The SJ28 is a Racer/Cruiser designed by Don Clark, the San Juan 28 was introduced in 1978. Over 300 hulls were built, and I am proud to own hull #160, Stormbringer. StormBringer is her original name, which is ironic as I am a long time scifi/fantasy reader. Since buying Stormbringer in 2002, I have found it is a great boat for daysailing and weekending around Tampa Bay with the pedigree to go further afield some day.

The San Juan 28 is a good match for the waters in and around Tampa Bay. At 4'6" her draft is a bit deeper than I would like at times, but is fine for daysailing in Tampa Bay. The boat weighed 7200 lbs whe I last had it pulled, and about 3000;bs of that is in the keel. From what I have heard from other owners, blistering has not been a big problem with these well built boats, and I have experienced none myself. The lines are typical of an IOR racer, and the fin keel combines with the balanced spade rudder to provide a very responsive feel to the tiller. In most conditions, I sail with only light finger presure on the tiller, as long as I have sail area set appropriate to conditions.

The rig rig is a masthead sloop, deriving much of the drive from the big 150 genoa. We had a new North Sails main made a few years back that definately improved performance. The rig is easily single handled handled with the foresail on roller furling, and most times I can sail it right into the marina before droping the main and motoring into the slip. We also replaced the mainsail track with a new Harken windward sheeting system which was a great addition. At one point she was raced extensively and has a sail inventory of 2 spinakers, an asymmetric spinaker, a blade in addition to the working sails. Even without a sock, the asymmetric is easy to set and douse with a crew of 2 in light to moderate winds so it gets pulled out regularly.

I have not actively raced yet, but have participated in a few beer can races, and am always checking my progress against others sailing in the same direction. I have a feeling that under a more proficient captain, she could be very competative in local regatas. She is a joy to sail in any breeze from tiny puffs up to about 20kts. At that point, as long as you get a single reef in the main and take in some of the headsail she stays on her feet well and is a blast. Above 15kts it is really nice to have some rail meat, but most of the time there are only two of us on board and that is fine.

Down below the ammenities are typical of other cruisers of the same era. It has standing headroom for me (I'm 6'3") through most of the cabin up to the head. There is no bilge to speak of, just a shallow depression in the center to house the keel bolts which stays dry most of the time. It has been very comfortable for weekend getaways and I think that a couple could be quite happy for trips extending to a couple weeks between civilized stops. I have been threatening a few of my friends with the idea of joining the race from Clearwater to Key West, and I think this boat would be a blast for that event.

Most time is spent on deck, and when actively sailing a crew of 2-4 is perfect. I have had as many as 10 on board, and there is enough room, but that was only on a calm sunny day, and we weren't doing a lot of tacking. All the lines are lead aft to cockpit, and the boat is very easy for me to single hand when my crew is more interested in lounging in the sun than "pulling on strings" and doing "sailboat stuff."

I have only heard of one other SJ28 in the Tampa Bay area, but there is a whole fleet of SJ21s down in Sarasota. In all I couldn't be happier, the San Juan is a great boat in my opinion. Well built and most importantly a lot of fun to sail.

More info and stats can be found at www.sanjuan28.org