Topper Worlds @ FVM Lake Garda [Italy]

This years Topper World Championships will be held at the Italian sailing club "Fraglia Vela Malcesine" on the shores of Lake Garda, some 8km north of Malcesine.

The event takes place from the 25th to the 31st of August 2007 and is sponsored by GUL.

Notice of Race is available, as is the Entry Form.

Sailing Instructions are also available, and finally details of the Bank Payment for race entry fees can also be found on the FVM web site.

There are several Northe West Topper Sailors competing in Italy this year and we wish them all good luck.

Report and Results.

Topper Nationals @ East Lothian YC [Report]

Report as posted on the GBR Topper Web Site - with kind thanks to the GBR Topper Association.

Magic Marine Topper Nationals – East Lothian Yacht Club

Sunday 5th and Monday 6th August - Day 1 & 2 (Posted 7/8/07)

After three sunny and breezy days of pre event training, the first morning of the Topper Nationals started overcast, sullen with a fine sea mist. After the morning briefing the competitors started the waiting game.

First afloat was the Regatta Fleet with the start of a light North Easterly breeze, the conditions being ideal for the youngsters to get use to their surroundings. The Regatta Fleet completed three practice races giving the sailors and their coaches a chance to get to know each other.

As the afternoon progressed, the North Easterly breeze pick up to a steady force three and after a long wait the Main Fleet was able to launch. The race area was to the East of North Berwick towards Bass Rock. Although the wind was not strong it still managed to produce a sea with short choppy waves creating challenging conditions for the sailors.

Despite the long wait to launch, the race committee wasted no time in setting a good course. They were able to complete a series of nine qualification races, the fleet being divided into three flights.

At the end of the day Freddie Connor led the qualification series with two wins and a second. Elliot Hanson was second overall with three straight seconds. Race wins were also claimed by Andrew Brown, Emily Jackson, Phil McCoy, Jordan Taylor, Nathan Ackroyd and Lynn Billowes.

Despite many forecasts to the contrary, Monday morning produced a good breeze now from the South West. The breeze was fresher than on Sunday and at times the gusty conditions made it difficult for the smaller sailors.

Three straight wins took Andrew Brown to first place at the end of the second day of qualification. Freddie Connor took two wins to be second. Steve Beckett also took three straight wins to be third overall, the other race winner being Phil McCoy.

The Main Fleet will conclude the qualification series on Tuesday after which the competitors will be separated into Gold, Silver and Bronze fleets.

Tuesday 7th August - Day 3 (Posted 8/8/07)

Day 3 of the Topper Nationals started with a fresh South Westerly breeze. At the morning briefing the principal race officer Jim Sinclair reported that he’d recorded wind speeds of 30 Knots at the race area. With a fleet of 263 Toppers the decision was taken to postpone for an hour. During the postponement period the wind continued to build and with the blustery conditions the sea state deteriorated. After a further hour postponement and with no sign of the conditions improving it was decided to abandon racing for the day.

Thus the final results for the Qualification Series remained as they stood at the end of the second day with Andy Brown first, Freddie Connor second, Stephen Beckett third, Emily Jackson was first lady.

The Regatta Fleet, with a couple of reefs in their sails, doubled up in pairs and in the relative shelter of the bay managed to complete a race during the morning. The young sailors bravely venturing out in difficult conditions. The Regatta Fleet has now completed four of their eight race series.

In the afternoon the attention turned to the Highland Games in which the Topper Youth Squad took the honours winning overall and also having the first all girl team.

Wednesday 8th August - Day 4 (Posted 10/8/07)

Day 4 of the Topper Nationals was sunny and hot, with many using sun barrier cream for the first time. The early morning breeze died at midday as the sea breeze started to establish it self. Launching was delayed for a couple of hours until the sea breeze had become steady and reliable. As on the first day, despite the late launch the race organizers wasted no time and managed to complete all three scheduled races.

The racing in the Gold Fleet was very close with no one sailor dominating. In the three races Andrew Brown finished 2nd, 6th and 1st to maintain his overall lead. Matt Johnson moved up into second place with a 6th, 4th and 2nd. Marina Brassington won the second race to move her up to 6th place and first lady. The first race was won by Freddie Connor but other results pushed him away from the lead. The Gold Fleet remains very open with five races still to go.

In the Silver Fleet Stu Dando took a 1st and 2nd for the overall lead with Andrew Dawson, the winner of the first race, only half a point behind. The third race was won by Anna Ackroyd.

In the Bronze Fleet, Kieran Travis and Michael Harris both took race wins to be first and second overnight. The third race being won by Harry Bradley.

Lucy Yeates is leading the Regatta Fleet with three wins in seven races. Jonathan Verity is in second place followed by Rachel Wilcock, who has also had three wins. There is one more race to complete the series, but that will have to wait, as on Thursday the Regatta Fleet will be cruising down the coast for a beach picnic.

Thursday 9th and Friday 10th August - Day 5 & 6 (Posted 12/8/07)

Day 5 of the Topper Nationals started bright but with little breeze, the general feeling on the sea front green was that a good sea breeze should develop to produce another good days racing. Sure enough the sea breeze did arrive and the fleets launched and sailed to the race area to the East of North Berwick.

The Gold, Silver and Bronze fleets were able to complete all three races. However, as the breeze freshened from the East the sea state deteriorated producing big waves rolling in from the North Sea. This made the conditions extremely testing with long beats into the mountainous waves and down wind legs like roller-coaster rides. For many competitors it was the biggest seas they’d experience. One sailor had to be air lifted to hospital after being hit by a Topper falling off of a wave; fortunately the individual was able to return not having sustained any serious injury.

In the racing Andrew Brown took a first and two seconds in the Gold Fleet to extend his lead, Stephen Beckett winning the other two races moved up to second and Jack Hopkins had a consistent day to move up to third. Marina Brassington sailed well to remain first lady.

In the Silver Fleet it was all change, Ian Cook won the first two races with Matt West winning the third race. But it was consistency that counted with Hannah Wilcock moving up to first followed by Harriet Morris. The over night leader Andrew Dawson slipping back to third.

The girls dominated the Bronze Fleet too, with Jenny Saunders and Roshan Warkerley winning the first and second races respectively. Ben Crossdale won the third race. Roshan Warkerley moved up to first overall with Jenny Saunders second, Michael Harris dropped to third.

Day 6 - The final day of the Topper Nationals started overcast with a light breeze. During the morning the breeze picked up from the South West and the Regatta Fleet was able to launch in the morning and completed three races to conclude a series of ten races. Rachel Wilcock, Jonathan Verity and Georgia Mitchell all took races wins. Lucy Yeates taking two seconds and a third won the overall series with Rachel Wilcock second and Jonathan Verity third. Hopefully we’ll see many of the sailors from the Regatta Fleet competing in the main fleet next year.

The main fleet remained on shore waiting for the breeze to settle. After some delay the fleet eventually launched. With six races completed in the series there were two to go, Andrew Brown needed one third to secure the Championship. After several hours of trying, racing was eventually abandoned owing to the unreliability of the breeze. The first race was abandoned during the last beat when there was a 90 degree wind shift. After resetting the course the next race has to be abandoned as the Gold Fleet was struggling to make headway against the tide. So the positions as of Day 5 remained with Andrew Brown winning the Magic Marine Topper National Championship.

With 263 entrants in the main fleet and 26 in the Regatta Fleet, the 2007 Topper National Championship has been a great success. The class association would like to thank our hosts East Lothian Yacht Club for all their hard work. We were all made very welcome and it is great credit to Eric Robertson and all the volunteers at ELYC that one of the biggest sailing events in the UK calendar ran so smoothly. Another big thanks to the principal race officer and his team. Jim Sinclair had to make some difficult decisions in the week and was successful in providing good and fair racing that was greatly appreciated by the competitors. Finally we would like to thank Magic Marine for their continued support of the Topper class.

Topper Nationals @ East Lothian YC [North Berwick]

The 2007 Magic Marine Topper Nationals is being held at East Lothian Yacht Club in North Berwick, near Edinburgh.

The Regatta starts on the 5th of August and runs till the 11th of August.

Training is available through the Topper NW Zone Squad via Harry Brown, and the coach will be none other than the incomparable Neil Marsden.

North Berwick is approximately 225 miles from Southport and is expected to take about four and a half hours to get there, not the journey to do immediately before the first days racing.

Accommodation may well be tight as there are other events in the area at the same time: The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, a Golfing Tournament, and at least one other that is taking up the local accommodation.

As always good luck to the Toppers that are entering the event and safe journeys both to the even and back home again.

Gold Fleet Results.
Silver Fleet Results.
Bronze Fleet Results.

Regatta Fleet Results.

Report for the event.