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Topper open meeting at Tamesis Club on 24th May 2025

Published 08:13 on 26 May 2025

Tamesis Club hosted 22 boats for the Spring 5 round of the London & Southeast regional Topper series on Saturday 25th May 2025.

The trophy, the Murray Vines Cup - rumoured once to have been won by Sir Ben Ainslie, was awarded to Oscar Lay for the third time!!! It was a tricky day at Tammy this year; fun, chaotic, and frustrating as described by several sailors! Unlike the previous two years the river was not flowing like a motorway, which made it very sailable; although a cross-river westerly wind made for some tricky gusts and large wind shifts for the uninitiated. And the usual hazards of kayakers, paddleboarders, rowers, swimmers, dragon boats, rental boats, river cruisers, tourist boats, ducks and swans to avoid!!!

The first race of the day was dominated by Oscar who did not put a foot wrong. However, back in the pack there was a lot of battling going on from 2nd down to 22nd. A chaotic first mark rounding set the tone for the rest of the racing. In the second race, once again there was chaos at the start and during the rest of the race; with boats crashing, collisions with the marks and all sorts. This time the Taylor brothers Sam and Edward finished 1st and 2nd, miles ahead of Oscar, Cillian and Sam respectively. With no rain in sight, it was all set for a great afternoon.

Lunch was tasty jacket potatoes with salad and toasted sandwiches; thank you to all the kitchen and bar staff!

Then racing resumed in the afternoon for the third race. Once again Oscar won with a close fight between Edward and Cillian in 2nd and 3rd. Finally, it all came down to the last race of this year's event. No surprises here, and in the fourth race Oscar won again; this time by a truly staggering margin with Sam Dence and Edward close behind.

It was a fun and chaotic event this year once again and we hope to see you all again next year!

Many thanks too to the Race Officer Peter Impey and all the Safety Boat crews.