Introduction

J/145 is the answer for sailors seeking great performance, but not at the cost of unprotected cockpits, sparse interiors or complex overpowering rigs. J/145 is the answer, too, for those who seek grace and elegance in their cruising comforts...but not at the cost of performance. It's surprising how many owners of heavy displacement cruisers discover their passage-making to be 75% motoring and only 25% sailing. J/145 solves this problem, bringing back the romance of sailing. This design is unique among boats over 45 feet in offering the proper balance: A boat that's a joy to sail fast with as few as two people while at the same time being comfortable to live aboard and to entertain on.  As a SAIL Magazine Top Ten award winner, and with victories & honors in some of the World's most famous offshore races & regattas, including Key West Race Week, Fastnet Race, Port Huron-Mac Race, RORC Season Championship and more recently a 3rd place finish in the 2006 Sydney Hobart Race, the J/145 has defined a unique class of dual purpose performance yacht.  She is available in both standard race/cruise or a more deluxe cruising configuration with shoal draft keel.

A Fast, Easy-to-Handle Boat:  Sailing a J/145 is surprisingly easy.  Two people can go for an afternoon sail on the J/145 in just minutes. Throw off the boom cover. Hoist the main on a 2:1 halyard. Cast off.  Sail under main alone or unroll the jib from its furler. That’s it. Even the spinnaker is ready in its sock. Pull out the sprit. Hoist the halyard. Slide up the sock. Trim the sheet.  Easy, upwind and downwind. It’s unlikely you’ve sailed a boat this fast with such a low center of gravity or a boat this large that’s so responsive and easy to handle.  It’s like sailing a 40 footer that turns on a dime but with the stability of a 50 footer.  One of the joys of owning a great boat is the ability to share it with family and friends.  J/145 is just as happy on the two-week family cruise, as it is sprinting around the buoys or daysailing in the bay.

The Cockpit:  Much of your time on a sailboat is spent in the cockpit. So, the ergonomics and sail-handling functions of the J/145 cockpit were meticulously planned, taking advantage of what we've learned from many prior J Boat designs. Seat heights off the cockpit sole: the precise distance between cockpit seats to permit bracing one’s foot on the face of the leeward seat when heeled sailing to windward; the double-articulated seat backs to support the lower back; the pitch of the seat backs to offer comfort whether for cocktails on the mooring or when heeled sailing to windward; a molded “messenger” bump on the edge of the cockpit seats to warn you where the edge of  the seat is when moving about the deck at night; a “step-over” bridge deck under a dodger for maximum safety going below or coming on deck in heavy seas; location of sheet leads and winches so that every conceivable sheeting combination and angle is accounted for; built-in instrument pods on the binnacle and seahood; foot braces for helmsman and winch grinders; remote hydraulic backstay control: and, yes, even an optional helmsman’s bimini and seat cushions. Everything you could want for sailing comfort and efficiency.

Elegant Versatile Interior:   Key to the J/145’s interior design is the concept that it’s the main cabin that defines the elegance of the yacht while light-weight, functional ends determine its performance and sail handling capabilities. Upon descending the companionway stairs, one is presented with a vista of fine cabinetry in the galley, nav station and settee area. The varnished cold-molded joiner work is crafted in either teak or cherry to very high standards. The arrangement outboard of the port settee is a pilot berth for sleeping comfort on offshore passages. To starboard is an entertainment center, book and bar cabinet storage. Bolstered, Ultra-Leather upholstery on the settees is available.

A lightweight starboard aft quarter-cabin with double berth is standard with a second, dual-purpose storage/sleeping area aft to port with two pipe berths. Forward is the standard head/shower arrangement, hanging locker & sail storage to starboard and an available lightweight V-berth platform with U shape bulkheads forward.

In addition to this standard performance layout a Deluxe Performance Cruising Package is available in order to create a truly complete yacht for cruising. This option includes a 7.5’ all-lead shoal keel, deluxe aft starboard cabin finish and detailing, a second head aft to port, deluxe owner stateroom forward, upgraded power package, an anchor windlass and deck mounted roller.

Durable & Lasting Construction:  The design and construction challenge to create such a yacht is formidable. The customary way to gain speed is to save weight by eliminating the interior and simplifying the deck. To retain the best of both worlds, the J/145 project called for the latest in advanced composite technology and materials to optimize strength for weight so that important sailing comfort features could be preserved. J/145's long-lasting, high-tech laminate uses uni-directional carbon fiber & E-glass skins with balsa core infused with the patented SCRIMP system. This process yields a laminate for hull & deck construction that's been tested by the US Naval Surface Warfare Lab at double the strength of hand lay-up construction found in nearly all other production and semi-custom sailboats.

Two phenomena of this new, high-vacuum process explain the difference. First, all air pockets are drawn out of the laminate before a low viscosity resin is infused by vacuum to completely saturate the dry materials. For every 1% of entrapped air, laminate properties, in terms of flexural, impact and elongation strength, are reduced by 10%. As hand lay up results in no less than 5% entrapped air, it has only 50% of the strength of SCRIMP. This new process overcomes many long-term ownership concerns about de-lamination and structural failure because there are no air pockets and secondary bonds in the hull laminate and integral keel beam grid. Secondly, the ratio of glass fiber to resin is 2:1 rather than 1:2, resulting in a high strength-to-weight ratio.