I looked closely at the J-30 when I ws shopping for my Laser 28. I had sailed on them and had actually started negotiations on one. I do a lot of single-handing and in the end I concluded that they were not my idea of an ideal single-hander. While the cockpit was compact and the control lines mostly run aft I found them to require very high efforts and not being all that forgiving. One major fault in my book was the tendency toward a lee helm (this may be tuned out of the J-30''s these days since I haven''t driven one in the current tuning) I also did not like the distance from the helm to the head.

When I did this same investigation 13 years ago,I ended up buying a Laser 28. I can''t say that they are an ideal boat for everyone. They tend to require a bit more finesse than some other boats but they are pretty easy to dial in once you have sailed them for a bit and once dialed in they are great single-handers. I am not trying to sell you my boat, although she is for sale, but I would suggest that the Laser 28''s would be a good alternative to consider. My best suggestion is to try to get a chance to sail a J-30 and see what you think. While I thought they could be singlehanded I thought they were less than ideal.

Good luck
Jeff

Good hunting.