Snowmobiling has come about through a steady need to travel to snow bound locations, however it has recently made a transition from need to recreation. Snowmobiling has become increasingly popular in alpine populations among younger generations. They are increasingly being built for speed and technical ability as there is now a major industry surrounding snowmobiling racing. Beyond racing, snowmobiling allows for a great opportunity to explore previously inaccessible areas with relatively little effort. Exploring backcountry locations can be incredibly rewarding and peaceful. Snowmobiling also allows for discovering great backcountry ski and snowboard locations. Because it provides access to isolated areas, finding fresh powder, hiking or ice climbing locations, are now much easier to reach and explore.

Snowmobiling is not without its dangers. Exploring on a snowmobile is usually relatively isolated so if something goes wrong, the access for assistance is limited. Communication is often nonexistent or very sparse. Because of these factors it is important to always have a companion while snowmobiling. Dangers include falling from the snowmobile, crashing, falling through sink holes in the snow, or even breaking through ice into ice cold water and drowning. These risks may seem scary but the accident ration for snowmobiling is relatively low when compared to other types of transportation. Always wearing protective gear and knowing the signs of week ice or sinkholes can help you identify these risks and keeping control of your snowmobile by knowing its capabilities will help to provide a safer snowmobiling adventure.

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Today, Portsmouth, Rhode Island is the center of manufacture. Johnstone’s pioneering J-24 model has an LOA of 7.32 m, an LWL of 6.10 m, a beam of 2.71 m, a hull weight of 1,600 kg and a 261 sq ft sail area with a 100% headsail.

The very first regatta to feature J boat racing was Key West in 1978. 20 boats competed. Other J boats include the International J-22, which usually involves a crew of 3-4 and is of a fixed keel design which means that older boats can compete on equal terms with newer versions. Its “class jib” means that it possess a big spinnaker, a mainsail and a non-overlapping jib. The International J-22 can plane on runs and reaches. Since it was created in 1983, more than 1,600 J-22s have been built and sail in 65 fleets in 18 countries. The 2004 World Championship race was graced with the presence of a staggering 130 boats.

Rod Johnstone perfected his design for J boat racing with the J-27, manufactured between 1983 and 1992. Its overall length is 8.38 m, beam 2.6 m, displacement 3,800 lb, draft 1.5 m and length at the waterline 7 m. Its belowdecks headroom is 1.4 m, standard water capacity 5 gallons and lead keel of 1,530 lbs. The J-27 is still raced under the auspices of various regional fleet authorities covering parts of the USA, Canada and South Africa. The current class president is Louis Johnson and the treasurer is Doug Davies.

The current situation of J boat racing is very positive. Regatta management and racing regulations have been improved resulting in bigger and better events, such as those organised by Midwinters XX. Championship organisers have been returning to the old sailing venues that made the J boat great. San Francisco hosted the 1997 North American and 1998 World Championships. Corpus Christi in Texas and Newport, Rhode Island have both been awarded major competitions in recent years.

Older J boats, some them now over 30 years old, are being improved and fixed up so as to continue conforming to class specs. The comparatively low price of second hand boats has meant that less well-to-do people can get into the arena of competitive racing. Once upon a time, such a hobby was the strict demesne of the rich.

The J brand has expanded into many other areas, such as official merchandise, photography and art which capture beautifully the thrill of sailing the boats either for racing purposes or just for relaxation.