The issue has been dealt with on two fronts:

Chantecler has raced in J/105 class races in the Chesapeake Bay. The local J/105 fleet #3 has passed a motion at its annual meeting on January 28, 2006, grandfathering hull #536 into J/105 fleet racing. From: Chris Groobey Date: 29 JAN 06 19:10 To: j105flt3 at yahoogroups dot com Fleet 3,       Thanks to the representatives of 25 J/105s that were represented at Saturday's annual meeting of J/105 Fleet 3.  It was a productive and enjoyable meeting and we especially enjoyed welcoming the many new owners to our ranks.       For those of you who were not able to attend, here are a few highlights:       1.    We elected the slate of officers listed in the meeting agenda.  Many thanks to the departing Chuck Shortz and Scott Gitchell for their service to the fleet as Treasurer and Secretary, respectively.       2.    We discussed the 2006 schedule.  It is available at www.j105fleet3.org.       3.    New rules become effective on February 1.  They are posted at www.j105.org.  Although the changes are minor for most of us, it's worthwhile reviewing the full set of rules just to stay current.       4.    We approved Chantecler (a French-built J/105) racing with our fleet on a one-design basis, so long as she remains unmodified and so long as the national fleet does not exclude her from racing as a J/105 (final decision to come pending a stability check).       5.    We agreed to continue with our local, "headcount" crew rule for all races other than the East Coast Championships late this fall, in which boats will be able to race under either the headcount rule or the national weight rule.  There will be a weigh-in at that regatta for boats that race under the national rule.        Full minutes of the meeting will follow.  As always, please feel free to lob any questions to the fleet officers.  And, most importantly, PLEASE get your membership renewals in to Bill Gratrix (new Fleet Treasurer) as soon as possible.        Our first fleet event is the North Sails Tuneup Day on April 15.  It will be good to get back on the water with all of you then, if not sooner.       Best regards,               --Chris Groobey

The final technical step in the US Certification process was a stability check. It has been successfully carried out on March 25, 2006. The J/105 CA Technical Committee has submitted a favorable report to the Executive Committee. However, I have been informed that the Executive Committee is afraid to open a mine field that has caused big problems in other classes and has adjourned the discussion.