Hi Don,

Raced J24s alot before e27. e27 vs J24 is a no brianer on the side of e27. e27's have volume in the right places, subsequently, are more boat for racing or cruising with what I think is a more confortable down below including seating areas and full length berths.

e27's have a longer water line, are lighter, will plane vs skip and tumble, and with a barn door rudder well aft offer much more leverage for easy steering. But that does not mean there is a wetted surface issue as e27s accelerate before most other boats of this volume for their weight in less than 5 knot wind conditions. Speed delta dampens somewhere in the 8 to 12 knot true wind range, with the e27 becoming exponentially faster the harder the wind blows above 12 knots. Off the wind in these conditions its a breeze to sail an e27 and the bow sections nevers take over control of the boat.

As relayed by others there are times when a well sailed J24 can do okay against an e27, rating wise, at the top of the J24's #1 upwind only. Otherwise an e27 is faster on all points of sail, wave and wind speed conditions.

For PHRF, e27s do very well and some say have been blessed by the rating Gods over the years for what is essentially now a 25 yeat old design. With tthe e27 certainly deserving its PHRF adjusted upward to at least 135 which is the national average vs 129 which is a unique Northern California rating. Maybe I'll start working on that w/PHRF committee.

Round these parts, e27's have a large, active and growing class with both a well participated class bouy racing series. And a well participated Fun point to point racing series that includes e27 competing together as a subset of larger PHRF fleets in some events.

e27 Fun series offers both point to point in the bay, a handful of ocean races and the SSS doublehanded series as components of its total series event set. Check out the e27 web site for the list of Fun series races to see the PHRF options.

Compared to three to five year ago, when e27s were hitting $21K +, boats prices are depressed right now so its a great time to pick up an e27. With the class focused on some really unique schedule options aimed to raise participation from various types of owners; buoy, fun, with a short set option being considered in 2010 for those with time and family commitments, there's something for everyone and a trophy for every like and preference.

On crew, yes, the boat can be easily sailed by 4, 3, 2 or 1 for that matter. Currently buoy and fun series race (like J24) with an 880# crew weight limit, so most boats sail with 5. Although the boat actually likes a little more crew weight to achieve its highest physical performance capabilities upwind and reaching. So if there was a situation in which the e27 fleet thought J24s were starting to get us upwind all the time in PHRF; just add one.

There are at least 4 boats for sail right now; check them out.

mb

:: Hi,
::
:: I am looking at buying an express but own a J/24
:: currently.
::
:: I do not want to debate which boat is better, faster,
:: etc as that could lead to many discussions. LOL!
::
:: I do race PHRF right now and would be racing against 3
:: other J's plus various other boats but that are not
:: close to the J's. Any thoughts on how the express would
:: perfrom via PHRF? Do people find them easy to sail with
:: 3-4 people?
::
:: Thanks,

:: Don