In our latest edition of Meet the Sailors, we are delighted to introduce Mark Brown, owner and skipper of Jetpack — a JPK 10.10 that has quickly become one of the most formidable boats on the UK offshore and coastal racing circuit. Mark is no stranger to success. Over the past few seasons he has established himself as one of the most consistent and accomplished competitors in both the JOG and RORC fleets. His 2025 campaign was nothing short of outstanding: winning Class 2 in the JOG Offshore Series, runner up in Class 3 of the JOG Coastal Series, and topping IRC Four in the RORC Season Points Championship. Add to that the title of JOG Boat of the Year in 2023, and it’s clear that Mark and his team have built a programme capable of delivering results year after year.
Before Jetpack, Mark enjoyed tremendous success with his Prima 38 Assassin; a boat that many will remember as a regular fixture at the front of the fleet. The move to the JPK 10.10 was a clear statement of intent: a platform designed to excel under IRC and compete seriously across both inshore and offshore racing. From the moment the boat arrived, we spent considerable time working with Mark to design a bespoke sail wardrobe tailored to the demands of Solent racing and the wider offshore calendar. Over the years that inventory has evolved into a finely tuned combination of GPL Lite Skin upwind sails, Contender Superkote downwind sails, and a GPL laminate Code 0, with refinements made season by season as the team has pushed the boat further. Beyond the racecourse, Mark was instrumental in the setup of Generation Jog creating a pathway for under 30’s to get into coastal and offshore yacht racing. We caught up with Mark to talk about the journey from Assassin to Jetpack, how a successful offshore campaign is built, and the role that sail development plays when you are competing at the sharp end of IRC racing.
Mark, many sailors first came to know you through your Prima 38 Assassin, which enjoyed tremendous success on the offshore circuit. What prompted the move to the JPK 10.10, and what were your early ambitions after buying Jetpack?
The Prima was a great yacht but before that I have had a string of yachts of varying sizes, usually around 24-30ft and I missed being just that little closer to the water and life a little more on the edge! JPK 10.10’s don’t come up for sale that often as the French typically won’t sell to the UK, it’s a bit like trying to buy a Ferrari without sitting on a waiting list! So, when I saw her come up for sale in Guernsey, I knew the opportunity was too good to miss. She was an interesting gamble, you know the 10.10 has won a load of races around UK / Europe so there is a certain pressure to do well! I remember when I first showed the crew a picture of what I was buying and seeing their eyes light up! From that moment on, everyone has just bought into the project which has made my life easier.
From the moment the boat arrived we spent a lot of time developing a very specific sail wardrobe for Jetpack. How has that wardrobe evolved over the years, and what have been the biggest lessons learned as you’ve refined the sail plan for both Solent racing and offshore events?
It all costs money!! So, it is important to make the right investments. In practice, it was more about learning the yacht and working out the weaknesses before tweaking the sail plan to hopefully be good in all conditions and I think we have done that now. Apart from the Prima, which went upwind like a train on rails, I have always had downwind yachts. The 10.10 is more an upwind yacht and stronger the better so we’ve had to learn to balance taming the beast without clipping her wings.
Your inventory now combines GPL Lite Skin upwind sails, Superkote downwind sails and a GPL laminate Code 0. From a helmsman’s perspective, how do these materials translate into performance on the racecourse, and are there particular sails in the wardrobe that have become real “weapons” for the team?
Reliability is king during offshore racing so we have gone for the best possible materials for each given sail. It’s now hard to pick out a sail as by design we are pretty good at all points of sail and any wind strength but give me a tight reach off the start anytime and if the zero can go up then so much the better!! Although if you speak to my crew, they will all have their favourites, from the sadists that want to sit at the top end of the J2 to those that love the versatility of our S2.
One of the things that stands out about Jetpack is the consistency of the results. When you’re racing across such a variety of conditions and courses, how important is the ongoing collaboration between skipper and sailmaker in continuing to refine the sails year after year?
I aspire to have a year not buying sails! As you know this year we have gone for a heavier S2. Last year we put a lot of miles on our S2 as it is a super reliable sail even at the top of its wind range. But as is only natural when planning for a big offshore, we need something with the same performance but with the added reliability as its inevitable it gets held up in stronger winds than anticipated.
After achieving so much success — from JOG Boat of the Year to multiple series wins — do you have a particular favourite accolade? What keeps the programme motivated, and where do you feel Jetpack can still push the envelope going forward? What are your ambitions for 2026?
Winning jog yacht of the year in our first year (2023) after winning both the coastal and offshore series was well above expectations but winning class 4 in RORC last year being a Fastnet year and 30-40 yachts in class was pretty unbelievable. 2026 will be more of the same, RORC and jog but the highlight will be RORC Round Britain & Ireland – I’m nervous and excited in equal measures but one thing is for sure I love and trust the yacht and her sails and as crew we all get on very well and bring different things to the party. We are all motivated to work as hard as we can for Jetpack and when putting a campaign together, that’s all you can ask for! The picture of all 10 cups from 2025 is a good motivator, the team lives for racing and got themselves a taste for drinking out of silverware at the end of the season. But we know each year we must push harder as there will be a target on our backs and you know there are some great crews who are eager to beat us!