Beautiful, graceful J/124 For Sale in Maine!

J/Net Brokerage Specials! Check out our exciting new site for lovingly-owned J/Boats from around the world.



If you wish to become an "escapee" from this challenging world we are living in today, here is a yacht that can comfortably cruise across the Seven Seas in style and comfort. A gorgeous, fast sailing yacht designed to be sailed short-handed with ease by a couple.

From its large carbon wheel to the fine cherry and teak joiner work and Ultra-Suede upholstery below, or simply by the smooth, graceful way it slides through the water, the J/124 is every bit a sailing yacht in the best sense of the word. One that is a joy to sail in all conditions with minimal crew and with rare need to employ the auxiliary diesel engine.

"Sea Loft" is a one-owner yacht and a rare find. She is in like-new condition, exceptionally well-equipped, and maintained to a discerning standard. In indoor heated storage for every winter season, other than re-commissioning, this boat needs nothing. The many custom options and specifications will astound you. Come take a look at Eastern Yachts Sales in Maine, you will not be disappointed.

J/Net Brokerage Specials- J/100

Check out our exciting new site for lovingly-owned J/Boats from around the world.


Here is another beautiful example of our popular 33 ft. day sailor- the J/100.  This J/00 shows in near new condition and is loaded with race and day sailing gear. She was completely re-fitted by her current owner in 2015 and has a number of great improvements on the boat; including a retractable carbon sprit, new standing and running rigging, full Grand Prix race bottom and keel fairing, and gorgeous new Awlgrip hull paint in Ice Blue. More information here. Add to Flipboard Magazine.

A J/34C Owner's View from Camden, Maine

* J/34C cruiser owner Jim Bennet from Camden, Maine offers some of his perspectives sailing his beloved J/34C ASTREA to fellow J/Sailors around our Blue Planet Earth....

"Her name is ASTRAEA (after Nathaniel Bowditch’s first command). I have owned her for eight years. She is a wonderful boat and is kept in very fine condition.  And yes, she does better than 8 knots on a broad reach whenever we see 15 kts or more of breeze on Penobscot Bay, which we do often enough.

To come back on your love of Maine, my family ties to Maine date back to pre-Civil War times. I moved to Camden from Bath in 2017 to be closer to Penobscot Bay.  My partner and I live in Camden.

We had a marvelous cruise on ASTRAEA this past summer (2019) during which we stopped at Islesford.  Both of us had been there before, but this was the first time I was able to stay for two days and explore the island.  The museum there is a treasure.  We were on our way back from Nova Scotia.

I had raced ASTRAEA in the Marblehead to Halifax race and we had taken ten days to get back to Maine, stopping in our favorite places along the way.  All told, I had 65 days underway this past season.


The 34C is a marvelous boat to use as a couple for coastal cruising. 

To have such excellent sailing qualities along with the comfort in a boat of this size is truly an extraordinary achievement.

Among many excellent features, the keel design and underbody design of this boat is outstanding. I speak from experience as a lifelong sailor and from having practiced as a Naval Architect for 25 years working on high-performance craft for the U.S. Navy. She handles well in a seaway, stands up to a breeze (never even think about reefing under 20 kts) and she puts the Sabre's and Beneteau's in our wake every time. Many times I have taken her across the line ahead of Sabre 42’s and even J/42’s on occasion. She is perfectly balanced when properly trimmed on every point of sail. I frequently single hand with a spinnaker even in 18-20kts. For example, we sailed her to first place overall in GMORA cruising division in 2017!

And, she is comfortable and easy to handle. She is just the right size for my partner, who can be intimidated by the loads on big headsails. Her responsiveness on and off the wind makes her a joy to steer. Anchor handling, docking, and every aspect of the boat is easy for my partner, which makes it immensely enjoyable for me.

You lads did a fine job with her design and construction. Many experienced sailors continue to admire her. Several are standing in line if I ever decide to sell her! That is a further acknowledgement to the excellence of her makers! Thank you!  Best, Jim" Add to Flipboard Magazine.

Ten J/46s Celebrate Rendezvous In Maine

(Camden, Maine)- Ten J/46s enjoyed a fabulous rendezvous July 25 to 27 as part of the Camden Classics Cup in the absolutely stunningly beautiful harbor of Camden, Maine.

Instead of enduring the high density, five deep raft up at Lyman Morse Wayfarer for the Classics Regatta, all of the visiting J/46s took over the nearby Town of Camden dock and slips for their own private J/Community. 

The secret sauce for this event was for any J/46 to cruise into Camden and be able to race competitively without going into “race mode”. No spinnakers, Max 100% jib, dodgers up, anchor and chain on the bow. Most boats had their bimini up, a grill on the rail and here and there, an outboard to round out the cruise attitude. Whisker poles, electric winches, auto pilots, canine crew were all permitted and encouraged.  Deep keel boats owed shoal keel boats 9 seconds a mile.

While the prospect of 120 tons of J/46s converging at the start sounds daunting, everyone behaved nicely and on the water, where the action was close and very exciting (think ten 46 foot Lasers). Friendships were still strong at the end of each day.

Friday’s race was in a sparkling 15 to 20 knot sea breeze. On the weather leg, the local knowledge went left and the smart money went right, and the smart money was in the lead with Scott Miller’s RESOLUTE leading the way.  At the finish, it was RESOLUTE (deep keel) first by 14 seconds over Bernie Coyne’s MYSTIC ROSE (shoal) with Jay Nolan’s AKAI (deep) third.

Saturday was another cracking good sea breeze day and more very close racing, on a course that saw a tight fleet maneuvering through the beautiful islands of Penobscot Bay.  RESOLUTE, AKAI and Jeremy Fletcher’s THISTLE (shoal) led a tightly bunched fleet around the weather mark. At the end of a ten-mile run leaving 700 Acre Island to port and Dark Harbor to starboard, it was THISTLE and Tom Babbitt’s BRAVO (shoal) nearly overlapped for the lead with AKAI. RESOLUTE and the rest of the fleet were just boat lengths behind. At the finish, it was THISTLE (shoal), AJKAI (deep) and BRAVO (shoal) edging RESOLUTE off the podium by 13 seconds.

Overall, RESOLUTE took the honors on a tie breaker over AKAI with MYSTIC ROSE third.

How much fun was the sailing?  Well five of the J/46s have committed to race singlehanded on August 25th in Camden! Mark your calendar for next year’s event July 23 - 25 2020!  Learn more about the versatile J/46 offshore cruiser here. Add to Flipboard Magazine.

J/46 Rendezvous Announcement

(Camden, Maine)- There must be some magic alchemy in the combination of one of the worlds greatest cruising destinations (Camden, Maine on Penobscot Bay), the spectacular Camden Classics Cup Regatta, and a bunch of enthusiastic J/46 owners.

Last year’s event organizer, Tom Babbitt (Party Master in Chief), while thinking deep thoughts on his J/46 BRAVO in Antigua, suggested to some J/46 friends by email back in 2018 that they gather for the Classics Cup and race one design, with a modest handicap for deep draft boats. When BRAVO arrived back in Camden from the Caribbean on May 21st, there was a one-design fleet registered consisting of four boats. It was a fabulous series, with great racing and very special after race parties and activities.

Word spread fast after last year’s J/46 Rendezvous and this year, months before the 2019 event, TEN J/46 s are already registered!

On registration day July 25th, we will meet at 1630 at Lyman Morse at Wayfarer for a J/46 Owners Forum. It will be a “meet and greet” to discuss our favorite modifications, repairs and enhancements as well as reach out for solutions to unsolved mysteries.  After each race, we will attempt to have a Skipper’s Debrief where all can share their brilliant and not-so-brilliant decisions on the water.

The one-design rules, taking into account that J/46 owners are cruisers (first and foremost), are as follows:

• Suitable anchor and chain in the bow
• Dodger up
• #3 jibs only, no spinnakers
• autopilots, electric winches permitted
• outboards, biminis, bikinis, and grills on the stern rail are not required, but encouraged
• single handed, doubled handed, or a whole gang of crew- all good
• shoal draft boats favored by 9 seconds per mile handicap
• no other rating penalties

For any questions, please contact Tom Babbitt, bravoj42@gmail.com or phone- +1-207-632-1262 Add to Flipboard Magazine.

J/46 Rendezvous @ Camden Classic Cup!

Exciting J/24 Downeast Regatta Finale!

LITTLE MARTHA Missed Life ON THE BEACH!
(Portland, ME)- The 30-4-30 Anniversary J/24 Downeast Regatta was exceptionally fun for all those hardy and lucky souls who made the trek to Portland, Maine for this early fall classic.  The outcome of the regatta was determined on the final leg of the last race, with Lee Buress’ ON THE BEACH narrowly beating Chis Clancy’s LITTLE MARTHA at the finish for the overall regatta title and bragging rights for another twelve months as “King of the Down’east’ahs”!

After the first two races on Saturday, it was anyone’s guess what the ultimate outcome was going to be for veterans of this Gulf of Maine event.  Buress’ crew had a 3-1, while Clancy had a 4-2, Mark Gardner’s JAM had a 2-4 and Denman/Smith’s AIRODOODLE from Marblehead, MA had a 1-12!  That was the top five after the conclusion of the day’s racing on Saturday.  Meanwhile, the rest of the top crews had scorelines all over to hell and back!

Clearly, some crews may have had too good a time, perhaps much too good a time, on Saturday night.  As Sunday dawned, it was self-evident some crews appeared to be navigating through the “fog” on a clear, sunny day!  That perspective was manifest in their extraordinarily insane scorelines.  Gardner’s JAM got “jammed”, dropping two 12ths to nose-dive down the standings.  Denman/Smith’s roller-coaster ride kept doing just that, posting a 3-20!  Consequently, ON THE BEACH sailed clean and fast to win with LITTLE MARTHA second.  Third went to John O’Rourke’s SPOOKY, fourth going to former high-flyer JAM and fifth going to a steadily improving Tim Corbett’s ESKIMO SISTERS.  For more J/24 Downeast Regatta sailing information

J/24 Downeast Regatta Preview

(Portland, ME)- This year's J/24 Downeast Regatta will be the 30th Anniversary of the Regatta and the J/24 State of Maine Championships, sailing from September 10th to 11th on the beautiful waters off Portland, ME.

The Portland YC regatta organizers expect strong participation both this year and next year with the close proximity to the 2017 Worlds and 2016 Nationals both within driving distance to our site in southern Maine. On average, the Downeast Regatta sees 30 boats and about 6 races with very strong competition and has a great sailing area with flat water and consistent winds.

As has been the long-standing tradition, PYC members provide FREE hosted housing to boats from away on a first-come, first-serve basis!  A low, all-inclusive, entry fee provides great meals, drinks, entertainment and awesome sailing for the best value in sailboat racing found anywhere in the world!  Get this, the early entry fee was only $230.30 (yes, down to the penny matters!) and includes:

• Launch & Haul of your ultra-cool J/24 racing sailboat!
• Snacks, Beer and Chili on Friday (when you are launching)
• Twin Lobster Dinner on Saturday (per person!)
• Live Musical & Dancing on Saturday Evening (mandatory, or get a DNC tomorrow!)
• BBQ Dinner on Sunday at haul out location (to “die for” ribs- fresh cow!)
• “Gritty's Beer” and Mixed Drinks all weekend (like lots of this stuff)
• Breakfast Saturday and Sunday (you will need it to stay focused!)

This deal simply cannot be beat, no wonder it was only available for a short time!  And, this year the regatta was restricted to the first 30 boats to register!

And, 30 for 30 entries it is!!  From all over the northeast- Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Rhode Island, Massachusetts!!

Those lucky crews include: Carter & Molly White’s SEA BAGS SAILING TEAM, Tim Corbett’s ESKIMO SISTERS, Nate Huber’s WATERBORN TRANSPORTATION FACILITATOR, Andre Carey’s MR HANKEY, Groves Dinning’s BREW HA HA, John Wells' SHELDON-J, Denman/Smith’s AIRODOODLE from Marblehead, Chris Clancy’s LITTLE MARTHA, and Lee Buress’ ON THE BEACH from Newport.  Fun will most certainly be had by all!  You can track them all going around the race course with US Sailing’s partner- SAP Sailing Analytics   For more J/24 Down East Regatta sailing information.

J/24 “30-4-30” Regatta Announcement!

(Portland, Maine)- No this is not an ESPN promotion! (If you know this reference you are into sports documentaries)!

It is 30 boats for the 30th Anniversary J/24 Downeast Regatta.  That's right! The entry field will be limited to 30 boats for the 2016 event.  Coming off a very successful hosting of the J/24 North American Championships the organizing committee has decided to limit this year's event to just 30 boats.  With around 15 boats in our local fleet this may mean that just 15 boats from outside the area will be able to attend, so act fast and register today!

SAVE $50 BY REGISTERING BEFORE MAY 1st, 2016.

Here are some additional changes to the traditional line up:

No Weigh-In but there is a max weight of 420kg, so you can be over weight by 30lbs or so but not over by 52 lbs in total weight or you could be protested and asked to step on a scale.

There will be many special awards like; 30 Feet of Yale cordage line for a team that sails with a crew member under the age of 30.  That's right each boat that sails with a crew member under 30 gets FREE Yale Cordage Product.  Stay tuned for other cool prizes and awards as we dream them up!

This year's J/24 Downeast Regatta will be the 30th Anniversary of the Regatta and the J/24 State of Maine Championships!

We expect strong participation both this year and next with the close proximity to the 2017 Worlds and 2016 Nationals both within driving distance to our site in Southern Maine.

On average, the Downeast Regatta sees 30 boats and about 6 races with very strong competition and has a great sailing area with flat water and consistent winds.

As usual, we provide FREE hosted housing to boats from away on a first come first serve basis.  A low all inclusive entry fee provides great meals, drinks, entertainment and awesome sailing for the best value in sailboat racing found anywhere in the world.

The early entry fee is only $230.30 and includes:  Launch & Haul, Twin Lobster Dinner on Saturday, Live Musical Entertainment and Dancing on Sunday, Snacks and Chili on Friday, BBQ Dinner on Sunday at haul out location, Gritty's Beer and Mixed Drinks all weekend, breakfast Saturday and Sunday, two great days of racing, and much more......  For more J/24 Downeast 30-4-30 registration and sailing information

J/160 AVATAR Cruising to Caribbean!

(Belfast, Maine)- The J-160 AVATAR is now going back into the water on Halloween weekend after and extensive four-month refit performed by Front Street Shipyard (www.frontstreetshipyard.com), in Belfast, Maine.

According to her proud owner, Alan Fougere and family, “we are back sailing our J/160 AVATAR.  She will be in the Caribbean for winter 2015/ 2016.

For four months, the refit work included new galley counters, new rudder bearings, carbon fiber wheel, navigation station upgrades, including new Raymarine Networked Electronics, Broadband Satellite Communication, navigation computers with integrated AIS systems with proximity alarms.  Work was concluded on time and on budget by Front Street Shipyard supervised by JB Turner.  The high quality and detail of the work performed by Front Street Shipyard was terrific!  Their knowledge about the construction and the hull and frame enhancements made by the yard will help to keep AVATAR sailing her 4000 Nm/year for another 20 years or more.

Next stop?  AVATAR will transit back to her winter home at Proper Yachts, St. John US Virgin Islands in mid November!”

COUGAR Dominant @ J/24 North Americans
(Portland, Maine)- Home-boy Will Welles’ COUGAR survived a black flag penalty in Sunday’s opening race to become the 2015 J/24 Pape Chevrolet North American Champion.  After a slow start to their regatta, it was a courageous, anxiety-laden, roller-coaster performance by the hometown Downeast hero in J/24 racing circles.  Welles has been on somewhat of a roll in recent J/24 events, having won the J/24 Worlds in Newport, RI last year (yet another home-boy winning performance), placed 2nd as tactician in the 2015 J/24 Worlds in Boltenhagen, Germany sailing with Mike Ingham, now winning the NA’s in the home waters of his youth.

J/24 Fleet 43, Portland YC and the organizing committee of the annual J/24 Downeast Regatta (which was being held simultaneously), conducted a most excellent social experience and regatta for the 50 J/24 teams that came from far and wide to compete in the NA’s from Thursday September 10th to Sunday September 13th.  The daily drama for Welle’s come-from-behind victory started out with a dud in the first race, here is how it all happened over the four days.

Day 1
No question, the first day of racing was less than epic.  In fact, for many teams, it was quite frightening.  The day dawned light and very shifty and simply stayed that way all day.  The teams ventured forth into the ozone layer offshore and came back either wide-eyed  or drowning their sorrows in the nearest Schlitz beer they could find.  Nevertheless, it was Christopher Stone’s VELOCIDAD that grabbed the lead on day one by winning the day’s only race. The New Jersey-based team topped competitors from Argentina, Canada, Mexico and the USA by simply not falling into any tactical traps and getting tangled up in the corners of the racetrack.

Dan Busch’s BUSCHWACKER, also from New Jersey, placed second, while local J/24 rock-star, Carter White’s SEA BAGS SAILING TEAM, rounded out the top three.

Day 2
The second day was “legendary”, in more ways than one.  The partly cloudy day and good steady 13-15 kts breeze provided good, close, top-of-the-line racing for the very closely packed fleet.  Top end of the genoa on the J/24 has always separated the “men from the boys” and on this day, that was the case.

The original “legend from Downeast”, and certainly the Portland area, for the J/24 class has to be Tony Parker and his various BANGOR PACKETS.  Tony lived in Maine forever, then moved south to sail out of Annapolis YC in the last few decades.  However, as the saying often goes- “you can’t take the city out of that new country girl”, in Tony’s case it’s the reverse.  For him, it’s all about going back to his roots, despite the efforts of his Washington DC political cronies to “city-fy” him, and revisit fond memories of eviscerating his local fleet as BANGOR PACKET won yet another regatta (maybe that’s why they kicked’em out of Maine and sent him “packing” to DC?).

In any event, after four more races were sailed on Friday, lo’n’behold, the new leader of the NA’s was none other than the old home-boy from memories past- Parker’s BANGOR PACKET!  Tallying consistent scores of 5-2-7-7-2, Parker held a two point lead over yet another excommunicated local, Welle’s COUGAR!  Then, another two points back was Argentina’s top J/24 sailor from Buenos Aires, Nicolas Cubria skippering WORKNET.

In the opening contest, Welles took line honors. Parker and Tim Corbett’s Eskimo Sisters followed. John Mollicone’s Helly Hansen, Evan Petley-Jones’ Lifted and Travis Odenbach’s Honey Badger comprised the top trio in Friday’s second race. As the sun began to poke through, the breeze built to 15-20 knots at times with temperatures around 70 degrees. Welles again snagged a bullet in the next contest, with day one leader Christopher Stone’s Velocidad in second and Petley-Jones in third. Closing out the day with a victory was Mollicone, trailed by Parker and Odenbach.

Day 3
On the third day sailing, the fleet ventured to the outside course on Casco Bay in winds between 6-10 knots. Odenbach got the day off to a solid start with a victory, while Martin Gallagher’s Shifty and Welles followed. Welles claimed the next win, ahead of John Mollicone’s Helly Hansen and Cubria.

The end of the day brought yet another leader to the top of the scoreboard. Will Welles’ COUGAR secured a 3-1 on Saturday to move into first place with an 11-point advantage over second-place Nicolas Cubria’s WORKNET of Argentina. Now able to drop a 10 from the first race of the Championship, Welles kept a scoring line of 1-9-1-4-3-1 for 19 points heading into the finale. With 31 points, third-place Travis Odenbach’s HONEY BADGER was hot on the heels of Cubria, who had 30 points.

Day 4
Heading into the final day, Welles held an 11-point advantage, but a BFD in race 8 made for an exciting end to the nine-race series. COUGAR nabbed a fourth in the final contest to end with 33 points, five ahead of Odenbach’s HONEY BADGER. Odenbach kept moving up throughout the four-day event, but settled for second place with 38 points. John Mollicone’s HELLY HANSEN took the bronze position with 47 points.

Welles has spent some time sailing in and around Maine (a mild understatement, to say the least), but noted that the conditions this week were not typical. “It was pretty tricky, but having a solid team is the key,” said Welles, whose crew was Chris Morgan, Jeff Linton, Erik Rexford and Monica Morgan. He thanked the local J/24 Fleet 43 and their volunteer base for taking good care of the competitors.

The balance of the top five was rounded out by “the man, the myth, the legend”- Tony Parker’s BANGOR PACKET in 4th only four points back from World Champion Mollicone.  Then, early regatta leader Chris Stone’s VELOCIDAD was yet only one point back from Parker to take fifth.

In Sunday’s two races, Ed Rowe’s FLYING CHICKEN and Evan Petley-Jones’ LIFTED were the race winners in winds of 8-10 knots.

Winning the Women’s J/24 NA Championship was Natalie Penner’s GIGGLES, followed in 2nd by Gretchen Sullivan’s DRACO, and Erica Spencer & Jess Harris’ SEA BAGS WOMEN’S SAILING TEAM in 3rd.  For more J/24 North American Championship sailing information

Lovely Penobscot Pursuit Race Weekend

(Rockland, Maine)- An increasingly popular race on Penobscot Bay happens to be a “pursuit-style” race that takes place over a weekend.  Thirty-five boats made the starting line of the Penobscot Pursuit Regatta in Rockland, Maine last weekend.  Sailing “lights out” against all comers were a J/40, a J/34C, a J/32 and a J/24.

The Pursuit Style race started on time at 11:00am with the first (slowest) boats on Saturday just off the Rockland breakwater.  The faster boats then started afterward between 11:00 and 12:15 and made their way up West Penobscot Bay over a roughly 25NM course that was mostly downwind.  The fleet finished just outside Belfast Harbor with the majority of the fleet within 20 minutes of each other.  A very nice 10 to 15 knot southerly wind helped the fleet make the journey in just over 4 hours.

First boat to cross the line was KAHIKI, a J/24 skippered by Ken Russell at 15:00:27. Boats finished in rapid-fire procession after KAHIKI, with Jacob Gerritsen’s J/40 EX LIBRIS winning Cruising Class 1, Gary Bennett’s J/35 JAI TU taking 3rd in Racing Class 1 and James Bennett’s J/34C ASTRAEA sailing into 2nd place in the Shorthanded Class.

All boats arrived at Front Street Shipyard to a wonderful meal, live music and plenty of refreshments provided by Rising Tide Brewing Company.  “Catcha Vibe”, a reggae band, played some great tunes that kept the crowd dancing for hours. After the party wrapped up most everyone stayed to enjoy the long and impressive fireworks show put on within feet of all the boats and Front Street Shipyard in the town of Belfast for the Celtic Celebration that takes place the same weekend.

On Sunday, the story was a bit different.  The Race Committee postponed onshore immediately at the first timed radio transmission.  Fog and light air were preventing an on-time start.  The fleet made their way to the rendezvous point of Turtle Head near the north tip of Islesboro Island but after more lack of wind and some fog the Race Committee decided to move south towards Seal Cove off Islesboro.

The race committee was able to start the sequence around 1pm with a course of about 14.5NM with the last boat starting just past 1:40pm.  A nice 5 to 8 knot southerly had filled in the bay, however, it wouldn't stay and by the time most of the fleet had made it near Camden the wind had shut down to 2 to 3 knots.  Most boats kept moving and didn't give up, however, and after about an hour of very light wind the evening sea breeze kicked up and brought the fleet home to a bell off Rockport Harbor which was the next mark of the course.  With the unstable wind and a very late afternoon in progress, the race committee shortened course at the Rockport Bell with boats finishing between 5 and 6pm.

In the abbreviated race, the various J teams sailed well, with many taking home lots of silverware and pickle dishes for their mantelpieces.  Gerritsen’s J/40 EX LIBRIS too a 3rd to finish 2nd overall in Cruising Class 1.  Bennett’s J/35 JAI TU placed 2nd and, consequently, took 3rd in Racing Class 1.  Racing Class 3 saw the top two spots swept by J sailors with Russell’s J/24 KAHIKI taking another 2nd to win the class.  Winning the last race and taking 2nd place was Henry’s J/32 MIGIS MAGIC.  Finally, also winning the last race and sealing the deal to take Shorthanded Class honors was Bennett’s J/34C ASTRAEA.  For more Penobscot Pursuit Regatta sailing information

J/46 BRAVO Cruising Maine Islands!

(Casco Bay, Maine)- The J/46 BRAVO has been sailing in Maine during the beautiful fall season.  As many long-distance and day sailors know, once Labor Day hits in Europe and in the Americas, some of the world’s best cruising grounds are literally devoid of all forms of tourists and “outsiders”.  As both a long-distance cruiser and a bit of a “local” in those parts Downeast in Maine, Tom Babbit from Portland, Maine can often pick his days for a lovely cruise on any given day or weekend.

For example, here’s Tom at the helm of his J/46 BRAVO.  As he comments, “just cruising along on a beautiful Saturday up here in Maine near Casco Bay, TWS 15 kts, AWA 60, going 9.1 kts.  Zero angst, just 100% blade jib and full main.  Couldn’t be easier on this delightful cruising boat! We’re so loving this J/46.  Great evening in Pulpit Harbor compliments of Espar heat.  Best, Tom and Jane”

J/24 Downeast Regatta Announcement

(Portland, Maine)- This year's J/24 Downeast Regatta will be the U.S. J/24 Class Northeast Regional Championship where the top teams not already qualified in the Northeast Region will qualify for the 2015 J/24 World Championship in Germany.  The event is hosted by Portland YC and sailed on the spectacular Casco Bay.

Also, the Downeast Regatta in 2015 will be the site and event for the 2015 J/24 North American Championship being sailed from September 10-13 (more news here- http://www.2015j24nas.org). 

The regatta organizers expect strong participation both this year and next with its close proximity to the 2014 Worlds (Newport) and 2014 Nationals (Buzzards Bay), both about 3.5 hours driving distance to their site in Southern Maine.

On average the Downeast Regatta sees 30 boats and about 6 races with very strong competition. With similar currents and conditions to the Newport World’s inside courses it is a perfect event for tuning your team and boat.  Be sure to note that FREE hosted housing for boats is provided to “out-of-town” J/24s on a first-come,  first-served basis. 

Finally, here’s a deal that can’t be beat anywhere (but, it’s only available for a short time)- the $275 entry fee includes: Launch & Haul, Lobster Dinner on Saturday, Live Musical Entertainment and Dancing on Sunday, Snacks and Chili on Friday, BBQ Dinner on Sunday at haul-out location, Gritty's Beer and Mixed Drinks all weekend, breakfast Saturday and Sunday, two great days of racing, and much more. Better act fast, since this deal ends on August 24th 2014.  For more J/24 Downeast Regatta sailing information

J/160 ATLANTIC Captures Penobscot Bay Rendezvous

J/100 SMITTEN & J/80 CHAISE LOUNGE Class Winners, too!
(Rockland, Maine)- And what a party it was for the crew aboard Ben Blake’s magnificent J/160 ATLANTIC.  The gorgeous french blue hull beauty sliced through the cobalt blue waters of Penobscot Bay with ease on her way to winning the largest class in the regatta- PHRF Cruise division!  Once again the parties and entertainment were memorable as were the spectacular days of racing on the scenic waters of western Penobscot Bay.  Co-hosted by Wayfarer Marine and Lyman-Morse Boatbuilding, the three-day regatta enthusiastically enjoyed local food specialities (lobstah’s!) along with evening dancing and fireworks.

In the Spinnaker Division 2, Shane Flynn’s J/100 SMITTEN walked off with all bullets, beating out her sistership, the J/100 SEA SMOKE sailed by Cabot Lyman, that took 3rd in class.  Fourth was Mark Scheffer’s J/40 LEGACY.

The Spinnaker Division 3 was over-run by local knowledge, with Jesse Henry’s J/80 CHAISE LOUNGE taking two bullets to win their group.  Then, Patti Spaulding’s J/24 HAVOC took two seconds to secure the silver.

Finally, in the Spinnaker Division 1 Double-handed division, Scott Miller’s J/122 RESOLUTE took fourth and Doug Coleman & Chris Holm’s pretty J/46 SKITTERYGUSSET took fifth.

The famous PBR Fish Taco Bar never fails to satiate even the most ravenous of sailors and the evening entertainment on Saturday night was received warmly by many sailors seen dancing the night away.  Sailing photo credits- Billy Black. For more Penobscot Bay Rendezvous sailing information

Penobscot Bay Rendezvous Preview

(Rockland, Maine)- What a party! The Penobscot Bay Rendezvous is on the map as one of New England's best regattas. Last year 55 sail and powerboats gathered for the four-night three-day event co-hosted by Wayfarer Marine and Lyman-Morse Boatbuilding. Momentum has been behind this event from the beginning and we expect this year to draw even more boats to this all out fun regatta.  Remember, it was recognized by Yachting Magazine as one of the World's Best events!

We are honored to announce that LifeFlight of Maine is our beneficiary. All proceeds from the event will go to the essential medical service. One that is especially relevant to yachtsmen.

What does LifeFlight of Maine do?

When someone in Maine finds themselves in a life-threatening situation, be it illness or injury, a call for medical help is made. For the most serious of calls, people in Maine rely on LifeFlight to provide advanced care and rapid transport to specialty care such as burn, trauma, cardiac or transplant centers.  Often, LifeFlight is literally a second chance at life.

Now with a worthy cause, the fourth annual Penobscot Bay Rendezvous, August 14-17th will once again be Maine's most exciting sail and powerboat regatta of the season. Super yachts, to classics to performance racers, passage-making power cruisers, Picnic Boats and lobster yachts are invited to enter. The Penobscot Bay Rendezvous is a celebration of boating and boatbuilding. Featuring daily races for sailboats and a panoramic setting for powerboats, the participants will be hosted each night at a different exclusive venue. Delicious locally sourced menus, dancing and fireworks are all a part of the ticket.

Central to the growth and have been a core of passionate J sailors who enjoy living and/or cruising in New England and, particularly, Down East Maine from Portland to Eastport.  Two of them are sailing single-handed- Ron Hart’s J/109 TRUE NORTH from Camden, Maine and Scott Miller’s J/122 RESOLUTE (the same person and boat that won the Bermuda One-Two in 2013).

In the SPIN Division 1 is Tom Gill’s J/100 SEA SMOKE from Boston, MA, Doug Coleman & Chris Holm’s J/46 SKITTERYGUSSET from Wayzata, Ben Blake’s J/160 ATLANTIC and Mark Scheffer’s J/40 LEGACY from Vineyard Haven.

Sailing SPIN Division 2 is Jesse Henry’s J/80 CHAISE LOUNGE, Patti Spaulding’s J/24 HAVOC and Larry Turner’s J/29 RENEGADE.  Gorgeous weather is anticipated for the weekend and it’s particularly nice when you have the backdrop of the hills surrounding Penobscot Bay during sunsets.
For more Penobscot Bay Rendezvous sailing information

Canadians Crush J/24 Downeast Regatta

STICKY FINGERS Beats Down DOGFISH & ESKIMO SISTERS
(Portland, Maine)- There was nothing average about the 27th Anniversary Downeast Regatta that took place this past weekend. In all 33 boats made it to the line for two days of racing on the beautiful waters of Casco Bay, in downeast Maine-- some of the world's best cruising grounds.

On Saturday there was a pleasant 8 to 10 knot southwest breeze that eventually shifted to the west ahead of a cold front that produced a LOT more wind around 12 knots for the last of four races. The current and winds were shifting all day which provided for some not-so consistent finishes.  The Race Committee lead by Mark Toso did a wonderful job of keeping up with changing conditions and ran four great races.

In short, Saturday was a gear-buster, with many boats showing their keels at times as they struggled with the gusts up to 32 knots.  After three great races the fleet was more than happy to return to land and recover over a lobster, Gritty's Beer and Double Cross Vodka.

After day one the two most consistent performances were by the tied regatta leaders STICKEY FINGERS from Lunenburg, Canada and DOGFISH from Newport, RI, both boats accumulated 18 points. These two boats were closely followed by AL, ESKIMO SISTERS and BUSHWHACKER who were all just a few points behind.

Sunday was just the opposite.  Very little wind, just enough to tempt the Race Committee to send the fleet off.  Later, after drifting and dreaming for what seemed like forever, the engines came on after one race to push boats back to Handy Boat for the closing ceremony.

STICKY FINGERS, skippered by John Whynacht, kept their consistent performance, with a second and fourth place finishes, to win the regatta. AL moved up in the standing to second with a first and a third place finish, to place second overall. Third was Bob Kinsman on DOGFISH with a 5-4-8-1-5-7 scoreline for 30 pts.  Fourth was Tim Corbett's ESKIMO SISTERS and fifth was Aidan Glackin's MENTAL FLOSS.

The 2013 Downeast Regatta was a US J/24 World's qualifier regatta and the spot went to the first not-already qualified boat which was Eskimo Sisters, skippered by Tim Corbett from Newport, RI.

The Fleet Award presented to the top three boats from a J/24 Fleet was presented to Fleet 50 Newport and DOGFISH who place 3rd overall, ESKIMO SISTERS who placed 4th overall and ON THE BEACH who placed 6th overall.

Thank you to all our sponsors, volunteers and participants that made this year's Downeast Regatta a very special event.  Congratulations as well to the team of over 50 volunteers, led by Molly White and Jess Harris, who managed all the shoreside planning and organizing.  Sailing photo credits- Ann Blanchard  For more J/24 Downeast Regatta sailing information

J Sailors Cruise to Victory @ Penobscot Bay Rendezvous

Judy Jellinek's J/160 Queen of the Fleet
(Camden, Maine)-  There is no more desirable sailing venue than scenic Penobscot Bay in August, and this year’s Rendezvous sailed from August 15th to 18th was near perfect with temperatures in the mid 70s,  blue skies every day and sailing breezes from 5 to 15 knots every day.

Forty-two boats participated (40% were J’s) and they covered the J/Boat spectrum with two J/160s, two J/46s, three J/42s, a J/40 and a J/34C from the cruising ranks as well as a J/122,  J/120, J/109, two J/100s and a J/29 and a J/80.  No surprise that J’s took 60% of the podium positions.

In PHRF 1 J’s took three of the top four spots with Don Logan’s J/105 KEEMAH coming second followed by two J/100s, Tom Gill's SEA SMOKE in 3rd and Frank Simon's SMITTEN in fourth.

PHRF 2 was dominated by Larry Turner’s J/29 RENEGADE with 5 points followed by Jesse Henry’s J/80 CHAISE LOUNGE with 8 points in second.

Cruising Canvas came down to a nail biter between Judy Jellinek’s gorgeous J/160 SEPTEMBER MORNING, the venerable Palmer Johnson 53 Anjaca, with deep local knowledge aboard,  and Windwalker, a stunning Lyman Morse 60.  Had there been a concours d elegance it would have been a dead heat!  On the final day, SEPTEMBER MORNING was able to save her overall victory with a one point margin over Anjacaa and Windwalker.  A great effort by Judy in her third ever regatta!

Double-Handed was the largest class with sixteen entrants and it turned into a battle royal between a very well sailed Sydney 38 sailed by Tom Hall and Tom Babbitt's BRAVO, a shoal draft J42 in full cruise mode, cockpit cushions, dodger and grill deployed. BRAVO was able to win the first day, with Buzz second,  but Buzz dominated on Saturday with BRAVO second,  so Sunday was the rubber match and in the stronger breeze, Buzz eeked out a 20 second victory over BRAVO.  The final standings were Buzz in first, BRAVO second and Bermuda One-Two overall champion, Scott Miller’s J/122 RESOLUTE, in third.  Fifth was James Bennett's J/34c ASTAEA.   Next year’s Rendezvous will be August 14 – 17, 2014.  Don’t miss it!
For more Penobscot Bay Rendezvous sailing information

J/105 Rockland-Castine Regatta Champion

(Castine, ME)- Two great days of racing took place this past weekend at the 3rd Annual Rockland Castine Regatta hosted by Rockland Yacht Club.  In all 32 boats made it to the line for the start on both days. There were two cruising classes, three racing classes, a shorthanded division, and a multihull division each sailing a 20 mile course, to and from, Rockland and Castine Harbors.

Day one was the sleigh ride to Castine with a 10 to 20 knot WSW breeze that was reasonably consistent throughout the race.  KEEMAH, the J/105 owned by Don Logan, in racing class two was the second boat to finish.  It was not the day for the big boats as they were never able to catch all the way up to most of the smaller boats.  Day 2 would be another story completely.

Day two started off with a whimper and finished off with a bang.  The weather intelligence provided the race committee with a forecast for some wind although it didn't look like it just after the starting sequence had begun.  A nice 5 knot northerly a filled just outside Castine harbor and the race committee anxiously started the race on time.  However, that wind proved to be a fluke and very light air commenced for the rest of the starting sequence.  Luckily a nice 1 knot+ out-going current kept most of the boats moving towards the goal of Rockland harbor while the whole fleet waited for a southwesterly wind to fill for a great upwind leg back "home".

The wind did fill to about 10 to 15 knots and provided some large oscillations between 200 degrees and 250 degrees during the race.  The boats that hit the shifts just right each time made huge gains, however, if you got caught on the wrong side it was hard to recover.   The shifts only took place every 40 minutes or so, which created a wait and see, patience game.  The out-going current meant that you didn't need to go to a shore but boats would go to each side of the course and create some major leverage of about 1 to 2 miles at times. 

The larger boats were able to catch up with the fleet on day two much better and the first boat to finish was racing class 1 boat, J'AI TU, a J/35 owned by Gary Bennett and skippered by JB Turner.  The J/105 KEEMAH won the overall by 1 minute and 35 seconds. Congratulations to KEEMAH and Don Logan's crew on a second consecutive Overall win of the Rockland Castine Regatta.

On Saturday a party of over 175 sailors took place a Dennet's Wharf restaurant. Which became really interesting when the power went out due to a small squall that went through Castine just after everyone had hit the docks and were cleaned up after racing.  The Dennet's staff was great and kept everything on schedule cooking with head lamps in their kitchen and serving all the sailors on time.  Just about the time dinner was over the power came back on and the band was able provide great music for dancing until the sailors couldn't take it any longer.      

On Sunday a party under the tent of the Rockland green was a perfect end to a great weekend with a full BBQ with burgers, dogs, chicken and all the fixings and some great salads to top off the experience. 

Rising Tide Beer was enjoyed each day with their "Spinnaker" and "Maine Island Trail Ale" brands providing some great refreshment to the crowds of thirsty sailors.   For more Rockland Castine Regatta sailing information

J/122 RESOLUTE Bermuda One-Two Update

(Blue Hill, ME)-  Scott Miller of Blue Hill, Maine just finished the Bermuda One-Two in grand style - namely first in Class 1 single handed to Bermuda, first in Class 1 on the double handed return to Newport with his Rockport, Maine crew, George Haselton, (a veteran J/24 and J/35 sailor). As many now know, Scott was first overall in fleet for the best combined corrected time for both legs.

Scott said that the single handed leg down started in decent breeze with very large long period waves left over from Tropical Storm Andrea.  The leg was also unusual in that the level of attrition was quite high with 7 of 23 starters having to turn back.  Scott was fortunate that he had almost no gear failures for the entire race.  The key to his performance in this leg was following a veteran 1-2 racer's simple advice, "Try to spend more time going 8 knots rather than 7 knots".

For the return leg,  extremely light conditions were the rule after the start and George and Scott worked hard using the spinnaker as often as possible allowing them to leg out in really flat conditions while most of the fleet parked up.  Scott credits his new Karver spinnaker furler with allowing them to be much more aggressive with the kite deploying and furling more often and faster than his competition.

And then there is the big question: the Bermuda One-Two is one enormous challenge, physically, mentally and emotionally - will he do it again?  The answer:  Yes, absolutely!