philosophy that all JPK designs share, Jean-Pierre is quick to point out that Valer has refined his art of combining speed and ease of handling: ‘As Jacques puts it himself, his boats are “good-tempered”. What’s noticeable is that his designs are both well balanced and seaworthy. I think it’s when sailing solo that one can most appreciate the qualities of such a boat… ‘During the 2008 Transquadra [which Jean-Pierre ended up winning in the single- handed category – ed], I injured myself halfway across when coming down the mast – I broke some ribs and sprained an ankle. The boat then did all the work during the remaining week: I had the pilot on for 90 per cent of the time, but still kept the spinnaker up in 35kt of wind. To this day I am still amazed at how forgiving and easy the boat was that week.
‘While Jacques’ designs are inherently easy to handle, for our part we make a great effort in the building process to keep down the structural weight so that we can reinvest weight saved into the keel – while still delivering a relatively light boat. ‘In terms of sailplan, we work at keep- ing the mast quite “tweakable” in terms of bend, which means not going too high with the forestay fitting. That also allows for a range of small heavy-weather spin- nakers that can be kept up even when life gets a bit exciting!’
With a great formula whose merits have now been well proven on the racecourse and a focus on build quality, is remaining ‘very small’ an option? ‘It’s clear to us that
Pascal and Alexis Loison celebrate taking overall victory on their JPK1010 in the 2013 Fastnet – competing two-handed
we need to evolve,’ says Jean-Pierre, ‘but the client base that we are careful to retain is the passionate crowd that made for our success early on.
‘At JPK more than half the staff sail, and everyone is really taking build quality very seriously: the clients that pay us a visit notice that immediately, and we all speak the same language. For us a yacht is not a simple chunk of plastic. The direct link between the yard and our customers, since we don’t use distributors or agents, is a real plus as well, even though it can also limit our development… This may be something we need to revisit soon. ‘We’ve had a lot more recent enquiries
from the UK, for example, but I admit that without an agent in place it can prove diffi- cult to close deals… I understand that hav- ing to deal with the yard directly can put people off to a certain degree. We’re start- ing to sell boats in Germany, but in the UK there are still only three JPK designs, I think – which is probably a poor reflection on us given Strait Dealer’s outstanding results. Inevitably, to develop we must begin to work in a more international way and recently we have started talks with someone who can help us on that front. ‘Going forward, the development of our range hinges upon the progress that is being made in composites, and the trans- fers of technology that can be made from the racing world across to the cruising world – our latest offering, the FC38, is a fast cruiser. It’s a very interesting thing to push forward, as very often boats in that category don’t quite hit the spot: I believe that there is a space for a good and versa- tile faster style of cruising yacht, very care- fully built in order to stick to a limited weight, something to enjoy thoroughly and not only during stopovers. ‘I cruised on our FC38 this summer, and the crew that later delivered her back from the Azores did it in just six days, including a 240-mile 24-hour run, hitting 22.4kt at one point – the boat is really fast! Its hull form is quite reminiscent of a Class 40, with a bit more volume forward. It’s power- ful on a reach but at rest the transom sits above the water so as not to drag in light airs… another Jacques Valer winner!’
The 79th Anniversary Mount Gay Round Barbados Race Series January 16th - 24th 2015
Three spectacular days of coastal course racing The Mount Gay Round Barbados Race The Ocean Passage Race to Antigua
Join us for Barbados’ ultimate sailing challenge Win your skipper’s weight in Mount Gay Rum Extra Old
round barbados race series
2015
www.mountgayrumroundbarbadosrace.com mount gay rum round barbados race
SEAHORSE 39
KURT ARRIGO/ROLEX
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74