NORTH SAILS BLOG

Get The Most From Your J/105 The 2019 J/105 British Virgin Islands North Americans in Marblehead is just around the corner. Is your team ready? Our J/105 Tool Kit will help. Created just for J/105 sailors, by our expert team. #NSVictoryList There is no better performance test of a one design sail than the results it produces. In 2018 alone, North Sails J/105 inventories helped teams win regattas all over the US. Tips From The Champ Champion Terry McLaughlin shares some tips that helped team Mandate win the 2018 North Americans. Downwind Tips & Tricks How to sail as deep as possible while still keeping your speed up. Before your next regatta, read this downwind manual from expert Will Keyworth. Define Your Speed Pulling all the pieces together can be challenging. Our J/105 Speed Guide will help you leverage our expertise to make the most of your sailing. Fine Tune With North Find your groove. Get your numbers. Be confident in all wind conditions. After countless hours of sailing, sail testing, and competing in the J/105, our championship winning sails will get you up to speed quickly. Working With The Best Our J/105 sails deliver the best results for our clients. Contact your local expert and join us at the front of the pack. READ MORE

J/105 JIB WEIGHT RULE CHANGE What It Means For You How does the J/105, a boat that was introduced in 1991, remain one of the strongest one design classes 28 years later? There are two answers: the sailing qualities of the boat itself, and the Class Association Rules. The boat is simple to sail but complex enough to attract top sailors and crews. For a 34 ft boat, the J/105 is pretty affordable, especially when it is both an acceptable weekend cruiser and capable offshore platform. So it maintains a high resale value. But the real success of the J/105 Class is a direct result of the conservative management of class rules, which includes a careful consideration of updates. We all balk at change, especially if we don’t know what the outcome of that change will be, but it is both natural and inevitable.  So, you ask, “How is this jib bag weight change going to affect me?” J/105 North specialist Will Keyworth one-word answer is….“positively!” This is a great rules update for all J/105 owners who actively race their boats, and class leaders drafted it only after requesting input from all the class sailmakers. “My view is that the result will be sails that are better, not just lighter.” The result will be sails that are better, not just lighter. You don’t have to buy a new sail to comply with the rule, but the next sail you buy will be a better one. You’ve probably already had discussions with other J/105 owners that start off with any of the following questions: Will a lighter sail last as long? How does this specifically affect the Light, Medium, and Heavy jibs? Do I have to buy a new sail now that the rule has changed? Will it cost more? All great questions, so let’s discuss them. First, a bit of class history to explain how we got here. Since this rule was introduced in the mid 90s, class-legal jib materials have gotten much stronger: from woven Dacron, to Mylar film/Darcon laminates, to Kevlar laminate, and finally to Carbon laminates. Meanwhile, the Class minimum weight stayed the same. When Kevlar (and later carbon) became the material of choice, sailmakers had to add extra weight to the sails just to comply with the class bag weight. This weight was typically added by applying extra corner patching, especially in the tack; that bulk made it difficult to furl the sail tightly. So to answer “Will a lighter sail last as long?”, consider this: None of that “parasitic” weight did anything to improve durability or performance, and it actually made handling the sail harder. How Does This Specifically Affect The Light, Medium, and Heavy Jibs? The rule change from 23lb to 19.8lb represents a 14% reduction in bag weight, but even so an AP or Medium jib will have to be slightly over-built (with more load-bearing fibers than it needs) to comply. A Light jib will have to be significantly over-built, while the Heavy jib will end up at the correct weight without adding any extra fiber. The new bag weight will enhance performance by reducing parasitic weight and improve handling, all without reducing durability. Do I have To Buy a New Sail Now That The Rule Has Changed? You don’t have to buy a new sail to comply with the rule, but the next sail you buy will be a better one. Last But Not Least: Will It Cost More? Since no expensive material (Carbon or Aramid) will be removed, my guess is that there will be no significant price change. The bottom line is this: the new bag weight will enhance performance by reducing parasitic weight and improve handling, all without reducing durability. Better performing sails that are easier to handle and equally durable? That sounds like an improvement that will help keep the J/105 going strong, for at least another 28 years. Is North Working on New Designs? When Can I Order the New Jibs? Our designers are working on new jibs shapes for the J/105. A sail testing is planned for late summer. Sails can only be purchased with 2020 sail tags and are not legal until Jan 1, 2020. Advance purchase orders can be placed starting in November of 2019 for 2020 delivery. READ MORE

Get The Most From Your J/105 Your next regatta is just around the corner. Is your team ready? Our J/105 Tool Kit will help. Created just for J/105 sailors, by our expert team. #NSVictoryList There is no better performance test of a one design sail than the results it produces. In 2018 alone, North Sails J/105 inventories helped teams win regattas all over the US. Tips From The Champ Champion Terry McLaughlin shares some tips that helped team Mandate win the 2018 North Americans. Downwind Tips & Tricks How to sail as deep as possible while still keeping your speed up. Before your next regatta, read this downwind manual from expert Will Keyworth. Define Your Speed Pulling all the pieces together can be challenging. Our J/105 Speed Guide will help you leverage our expertise to make the most of your sailing. Fine Tune With North Find your groove. Get your numbers. Be confident in all wind conditions. After countless hours of sailing, sail testing, and competing in the J/105, our championship winning sails will get you up to speed quickly. Working With The Best Our J/105 sails deliver the best results for our clients. Contact your local expert and join us at the front of the pack. READ MORE

INTERVIEW WITH J/105 NORTH AMERICAN CHAMPION North Powers Mandate to Another North American Title © Chris Howell This is the third North American title for Terry McLaughlin’s Mandate. Terry bought the J/105 in late 2012 with friend Rod Wilmer. They race during the week on Tuesday evenings in Toronto and do weekend local regattas in preparation for larger events. Terry really enjoys sailing his J/105, commenting that it is “incredibly comfortable to race both on deck and down below”. Terry also enjoys the competition within the class explaining, “no matter where you race them there are always good sailors on the race course.” Prior to the start, they made sure they had the correct shroud tuning and best jib for current conditions. In variable conditions they found it was better to be a bit loose on the rig tension, so they weren’t too tight in the lulls. Like most good sailors, Terry typically planned to win the favored end of the starting line. “At the NA’s the lines were usually quite square so it was more important to decide what side of the course you favored. In the windier races, we didn’t push the line too hard knowing that we had good speed in those conditions.“ © Chris Howell “There were some teams that were also fast downwind so we had to be at our best. As the wind comes up, there is a point that you have to put the bow up to get it to plane. The vang is sensitive on the J/105, so we focused on sailing with less vang while soaking in our low-mode, which is something we wouldn’t have previously done. Our crew weight is always at max weight. It doesn’t take much to be overpowered. The rudder is quite large, so I try to keep the rudder movements small, but if its too small the bow has tendencies to go down. Having my crew understand when they need to lean in and out to hike when the pressure comes is important.” Terry said that his team improved mostly on vang tension downwind. They were much more sensitive to it this time around, and he noticed a difference in boat speed and how they could sail lower angles much faster. © Chris Howell Mandate’s worst race was a third in race seven. “We went for the RC boat-end of the line, which we thought was slightly favored, despite the fact that we liked the left side of the course. We were never able to get left enough after that and had to fight back all race to salvage a third.” We asked Terry what the hardest part of the event was for his team. He mentioned; “Bruce Stone’s Gryphon was good right from the start of the regatta. Bruce and Nicole are both very experienced J/105 sailors and know how to make the boat go well in just about anything. Bill Zartler’s Deja Voodoo got stronger every day .” © Chris Howell For the most part, Terry’s team sailed clean and stayed out of trouble. They’ve spent a lot of time together racing the J/105, and they can feel when the boat needs something to improve speed. “My crew is very willing to hike hard, which is key to speed,” Terry said. Mandate was powered by a new main, Li-5 3Di light air and Mi-4 All Purpose Jib, and runner kite. “The two 3Di Jibs looked really good. Both had nice, straight exits.” Terry’s Tips: Sail with a consistent crew. Form a group of seven or eight crew members that you can count on to be available most of the time. Have your tuning numbers on hand. Putting together a tuning guide for the shrouds that is very extensive is key. Get to know what the right “look” is for the forestay sag, leeward mast sag, and leeward shroud tension. Have Fun & Ask Questions. Ask questions to those who are out front. We all have things to share. Everyone is willing to help out. Interested in North Sails J/105 products? Call your local expert today. Full Results © Chris Howell © Chris Howell READ MORE

J/105 DOWNWIND TIPS AND TRICKS How to sail as deep as possible while still keeping your speed up We often see teams get a little too relaxed when sailing downwind, even though this is where you will make the largest gains (and losses) when racing your J/105. You are trying to get to the bottom mark as fast as possible, so you need to sail as deep as possible while still keeping your speed up. Since the J/105 is primarily a displacement boat and doesn’t plane easily, the key is to coordinate several critical elements as you sail through velocity changes. Puffs and lulls Sailing with the wind, you will only see about half as many puffs as you did sailing upwind, so it is critical to designate one crew to call the breeze. A constant stream of verbal puff and lull communication will help keep your team in sync and anticipate the next change in velocity. Helming The goal for the helm is to minimize rudder movements while steering the boat downwind, using crew movement and sail trim to steer the boat. Make sure you are in a comfortable position with good visibility. We often see the helm trying to sit too far forward, which makes it difficult to steer accurately. As a driver, you are going to be working hard all race, so get comfortable! Kite Trimming The spinnaker trimmer and helm should maintain a continuous dialogue, discussing the pressure on the spinnaker and the correct angle to sail. “Up in the lulls and down in the puffs”…right? Yes, but make sure the angle changes are slow and smooth. As the breeze starts to drop, begin to “heat” up slowly—before the boat speed crashes—until you reach the angle that will keep your speed up in less breeze. When the puff returns, bear away and gradually build speed until you reach the new lower target angle. In non-planing boats like the J/105, the goal is to get the spinnaker to rotate to weather, which increases its projected area and gets the sail out of the disturbed air behind the mainsail. To accomplish this we use both heel angle and tack line ease. In all but very light wind, keep the boat flat (or even slightly heeled to weather). This will also help the boat sail deeper in the puffs with less helm movement. Generally speaking, you can ease the tack line of the spinnaker as long as it goes straight up or to weather; if it goes to leeward when eased, keep it tight. Weight placement The J/105 is very responsive to weight placement, and moving crew weight to help turn the boat will minimize the amount of rudder needed.To head up, the crew leans to leeward; to head down, the crew hikes/leans to windward. In light air, we like to keep only the helm and main trimmer behind the cabin top winches; put the rest of the crew at the shrouds. As the breeze picks up, we move weight back just enough to keep the bow from digging in. At least once a season, we like to completely empty the boat of EVERYTHING. This is a great way to see how much excess weight is on board, as well as an opportunity to pare back to the bare necessities. Stabilize the rig Keeping the rig from bouncing around in puffs and waves will mean the sails are pulling the boat forward and not just moving the mast. Apply enough backstay tension to make it “just snug”, and tension the jib sheets after furling to take the “slop” out of the headstay. Four Modes of Downwind Sailing Light air VMG In VMG mode, the apparent wind will be around 90 degrees. Make sure the trimmers are easing sails in the puffs so the driver can work lower. The crew will be sitting forward and to leeward in the light spots, moving to the centerline and even up to weather in the puffs to help steer the boat down. Constant communication between the trimmers and helm is critical! Moderate air running The crew sits just behind the shrouds, heeling the boat to weather to help rotate the spinnaker out from behind the main. Ease the tack line as much as possible while keeping the spinnaker stable; don’t let the tack fall to leeward. Heavy air running The crew slides aft to help grind in the spinnaker and to keep the bow from digging in. If you are having a hard time steering straight, there is too much weight forward. Wing on Wing Sailing wing and wing can be very beneficial, especially for tactical reasons. Our recommendation is to sail conventionally, unless the water is very flat or you need to dig low for tactical reasons. A winged-out spinnaker is not as stable, and recovering from a collapse is very slow. When all of these variables work in harmony, huge gains can be made by continuously sailing lower and faster and smoother than the boats around you. By working on these elements in practice and then applying what you learn on the race course, you can definitely “up your game.” 10 knots of wind. Crew forward and to weather to help the spinnaker rotate to weather. The tack line is eased to increase luff windward projection. Two people looking aft to ensure that we get into and stay in the puffs. Crew forward and to weather with good spinnaker rotation. Wing on wing in FLAT water. Crew forward and to weather with spinnaker trimmer holding sheet out to ensure that it is not affecting trim. Crew looking aft to help find puffs. READ MORE