RB Sailing: Juno (Humphreys One Tonner)

Juno was a One Tonner designed for the 1987 Admiral's Cup for English yachtsman Mike Peacock, who had previously campaigned Cifraline 3. She was a development of the 1985 trend-setting Jade, the One Ton Cup winner of that year and member of the second-placed English team in the 1985 Admiral's Cup.

Humphreys had sought to retain Jade's impressive two-sail reaching speed in the new design, while adding some upwind emphasis. Juno was considered very light for a One Tonner (displacement of 5,404kg), with a lower centre of gravity than Jade. Although most IOR designers were pushing up freeboards a little at the time, Humphreys pursued the low-freeboard style that marked Jade out from the crowd. However, with Juno he was also able to streamline the cabin slightly - the design required builder Adrian Thompson to do away with the keel H-frame, and instead sling the keel off the solid central area of the hull. The resulting saving in construction depth allowed the freeboard to remain similar to Jade but with a lower cabin-top.

The aft shape of Juno, with the characteristic IOR 'crease' at the aft measurement station


Juno on launching day - notice the elliptical 'MME' keel

Juno working up in Mallorca, Palma Bay, prior to the English Admiral's Cup trials in 1987

The yacht was built from a one-piece male mould, using a divinycell foam core with unidirectional and woven carbon-fibre and Kevlar laminates (the mould had to be broken up inside the boat and removed through her small companion way opening shown below). Her spartan interior featured a navigation console above the centrally-located engine box, while ring frames around the mast were spaced to accommodate battery stowage and twin anchorages for the shrouds. As was standard with One Tonners by this stage, she sported a tall triple-speader fractional rig, although it was placed slightly further forward than many of her contemporaries. Unlike her contemporaries, she was fitted with a carbon tiller, rather than a 'typical' titanium version.

Juno sailing upwind during her buildup to the 1987 Admiral's Cup (photo Rick Tomlinson/Seahorse)

Early trials, with designer Humphreys checking the B&G Hercules navigation and performance data computer

Juno, skippered by Andrew Hurst, went on to qualify for the English team for the 1987 Admiral's Cup, alongside Jamarella (Farr One Tonner) and Indulgence (Andrieu 44). She finished as ninth yacht overall, with placings of 31/7/16/43/2. Her seventh in the second race (the Channel Race) was particularly commendable, as she had been hampered during the surfing spinnaker run back from EC2 buoy by ankle-deep water in the cabin, as a result of a failed gasket around the engine strut drive. She had a poor first race and a middling third race where, along with Jamarella, she had been part of the pursuing pack and was forced to sail outside the bunch at the gybe mark between reaches.

Juno amongst the One Ton pack during the 1987 Admiral's Cup (photo One Ton Class Facebook page)

She had a disastrous race in the Third Inshore, where she collided with Centurion (ex-Jade) at a windward mark and had to take a 20 percent penalty. This was on top of a poor team decision to all sail for the right hand side of the course on the first leg. Juno bounced back in the Fastnet race finale, however, reveling in the two-sail reaching conditions to take second place.

Juno in the Queen Ann Battery marina after the 1987 Fastnet race (photo shockwave40 blog)

Juno went on to compete in the 1987 One Ton Cup, where she finished tenth (after placings of 18/10/30/6/6). She also raced in the 1988 Kenwood Cup as part of the British team (alongside Indulgence VI and Yeoman XXVII), with a new higher aspect 'MME' keel and a reduction in her 'E' measurement showing much improved upwind speed. Downwind she retained most of her speed, benefiting from a much thinner keel profile than 1987. Her series was unfortunately brought to a premature end when she was damaged in the fourth race during a windward mark incident when General Hospital, a local Farr 40, sailed into her on port tack. Juno was kept afloat and despite this mishap finished fourth in Class E and seventh overall. She was shipped straight to San Francisco to be repaired in time to compete in the 1988 One Ton Cup in San Francisco where she finished 18th.

Juno during the 1988 One Ton Cup, just ahead of Australia's Sagacious V

Juno performs a spectacular wipe-out during the 1988 One Ton Cup

Juno as Citroen in the 1989 Spi Quest regatta (Bateaux magazine)

Juno was renamed Citroen after she was bought by French interests. Although she performed with great distinction during the 1989 season, including being awarded the RORC Yacht of the Year, she had a disastrous 1989 Admiral's Cup series where she sailed for the Irish team, finishing near last in 41st place, following results of 24/32/41/38/39/35.

Citroen approaching Lymington Marina after a race during the 1989 Admiral's Cup (photo shockwave blog)

Sometime in the 1990s Juno was converted to an IMS racer at Vision Yachts (and named Tango), which involved a new coachroof, removal of her IOR rating bumps and bustle, with a new Judel/Vrolijk keel and rudder. She was later named Freelance (photos below from the Historiedeshalfs site).

The yacht is now located in Portavadie Marina in Scotland (photos below from the One Ton Class Facebook page). Small windows have been added to the cabin top, and the original Juno name has been reinstated.