The USA Executive Committee has researched the appropriate process for changing class rules using precedents established by other ISAF Recognized classes.As we are an ISAF Recognized class, no formal amendment to the USA J/80Class Constitution is required. The process for rule changes can be found at the USA J/80 Class Association web page in the Class Rules section.This rule change process describes how a USA J/80 Class member can submit a rule change proposal, how it will be reviewed, and if accepted the time table for implementation. Rule change proposals can come from individual class members, the copyright holder, class officers, and the class measurer. The International Class Association ultimately has the responsibility to interpret and decide if the proposal is accepted then forward to ISAF for final approval. Each rule change proposal should be carefully thought out in regards to how it will effect the class internationally. Researching, providing any technical data, and assuring the proposal will not effect other established rules, will be the responsibility of the member/fleet that is submitting the proposal. The goal of this process is to strengthen our one-design fleet and promote fair sailing internationally

Craig White

Forum Guidelines/Etiquette

Welcome..... The J/80 forum was created by owners for the purpose of sharing experiences and tips on maintaining and sailing their J/80's, as well as to exchange information & ideas on J/80 related topics and class activities.

This is why the Forum is maintained for the use of our members. We all pledge to abide by the top sentence when we access the Forum. We are not going to use the Forum for disagreements that are of a personal nature. We get to use this site with the consent of J/Boats. Our pledge to J/Boats is that this web site will be used for the good of the Class. The sharing of opinions about the boats, sails, and crews is of great importance for all of us. And we do not have to agree in our ideas. I have decided to remove several postings that are not in following with our promise to J/Boats. We do not want to lose the right to use this web site. Censorship is not a tool to be used lightly but in this instance nothing is to be gained by having these messages left on the Forum.

Craig White
J/80 Class Association USA President

Open Letter to all USA J/80 Owners

This letter was sent to the e-mail addresses currently on file for all of the J80 owners in the United States. If you did not receive this letter by e-mail and would like to receive future class correspondence, please send an e-mail to the class secretary: Name, Address, e-mail address, phone number(s), boat hull #, name, co-owner information if applicable, and fleet. Please e-mail to: nauta80@sbcglobal.net. Thanks! Sincerely Your Class Officers

I have written a small letter to get you aquainted with what your Executive Committee is up to. I hope you are looking forward to the sailing season ahead this year as I am.

Craig


It has now been one month since the new officers of our Class Association have had to jump in and get their feet wet. The transfer of information and ideas from the past Executive Committee to the new is a formidable project. It seems that everything is on the front burner. I want to give our members an idea where our new Executive Committee is headed.
Our first goal is to get control and to rebuild our current J-80 USA Class web site. I know this has been an issue in the past and we hope to freshen up this site. Our plan is to update our existing site and stay as current on updates as possible, then go out for bid to get a professional to manage this site for us. I believe Scott Spurlin, with help from David Jannetti, are capable of getting this done in a timely fashion. We want our web site to contain more contact information for sailors in all areas of the country.

Next on the list is our concern for the Northeast Circuit. The busy schedule in the Northeast was shortened down to the four best attended regattas. The Long Island Championship graciously volunteered to change to a May time frame. We think that the reshuffling will create better participation. The goal is to have the Fleet Captains in the Northeast maintain their Circuit schedule in all future years.

Our Owners/Members data base is in need of updating. We need the help of our Fleet Captains in getting this information to Scott Spurlin as quickly as possible. As we all know it has not been possible to determine exactly who our fellow members have been. We hope to get this information available to all members.

Now comes the biggest task of all. We have all wanted to know exactly what is the procedure for changing or modifying our Class Rules. Here is the way I see it. There is NO current mechanism currently in place to make changes. I say this because of what our USA Class Constitution and the International Class Constitution do or do not say. I will not go in to the specifics but the bottom line is that the procedure for making changes needs to be spelled out in these two documents. Our plan is for the Executive Committee to agree on and write a proposal for an addition to the J-80 USA Class Constitution. Once the proposal is written the Board of Governors must approve the proposal for addition to our Constitution. I believe that once the Executive Committee can all agree on a procedure, then most of the bugs will have been worked out and passage by the Board of Governors should be relatively bloodless. Let us get the proposal written and we will get it posted on the web site for all to see before the vote of the Board of Governors. After all of this, there are still changes that need to be made to the International Constitution. The criteria for rule changes is not in this document either. The Executive Committee, with the special help of Jeff Johnstone and Steve Hammerman, are already at work on this. Remember that we will need the support of the other member countries for final approval here. I honestly feel this will take at least a year. Hopefully I am wrong and the time will be less. These are our most pressing technical issues.

Now for some fun stuff. This year has all ready begun with a great Mid Winter Championship at the Key West Race Week Regatta. A couple of our "planned" events did not pan out and the Navy Basin was a little bit of a disappointment. The racing and fellowship between the J-80 sailors was fantastic. I would like to thank Steve Hammerman for the job well done in Key West. Most of the planning was done months prior to the event. Uzi Ozeri did a marvelous job at the Turtle Kraal Extravaganza. The weather gods were not on our side that evening but a great time was had by all. It was great to see so many J-80 sailors enjoying the food and drink. All of us at the Navy Basin owe John Farmelo a debt of gratitude. He was there keeping our boats safe from chafed and broken dock lines. Our boat ended up with 8 bow lines, 4 spring lines, and 3 stern lines before I was able to sleep Thursday night. Again, many thanks to John. Karl DeHam went above and beyond the call of duty to get our boats measured and checked before the racing started. Some medical problems back home weighed heavily on Karl. Most of all we need to thank Jeff Johnstone for the support he has demonstrated to our Class. Jeff did a wonderful job hosting us at the J-Tent and keeping us in line at the Town Meeting and Speed Clinic. I will get the minutes posted for the Key West Town soon. The weather was the talk of the regatta. I was careless and got sunburned on Monday and by Thursday I did not have enough dry clothes to stay warm on the race course. The record low temp. EVER IN KEY WEST of 45 degrees was set on Friday. I have to thank Martha for bring our jackets that I just knew would never be needed. Next year Premiere Racing has promised nothing but warm and sunny conditions. The racing was great and new friends were made. The racing was tight with 5 different boats scoring a first place in one of the 8 races. This regatta is a must to do some time in your sailing career.

Two other important events you need to put on your calendar are the North American Championship in Houston (Sept 19-21) and the World Championship in Fort Worth (Oct 11-17). The NA's will be sailed in conjunction with the Houston NOOD but the J-80s will have their own race course. The J-80s will have a race course all to ourselves. Chris Morlan has always done a great job running the Houston regattas and this year will be no exception. Three weeks after the NA's, Fort Worth will be hosting the 2003 World Championship. If you need assistance in getting you boat from Houston to Fort Worth contact me and we will see what we can work out. I am also the Regatta Chairman for the World event. Talk about a busy year!!! The Fort Worth Boat Club and it's staff will be at our disposal. Fleet #5 Captain Louis Church promises us great fun and racing while in Fort Worth.

The new Executive Committee knows that we have many hours of hard work ahead. We are going to get things accomplished and move our Class forward. We can not be all things to all members, will upset a few, but we plan to do our best. Thanks for your help in the past and for the help you will give in the future.

Craig White
"Warrior" #256