Kinsale Yacht Club hosted the Munster Topper Championships for the first time this weekend. A fleet of 47 boats took to the water on Saturday morning. A strong easterly breeze and heavy seas provided challenging conditions for the sailors and for some this was their first event, but all sailors completed all three races on day one. Download results below.
Michael Carroll, KYC, took line honours in the first race with Micheal O’Suilleabhain, KYC, 2nd and Hannah Liddle, EABC, 3rd. With the fleet pushing hard on the line for the second race a General Recall was inevitable and it restarted under the U Flat. A gear failure early in the 2nd race put Michael Carroll out. Micheal O’Suilleabhain sailed a great race and took 1st Robert Keal, RCYC, 2nd, Dan McGaughey, DSC, 3rd and Sophie Crosbie, RCYC 4th. Race 3 saw Micheal O’Suilleabhain take line honours again , Robert Keal 2nd , Michael Carroll 3rd and Sophie Crosbie 4th.
Sunday the wind was northerly and the seas were a lot kinder to the sailors. Race 4 got under way and from the off it was evident that Micheal O’Suilleabhain and Michael Carroll were battling it out at the head of the fleet. Michael Carroll took line honours with Micheal O’Suilleabhain hot on his heels. Mia Murphy, RCYC, took 3rd with Sophie Crosbie in 4th. Race 5 saw Michael Carroll take the line with Jack O’Sullivan, KYC/RCYC, taking 2nd place, Micheal O’Suilleabhain 3rd and Sophie Crosbie 4th.
Going into the final race it was all to play for as Michael Carroll and Micheal O’Suilleabhain were tied on points. A wind shift saw some sailors take advantage of the left side of the upwind leg which paid off and Tom Higgins, RStGYC, took line honours with Hannah Liddle 2nd and Micheal O’Suilleabhain 3rd. This was enough to secure him the trophy. Michael Carroll was 2nd overall and Sophie Crosbie was 3rd overall.
The 4.2 Fleet saw consistent sailing from it’s competitors with Lewis Thompson, DSC, scoring six 1st Places to take the title, Emma Lynch, WHBTC, came 2nd with Lochlan Briggs, EDYC in 3rd.
