CSORC raced its recently acquired J/109 racing yacht for the first time over the 2026 Easter Bank Holiday weekend. Skipper Simon Zavad and crewmates Phil Armitage, Cameron Currie, Lewis Healy, Andy Lapsley and Jason Newell put Jeepster through her paces in a brace of JOG races. Andy has compiled this report on how we got on.
The first race from Cowes to Cherbourg on Friday 3rd April was a pretty extreme shakedown, with strong winds (mostly 25+ knots) and big seas all the way. After a sluggish start as we familiarised ourselves with the boat and began optimising crew drills, we beat against the wind and an incoming tide all the way to Hurst narrows before rendering assistance to a man overboard from a fellow competitor. This was a first for all of the crew and our efforts were recognised by JOG at the post-race crew reception with a £250 Spinlock voucher. After passing the Needles, it was close-hauled all the way to Cherbourg.
A second reef in the main was needed and damage to the Number 3 jib resulting in a foresail change mid-Channel to the trusty Number 4 “blade” sail. The whole crew was cold, hungry and wet when we crossed the finish line after 12 hours and 44 minutes on a very arduous and character-building day. A post-race takeaway delivery and hot showers made us all feel a lot better. We were 5th of 6 finishers in our class on corrected time, with 10 race entrants retiring or not competing.
Saturday 4th April was a recovery day, and much better weather allowed us to dry our wet kit and complete a number of running repairs to the boat. After the post-race reception, we had a lovely crew meal and a night cap in Cherbourg’s old town.
The return race on Sunday 5th April was from Cherbourg to Bembridge ledge. After a much-improved start and short beat past the Fort de l’Ouest, we conducted a bear away onto a broad reach. Winds were still over 20 knots with fairly big seas for most of the way, so we started with one reef in the main and the number 4 jib, which still enabled Phil to set 13.7 knots through the water. Conditions eased towards the end of the race and we finished under the Number 4 Asymmetric Spinnaker and a full main sail. A contrarian tactical choice did not work out well and after 9 hours and 8 minutes we finished 5th of 5 in class, with just one race retirement in much-improved conditions.
Overall, it was a great test of the boat and we learned lots that will enable us to optimise the boat for offshore racing and be more competitive in future events. Results here.
Our efforts in standing by at a man overboard were recognised by JOG at the post-race crew reception with a £250 Spinlock voucher.