Topper 4.2 National Series at Largs Sailing Club

Topper 4.2 National Series at Largs © Paul Graham & Paul Hargreaves

Prize winners from the Topper 4.2 National Series at Largs © Paul Graham & Paul Hargreaves

It was a frustrating morning at Largs with light winds blowing in opposing directions it wasn't until 2pm that the wind started to settle down. At least the sailors had chance to play football and socialise; I really felt for the race officers. It was a smaller fleet than normal, but 16 boats still makes for good fleet racing.

The first race was started in 5 knots of wind. This enabled the light weather experts to thrive and George Graham of Burwain Sailing Club finished 1st closely followed by Ellen McCarlie in 2nd and Ollie Dixon in 3rd. George said "My heart was in my throat"; this was the first ever National race he had won.

The wind soon increased and the heavy weather sailors began to shine. The second race was won by James Hollis of Bartley Sailing Club, followed by Ollie Dixon in 2nd and Ellen McCarlie in 3rd. James again won the 3rd race followed again by Ollie and Ellen.

Therefore by what turned out to be the 4th and final race everything was to play for. 4 of the competitors could still take the victory.

James took an early lead. However Ollie Dixon had other ideas and using some good maths and skilful sailing managed to sail James down the fleet enough and still win the final race followed by Ellen McCarlie in 2nd and Simon Gadsby in 3rd.

Overall Results:

Our 4.2 Experience

It was just eighteen months ago that the decision was made to sell our Enterprise and buy a Topper little did I know where this was going to lead.

My son, George Graham started sailing with me at 4 years old in a tatty old Enterprise, eventually we bought a better Enterprise and with my George at just 8 years old we managed to beat the famous Alan Johnson and Tony Woods. Therefore it was a difficult decision to sell the Enterprise, but I guess when you are been told when to tack by your 8 year old why would you want to hold them back.

A club member had mentioned the 4.2 sail for the Topper and that they had their own separate fleet at the National events. We took our him to his first event at Rutland in 2011 and were extremely impressed by the organisation and the size of the fleets. Obviously the 5.3 fleet is fantastic size of 200+, but also the 4.2 fleet of 30+ is also very good; many other fleets struggle to have 30 boats for their National Championships. George really enjoyed his first event despite finishing last, and he received the Endeavour award for finishing all the races.

Another parent mentioned the 4.2 National Squad and my thoughts at that instant where “What are you talking about?” and “Don’t be ridiculous he is far too young to be in a National Squad”.

However the season went on and we took him around the traveller circuit. Also we went to North Berwick where he entered the 4.2 Regatta fleet; I have to say I would recommend this to anyone. The regatta fleet balances excellent coaching, superb racing, and there is also lots of fun and games; it is ideal for the younger or less experienced sailor.

The last big event of the season was a short trip to Poole Yacht Club, which involved setting off at 3am to arrive in time for the racing. George had improved quite a bit through the season, but my expectations were low. I had learnt to take a book and try not to watch, because I find this extremely frustrating. I set him off, and said “Just go out and enjoy yourself, and do your best”. After the weekends racing he finished 8th and came 3rd in one of the races; he was very pleased with himself (Remember he finished last at his first event). Again this 4.2 National Squad was mentioned; my thoughts now were “Maybe he stands a chance of getting in” and “How much is this going to cost?”

After getting home from Poole and speaking to the boss, I phoned Dave Cockerill and asked the question. Is George good enough and old enough at 9 years old to be in the 4.2 squad; the answer was obviously yes; otherwise I wouldn’t be writing about it. On getting home from school we told him the news together and guess what? he was quite pleased about it.

The 4.2 National Squad has been a fantastic experience for George; but also as his parents we have also enjoyed ourselves. There were 4 weekends, two were residential and the last one was a Summer/Winter camp and BBQ at Roadford Lake. George has made lots of friends from around the country. We have found all the other parents to be really good fun and have made some friends ourselves.

So to any parent out there who is thinking about giving their child a chance in a Topper; if they are smaller and lighter (Age is not always important) I would recommend the 4.2 sail. With its own standalone National Championships even if you don’t want the commitment of doing all the events I would definitely recommend you take them to this one event.