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All race reports for Alexander Dear

Event: May Bumps 2009 - Friday
Posted as: Alex
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Our rowover was good fun.
Christ's IV were chasing us rather unsuccessfully and we weren't in excessive pain, and seeing as we had no boats in front of us we saw no reason to change this state of affairs.
I had time to smile at spectators and chuckle.
There was no way we were going to go down to people with such slogans as 'gunshow' and 'enormous' written on their backs.
Though to be fair they were pretty massive.
Oh, and we rowed nicely. We'll destroy sidney m2 tomorrow if we row like that again, unless alex wood is battered again.

Event: Lent Bumps 2010 - Friday
Posted as: Alex
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Well we weren't too optimistic about this one, given that Catz fielded a GB rower, 4 lightweight triallists and a Belfast Uni rower. As ever our start was pimp, holding them off for a while whilst gaining on Robinson, but then their superior cruising speed took its toll. Once one whistle came the rest came quickly. Catz are really fast.
On the plus side, we didn't have to face the reach in a massive headwind. So we're fresh for tomorrow...

Event: May Bumps 2010 - Wednesday
Posted as: Alex
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I don't think crew turbolash the night before affected our performance too much, but it was entertaining to row behind 2 people with no hair.
Our practise start was nice, but the real one was quite spacky :(
Also we rowed short all the way. 2 things to fix!
Christ's IV got bumped quite quickly behind us, and we quiched merrily up the reach and thus lost a lot of ground to the boat 3 behind us. We definitely shouldn't do this tomorrow either...


Tomorrow we must man up or our race will be cut brutally short by eddies. Bumps is fun :)

Event: May Bumps 2015 - Thursday
Posted as: Alex
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Woooo we gained the M4 headship!!!

This bump took a little longer - maybe a minute and a half - and annoyingly we accidentally set the GoPro on burst mode so we don't have a video.

We pulled up beside some spectators from Murray Edwards BC (or New Hall if you're as old as me and Murray Edwards still sounds wrong), and asked them for a swap. They said yes, but only if we get blades. Challenge accepted...

Event: May Bumps 2015 - Wednesday
Posted as: Alex
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A good day for the Graduate VIII.
Given that 6 of our guys have never rowed bumps before, and that our cox is heavier than the 2 guys in the boat who have rowed bumps before, and that 2 of us have never rowed before this term, and that we drink beer after every outing, and that the boat in front of us did not crash and caught no crabs, I'm rather stoked that we bumped in 38 seconds.
The question is whether we can carry on cruising given that we are going out every night this week, and that our 3 man is currently completely battered and fell backwards out of a window earlier. Let's hope the answer is yes.

Our bow camera caught some sterling footage. Enjoy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uu40IpSefOE

Event: Pembroke Regatta 2015 - 3rd division
Posted as: Alex
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This time round Rob had psyched us up by convincing us Maggie weren't terrible, so we were a bit jittery and our start was slightly worse than in the previous rate, with the result that we only took a couple of seats in the first 10 strokes. Nerves meant that there was no stride, and so we rowed at rate 38 the whole way. We decided to compensate for our lack of finesse during this race by beasting it, so we all pulled our hardest for the first time this day. The result was a messy, but fast, row, and Maggie, although holding on admirably compared to the other crews we faced, were down by a length and a half by the railway bridge. We continued to beast it all the way to the finish line, with Maggie gradually fading away. Thornton and I occasionally screamed for people to finish off their strokes and not to shorten up, and I occasionally just screamed inarticulately. Much fun.

Also Tom and I took the bold decision to row just in our all-in-ones, so I was without my trusty mac for the first time this day. On the plus side we looked good; on the downside, "tsunami" Shahid wetted us more thoroughly than I have ever been wetted in my entire rowing career. I couldn't have been much wetter if I had swum the course. Ever one step ahead, I had brought a towel, which probably staved off hypothermia on the row home.

If we can take our finesse from Robinson Head, and combine it with pushing hard like we did in this race, we will demolish everything in our path in bumps.

Event: Pembroke Regatta 2015 - 3rd division
Posted as: Alex
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Probably our prettiest rowing of the day. Our start wasn't bad considering it was well above rate 40, and we strided fairly well this time, down to the low 30s I believe. Still significantly below our usual standard, but certainly not a travesty. Again we had clear water after not too many strokes, and were able to slow things down past the railway bridge (though I actually chose to push hard all the way this time). Good job guys.

Event: Pembroke Regatta 2015 - 3rd division
Posted as: Alex
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Our start, and our rowing, was a big improvement on the previous race, but still well below our usual standards. It was pretty fun; my mac kept me warm and dry, and we demolished Christ's before we got to the railway bridge and were able to quiche pretty hard again.

Event: Pembroke Regatta 2015 - 3rd division
Posted as: Alex
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Queens didn't turn up so we messed around on the bank. Rob Shearme led a trip to look at a horse's genitalia, I ate some biscuits, and Patrick flirted with Stroud.

Event: Pembroke Regatta 2015 - 3rd division
Posted as: Alex
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Easily the worst rowing we did this term. We took airstrokes and rowed in antiphase during the start, but somehow still moved up on Fitz. We vaguely settled into an extremely messy mid-30s rhythm with water flying in directions I didn't think possible, and I was very pleased I had kept my hood up on the raincoat I was rowing in. We took a length off Fitz very quickly now that we were actually moving somewhat, so we wound it down a bit after 30 strokes or so, and spakked and quiched our way under the railway bridge. Fitz were vanishing by then, so we took it down again, and spakked and quiched even more all the way to the finish line.

Event: May Bumps 2016 - Thursday
Posted as: Alex
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We rowed in yellow and blue today, to the consternation of some of the spectators who voiced their sadness that we weren't in pink again.
Under the mistaken impression that there were cameras pointed at us, we rowed down comparatively prettily. It later turned out our bank parties had lied to us to get us to stop spannering.
We did a fairly beastly start and gained rapidly on Hughes Hall M3, intent on punishing them for overbumping around us the previous day. Approaching the motorway bridge we started rowing fairly terribly as we entered their wash, but all those pre-season pull-ups and deadlifts and bicep curls allowed bow 4 to muscle us rapidly into HH's stern as we went under the bridge.
Clearing the river was a bit awks, but otherwise it was a rather fun and rapid race.

Event: May Bumps 2017 - Thursday
Posted as: Alex
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After a clean but gentle start, we gained on the crews around us for maybe 30 seconds. Then we hit wash and wind and started rowing worse than yesterday, and made no more gainz. The rate dropped perilously low. Fortunately, after doing this for a minute or so, we started pushing a bit harder, and we ended up spearing Darwin coming into grassy. Hopefully with more consistency and effort, we can punish naughty Downing tomorrow for their heinous bumping of our M1. And if not, I shall at least get a monster workout in preparation for my alpine holiday next week. Yeah M2!!

Event: May Bumps 2017 - Friday
Posted as: Alex
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Simultaneously the fastest (in the first minute) and the least-sat rowing I have done in several years of bumps, intriguing...

Event: May Bumps 2017 - Saturday
Posted as: Alex
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Certainly the most elegant rowing we have done in bumps so far, settling into a clean (for once) rhythm, rating in the high 30s. I was impressed that Sidney were able to close so fast given how much better we seemed to be rowing today, they are a very fast crew, unlike in many of the past years. I think we did a good job nonetheless, and have never begrudged a bump less. M2 has much to be proud of for making so many improvements in the past few weeks and in the week of bumps itself, especially given how new many of them are to the sport. An enjoyable campaign.

Event: May Bumps 2018 - Wednesday
Posted as: Alex
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Our sophisticated Mays training plan did not leave room for practicing starts; our first start as a crew (plus two subs) was on the row down. Our second was at the cannon. It was abysmal. BUT no threat from the rear. Eddie's were fairly rapid ahead of us, we will conquer the crew they sent down tomorrow hopefully...
Not a man jack of us is currently sober though. We're too old for alcohol bans.

Event: May Bumps 2018 - Thursday
Posted as: Alex
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A less abysmal start today, but the crew lost interest at about a minute in, especially in keeping in time, and Homerton rapidly ate us up. Bow pair tried to overbump Eddies on the way home, but alas Arthur's stamina wasn't up to the task...
...tomorrow we put Kendall at stroke.

Event: May Bumps 2018 - Friday
Posted as: Alex
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Scratched due to lack of crew availability. Downside to having a company CEO and other assorted huge deals in the boat.
On the plus side we're well-rested and raring to go tomorrow. It's entirely unclear whether we'll be fast, but it will certainly be entertaining. 
I'm wonder how Homerton feels about chasing us a second time...

Event: May Bumps 2018 - Saturday
Posted as: Alex
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Hahah well that was an interesting race. Determined not to be out-muscled by anyone despite our lack of togetherness, we hit it biiiig off the start, settling to maybe r36 and maxing out on the power. With alternating legs pushes and lats pushes, we moved substantially on the crew ahead, coming within a length, and with Homerton vanishing down an extra length. Then disaster struck, and our sub caught a boat-stopping crab after the motorway bridge, no doubt due to lack of familiarity with rowing in a turbocharged washing machine. 

We stayed stationary until Homerton were less than a length off us, then we yelled a lot and did an enormous second start, and comfortably escaped them (lol), widening the gap to over a length. Alas although our strength did not die, our composure gradually got even worse, and the gap narrowed again. They got us when Arthur failed to single handedly row us round another corner (I forget which).

We consoled our sub with the fact that the race was more amusing this way. Shout out to Hannes for still being drunk from a wedding in Germany the night before, and having got only one hour's sleep (in the plane on the way back).

Back at the boathouse we pushed almost the whole of Homerton's crew into the Cam, as a minor act of vengeance for them bumping twice.
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