Topper Race Group

The Topper is a popular boat at Chew Valley Lake. Toppers are sailed for fun and raced by all ages. They are a great boat for beginners to learn in and there is a full programme of events throughout the year at Chew to help support young sailors learning to sail, through to those wanting to develop their racing skills.

The club has 10 Toppers for use by junior members who may be thinking of buying their own boat.

Specific activities range from RYA courses, Chew Crew and the Chew Crew Challenge group on Sunday mornings, and formal race training in the Topper Race Group.  The Topper Race Group is open to anyone who can confidently sail a triangular course and is keen to learn about racing.  Sessions are held regularly, and external RYA qualified coaches are often brought in to share their skills and knowledge.  Sessions are listed on the Youth Calendar and more information is available from the Topper Coordinator whose contact details are listed on the Youth contact pages.

The fleet is active in the local traveller series, at Topper national events (where club sailors have competed at the very top level and bought home some of the major prizes) and several sailors have successfully been selected to participate in regional and national development squads.

 Topper Fleet Racing and Regional Topper Events

Toppers start in the ‘Junior and Short Course’ start as part of the main club race, and Chew has a strong track record of success at both national and international events. The best way to get into Topper racing is to join in the Topper Race Group events.

 International Topper Class Association

ITCA organise a regional ‘Traveller’ series and also Open Training at various clubs around the region. For a list of dates and venues visit their website or contact the area reps. Full details of these and other Topper class events are also available from the Topper Class association website

 Topper Open

As part of the ITCA series, Chew hosts a Topper Open annually. There is usually a training event on the Saturday and an Open race on the Sunday – there could be up to 40 sailors for you to race against! You can book this via the ITCA website

 RYA Zone Squad

The RYA Zone Squad provides an excellent programme of training for Topper sailors, and many Chew sailors have benefited from this over the years. Selection is based on completion of a range of events. For more information, check the RYA website.

Topper Top Tips with Double Olympic Gold Medallist Shirley Robertson