Fun and games at Key Yachting J/Cup UK Regatta

J/Cup UK Regatta at Royal Southern Yacht Club © Royal Southern Yacht Club

Hosted by Key Yachting, the J/Cup UK Regatta is an annual event exclusively organized for racing yachts of the J/Boats brand, and all J/Boat models were invited to compete.

The J/Cup entails three days of exciting and competitive racing hosted by the fabulous Royal Southern Yacht Club in Hamble. The program is coupled with daily prize-giving and lively shoreside entertainment to make the J/Cup a must for many of our owners. Here is how it all went down in each fleet of J/70s, J/99s, J/109s, J/111s, and IRC Division.

J/70 Class

After an exhausting eight-race series, it was Simon Patterson's STANDFAST team that started off the regatta with three straight bullets and never looked back, winning with just 9 pts net. Second, went to Tim Collins's EV EXPERTS with 18 pts net, and rounding out the podium on the bronze medal step was Sam Patterson's POWERHOUSE with 21 pts net.

J/99 Class

Also completing their eight-race series with a commanding lead in the J/99 class was David Lean's JACKPOT with a total of 10 pts net. JACKPOT won 5 of the 8 races! Taking the silver was Jean-Baptiste Brian's JOLLY JUMPER with 15.5 pts net, while the bronze winner was Kevin Taylor's JUMP 2 IT.

J/109 Class

It was a true "battle at the OK Corral" for this J/109 class, with the two protagonists (Rosie Berry's JENIE and David Richards's JUMPING JELLYFISH) trading off podium finishes to the end. Ultimately, after winning four races, Rosie's team overcame the consistency of David's team (who won 3 races) to win by a single point! A distant third place was John Smart's veteran crew on JUKEBOX with 20 pts.

J/111 Class

A familiar face was atop the podium after eight races in the J/111 class. Winning yet again was Tony Mack's McFLY team, although they were pushed hard by Chris Jones's JOURNEYMAKER II. Just three points separated the two! Taking the bronze medal was Paul Wollman's FREQUENT FLYER with 18 pts net.

IRC Division

The nine-boat fleet enjoyed spirited racing over the three days, also completing eight races like the other fleets. Incredibly, three J/92s swept the podium! Winning was Robin Stevenson's UPSTART with 12.5 pts net, followed by the David Greenhalgh family's famous J'RONIMO in second place, and Libby Finch's NIGHTJAR in third place.

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