Fellow J109 Sailors,

It is an honor and a privilege to be the newly elected president of our class association. Rick Lyall is leaving very big docksiders to fill. I certainly want to thank Rick, Ed Dailey, and Ric Campeau for their many years of providing leadership to the class. I also want to thank Adrian Begley for his many years, as well as agreeing to continue in his role as Class Measurer. I also want to thank Bill Sweetser and his nominating committee for their very thoughtful nominating process that identified my slate of new officers. I also want to thank our fleet officers who do the bulk of the organizing in their regions for the various events through the year.

As last year‘s season came to an end, our officers were very busy and much was accomplished. Administratively we made some important rule and by-law changes. They are explained in detail on our web site but very briefly we made it more practical to amend our by laws and rules, we now allow for sail selection changes during race days, and we corrected our rule reference to ISAF sailor categories so that they match up with the current categories.

Also I want to make sure that everyone is aware that we had a terrific North America championship regatta hosted by the Annapolis Yacht Club this most recent October. Reports are that the accommodations were terrific, and the Annapolis Yacht Club ran a very professional event. Congratulations to Ted Herlihy/Gut Feeling, Rick Lyall/Storm, and Caminos/Don and Tina Filippelli for their winning performances and to the rest of the fleet for providing challenging competition. Congratulations to Bill Sweetser and his very able Fleet 4 committee.

Already on the schedule for this year and coming up quickly is the Mid-Atlantic Championship as a part of Annapolis NOOD commencing on May 4. It is worth pointing out that this race is also a qualifier for the prestigious East Coast 2012 Regatta Series Trophy.

This year‘s North American Championship will return to Newport and be a part of the New York Yacht Club Race Week commencing on July 19. It is always a privilege to race in those special waters and benefit from the professional management of the regatta provided by the New York Yacht Club. Stay tuned to our web site for more information on this event.

Finally I want to say that I personally find it very satisfying to be associated with all of you, in our common love for these terrific boats and the fun and freedom that they provide us in enjoying the outdoors with our friends and families. I am very new to providing leadership to this group and so all suggestions will be most welcome as I and the other officers look to help the class grow.

Warmly,
Bob Schwartz

| 14 May 2012 | 

The second half of the Warsash Spring Series arrived on 15th April after a break for Easter. Following three Sundays of light and fickle breezes, competitors were greeted with a brisk if chilly northerly of 12-14 knots, which a little unexpectedly rose to over 20 knots by late morning.

The J/109 class has a dozen entries this year and so far each race has produced a different winner. This week it was newcomer Jonnie Goodwin on Harlequin that was top boat. This was his first race in the series and the team put in a very strong performance to beat David & Mary McGough and team on Just So by over four minutes. If Harlequin competes similarly in the next two weeks, there could well be a shake up in the results.

| 17 April 2012 | Regatta site | 

The Sperry Top-Sider Annapolis NOOD Regatta will take place from May 4-6 this year. So far, TWELVE J109s are registered for this event, which is not only the J109 Mid-Atlantic Championship, but also the first qualifying event for the 2012 East Coast Regatta Series (the second, and final, qualifying event will be the NAs in Newport, RI). This regatta is known for being a well run event with lots of great racing!

| 16 April 2012 | Annapolis NOOD | 

The 109 class has a very strong showing of eleven boats at the 2012 Warsash Spring Series, which runs on Sundays from 18 March to 29 April (excluding Easter). Currently leading the series with a pair of twos is JAHMALI (Mike & Sarah Wallis). OFFBEAT (David Mcleman) is in 2nd after two races.

| 25 March 2012 | Full results | 

At its meeting on February 6th, the Executive Board unanimously approved three proposals to amend our Class Constitution and Class Rules. These changes were effective March 15, 2012 after approval by Voting Members.

Proposal 1 amends section 7 in the Constitution to permit consideration of urgent and exceptional Class Rules changes at any time, upon a two thirds vote of the Exevutive board and adoption by Voting Members.

Proposal 2 amends the Driver rule in Class Rule 2.2 to conform to revised ISAF classification. A Driver other than a 100% owner of a J/109 must be a Voting Member or Associate Member and a Group 1 competitor in the ISAF classification system.

Proposal 3 amends the sails rule in Class Rule 5.3 to allow jib and spinnaker changes to another declared and tagged sail at any time during an event. This will permit easy sail change in the event of significant weather changes.

The full text of the changes to the Constitution and Rules is set out above under GOVERNANCE. The, click on CLASS DOCUMENTS.


/Tina Filippelli, Class Secretary

| 19 March 2012 | 

Pursuant to section 6.8 in the J/109 Class Association Constitution, I am pleased to report that 51% of eligible class members voted to elect the following officers:

Bob Schwartz, Fleet 10, President
Kevin Saedi, Fleet 11, Vice President
Ted Herlihy, Fleet 6, Treasurer
Tina Filippelli, Fleet 10, Class Secretary
The Executive Board will appoint Adrian Begley, Fleet 2, as Chief Measurer and Sam Mitchener, Fleet 4, as Member at Large.

New Officers will take office at the Annual Meeting on February 6th.

/Ed Dailey, Class Secretary

| 22 January 2012 |