The celebrated J/Boat family has a new addition with the recently announced J/99, currently under development at J/Composites in Les Sables d’Olonne, France. Named after the build’s 9.9 meter length overall (32’ 6”), the J/99 is billed as an offshore speedster built off the successful elements of her sisterships—the J/121 and J/112E.
Racers will be drawn to the familiar recipe for J/Boat performance success, namely the touted versatile sail plan, balanced hull form, and efficient cockpit that seems to echo much of what racers like about J/Boats. The J/99 has been described by designer Alan Johnstone as suited for short-handed offshore sailing, although details on that remain scant at the time of this writing. The J/99 will be tiller-driven and hyper-responsiveness is likely. The carbon fiber bowsprit with bobstay is a prominent feature.
One interesting standout is the not completely spartan interior, which is the norm on such race-oriented builds. With twin aft cabins, a large sit-down and forward-facing navigation station, a simple but perfectly serviceable L-shaped galley, and private forward head with sail locker, there’s certainly more going on down here than contemporaries like a Melges 32.
The spacious salon is built around a large folding table built around the mast. Even when taking on infamous races like the Fastnet or Chicago-Mackinac, crews should be well taken care of.
All in all, what we know about the J/99 is relatively limited as of now, but the racers among us will no doubt be keen on updates as the first hulls are built. If curious about the J/99 or J/Boats in general, the local dealer Sail Northwest may have more information.
