A genuine rebirth of the J Class

NEWS	PHOTOGALLERY

Solitary and regal, for the last few years, the J Classes have been gracing the seas again, stunning spectators wherever they’ve gone. Happily several of the historic America’s Cuppers have been lovingly restored, making the dream of seeing them racing one another once again finally come through. Ranger, Velsheda, Endeavour, Shamrock - the latter holding the honour of being both the smallest (129’) and oldest (1930) of the group – are now regulars at many of the great classic sailing events. They are often joined by the 23-metres converted to J Classes, Astra, Cambria and Candida, as well as Big Boats, such as Lulworth. But there is still more good news to come: several owners are now considering building new models after the J Class designs, signaling perhaps a genuine rebirth for a class that hasn’t been added to since the 1930s. The J Class Association rules state that only Js that are replicas of an original design that was actually built even if never actually launched can be built and also that only restored Js or similar yachts from the same period adapted to the Universal Rule may belong to the class. So where did this surprising piece of news come from? From Jim Clark, owner of the 300’ Athena, the world’s largest private sailing yacht, who announced recently that he has commissioned a replica of the 1937 Endeavour II, the J with the longest LOA at 135’. The Royal Huisman Shipyard has been building yachts since 1884, including the recent Athena. It also did a fantastic restoration job on Endeavour in 1989. No sooner had Clark laid eyes on the J when he fell in love with the idea of a replica. The new Endeavour will have an aluminium rather than a steel hull, an obligatory choice given the weight of the interior fittings and the rig which are very different from those of a modern yacht. However, Clark isn’t the first owner to take the plunge with the J revival. In 2003, another American John Williams splashed the new Ranger, a replica of the 1937 J, built after the original Starling Burgess designs. Ranger II has now left the Danish Yachts shipyard and is currently sailing in the Atlantic. Williams brought in Gerard Dijkstra & Partners on the project as they specialise in this category and because Ranger didn’t originally start life as a J but as a Super J, i.e. she wasn’t designed specifically as a J but had similar enough proportions to convert to allow her compete in the America’s Cup. And that’s exactly what happened, going on to beat Endeavour II four to one in 1937. The J Class itself was founded in 1928 for the 1930 America’s Cup but building of the craft eventually stopped in 1937 when the winds of war were beginning to sweep Europe. Only 10 authentic J Classes were ever designed and built. All of the others are actually adapted craft. Ranger was the last of the series. However, there are now three “new” Js building. Andre Hoek of Hoek Design confirmed this: “We are working on original designs of three previously unlaunched Js: Svea, Sea Lion and another, all aluminium. We’re still keeping the owners’ names under wraps but I can confirm that the boats will be ready for 2009.” That said, the real miracle here is that none other than Britannia, the British royal yacht that competed in the Big Boats regattas between 1893 and 1920 when the cutter was J rated and used as a pace maker for the English boats, has been brought back to life. Obviously, it wasn’t possible to restore the original Britannia as, after the death of her owner George V in 1935, she was sunk off the Isle of Wight. However, the new Britannia is an exact replica. Her Swedish owner Sigurd Coates had her built in Russia as he had confidence in the local specialist workforce and wood supply. Unfortunately, he did not realise that the only suitable crane in the entire region would cost $1 million to hire with the frustrating result that for the last 18 months Britannia has simply been sitting waiting in a Russian shipyard. Luckily yet another miracle has happened: Atlantic is the latest gorgeous J Class to emerge phoenix-like from the ashes. This gigantic three-masted schooner stretches a breathtaking 227 feet and was designed by William Gardner in 1903. Although she was broken up in 1982, her devoted owner, Dutch magnate Ed Kastelein, has undertaken the ambitious job of restoring her to her former splendour. And so, in a couple of years time, we may be seeing 10 other J Classes casting off alongside the new Britannia.
If that isn’t a trip back through time, then what on earth is?

Andrea B. Nardi, Giacomo Giulietti

(Yacht Capital, n.1/2007)