Topper NW Area Championships 2007
Leigh & Lowton 19th May 2007

38 Toppers attended the 2007 North West Area Championships at Leigh & Lowton SC on 19th May. Helms from as far as Rotherham, Chelmarsh, Blithfield & Bassenthwaite were greeted by bright & breezy conditions for Race one in which local helms Chris Wheeler & Tom Keegan took an early lead. This was not to last as Elliot Hanson, Andrew Salt & Jonathan Olin came through to take the line honours.

There was quite a choice of dishes from the galley at lunch - the signature dish of Chicken & Ham pie (this time with Leek!) was eagerly enjoyed. The service was so swift that 30mins was saved & the fleet set off early for 2 back to back races to complete the series.

Race 2 saw excitement as Adam Millington's mast gave way in the pre-start manoeuvring, a replacement was found for the 3rd race - Archie Nicholson also needed to borrow a top section when he returned to shore with his shaped like a boomerang. A squall hit the fleet shortly after the start, this brought a number of capsizes which kept the rescue services busy for a while. It was good to see some 4.2 sails selected for the later races, these really mean that lighter helms can enjoy the heavier winds. The race was won by Andrew Salt, followed by Jack Hopkins & Jonathan Olin who was having a great regatta.

The helms stayed on the water for race 3, the OD was about to call the first general recall of the series when a rather strong Squall hit the fleet & knocked everyone back onto the right side of the startline. This squall, including quite nasty hailstones, lasted for much of the first lap but lighter airs followed the rain. This suited Elliot Hanson who finished with a notable lead from Andrew Salt & Joe Hanson.

Elliot Hanson secured the title of Northwest Area Champion from Andrew Salt 2nd & Jack Hopkins 3rd. The OD for the day, Europe sailor Gareth Williams, remarked on how well behaved this fleet was, only one individual recall was needed, no black flag & no protests - all disputes being resolved on the water, Sam Watson was thanked at the prize giving for his valuable advice on line setting!. A special mention should go to Jack Lawson who set off from Cumbria (which was experiencing gale force winds) for his first Open event - good effort Jack and also to Tom Keegan, who at 8th was the 1st home helm & the 1st none squad helm - well done Tom, great sailing in this high class fleet.
Next event in the NW Topper Travellers Series - Dovestone, Saturday 26th May