How J Composites wants to make racing more accessible – Sponsored content

Cherbourg hosted from June 18 to 20 a brand-new event, the J Cup Europe, which also served as the very first European Championship for the J/99 class. This initiative, launched by sailboat builder J Composites, already the organizer of similar regattas at national level (J Cup France, England, Ireland, United States, Australia…), was born from a clear observation made by Frédéric Bouvier, the shipyard’s Sales Director: “Today, we are seeing a clear decline in participation in amateur regattas.”

He explains this for several reasons: “First of all, there is the administrative complexity surrounding these events; just count the number of pages in the Notice of Race and the Sailing Instructions. They are full of rules that nobody reads or truly understands.” Added to that, according to him, are the rating systems “far too complex for an amateur owner unfamiliar with them. Whether it is ORC, IRC or national rating systems, nothing is designed to make things simple or easy to understand.”

In response, J Composites decided to launch a new event this year dedicated to its owners, bringing together in Cherbourg harbour around thirty participants aboard J/99, 105, 109, 112 and 120 yachts. The organizer had several priorities. First, simplicity: “The Notice of Race is just one page long, containing only the essential information: dates, eligible boats and sailing areas. The same goes for the Sailing Instructions, which have been greatly simplified.” Secondly, maximizing racing time once the boats leave the dock: “A coastal course takes competitors to the starting area for the windward-leeward races. Once those races are completed, another coastal leg brings everyone back to the harbour, avoiding long waiting times on the water.”

Finally, fairness, with the aim of allowing owners to keep their boats configured for their usual sailing programme while still giving them a genuine chance to compete for top positions. “Comparing boats with similar hull designs already makes the process much easier, and we can then easily adjust the parameters to give certain standard boats a fair boost, explains Frédéric Bouvier. For example, a cruiser-racer equipped with a furling system or other equipment less focused on performance can receive compensations. We are currently measuring these factors to find the right balance.”

The final objective of this first J Cup, in which he also competed— finishing runner-up in the J/99 European Championship —was to offer a friendly regatta and celebrate all participants, not just the winners. “If we believe that only victory matters, we end up with a lot of disappointed people,” he points out. In Cherbourg, this philosophy was reflected, among other things, in the presentation of the Golden Hoops award, a prize that was almost as eagerly awaited as the winner’s trophy.

This friendly atmosphere was highlighted by one of the participants, the Franco-British owner of the J/99 Jolly Jumper, Jean-Baptiste Brian: “The emphasis was on having a good time rather than arguing over the rules. The proof is that over three days of racing, there were only two protests! Cherbourg Marina was also the perfect place to socialise: we were all berthed on the same pontoon, just a few steps from the race village. The racing area was truly interesting, with the option of racing either inside the bay or offshore. The goal of bringing together boats with crews of very different experience levels, without making things complicated, was achieved.”

Delighted with this first edition, the J Composites team intends to do it again next year and organize more regattas of this kind, convinced that they can attract a strong following by rekindling the desire to spend more time on the water.