Overview
The J/35 is a Rod Johnstone racer-cruiser from J/Boats, built from 1983 to 1992, with 330 built according to sailboatdata.com. Its place in this catalog rests on its ocean racing record: 6 different boats of the design have finished the Pacific Cup from San Francisco to Hawaii or the Newport Bermuda Race in the official results.
Design and Construction
sailboatdata.com lists the underbody as fin with spade rudder, 35.5 ft overall on a 30 ft waterline, with 11.8 ft of beam and 6.9 ft of draft. Displacement is about 10,500 lb with 4,400 lb of ballast, and the masthead sloop carries about 636 sq ft. Practical Sailor’s reviewers describe the hull and deck as balsa-cored, with end-grain balsa inside layers of biaxial and unidirectional fiberglass. The main structural bulkhead is a molded fiberglass piece, and the floors are glass beams to which both the mast step and the external lead keel are fastened. Hulls built after 1988 came with a 10-year transferable blister warranty, and new boats could be ordered with an ABS certificate. The reviewers added a lingering concern about the longevity of balsa-cored boats, having seen deck delaminations on 10- to 20-year-old boats from other builders.
Ocean Racing Record
Kaimiloa (David Nottage) finished the Pacific Cup (1994). Predator (Michael “Troy” Ewens) finished the Pacific Cup (2004). Stray Cat Blues (Bill Parks) finished the Pacific Cup (2006). Urban Renewal (Les Vasconcellos) finished the Pacific Cup (2008). Other finishers include Rabian, Paladin.
Practical Sailor found the J/35 well balanced with excellent feel on a tiller model, and preferred the tiller to a wheel, especially for racing. Its reviewers noted that she can be wet working to weather in waves, partly because of the lack of cockpit coamings, and called her forgiving enough that an inexperienced helmsman and crew can still sail her fast. They considered her one of the few modern racers under 40 feet they would take across an ocean, though they called the hull a bit more beamy and saucer shaped than ideal offshore. Below, they found the interior spartan, with little headroom forward and in the head, eight opening ports and two hatches, and no way to pass air through the cabin when under way. Power was a Yanmar 3GM, and the 20-gallon fuel tank gave about 150 miles of range.
