Js sparkle in St Barth

If anyone was in any doubt that 2017 is the year of the Js, the St Barths Bucket in March smashed that truth home.

Despite its long, illustrious history, the J Class is on course to field its biggest ever fleet this summer during three showcase events in three appropriately fabulous locations: St Barth in March, Bermuda in June and Newport in August.

The fleet has been gearing up for these events over the past couple of years. Six Js lined up together for the first time ever in March and, as you can see from the images, the results were nothing short of mesmerising. St Barth provided dream sailing conditions – four days of racing included two windward-leeward days and two coastal races, all held in winds from 15-20 knots and some punchy swells.

“The word I keep using is ‘historic’,” said Hanuman’s skipper Ken Read. “What’s happening in this class is historic on so many levels – not just the amount of boats that are showing up on the start line, but the type of sailing, how crews are sailing these boats, how close the racing is in boats of this size… it’s never been seen before, and it’s really fun to be a part of.”