division 1 & 2 would determine the tactics on the upwind leg.

In IRC 1, Rick Poulson's J/130 JING JING helmed by Steve McConaghy missed out eclipsing their top competitor by twenty seconds, so had to settle for second.  For IRC 2/Cruising class, Jean Rheault's J/41 One Tonner SOUAY 1 traded second and third places to be tied on points for the top of the podium.

For the second day of racing, the heavy overcast sky prevented the morning breeze from pushing through, so PRO Ross Chisholm sent the mark boats in all directions in search of wind. Eventually a patch was found to the East of the Ko Samui and Ko Pangan passage and the 'Follow Me' instruction came crackling over the radio. Thirty minutes after the prescribed start time the starting sequence began with the Racing Class away in 7-8 knots of Westerly breeze.  Several boats were caught off guard and desperately tried under spinnaker to get to the start line. Shortly after starting the breeze faded and the skippers had to contend with a strong Northerly flowing current after rounding the top mark. Another announcement that all courses will be shortened at the bottom mark, bought some relief but the minefield still had to be delicately crossed. Tactical decisions to gybe down current towards the wind line or stay in the light stuff and stem the tide. Initially it looked good down tide but as time wore on, their hopes washed away in the current.

The start line bungle and shifty conditions turned the IRC 1 result sheet up side down with JING JING having a "slow day".  However, in the IRC 2/Cruising class Jean Rheault's J/41 One Tonner SOUAY 1 claimed the daily double in the light conditions.  After further canvassing the wind situation and setting up the course in a new wind line, just as the starting sequence was about to get underway the wind died out and changed direction, so that PRO Ross Chisholm had no alternative other than cancel racing for the day. Despite the committee's persistence the wind did not want to play the game.

Happy days greeted the fleet again for the third day of racing.  It was time to rejoice, the South Westerly tradewind returned and PRO Ross Chisholm was game enough to run two windward/leeward races followed by a passage race to the South of Ko Samui. This may have been a result of last nights torrential downpour that turned the roads in Chaweng into rivers. As the yachts reached the southern turning mark the gathering gray clouds may have put an end to the bright sunshine and fair sailing conditions but added 30 knot breezes and blinding rain into the equation.

In IRC 1, Poulson's JING JING was just off the pace again.  And, a repeat occurred in IRC 2,  Jean's SOUAY 1 traded first and second places to run away with the top podium places from the rest of the competitors in the overall stakes.

For the fourth day of racing, post a massive party lay-day situation (fashion show pictured at right), it was going to take some time for crews to rehabilitate and remember how to sail their boats all over again! Consolidating the results was on the mind of all the skippers today. Getting clear air off the start line and quickly up the first windward beat has produced consistent podium places for the top boats in each class. Being mid fleet at the top mark means playing catch up for the rest of the race. Racing got away on time in fresh 12-14 knot SW trade wind which held in for the first race but faded and clocked around to seaward before racing could be resumed. Once again, PRO Ross Chisholm patiently waited for the wind to settle before firing off two more races for the Racing and IRC 1 classes.

In the IRC 2/Cruising class Jean SOUAY 1 claimed line honours but not far enough in front to make a difference and settled on second place and second overall.

The final day came down to one passage race shootout, down South to the Mat Sum mark and back for the Racing and IRC 1 classes. The IRC 2 class set off in 10 knots of breeze on a slightly shorter passage race to finish off the event. Only seconds separated the leaders as they went tack for tack, picking the wind shifts on the long windward beat. As the breeze faded the boats began to struggle into the current. Luckily the breeze returned in time for all classes to round the mark and set off downwind. As there was no sign of the sea breeze, PRO Ross Chisholm called it a day at the Hin Ang Wang gate for all classes.  In the end, Jean Rheault's J/41 One Tonner SOUAY 1 won the last race but in the overall stakes took second!  And, Rick Poulson's J/130 JING JING took fourth overall in their class.  Needless to say, all the crews enjoyed the Fashion Show, the Super Car Show, the Awards and the extraordinary hospitality all around!  How many of you are going to join them next year?   For more Samui Regatta Sailing information    Samui Regatta Sailing Facebook Group    Sailing photo credits- Annie Sophie

  

J/41 SOUAY I Cruising Thailand

* Speaking of offshore racing and cruising experiences in far-flung islands and harbors across the Pacific, ever hear of renowned French offshore sailor/cruiser Jean Rheault?  Jean is yet another J/41 aficionado, sharing a love for the beautiful, rakishly ended IOR J/41 along with other notable sailors you may know like Ken Read of PUMA and Scot Tempesta of Sailing Anarchy infamy.  Jean has loved the J/41 for years, sailing it across the Pacific and continues to do so today sailing in the fabulous waters off Malaysian and Indonesia and Thailand.  He bought his first J-41 in 1997, MERRIMAC, which he lost on the Sable Island sand bank on a trip from Newport, RI across the Atlantic to the Azores Islands (note- it was the same MERRIMAC sailed by Bob and Stu Johnstone in the 1985 Admiral's Cup trials in Newport).  Jean then bought his current J/41, now called SOUAY I, in Newport Beach CA when it was named SEQUOIA.  He then single-handed the J/41 across the Pacific to Thailand where it got a brand new teak deck with a bimini salon cockpit and a V-berth.

After sailing in December in the Kings Cup (Phuket, Thailand), winning Modern Classic Class BTW, Jean says, "I am sailing solo from Phuket-Thailand to Pattaya-Thailand, via Singapore.  I bring SOUAY I in the Indian Ocean to do the area regattas. Now I am sailing back to China Sea, there are 2 regattas this spring-- Top Of The Gulf in Pattaya and the Samui Regatta."  After that, SOUAY I heads back to Ocean Marina near Pattaya are south of Bangkok.  Jean encourages any J lovers to visit him in Thailand, SOUAY is available for day and event charters- he says "the wind is 10 to 12 knots 80% of the time, weather is 28C to 32C all year long and the ocean is at 30C. It's simply spectacular sailing.  Plus, SOUAY I charms everyone who's seen and sailed her with her beauty and her grace-- everyone loves her- from Olympic sailors who appreciate the J-Boat helm sensation, to very famous TV and Movie Stars in Thailand, they lay back in the big cockpit bed under the bimini, relax and drink a glass of cool white wine, and then they want to stay for a  life-time..... not joking!"  No worries there Jean, we believe you based on these beautiful and amazing pictures of your experiences with many new-found sailing friends!