All race reports for Sam Pearson
Event: Cambridge Winter Head 2024 - Student Lower VIIIs
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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A promising start for our first race (or so I'm told). Alex's third race of the day but his feedback and encouragement led to some of the best rowing I've experienced so far. We'll always remember the immortalisation of a nasty crab by the professional photographer and our 6 seat holding his seat in the air mid-race! The only way is up.
Event: Clare Novice Regatta 2024 - Men's Cup
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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A good start to a very good day. Not our best start but we built to a solid rate 34 and kept pulling away. By the White House, Clare Hall was in the distance and we kept going (despite calls from the bank to slow down). A decisive victory was great for morale but we might have appreciated the extra energy conservation (looking at you Will)!
Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2024 - 1st division
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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Not our best rowing but a result to be proud of nonetheless. We went into this race riding on the high of our victory at Clare Novices but knew it was our race to lose. We had some questionable coxing calls but rowed on undeterred. We rowed home thinking we may have bottled it. I will never forget the collective roar we let out upon learning of our 0.3s victory margin.
As the first crew to finish we then had the joy of seeing all other astounding results come in. This year's novice term was absolutely amazing and I am honoured to be a part of a crew which achieved historic results. Every single person who went out in a FaT boat ought to be proud of themselves and those who coached, coxed and organised ought be even prouder. All I can say now is this: Lents won't know what hit it!
Event: Fairbairn Cup 2024 - Lower VIIIs
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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This race felt good. Far more relaxed than Novice Fairbairns the day before. The unfortunate crab and crash cost us on time but the rest of the race was rowed well. Fortunately, we got a lovely video to remember (almost parking in a boat bay by Green Dragon - https://youtu.be/d4ICCZ7B3Nc?si=Rsw0UdN0kBkiQ_Vh around 20 seconds in), courtesy of the drone flying overhead.
Event: Winter Head-To-Head 2025 - Lower VIIIs
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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A promising start all things considered. The leg down felt considerably better than the leg back but that gave us a very good idea of our strengths and weaknesses as a crew. Coming just 2 seconds behind Maggie M2 was a shame as it would have been nice to beat them in light of the smack they were talking! Lots of changes still to be made. Roll on Newnham Head!
Event: Newnham Short Course 2025 - Lents 2nd Div
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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Honestly not too bad all things considered (and there were a LOT of things to consider). Not my cleanest race as I was ill and rowing on a foreign side. BUT that means there's an easy 10+ seconds to knock off our time once I learn how to row strokeside. Overall, we still made progress from last week and can bring that into the next race
Event: Lent Bumps Getting-on Race 2025 -
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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An absolute privilege to watch. The crew started strong and stayed relatively together throughout. By the time we reached grassy, Tit Hall were about 4 lengths away, this closed to 2 lengths by Ditton. I have no doubt that this kept the crew motivated and kept them pushing. Tit hall took their time to concede the racing line but M4 were inevitable. Making up the 30-40 second head-start, M4 finished about half a length up on the other crew.
All members of M4 should be very proud. As the first M4 in lent bumps since 2016 they've got an incredibly promising campaign ahead of them.
Event: Lent Bumps 2025 - Friday
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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Despite harsher weather than yesterday (hail from the 1 min cannon to the bump) this was our best rowing yet. Our aim was simple: same as yesterday but better. We delivered. We reached 1 whistle within the first 5-10 strokes with calls of 3 quarters soon after. Our rhythm was effective and boat speed picked up as we dropped the rate from 40 to 36. From there 2 whistles were shortly followed by 3. We were told to put in one power minute and we did, bumping Downing halfway down first post reach.
Onto tomorrow: again but better
Event: Head of the Cam 2025 - 2nd Mays
Posted as: Sam Pearson
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Bomber's instructions were simple: relax, row well, and leave nothing out there. We did just that...
... for the first three minutes. The push out of first post corner was excellent. Things were going just as planned. Then came Ditton and things began to fall apart, people tensed up, conditions deteriorated, hands began to bleed etc.
Overall not a bad marker for the start of the term and now it'd just a job of increasing the time it takes for everything to go to sh*t (hopefully to somewhere after the finish line).
