You can't top toppers at Chichester... in it for the Long haul at Dell Quay

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On the morning of the Chichester Yacht Club Topper open, the mercury was reading 20C at 9am, so the all-important race briefing included hats, sun-cream and water of the drinking variety.

Racing started at midday under blue sky and blazing sun.

Some 36 competitors made two separate fleets of Toppers – ten 4.2s and 26 5.3s. Race conditions were testing with soaring temperatures and highly variable wind direction.

The 4.2 race was convincingly won by Daniel Perkins of Warsash Sailing club, having come first in all three races. Next came Xavier Dunn, Hill Head SC, and third was Oscar Fry, also from Warsash SC.

In the 5.3 fleet, Angus Kemp (Poole/Parkstone SC) was the proud recipient of the Topper Open trophy having won two of his races.

Dan Batty (Dorchester/Oxford SC) came second after consistently highly-placed finishes. Bill Hudson (NSSC) came in third.

A very hot and busy day was rounded off by well earned sandwiches, cakes and prize iving supported by Rooster Sailing.

DELL QUAY

The fourth race in the DQSC Longmore series was set against the prospect of a building sea breeze and high temperatures. Winds varied with the sea breeze coming and going.

The excellent course took the fleet up to Longmore via Monkey and then on a zig-zig route back to Hook. Two laps were set and on the second lap the course was shortened to finish at Quay.

Racing was close and tactical with not only the strength of the breeze but also wind shifts and empty pockets continually bunching up the boats.

There were changes in fortune throughout the race with a number of different boats contesting the frontrunners.

The fleet started well with the Solos of Roger Puttock and Mark Harper again enjoying extremely close racing, while the Solos of David Maltby, Simon Verrall and Mike Shaw all swapped places during the race. Not to be outdone the Finns of Steve Sampson and Andrew Buchanan also had a close tussle.

Puttock took the lead at Chichester Lake, when the wind died and then filled in from the east, leaving Harper on the far side of the channel in no wind. Meanwhile, the rest of the fleet caught up and the race got going again at the Longmore Mark.

The final race time was well over 2hr 20min and in the end the Solo class took the first three places on corrected time with less than two minutes separating the first three. First place went to Puttock with Harper second and Verral third.

Harper leads the series overall with Verrall second and John Purdy (also Solo) third.

The final race in the series takes place on Sunday, August 6 (10.45am).

BOSHAM

Bosham Sailing Club are offering free watersports taster sessions to young and old on Saturday morning.

If you have ever wanted to try dinghy sailing, stand-up paddle boarding (SUP), gig rowing or just a trip around Bosham by water, this will be your opportunity.

Bosham are offering free one-hour sessions starting at 9.30am, 10.45am and midday, which must be booked in advance via http://www.boshamsailingclub.com

The sailing sessions will be in Optimist dinghies, accompanied by an instructor in a patrol boat, for young people aged eight to 12 years, while those over 12 can experience sailing in a Bahia dinghy with an instructor on board. Buoyancy aids will be provided.

Stand-up paddleboarding or SUP is the fastest-growing watersport offering people aged 14 or over a chance to explore the shallows of the harbour and increase their fitness using the latest inflatable boards which have been added to Bosham SC’s training fleet.

Through generous donations, the club have also purchased a gig for people to enjoy rowing as a team activity. The gig is a six-oar, 32ft rowing boat. Teams will be very welcome or come as an individual and we will team you up.