J/Newsletter- November 15th, 2025

What a week it’s been across the J/Boats world— from landmark victories in Buenos Aires to tight sailing league battles in Berlin, light-air chess matches in San Diego to classic autumn drama on the Solent. 

The headline of the week comes from Argentina, where Laura Grondin made history as the first woman to win the J/70 World Championship, steering DARK ENERGY to a breakthrough victory after a wildly volatile, “chutes & ladders†leaderboard that shuffled the top fifteen every single race. Meanwhile in France, Eric Brezellec’s MOJITO capped a remarkable comeback season to claim the J/80 French National Championship— the culmination of a 200-team circuit increasingly defined by mixed and youth talent surging to the top.

Germany delivered its own high-stakes drama as NRV fought through a razor-tight final showdown on Berlin’s Wannsee to claim the German J/70 Sailing League Finale, edging out rivals MSC and JSC in one of the closest season-enders in recent memory. Far to the south, Chile celebrated a banner year for the offshore J/fleet, with the J/122E and J/99 leading a massive 56% J/Boat turnout at the 50th Off Valparaíso Regatta.

Back in the UK, the Hamble Winter Series reached its fifth weekend with typical Solent character— tides running big, breezes shifting, and J/teams once again at the sharp end of nearly every class. And in Hamburg, the legendary Alsterglocke delivered its annual spectacle of athletic crew swaps, crowded docks, and pure fun across J/22s, J/24s, and J/70s.

Across the Atlantic, the San Diego Hot Rum Series opened with a whisper rather than a roar, as ultra-light winds allowed only a fraction of the 100+ boats to finish— setting up plenty of intrigue for the next two events. And in La Rochelle, JOUR J triumphed at the Navigatlantique Trophy, closing out the French J/70 Cup with solid results across a full mix of conditions.

Finally, we close this issue with a tribute to Don Trask, one of the Bay Area’s most influential sailors, builders, and community leaders— a man whose legacy spans fleets, generations, and continents.

The New J/7 is Just What Sailing Needs: “Simplicity, Performance, & Affordability”
(Rockland, ME)- In the “Off the Drawing Board” column of Maine Boats, Homes, & Harbors, Art Paine takes the new J/7 daysailer for a spin and comes back as a big fan. Said Art, “simply put, the J/7 encompasses everything that I, a lifelong sailor and mostly racers, strongly favor”. Art continues to explain,

“Having captained sailboats for 50 years and shared family-wide enthusiasm for cruising under sail, not to mention reveling in one-design competition, and even designing and building sailboats, I am among the legion of sailors who are quietly heartbroken at the shrinking interest in wind-powered boats. 

We ask ourselves, “What’s it gonna take?” One answer I’d put forward is a sailboat that is well-designed and constructed, delivered at an affordable price, and simple to sail by beginners, while still putting a smile on an old salt’s face. 

With that in mind, I’ve been hearing scuttlebutt about J/Boats’ newest launch, the J/7, for some time. And the moment I caught actual sight of this latest model, I believe I saw salvation in the flesh. I feel that if sailing as recreation and sport for the common lubber is to rise again, I’ve never seen a more compelling foundation for hope. 

The reason the J/7 is revolutionary is that it addresses every factor that is limiting the use of sailboats. At a time when new-boat sales are reeling under the demise of affordability— and facing direct competition from old sailboats that are cheap to free— here is a fresh, efficient, and enjoyable lifestyle vessel that comes with a relatively affordable base price of right around $55 grand.”

Read more of this 3-page J/7 review by Art Paine here (a PDF file):

For more Maine Boats, Homes, & Harbors magazine information
https://maineboats.com/print/issue-197

Grondin First Woman to Win J/70 World Championship!
(Buenos Aires, Argentina)- The Yacht Club Argentino hosted the 2025 edition of the J/70 World Championship in Buenos Aires, Argentina, for the first time “down under” in the southern hemisphere. There were seventy-one teams participating from sixteen nations; including Argentina (22), Australia (1), Bermuda (1), Brazil (14), Chile (5), China (1), Spain (2), Great Britain (2), Germany (1), Italy (3), Portugal (1), Switzerland (1), Sweden (2), Turkey (3), Uruguay (7), and USA (13). 

Sailing started on Tuesday, October 28th, and concluded on Saturday, November 1st. The entire top fifteen of the leaderboard experienced a severe case of “chutes & ladders”, as the teams moved up and down the top ten like yo-yos on a string. There were no exceptions. And, ultimately, the winner was Laura Grondin’s DARK ENERGY from the USA, the first woman helm and owner to win the J/70 World Championship. 

After ten races over five days, shifting tides and reshuffled leaderboards, the regatta came to a dramatic close on the final race on the final day. The entire top five was wide open for any team that could demonstrate enough consistency, avoid the “down the mineshaft” result, and grab the proverbial “brass ring” to the top of the leaderboard.  READ MORE HERE.

Brezellec’s MOJITO Crowned J/80 French National Champion

(Pornichet, France)- With nearly 200 teams participating in the six regatta series for the 2025 J/80 French Cup, 2025 was an excellent year, culminating in a thrilling J/80 French National Championship. 

The large number of young and mixed crews participating testifies to the dynamics of the series. This is all the more true given that, for the first time in the history of the J/80 Class, the top 3 places in the  overall standings of the French Cup  are occupied respectively by a “mixed” crew and by two “espoir” (youth) crews.

Indeed, Eric Brezellec’s MOJITO team from CN Saint-Cast made a beautiful return to the helm of a J/80 after a few sabbatical years and won the French J/80 Cup by sailing with mixed crews for each of the five regattas he raced on the circuit  READ MORE HERE.

NRV Wins German J/70 Sailing League Finale 
(Berlin, Germany)- The 2025 German J/70 Sailing League competed for the coveted championship trophy for sailing clubs  on Berlin’s Wannsee Lake. Going into the finale, only a few points separated the three frontrunners from the overall title – Mühlenberger Segel-Club (MSC), Joersfelder Segel-Club (JSC), and Norddeutscher Regatta Verein (NRV).

The final races promised thrilling competition. Only one point separated the defending champion MSC (Hamburg) from its closest rival, the Berlin JSC. With a further point separating them, the record holder NRV was lurking, waiting for its chance to reclaim the title.

For MSC, helmsman Max Augustin started with his well-practiced team, while NRV relied on its successful J/70 junior crew with helmsman Mats Schönbeck in the duel of the Hamburg clubs.

An idea that became an institution
“We are looking forward to a thrilling season finale with the best league sailors from German clubs,†said Sailing Bundesliga manager Anke Nowak. “It’s an idea that has become an institution over the past decade: The Segel Bundesliga has revolutionized the sporting standards in the participating sailing clubs. League teams and training on the J/70 are now an integral part of German club sailing.â€

For many clubs, the Segel Bundesliga has long been a central component of their club strategy. Depending on sporting ambitions and performance level, the league – the Sailing Bundesliga and the international SAILING Champions League – offers top-level sailing almost all year round.  READ MORE HERE.

J/122E and J/99 Set Pace Offshore in Chile
(Valparaiso, Chile)- The 50th edition of Off Valparaíso Regatta was raced in Valparaiso Bay on October 17-18 and was hosted by Yacht Club de Chile.  Conditions were light on Saturday, with only 1 race with westerly winds of 4-7 kts. On Sunday, the conditions were much better with southwest winds from 12-14 kts.  

Thirty-three J/Boats participated in the regatta amongst the fifty-nine keelboats in the regatta. 56% of the fleet was J/Boats! That’s an amazing statistic for any regatta in the USA or Europe, but it’s truly remarkable in a South American regatta!  READ MORE HERE.

44th Hamble Winter Series Report- Weekend V
(Hamble, England)- The 44th running of the Hamble Winter Series is now in its sixth weekend of sailing on the infamous, capricious Solent Water between Southampton and the Isle of Wight. Yet again, J/teams across the board are enjoying a wide range of conditions from wet & wild to sunny and benign.

The CV SEA ANGEL set up at 4J (hamblewinterseries.com) for Race Week 5 of the Hamble Winter Series, which was sponsored by Pharmacy Consulting Ltd. The plan, according to PRO Peter Bateson, was “for a challenging variety of legs up, down and across the wind and across the tide, ending after 2-2½ hours back at hamblewinterseries.com.” 

Wellies had been compulsory on the Hamble foreshore mid-week, which meant that some big spring tides were still prevalent in the Solent. 10-15 kts of breeze with a lot of South in it (185-200 degrees) meant there would be even more “opportunities” for cross-tide sailing than usual.

With the series entering its last four weeks, one longer race is the order of the day, allowing boats to return to their berths in daylight. IRC 1&2 were sent on a 13-mile course which had two legs across the Ryde Middle Bank. IRC 3 was dispatched on a 10.9-mile course, which went to Royal Thames (4F) and then to Ben Wood (4N) on the southern edge of the East Knoll Bank.  READ MORE HERE.

Alsterglocke- The legendary fun regatta on the Alster Lake for J/22s, J/24s, & J/70s
(Hamburg, Germany)- The Alsterglocke regatta was founded in 1984 by Claus Krogmann and Robby Rottmann and has enjoyed steadily growing popularity ever since. Not only sailors, but also media outlets such as radio, television, newspapers, and the internet are enthusiastic about this event. It’s well-known throughout Germany and even beyond. Often imitated, but never equaled, it is one of the largest regularly held regattas with an impressive number of participating sailors.

Sailors are known for sitting in their boats, sailing across the water, and using the wind to build speed. They occasionally need to manually adjust their sails to create optimal conditions. However, on Hamburg’s Alster Lake and during the Alster Bell event, much more action is required. 

Every year at the end of the sailing season, the Hamburg Sailing Club organizes a lively spectacle on the Alster. Around 90 boats participate annually, with over 500 sailors and 250 guests from all over Germany. Of course, not everyone is on board at the same time– each boat carries two complete crews of different classes. While a typical large boat usually has five sailors on board, the Alster Bell rule stipulates ten. After each prescribed lap around the dock, without mooring, and maintaining almost no speed, the crews must be exchanged.  READ MORE HERE.

Light Start to San Diego Hot Rum Series
(San Diego, CA)- The first race of the three-race long Hot Rum Series started off with a whimper. Light winds plagued the fleet, with only about one-third of the 100+ boat fleet finishing the pursuit race. Hosted by San Diego Yacht Club for decades, the Hot Rum Series has been a popular regatta to close out the end of the summer/ fall sailing season in Southern California. 

Using the PHRF SoCal ratings, the slowest boats start first at 10:00 AM, and by noon, the biggest, fastest boats have started. Given the normal scenario for developing winds on San Diego Bay, it takes some time for the Seabreeze thermal to develop over the top of Point Loma. As a result, it’s usually the big boats that benefit from a late start with decent breeze.  READ MORE HERE.

JOUR J Wins Navigatlantique Trophy
(La Rochelle, France)- La Rochelle Nautique hosted the J/70 Cup for the ninth and final stage of the French Cup. This 13th edition of the Navigatlantique Trophy, always a very friendly event, took place from November 8th to 10th.

The first two races were held on Saturday in very light wind conditions. Then, four races were held on Sunday in stronger conditions. Finally, two more races took place on Monday in a good breeze.

After eight races, JOUR J, skippered by Béatrice Joyaud and her crew of Nicolas Dore, Eliot Merceron, and Benjamin Amiot, emerged victorious with 4 race wins and 10 pts.  READ MORE HERE.

J/Community
What J/Sailors, family, and friends are doing around the world

A Tribute to Don Trask on Latitude 38 
(San Francisco, CA)- The Bay Area sailing community recently lost one of its most influential and passionate figures. Don Trask, a lifelong sailor, competitor, and builder of boats who shaped generations of sailors, passed away at the age of 92, on September 29, 2025, in Mooresville, North Carolina. He left behind a legacy that extended far beyond San Francisco Bay. Don was best known as both a boat builder and fleet builder of Lasers and J/Boats, a competitive Star sailor, and a mentor who fostered a generation of Bay Area sailing champions.

Please read the rest of John Arndt’s celebration of Don Trask’s life in the sailing world here on Latitude 38

The J/46 SWEET RUCA’s Adventures
This is an ongoing story about a couple that bought a J/46 and, with little offshore experience, decided they wanted to sail around the world. The crew consists of Kate, Curtis, and Roxy the dog. Their introduction is quite amusing. 

“One day we woke up, saw a boat on the Internet (the J/46), and in less than 24 hours, we had the winning bid!! Kate and I purchased the boat in January 2019 with the intention of refitting her and sailing her around the world. We sold our house, left Ohio, and moved onto the boat in Newport, Rhode Island, in July 2019. That’s before the global Covid-19 pandemic!”

Since then, this American couple from the Midwest has had quite the adventure cruising around the world on SWEET RUKA. Here is the short story of their travels to date. READ MORE HERE. 

J/Gear HOLIDAY Special- 20% off!
(Newport, RI)- We’re offering the J/Holiday Special from October through November 15th, 2025! 20% off on ALL orders!

But the 1/2 hull models are exempt from this offer.

Order early to ensure a Happy Holidays delivery!

Holiday discount coupon:  JB2025HS

For any clothing, hats, blankets, and so forth, choose your J/Class logo and customize with boat name and sail number as an option. 

Browse all products here on the J/GEAR website:
https://jgear.vsport.biz