---

The Purest form of sailboat racing, One Design Racing pits virtually identical boats against one another. Strategery is part of a fleet of over 500 identical boats that race regionally, nationally and internationally against one another.

So what? What does the notion of one design mean?

Think about golf for a second. How do you compare 2 golfers to one another (in the amateur ranks)? You give them a handicap! That means that one golfer who is really good can play against another one who is an inferior player and still enjoy themselves. Of course, this also requires a consistent set of score-keeping over time to calculate the capabilities of each player.

Sailing does the same thing, since most people own different kinds of boats. That is, very few people own the same kind of boat since there are so many manufacturers and uses for the recreational sailor. In order to let these different boats race against one another, each is assigned a handicap rating.

The problem is, you never know if someone got a rating that gives them an unfair advantage against another. Handicapping is an imperfect art at best, and so you run into ill will where PHRF or Handicap racing is conducted.

To get around this, there is One Design Racing. Identical boats (within a strict set of "class guidelines") race against one another to see who is the best. This is the true test of the sailor, since it tests each sailors ability against one another without a handicap. That is, who finsihes first is first. Second is second, and so on.

J/105 racing for Strategery follows this format, where we race agains 5 other identical boats on each Tuesday and at specific regattas during the year.