Topper 6 Hour Challenge at Blue Circle Sailing Club
by Richard Lambert 29 Aug 2007 07:53 BST
26 August 2007
Patrick Biddulph & Richard Lambert win the Topper 6 Hour Challenge at Blue Circle © BCSC
Seven teams assembled for Blue Circle Sailing Club's annual Topper 6 hour challenge on 26th August. The weather began unpromisingly, overcast with a gentle wind.
In keeping with tradition, the first helms had to run from the dinghy park over to the pontoon where the Toppers were tied up - a la Le Mans!
Jeavon Gillham - the youngest competitor - showed his peers a clean pair of heels and led after a slow first lap. The second lap was led by father and son team Brian and Ian Gregory, but that would mark their peak in the race. Laps 3-12 were led by David Jones and Mike Ker, indeed at one point they had a seemingly unassailable lead of three minutes.
But the wind steadily built to a more challenging 3-4 later in the afternoon, and this suited Patrick Biddulph and Richard Lambert. It was Biddulph's marathon 4 lap stint that narrowed the gap to just over one minute, and Lambert managed to overhaul Ker on lap 13. Biddulph - a Gran Canarian - defended the lead for the remaining three laps and the Anglo-Spanish pairing took the trophy for the fisrt time.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Sail No | Helm | Crew | Club | Pts |
|---|
| 1st | 5 | R Lambert | P Biggilph | Blue Circle | 1 |
| 2nd | 4 | D Jones | M Ker | Blue Circle | 2 |
| 3rd | 3 | B Gregory | I Gregory | Blue Circle | 3 |
| 4th | 6 | S Roberts | S Roberts | Blue Circle | 4 |
| 5th | 43392 | T Harborne | Ian | Blue Circle | 5 |