Topper Sail Phuket sent seven kids from the Phuket Sunshine Village to the Thailand Optimist Nationals at the Top of the Gulf Regatta 2010 held in Pattaya last Friday.

Running from 30 April to 4 May, the Regatta is regarded as one of the most prestigious events on the sailing calendar and attracts top class sailors from all around the world.
The young seafarers have been sailing for just over a year on most Sundays and have been participating in club training and racing at Phuket Yacht Club under the supervision of Katy Gooch and Paul Firmin from Topper Sail Phuket.

They will also be joined by two other club members bringing the total junior entries from Phuket to nine. Staff at Topper Sail Phuket, founded and operated by Katy and Paul, have been donating their time teaching the fine points of sailing, as well as arranging races for them every month.

Katy Gooch said, ?These children love to sail and have improved so much since they started learning with us and it would be fantastic for them to have the opportunity to go and compete in the nationals.?

In preparation for the event, Topper Sail Phuket are arranging for the junior racers to join an Advanced Optimist Course run by the Junior Sailing Squadron Thailand (JSST) at Sattahip Naval Base, Chonburi from the 17?25 April.

The cost of sending the children to the training camp and the Gulf Regatta itself is estimated at approximately 100,000 baht to cover accommodation, food, course fees, boat charter, entry fees and transportation.