VJ Amateur Sailing Association Home Page
History
The VJ was designed in 1932 by the naval architect Charles Sparrow,
as an exciting, low cost, intermediate sized skiff for the Vaucluse Amateur
Sailing Club on
Sydney Harbour thus the name VJ (Vaucluse Junior).
The hull shape has remained unchanged over the years, allowing older boats
to remain competitive for many seasons. Heat One of the 1997/98 Senior
Australian VJ Titles was won by a 30 year boat, 10 years older than the
skipper!
General Boat Details
Crew - 2 people. Combined weight range between 80kg and 120kg. Junior
division competition for those under the age of 18 and a Senior division
for those over the age of 18. This weight range allows both male and female
sailors to compete on an equal basis. The 1999/2000 Junior NSW Championships
were won by Alice Lancey and Kim Chow.
Hull - Maximum length 3.5m, with a maximum width of 0.9m, built
to a minimum weight of 40.8kg.
Hull Construction - Material optional, either professional built
or built at home.
Sails - Main and new "Big Jib" - 9m square
- Symmetrical Spinnaker
- 4.1m square
Mast - Maximum length 5m.
Leverage - Both crew are allowed to stand on the side of the
boat, either by using trapeze or the more traditional method of
"planks". These are 165mm wide foam sandwich strips which slide
across the boat, which the crew sits upon. These provide greater leverage
and are more comfortable than trapeze!
The longevity of this class has seen many past champions re-entering
the class in the last few years, to sail with their kids. An example of
this is the 1997/98 Senior Australian VJ Champion Jack Smid, who is seen
above with his eight year old Jason.
The combination of low overall weight, a high amount of leverage and
a flat planning hull, gives an exciting boat that is fully powered up and
planning in 10-12 knots. Champions who have honed their sailing skills
in VJ's include;
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John Bertrand - Americas Cup Skipper
-
Gary Bruniges - World 505 Champion
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Jacqueline Ellis - World Laser Champion
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Chris Nicholson - World 49er Champion
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Darren Nicholson - World 505 Champion
-
Kane Sinclair - World Cherub Champion
John Bertrand has described the VJ as "a speed machine that can
travel as fast as a Flying Dutchman. This is a high performance training
boat, and it's power to weight ratio is nothing short of phenomenal. One
way or another they are hair raising boats, and you need the nerve of a
fighter pilot to sail them".
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