The J109 Irish Championship saw a competitive fleet on 10 entries come together on 5/6 October in Dublin Bay to race in the aftermath of Hurricane Lorenzo.

As Afloat previously reported, the full programme of six races was completed. Saturday saw 3 races in a stiff Southerly with the right-hand side of the course paying against the flood tide. At the end of the three races there was little separating the top 3 boats, John Maybury’s Joker 2, the Kelly’s Storm, both of them previous winners, and Andrew Craig’s 2019 Scottish Series winner Chimaera meaning all to play for on Sunday. Saturday concluded with a video de-brief by North Sails Prof O’Connell followed by supper and a largely early night as the crews were worn out after 3 tough races.

A J109 start with Dear Prudence taking the pin Photo: Afloat

Sunday started with a 1-hour postponement in a strong westerly however the sun was shining and with a flat sea, the fleet enjoyed spectacular racing on great courses laid by PRO Eddie Totterdell. The top 3 boats had a fierce battle, characterised by race 5 where Joker, Chimaera then Storm crossed the finish line each separated by a boat length. At the end of the 6 races Joker 2 was the winner, followed by Storm then Chimaera.

Storm (Pat Kelly) from Howth Yacht Club Photo: Afloat

Chimaera (Andrew Craig) from the Royal Irish Yacht Club Photo: Afloat

There were other battles going on across the fleet and this was recognised with 3 mini-series covering the six races with lovely sailing bags presented by UK Sails for 1st, 2nd and 3rd in each series, prizes passing down the fleet. Mini-series 2 was won by Richard Murphy and John Colwell in OutraJeous while Simon Knowles took Series 3 in Indian.

Outrajeous (John Murphy and Richard Colwell) from Howth Yacht Club

Indian (Simon Knowles) from Howth Yacht Club Photo: Afloat

The event was supported by very generous sponsors which ensured that no-one went home empty-handed after such a great series of 6 races. POD Marine provided each boat with an engine health check with their engineers as well as two very valuable individual prizes of a full engine service to be awarded to the overall winner and the equally important finisher who propped up the final results. Thanks also to North Sails, Bushmills, Ropedock and Viking Marine, this was very much appreciated by the entire fleet.

John Maybury's consistent Joker 2 has won the J109 National Championships after six races sailed at the Royal Irish Yacht Club today. 

Maybury won half of the six races in the series but counted all six results in the top three.

This year's championships was not contested by the defending champion Andrew Algeo in Juggerknot who has moved to the new J/99. Also not competing was Tim and Richard Goodbody in White Mischief due to crew issues.

Total control - Joker II steered by John Maybury is the 2019 J109 National Champion Photo: Afloat

Racing in northwesterly winds gusting to 20-knots, there were plenty of shifts on Dublin Bay to keep crews on their toes in the nine-boat fleet.

Pat Kelly's Storm with Cork Harbour's Rob O'Leary (second from right) as tactician was runner up Photo: Afloat

As it turned out, the overnight standings after three races here remained despite three further windward-leeward tests today. Second overall, and equally consistent, was Pat Kelly's Storm II from Howth Yacht Club on nine points. 

Third, on 12 points, was Maybury's clubmate Andrew Craig, the Scottish Series champion sailing Chimaera. 

Andrew Craig's Scottish Series Champion Chimaera was third overall Photo: Afloat

Maybury who sailed to his fourth consecutive ICRA national title back in June on the same race track now adds the J109 national title in an impressive season for the RIYC team.

Results here

Fourth overall - Outrajeous (Richard Colwell and John Murphy) Photo: Afloat

Fifth overall - John and Brian Hall's Something Else Photo: Afloat

As part of the championships, Maurice O'Connell of North Sails Ireland was on the water coaching with video de-brief ashore after racing as below here in a sequence from race three on Saturday.

The host club's Joker 2 skippered by John Maybury leads the J109 National Championships after the first three races sailed from the Royal Irish Yacht Club today. 

Racing in southerly winds gusting to 20-knots, poor visibility on Dublin Bay kept crews on their toes in the ten-boat fleet.

Second overall, and with a first race victory, is Pat Kelly's Storm II from Howth Yacht Club on seven points. Third, on the same points as Kelly is Maybury's clubmate Andrew Craig, the Scottish Series champion sailing Chimaera. 

Maybury who sailed to his fourth consecutive ICRA national title back in June on the same race track looks set on adding the J109 national title too, winning two of today's three windward-leeward races.

But expect Storm to put up a fight in the second half of the championship tomorrow as Storms' tactician is Rob O'Leary, who was tactician on Andrew Algeo's "Juggerknot I" last year when they won both East Coast and National Championships.

Maybury has a new tactician this weekend with champion team racer Nicky Smyth replacing Cork Harbour Olympian Killian Collins.

Ryan Glynn, the current J24 National Champion, is tactician on Craig's "Chimaera", where the nucleus of his Scottish Series-winning team are still onboard.

Results here

Greetings to all J109 sailors! As the summer draws to a close and our seasonal pricing programme starts (please do get in touch for special offers now!), we thought it would be timely to reflect on what has been an amazing year of achievements for our wonderful clients in the class writes Maurice O'Connell of North Sails Ireland

When we looked over these results, it's a testament not only to their wonderful sailing skills, boat preparation and organisation but also to the speed and durability of our products. North Sails J109 sails are very very fast, are easy to set up and trim and stay very fast (and thus delivering tremendous value) for a long long time. When it comes to quality, we don't cut corners.

So, here goes the 2019 "medal table" from the start of the season, congratulations again to you all.

ONE-DESIGN

Ireland East Coast Championships (10 competitors)

1st "White Mischief" Tim & Richard Goodbody NORTH SAILS
2nd "Jalapeno" Paul Barrington, William Despard, Barry O'Sullivan NORTH SAILS
3rd "Chimaera" Andrew Craig NORTH SAILS

Jalapeno flying her 3Di Main Superkote A2

UK National Championships (11 competitors)

1. Juke Box John Smart NORTH SAILS
2. Jiraffe Simon Perry NORTH SAILS
3. Jumpin Jellyfish David Richards NORTH SAILS

Cowes Week - J109 Class (17 competitors)

1. "Jack Rabbit" Caroline Van Beelen and Rutger Krijger NORTH SAILS
2. "Jiraffe" Simon Perry NORTH SAILS

IRC

Scottish Series - IRC 1 (14 competitors - 6 x J109's in class)

1st "Chimaera" Andrew Craig NORTH SAILS
3rd "Storm II" Pat Kelly NORTH SAILS

Chimaera Leading Scottish Series with her red SK 90 A4 Kite Photo: Marc Turner

ICRA's (Ireland IRC National Championships) - IRC 1 (18 competitors - 12 x J109's in class)

1 "Joker II" John Maybury NORTH SAILS
2. "Storm II" Pat Kelly NORTH SAILS

Joker 2 winning the 2019 ICRAs Photo: Afloat

Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta - IRC 1 (26 competitors - 16 x J109's in class)

1st "Joker II" John Maybury NORTH SAILS
2nd "White Mischief" Tim and Richard Goodbody NORTH SAILS

Mojito

OFFSHORE

Dun Laoghaire - Dingle Race - IRC 1 (27 competitors - 4 x J109's in class)

1st J109 "Ruth" Shanahan Family NORTH SAILS

ISORA Series to date - IRC 1 (14 competitors - 5 x J109 Competitors in class)

1. "Mojito" Peter Dunlop & Victoria Cox NORTH SAILS

Jiraffe - Cowes Week 2019 Photo: Tim Wright

Seasonal Pricing

We are now into our Autumn special offers, so if it is winning speed, long-term durability and expert advice (what a combination!) that you are looking for, then please drop us an email or call (or SKYPE, SMS, Tweet, FB Message, Whatsapp..........).

We'd be delighted to chat through any aspect of your J109 sailing and give you the help that you need.

Best wishes from all of us here at North Sails Ireland.

After five races sailed and a discard applied at the ICRA National Championships at the Royal St. George Yacht Club, John Maybury is two races away from an impressive fourth win of the Class One title after another impressive day on Dublin Bay sees the Royal Irish Yacht Club skipper lead 18-boat class one by five nett points with three wins from five races.

As predicted, J109s continue their stranglehold of class one and are in the top three places. Second, on 10 points, is Howth Yacht Club's Storm skippered by Pat Kelly and one point behind in third overall is clubmate and ICRA Commodore Richard Colwell in the new Outrajeous campaign.

Current J109 National Champion Andrew Algeo sailing his brand new J99 is fourth overall. 

Three solid windward-leeward races, with beats of 1.1 nautical miles, were held today in shifting westerly breezes of 280 to 290 degrees that placed an emphasis on sailing the high tack and staying in the strongest pressure, upwind and down. The 10-14 knot breeze was heaviest in the morning with gust up to 20 knots over relatively flat seas. 

"It was very tight racing - again - and it was tough with 20 knots for all three races and good courses too," said Colwell.  "It's very close in our class, one mistake and you pay heavily - the way it should be!"

Results are here. The final two races are scheduled tomorrow from 11 am with breeze forecast to be westerly at eight knots on Dublin Bay

With just seconds to the start gun, the Strangford Lough Ker 32 HiJacKer from Down Cruising Club wins the pin end of the 400 metre line Photo: Afloat

Pat Kelly's Storm has moved up to second overall Photo: Afloat

Richard Colwell in the new Outrajeous campaign is lying third overall Photo: Afloat

Andrew Algeo's J99 on port with Colwell's Outrajeous in today's windward-leeward races

Kinsale's Grand Soleil Nieulargo was fourth in the third race to be 11th overall Photo: Afloat

Dublin Bay local IMX38 Gringo (Tony Fox) from the National Yacht Club won race three and is sixth overall Photo: Afloat

Seventh-placed Jelly Baby (above) - Despite her advertised tactician being Olympic skiff campaigner Seafra Guilfoyle, the 49er crew was spotted otherwise engaged on Dublin Bay (below) Photos: Afloat

Read all the latest from the ICRA National Championships in one handy link here.

Kenneth Rumball and John White are taking the Irish National Sailing and Powerboat School’s popular ‘man overboard’ lecture to the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s London clubhouse this evening (Thursday 16 May).

On 29 June 2018, the J109 yacht Jedi started the Round Ireland Yacht Race — but little did her crew of eight know that just says later, at 1am on 2 July, crew member John White would be swept overboard south-west of the Blasket Islands.

After well received talks at Wicklow Sailing Club in January and the Royal Irish Yacht Club in February, Rumball and White are in London to tell the story of how Jedi’s crew dealt with the situation — and what lessons were learnt from the incident.

Tonight’s RORC talk from 7pm is free for members and £10 for non-members, with booking available online HERE. For dinner reservations following the presentation email [email protected] or call +44 (0)207 493 2248.

In a very tightly contested weekend of racing White Mischief with Richard Goodbody helming came through in the last race to win the J109 Eastern Championships hosted by the National Yacht Club by a Class Association reporter.

The Saturday race was the DBSC Coastal Race which comprised in the main a series of long close reaches down and back to the Bray Outfall mark. Paul Barrington in Jalapeno and Brian Hall in Something Else managed to get clear early on while the rest of the fleet battled against Cruisers 0 and other Cruisers 1 for clear air with very few passing lanes. Jalapeno led the fleet home followed by Something Else with White Mischief next. Class Captain Andrew Craig said after the race that this format was clearly not appropriate for a One Design Championship and would be rethought for next year.

J109s line up for the final race of the Eastern Championships on Sunday Photo: Afloat.ie

By contrast, Sunday presented Champagne conditions and PRO Con Murphy had the whole bay to set excellent windward/leeward courses in 12 - 18 knots. The first race was won by White Mischief followed by Jalapeno and the newest members of the class Richard Colwell and John Murphy in Outrageous. The next race was won by Andrew Craig in Chimaera followed again by Jalapeno and John Maybury in Joker 2. The Championship would be decided in the last race in a brisk 18 knots of wind. Japaleno on 3 points with a very strong discard was lead boat followed by White Mischief on 4 with Chimaera on 5 - only a win by White Mischief could deprive Jalapeno. Chimaera led around the first mark but spinnaker handling difficulties gave White Mischief an opportunity which she grabbed and went on the win the race and claim her first j109 One Design Championship beating Jalapeno on countback. Chimaera finished 3rd overall. The generous sponsorship of North Sails, Bushmills and Porterhouse meant that all competitors were rewarded for their efforts at the prize giving.

The J109 fleet will now fan out across the IRC scene with good representation at the Scottish Series at Tarbert, ICRAs, Dun Laoghaire - Dingle Race, Sovereigns and the Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta and they will be hard to beat in the IRC classes.

The J109 Irish Championship will be held in the Royal Irish Yacht Club on Saturday and Sunday 5/6 October.

More photos from the championships here

Scottish RC35 champion Debbie Aitken's First 36.7 Animal has taken first blood of the season beating the Howth Yacht Club J109 Storm (Pat Kelly) at this weekend's two-day Kip Regatta on the Clyde.

As Afloat readers will know, the Storm crew who hail from Rush in North County Dublin opted to defend their 2018 Kip title instead of racing closer to home at the J109 Eastern Championships on Dublin Bay.

Animal took four wins to produce a convincing victory in the ten-boat fleet on four nett points with Kelly's Storm second on ten points, some five points clear of the Scottish J109 Blue Jay.

Full results are here.

Following the Royal Western Yacht Club hosted event, the next big event in the Irish Sea is, of course, the Scottish Series at Tarbert in a fortnight where a bigger than normal Irish fleet is expected.  Storm is also the Scottish Series RC35 class winner so will face Animal again in two weeks time.

After a mix of coastal and inshore races, Tim and Richard Goodbody's White Mischief of the Royal Irish lived up to her pre-championship billing as favourite and won the J109 Eastern title but only after a tie-break on Dublin Bay this afternoon. 

The ten boat fleet sailed three thrilling windward-leeward races today in a perfect 15-knot southerly breeze. It followed a DBSC coastal race on Saturday, results are here.

Second overall at the National Yacht Club hosted event was the Dun Laoghaire Club's own Jalapeno (P Barrington, W Despard and B O'Sullivan) 

Points were so close at the top of the fleet that third and fourth place was also separated by the tie break rule with Royal Irish's Andrew Craig Chimaera third and Brian Hall's Something Else fourth.

It was the first event for Richard Colwell and John Murphy in their new acquisition Outrajeous from Howth Yacht Club and they finished fifth.

The Goodbody's White Mischief gets a good start at the committee boat end of the line to win the final race of the series Photo: Afloat.ie

Full results are below

Second overall - Jalapeno (P Barrington, W Despard and B O'Sullivan) Photo: Afloat.ie

Third overall - Chimaera (Andrew Craig) Photo: Afloat.ie

Evenly matched after the start of race four - Dear Prudence (left), Outrajeous and overall winner White Mischief to weather Photo: Afloat.ie

Tight racing at the windward mark (above) and downwind (below) Photo: Afloat.ie

Above and below - it wasn't all plain sailing at the J109 Easterns Photo: Afloat.ie

2019 J109 Eastern Championships Results

SailNo	Club	HelmName	R1	R2	R3	R4	Total	Nett
1242	RIYC	R & T Goodbody	3.0	1.0	(11.0 DNF)	1.0	16.0	5.0
5109	NYC	P Barrington, W Despard, B O Sullivan	1.0	2.0	2.0	(5.0)	10.0	5.0
2160	RIYC	A Craig	4.0	4.0	1.0	(11.0 DNF)	20.0	9.0
29213	NYC	B & J Hall	2.0	(7.0)	4.0	3.0	16.0	9.0
19109	HYC	R Colwell & J Murphy	(11.0 DNF)	3.0	6.0	2.0	22.0	11.0
1206	RIYC	J Maybury	5.0	(8.0)	3.0	4.0	20.0	12.0
1543	HYC	S Knowles	(6.0)	6.0	5.0	6.0	23.0	17.0
1095	RORC/HYC/RIYC	DP Partners	8.0	5.0	7.0	(11.0 DNF)	31.0	20.0
1383	NYC	T,B,W, A & P Shanahan	7.0	9.0	(11.0 DNF)	11.0 DNC	38.0	27.0
1129	RIYC	M Monaghan & J Kelly	9.0	(11.0 DNC)	11.0 DNC	11.0 DNC	42.0	31.0

The J109 East Coast Championship this weekend at the National Yacht Club on Dublin Bay comprises a coastal race on Saturday and three windward/leeward races on Sunday under international race officer Con Murphy.

2018 winner Andrew Algeo has moved on to a J99 but there will still be a strong fleet in this very competitive class and you can expect top Dun Laoghaire boat, Tim Goodbody’s White Mischief from the Royal Irish is expected to lead the charge but look out also for Goodbody's clubmate and J109 class captain Andrew Craig’s Chimaera.

Tim Goodbody's White Mischief from the RIYC Photo: Afloat.ie

From the host club, the Hall father and son team in Something Else, and Paul Barrington’s team in Jalapeno will also be in the mix.

Andrew Craig's Chimaera from RIYC Photo: Afloat.ie

Offshore specialists, the Shanahans in Ruth, also from NYC, are likely to feature as leading contenders in the coastal race while the event will be the first outing for Richard Colwell and John Murphy in their new acquisition Outrajeous.

John and Brian Hall's Something Else from the National Yacht Club Photo: Afloat.ie

At the recent Howth spring warmer weekend, where Outrajeous came up against J109’s Storm and Indian in a three-race series, Outrajeous came out ahead of both. In that event, Class 2 was included with Class 1 and Nigel Biggs Half tonner, Checkmate won overall with Outrajeous second. Storm finished 4th and Indian 5th overall. results are here.

Pat Kelly's Storm from Howth and Rush will not compete this weekend on Irish waters as the past champions are racing at Kip Regatta in Scotland Photo: Afloat.ie

North Sails Ireland, Bushmills and Porterhouse continue their generous support for the Irish J109 class.

There will be three windward/leeward races on Sunday in the J109 Eastern Championships Photo: Afloat.ie