New J Class Rainbow Out Training

The new J Class 'Rainbow' that was launched by Holland Jachtbouw in February of this year is out training for the up coming J Class Regatta in June and July in Cowes, England where she will be taking part. She is 40m (131ft) and is a replica of the famed 1934 America's Cup Winner Rainbow. Below are some beautiful pictures taken when she was out training and more can be seen in the Photo Section in the tab bar. Enjoy

New J Class Build 'Cheveyo' by Spirit Yachts

Spirit Yachts announced last week an historic collaboration with Sparkman & Stephens to build a new J Class yacht. This new J Class will be named CHEVEYO (pronounced shu-Vay-o), a native American word meaning 'spirit warrior'. She will be registered in the United States and carry the sail number J1.

Cheveyo will be built to the historic Ranger 77B design. This was one of six designs that were submitted by Starling Burgess and Olin Stephens to Harold Vanderbilt for the 1937 America's Cup defense against Endevour II. Vanderbilt went on to select design C and the 'Super J' Ranger was born and went onto triumph over Endeavour II in the 1937 series.

Cheveyo will be a complete balance of the classic design of yachting's golden era with 21st century build techniques. Spirit Yachts are the worlds expert in wood/epoxy construction and will build the J Class using a sophisticated technique to laser cut stainless steel ring frames to create an exceptionally stiff yet lightweight hull. The construction drawings are currently been finalized to suit this build technique.
She will have similar deck features as the other J Class yachts which include a low profile deck house and a clutter free deck, creating maximum space for crew to work while racing the yacht. Another modern aspect to Cheveyo will be her lightweight carbon spars and rigging. Below deck she will have beautiful 1930s inspired interior and be able to accommodate 10 guests in 5 cabins, and also accommodation for a crew of 8.

She has been commissioned by a US-based syndicate of investors and sailing enthusiasts. Their driving force behind the project is the desire to experience the thrill and elegance of classic golden era yacht racing on a modern vessel with the sense of tradition.

Cheveyo's Specifications:

• Overall Length: 139ft/42.4m
• Beam: 21ft/6.4m
• Draft: 15ft/4.57m
• Sail Area: 8290ft2/770m2
• Displacement: 178 tonnes
  

Holland Jachtbouw Launch New J Class 'Rainbow'

A new addition to the renowned J Class fleet was launched during the week at the Dutch yard Holland Jachtbouw. Rainbow is 40m (131ft) and is a replica of the famed 1934 America's Cup Winner Rainbow. The J Class fleet of yachts include some of the most iconic and beautiful yachts on the water today. The fleet includes such yachts as Ranger, Velsheda and Hanuman just to name a few and these yachts will be taking part in the J Class Regatta in June and July of this year in Cowes, England.

Rainbow has taken over two years to build compared to her predecessor which was completed in 100 days. This does not mean that the yard is slower it is just a reflection of the incredible craftsmanship, perfection and sophistication that you find in modern yacht building. Another reason that the original only took 100 days is that it was empty inside for racing purposes and didn't have the luxurious interior of the current Rainbow (which all J Class yacht have to have to be compliant with JCA rules).

One of Rainbow's special features that stands her apart from the other J Class yachts is her hybrid propulsion system. This system was developed between Holland Jachtbouw and WhisperPower especially for this project. Rainbow can be operated entirely on her Hy-Store Li-ion batteries, including sailing, navigation and hotel load. This also meets the owner’s request for silent periods onboard, without generators running, from 11 pm to 7 am. The batteries can also be charged while sailing without losing more than 1.5 kts of speed. A key benefit of this system is that it will reduce the carbon footprint by using 30 percent less fuel.

Her rig includes a Southern Spars carbon mast, boom and spinnaker pole, continuous carbon fibre rigging, North Sails 3Di racing sails and Lewmar high-speed hydraulic winches. Her interior was designed by Dutch designers deVosdeVries, which features raised and fielded mahogany panelling with art deco details. She will be able to accommodate up to 8 guests in the owner’s stateroom which is aft and 2 ensuite twin guest cabins, each with a Pullman berth.

She will be undergoing sea trials in March before she sets off to the North Sea with her crew and professional racing team for 7 days of extensive training. After her summer of J Class racing she will head to the Monaco Yacht Show where she can be viewed by the public.

J Class Yacht Britannia Arrives in Cowes

"On King George V's death in January 1936, what should happen to his massive (120ft) and famous J Class yacht Britannia. He'd left instructions that she was to follow him to the grave. She was stripped of all her spars and fittings and her hull was towed out from Cowes and sunk off St Catherine's Deep, somewhere west of the Ventnor and south of the Needles on July 1st 1936."

Arriving at Cowes, Photo by Hamo Thornycroft - www.yacht-photos.co.uk

On the 4th of February 2012 J Class yacht Britannia arrived at the dock at her new home in Cowes, England after her long journey through some hash weather conditions from Norway. She started life in 1993 where her hull was built at a frozen shipyard north of the Arctic Circle, in Russia's port of Arkhangelsk, and financed by a Norwegian magnate she moved to Norway in 2009. Britannia and the rebuilding project have been acquired by Minicast Holdings Ltd, Gibraltar, which upon her completion will be donating the use of the yacht for a minimum of 10 years to the Britannia Trust.

The plan for her is that she will be used as a flagship for charity, reaching out to underprivileged children, war veterans and to be used as a fundraising venue for upcoming charities in the UK and across the globe. Her completion is set to commence and the Britannia Trust that owns her are set to invest in the fitting of new deck ware, restoring her interior, her mast, rigging and sails back to what they were in the classic days of Cowes yachting.

Leaving Son, Norway, Photo by Badi Batchelor www.lokalmagasinet.no

An amount of 2.3 million pounds has been budgeted for the full reconstruction process to be completed as well as for the various related costs. The reconstruction team has already approached a number of companies to assist in sponsoring the capital required, and is confident that the reconstruction work can be completed in budget and on time.

Mr Giuseppe Longo has agreed to project manage Britannia's reconstruction process and Stefano Faggioni from Studio Faggioni Yacht Design will be in charge to fully restore her interior to pristine condition. Her new interior will have the same look and feel as the original but with modern additives, giving a wonderful fusion of modern and old.

Her full reconstruction process will be documented via video and digital media, from her arrival at Cowes to her final unveiling as a finished yacht. A live video steam via webcam can be used by anyone in the world to track the progress of her reconstruction.

More information can be found on the Britannia web site www.k1britannia.org

J Class "Endeavour" Launches after Refit

The renowned 130ft J class yacht Endeavour was launched from the Yachting Developments yard in New Zealand on the 8th of October after under going and extensive 18 month refit. The extensive refit included the removal and replacement of the complete weather deck including all deck equipment. All of the yacht systems including the engine, hydraulic systems, winches, air con and electrical systems were either replaced or upgraded. The new carbon mast and boom were built by Southern Spars in Auckland and also the carbon standing rigging.

Dykstra & Partners were at the helm of the design crew and were instrumental in the design of the new deck layout and sail plans. After sea trials Endeavour will be getting ready to be shipped north of the equator in February to compete in the J class regattas in 2012.

Endeavour was commissioned by T.O.M Sopwith a British yachtsman to compete in the 1934 Americas Cup. She didn't take the Americas Cup title and was decommissioned in 1938 due to world war II. She survived many years up until 1984 when renowned yachtswoman Elizabeth Meyer took Endeavour through a refit in Holland and England. Now after her newest refit she will grace the yachting/racing world again.