Simon Grain

IJCA Awards the 2026 J24 Worlds to SYC in Melbourne.

Early Friday morning the International J24 Class Association awarded the 2026 J24 World Championship to Sandringham Yacht Club. A small team led by National President Steve Wright, and including National Measurer Hugo Ottaway and then Victorian President Adam Keys-Tilley put together a comprehensive bid for the Championship.
We were up against a very slick bid from Argentina for the regatta to be held in a sensational location in a lake high in the Andes mountains, however the vote went unanimously to Melbourne.
The work now begins on the organisation for the regatta to be held in the second week of November 2026. Our new Victorian President Megan Aulich is right behind the bid and will be taking on an exciting and leading role in the regatta organisation. More to come as you can imagine. We will be looking for volunteers, charter boats and sponsorship.
Simon.

Check your rigging !!!

Here’s a really good reason to pull your mast out and check your rigging over before we really get summer sailing going.
Recently we have had a couple of mast issues, mainly around the standing rigging.
After the loss of a mast due to a shroud failure in Sydney, we have had the insurance angle brought home to us with a decline to pay out, due to age of rigging. A number of insurers will not pay out if your rigging is over 7 years old. This becomes an expensive exercise to replace a lost mast.
Just this week we have had a broken lower shroud in Melbourne, happily not resulting in a broken mast. Upon replacing the shroud it was found that the other lower was also on the verge of breaking – That’s the pic above.
The message in this pic is very clear and this T Ball fitting was on the verge of potentially losing another mast.
So now is a really good time to check your rigging and replace it if it is over 7 years old.

Simon

USA’s Team Furio Reigns at J/24 World Championship

Keith Whittemore’s Furio of the USA, with team Willem van Waay, Marianne Schoke, Brian Thomas and Melanie Edwards, have been crowned 2023 J/24 World Champions. Whittemore, who also won the 2019 J/24 World Championship in Miami, Florida USA, ended this event with only 25 net points in the full 10-race series. After discarding a 19 from race seven, the Seattle, Washington-based helmsman kept scores in the top seven including three bullets. Ignazio Bonanno’s La Superba of Italy compiled their reliable solid scores all week, winning two races, for 40 net points and the silver position. Tony Parker’s Bangor Packet, also of the USA, was in the hunt throughout the Championship, placing third overall with 52 net points. Parker has been sailing in the J/24 Class for all of its 45 years, and shipped his hull #58 to Greece.

Cillian Dickson’s Headcase of Ireland won the 23-boat Corinthian division, also placing fourth overall and tied on points with Parker. The crew included Ryan Glynn, Marcus Ryan, Louis Mulloy and Sam O’Byrne. The all-amateur podium was also comprised of Stephan Mais’ Running Men of Germany and Alexandros Tagaropoulos’s Hellenic Police of Greece.

The IJCA awarded its perpetual Youth Turner Trophy to Papanikitas Spiridon-Eleftherios’s Hellenic Naval Academy.

Competitors reveled in gorgeous conditions for five days at the Nautical Club of Thessaloniki in Greece. Saturday’s race winner was Kohei Ichikawa’s Gekko Diana of Japan.

Top Three Overall:

1) Keith Whittemore, Furio, USA, 25 points
2) Ignazio Bonanno, La Superba, ITA, 40 points
3) Tony Parker, Bangor Packet, USA, 52 points

Top Three Corinthian:

1) Cillian Dickson, Headcase, IRL
2) Stephan Mais, Running Men, GER
3) Alexandros Tagaropoulos, Hellenic Police, GRE

Thirty-five boats from 10 nations and four continents competed from Argentina, Australia, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan and the United States on September 12-16. A complete list of all J/24 World Champions can be found at http://www.j24class.org/about-the-j24/hall-of-fame/world-champions/. Complete event details may be found at http://j24worlds2023.ncth.gr/. Photos/video are available on the J/24 International Class Facebook page.

This is a live still pic that updates every minute

mymfaio

The stage is set for 36 boats from 10 countries to compete in Thessaloniki Greece from the 9th – 16th September.
Six Australian teams are competing:
Sean Kirkjian, Sydney – (Current National Champion)
Steve Wright, Sydney – (Immediate past Nat Champ and current Aust President)
John Crawford, Sydney – (NSW Measurer)
Dave West, Sydney – (NSW President)
Hugo Ottaway, Melbourne – (National Measurer)
Warren Slater, Melbourne – (Multiple Nat Champ in other classes)

So as you can see we have a considerable depth of talent in our Australian team, with multiple National Championship and State wins amongst them. All teams are chartering boats from Europe.

Races will be held in the Thermaikos Gulf. Participating boats will be moored in the marina of Nautical Club Thessaloniki, the second largest city of Greece, featuring an international airport and commercial port. The race area is characterized by the thermal breeze appearing every summer day early at noon, the wind varying from 8 up to 16 knots, gradually diminishing after sunset.

These mild but steady conditions are ideal for inshore, as well as daylight offshore racing. Racing will feature a mix of round the cans windward/leeward courses and offshore races, to fully test the teams’ skills on the waters of the Thermaikos Gulf. The challenge of close windward/leeward racing is likely to keep the fleet in close boat on boat battles, compared to the complexity of offshore racing. Interpreting the changing conditions and delivering consistency will reward with Championship success. Social activities for the 2023 J24 World Championship will take place at the premises of Nautical Club Thessaloniki, with renowned Greek hospitality throughout the week.

Here is a results / competitor list here

The Worlds site is here 

There are plenty of pictures on the Club FB page here https://www.facebook.com/nautical.club.thessaloniki

Photos of the pre racing set up from Linda Smith

Capturing those memories

2023 J24 Nationals at Cronulla Sailing Club

It’s a while since the day many will talk about for years to come, yes Saturday of the 2023 J24 Nationals at Cronulla Sailing Club – big waves and lots of wind. Plenty of carnage, plenty of tall tales and memories.

Capturing those memories was our intrepid photographer, Margaret Fraser-Martin and some of those pics are just amazing.

For example, this one doesn’t have the action of some, but just look at that swell in front of ‘Sailmates’, this lends new meaning to sailing uphill(s)!

You won’t see many J24 regattas with that size swell coming through, can’t imagine leaving the marina if that was coming into Sandy!

Margaret has a huge folder full of pics – most that haven’t come to light yet and are available here for the first time. Some are pics of the fleet (Margaret likes to get multiple boats in shots for more action and scale), some are individual yachts. I commend these pictures to you, and suggest you find your boat and order a copy. Margaret is offering high-res files of each for just $40. You’ll love an action shot and you will be supporting Margaret in her work which she did for us without any guarantee of remuneration. Helping her, helps you and us in the future if we can get her back for the next one.

Simon Grain, Nat Sec

Have a look at these amazing pics and here’s how to order.

  • High resolution pictures are available, $40.00, for a digital file for printing. Email (yachtphotos@yahoo.com) with event name and photo number. Photo credit is always needed wherever used in public (posters, social media, websites etc.).
  • Facebook: Marg’s Yacht Photos
  • Instagram: margsyachtphotos
  • Contact: yachtphotos@yahoo.com


 

A bit about Marg Fraser-Martin – Passionate Life Photographer

My passion is for taking photos of people being engaged and passionate about their sailing. Capturing that moment in time when they are oblivious to the rest of the world and are totally involved in the task at hand and joy of life. The moment that is not posed.

This is about people who are competing in sailing and juggling all other aspects of life.

I want my photos to be a positive image to get more people in front of my lens, having fun, showing their friends and families. What they did on the weekend, and it is awesome.

To achieve this goal, I have been able to combine two of my favourite skills/qualifications – photography and sailing. Capturing the thrill, the teamwork, and the sheer joy of sailing.

A lot has changed since I started taking sailing photography and my area of expertise and interest has expanded. I now get involved in many Charity Events. Charity Yacht Regatta’s, Charity Balls, Golf Days, Eastern Creek Car Racing, Charity dinners and luncheons.

Boats and Bits for Sale

When you need to sell your boat or boat bits, we can list them on the site for you.
To do this please email, text or call Simon Grain on 0413 870 046

2023 J24 National Championships – View from the Sidelines.

2023 J24 National Championships – View from the Sidelines
The last time we towed our boats up the Hume for a national championship in Cronulla, was in 2017. Jack was a new owner of Two Dogs and Sailpac would take out the podium position. This time around, we had a strong contingent from Victoria lining up to compete – Bruschetta IV, Jab, Jet, Joyride, Poker Face, and Two Dogs (plus Brendan Lee jumping on to helm the NSW boat Kaotic).
While some had left their boats to marinate on Magoo’s infamous lawn after the NSW States in November, others made the trek north in the first few days of 2023.
Racing was scheduled to run from Thursday 5th to Sunday 8th January 2023 with an aim to complete 12 races. Hughie had other ideas. Racing for Thursday was cancelled the day before and replaced with a lunchtime welcome BBQ by our gracious hosts Cronulla Sailing Club.
On Friday, crews fronted up to CSC only to eventually have racing abandoned for a second day due to the weather.
Suddenly the 4-day event had been compressed into a 2-day-er and the pressure was on. The sacred drop was no longer a given when there were no guarantees how many races would (or could) be completed.
For those following along on the J24 Victoria Facebook page, you would have seen some bloody impressive photos (Thanks Marg’s Yacht Photos) from Saturday. There was a bit on. While the stories on shore all varied, there was consensus that the conditions were at the upper limits for J24 sailing. See below some of the more spectacular photos from our brilliant photographer.
In Race 1, Convicts Revenge, Innamincka and Sailpac showed us how it was done, taking out the first three places respectively. Among the top 10 spots, Team SYC placed 4th (Two Dogs), 7th(Bruschetta VI) and 8th (Jab). Unfortunately, Poker Face had to retire after a spectacular wave surf, brisk gybe and unfortunate bump to the head. They were one of four retirements from the race with El Fideldo breaking their mast in two places.
In Race 2, the conditions remained challenging with gusts peaking beyond 30 knots at times. Five SYC boats started race 2 but only 4 made it to the finish line. Two Dogs were undone by gear failure as their rudder snapped in two on the downwind leg, resulting in some impressive (and involuntary) circle work. Bruschetta, Jet and Jab all secured top 10 places in 5th, 7th, and 9th place respectively.
In the last race for the day (Race 3), there were 5 SYC starters with Bruschetta taking out 4th place, Jet in 8th place and Jab in 10th.
Sunday, the day that would make and break hopes and dreams of qualifying for worlds in Greece later in 2023. The sun was shining and with all crew back on board, Poker Face were back in the action along with El Doggo (Two Dogs + El Fideldo’s rudder) bringing our SYC starters back to 6 boats.
As if the anticipation of getting underway wasn’t enough, sailors endured three false starts (one general recall and two postponements during the sequence) before the dreaded black flag raised its head in Race 4. The stakes were on. All boats played by the rules with a clear start. Poker Face were early leaders of the race with a cracking start, before Two Dogs pulled into lead around the top mark the second time around. They maintained the lead, finishing 27 seconds before second place. Bruschetta weren’t far behind in 3rd place with Poker Face (8th) and Jab (10th) also placing in the top 10.
Race 5, there were some headsail swaps and Team SYC were getting in the groove. Bruschetta finished 2nd followed by Two Dogs (3rd), Jet (7th), Jab (8th), Poker Face and Joyride
The last race of the regatta was Race 6. Completing this race would qualify all boats for one drop which was always going to play havoc with the overall places. Jab finished strongly in 3rd place, followed by Two Dogs (6th), Jet (7th), Bruschetta (8th), Poker Face and Joyride.
Despite moments of brilliance across the board, ultimately our friends up north took out the podium spots with Sailpac in 1st place, Convicts Revenge in 2nd and Tinto in 3rd. See full results here >>
https://app.sailsys.com.au/…/series/2140/pointscore…
The Victorian places were as follows:
  • 4th Bruschetta
  • 5th Kaotic (skipped by Brendan)
  • 6th Two Dogs
  • 9th Jab
  • 11th Jet
  • 13th Joyride
  • 14th Poker Face
Congratulations to all participants. It was a tricky regatta in conditions that many would not have experienced before on a J24. Also, congratulations to Bruschetta and Two Dogs for qualifying for the 2023 J24 World Championships in Greece.
Special mention to Joyride who finished every race in their first interstate national championships. No mean feat!
Thank you to the RO (John Allan), Cronulla Sailing Club, and all those who made us feel at home over the last week.
Over and out from this (slightly biased) observer.
Story by Megan Aulich

2023 Nationals at Cronulla

The Nationals are racing at us.
The recent NSW States at Cronulla was a great dry run for those sailing and planning to do the Nationals. Learning new lessons and local tactics and relearning what should have been remembered. The weather was light and fluky at times, patchy and with a low swell rolling through.

Top 5 were: Convicts, Stamped Urgent, Tinto, Ace, Jet.

I have been asked about the Nationals NoR by a few people – here is the info you need. (It’s a little hard to find if you are not used to the layout of the info on the CSC site.

Go to the CSC website
Click on J24 Nationals
To enter click on the ‘J24 National Championships 2023 Entry’ link
To get the NoR, click on the ‘Event ONB’ (Online Notice Board) and you can download the NoR there
You will also need to fill out the Onboard Crew Declaration.

Entries close on 28th December at 5pm so get them in or cop a late entry fee.
As always entering sooner helps the organisers with things like organising volunteers, catering and planning the regatta management in general.

Let’s hope the weather cooperates and it will be a great regatta

Cheers Simon

Thinking of upgrading your mast ?

We are organising an order to build some new masts and have interest from an number of members.
The cost is yet to be determined as it is based on the number of masts built, but you could expect the cost to be around $6K, this includes basic fittings, spreaders and anodising.
It is also possible that there may be some good second hand masts available at around half the new cost
If you are interested in either option please call Simon on 0413 870 046

MIKEY AND THE GARAGE ROCKET

North Sails Experts Claim 2022 J24 World Championship

📸 Emily Stokes

There are plenty of clichés in sailboat racing, and perhaps one of the best is, “you’re only as good as your last race.” And what exactly does this mean? We’ll get to the answer eventually, but let’s begin our story with Mike Marshall and his teammates on American Garage—trimmer David Hughes, tactician Allan Terhune, pit Jeff Hayden and bowman Rod Favela—as they are pacing near the signal boat at the J/24 World Championships in Corpus Christi, Texas, having been dinged with a black flag on the fourth and critical penultimate day of racing.

Ok, you can see this story as a bit of an ad for North, but if you dig more deeply into the content, thee are some huge lessons on J sailing here. Read more …

J24 World Championship July 14-22, 2022

May be an image of 3 people, people boat racing and sailboatCongratulations to Mike Marshall, with crew Dave Hughes, Allan Terhune, Jeffrey Hayden and Rod Favela for winning the 2022 J/24 World Championship
Corpus Christi Yacht Club has a rich history of running world class regattas. ‘We have great wind, a short distance from dock to race circle, easy access, and South Texas hospitality. Our PRO, Mark Foster, is a past J22 World Champion and three-time winner of the St. Petersburg Trophy for race management. We may be a little harder to get to, but we’ll make it worth your while! ‘
‘We hope you enjoy your time here and we look forward to hosting y’all!’
Well that said, the Worlds are on and if you want to keep track of the racing here is a link to the results page