All race reports for Bryn Garrod

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Event: Lent Bumps 2004 - Tuesday
Posted as: BJ
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Gutted. Following Villa's disappointing derby draw on Sunday, my sporting week got even worse. From a rower's point of view I can't talk about how far ahead or behind anyone other than CCAT was, but what was frustrating for us was that after a decent start we just never found top gear. They, on the other hand, rowed like nutters. So that's our plan for Thursday!

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Event: Lent Bumps 2004 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
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Rowing over is tiring. Really tiring. I hope we bump tomorrow!

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Event: May Bumps 2004 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
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I only started watching from Ditton, but Queens' seemed a little way off then. They pushed up the reach but at about a third of a length it looked like FaT could hold them. They started closing again at the top of the reach and bumped around where Morley's Holt might be. (I'm never really sure.)

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Event: May Bumps 2004 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
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After two days of excitement we didn't do much today. We probably rowed better than we have done before, but it was all a bit too... relaxed, really. We'd planned to row slightly conservatively to the Plough and then push for Peterhouse up the reach, but by the time we got there it became apparent that nothing we could do could make Downing II bump us before they were themselves bumped, and that Peterhouse were about to bump Fitz anyway, so we just finished the course in our own time.

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Event: May Bumps 2004 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
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Hakuna matata, ain't no passing craze...

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Event: Queens' Novice Ergo Competition 2004 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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Not a bad way to start a novice season! I don't remember much about the heat, but the final was First and Third ahead all the way from Jacob's first mighty stroke to Llewellyn's technically dubious but equally mighty last one. I most enjoyed the commentator's change in style from 'It's First and Third with the early lead.', through 'Is anyone going to catch First and Third?', to 'Can someone please catch First and Third?'! Special mention of course must go to the two fastest rowers in the whole competition, Jacob with 1:26.2 (from a standing start!) and Llewellyn with what is surely a competition record of 1:21.7, but we were first to every changeover and this was a display of raw strength and power throughout the team.

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Event: Queens' Novice Ergo Competition 2004 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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A good result for the 2nd VIII, competing mainly against 1st VIIIs and beating 9 of them. Everyone gave it their all, and that sort of determination will pay off later in the season. The individual times were enough to be in most colleges' 1st VIIIs. A shame not to make the final, but maybe aiming for that would've been slightly over-optimistic!

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Event: Queens' Novice Ergo Competition 2004 - 2nd division
Posted as: BJ
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The 4ths showed how successful they can be this year, beating two 2nd VIIIs and five 3rd VIIIs with a very strong performance. It was nice to see that there are no slackers at any level in this squad - I could see everyone was fully committed to the cause! It was also good to see the whole squad under the 1:50 mark, quite an achievement with 32 rowers entering.

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Event: Queens' Novice Ergo Competition 2004 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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Well, there obviously should've been a stewards' enquiry, and we should've qualified for the final! Unfortunately our erg was only set up for a single 500m race, so after a 30-45s delay (and a second standing start) we set off with the other 7 rowers, but still beat Girton to the finish. The women really put in a gutsy row, but had their concentration disrupted slightly by the technical problems. So it was slightly frustrating to finish only one place outside the qualifiers for the final, but a determined performance nevertheless!

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Event: Clare Novice Regatta 2004 - Plate
Posted as: BJ
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We were just much better than them. A very tidy row which sagged a bit towards the end, but when you have 2 lengths of clear water that's not surprising! Good to see off a second boat so easily.

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Event: Clare Novice Regatta 2004 - Plate
Posted as: BJ
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We knew this one would be much harder, and it was. A good start saw the boats pretty much level after 10 strokes, but after striding we started creeping away very slowly. Unfortunately, a lost foot strap and then a lost seat led to some severe spacking, with some impressive antiphase rowing, losing us about 1.5 lengths. We got it back together again and started to close, but after the railway bridge they got the advantage of the corner, heads began to drop, and they pulled away slightly at the end.

However, a solid paddle home (including a completely unnecessary practice start!?) bodes well for the test of Fairbairns. This crew can be very proud of the way they rowed today, and look forward to beating the Maggie scum when it matters!

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Event: Clare Novice Regatta 2004 - Cup
Posted as: BJ
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For those of you wondering why there was a re-row...

This race was much tougher than the first, but it still started well, with FaT taking about half a length off Jesus in the first half of the course (their corner). However, Jesus put in a huge push, starting just before the railway bridge, and steered onto our side of the river, causing a blade clash and their winning by about 1/4 of a length. Unfortunately the umpires decided to call a re-row rather than disqualifying Jesus.

However, our crew thought they'd lost and were already halfway home. This meant they rowed straight back and started as soon as they reached the start (in the opposite direction). Jesus were all fired up for the re-row, whereas our boys clearly wanted to be back home! Despite similar disgraceful steering from their cox, as in the first race, the margin of victory was sufficiently large for the umpires not to call another re-row.

I was glad to see our boat behaved very well throughout, despite verbal abuse from the Jesus boat, and also that they managed to put in a good bit of paddling after the race!

Bring on Fairbairns, when Jesus are going down!

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2004 - Invitation VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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We beat the novices. By 6 seconds (but who's counting?).

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Event: Robinson Head 2005 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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I was very pleased with this performance. The race was controlled and powerful; the main improvement I'd like to see is for this to be carried up a couple of pips higher. Unfortunately Peterhouse also entered a last minute IV+, so we didn't win (but did beat Peterhouse's 2nd VIII!).

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Event: Robinson Head 2005 - Lower VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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I think in hindsight pulling in for a breather halfway up the reach was probably a mistake. There were also a broken footplate, a broken seat and an overhead-crab to contend with. Having said that, the rowing was pretty good bar the catastrophies, if a little rushed.

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2005 - 2nd VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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We dropped them half a length off the start then gained another length by being better. They then easied unexpectedly for a bit half way up the reach, giving us another half length for free. We probably took another length or two off them by the end.

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2005 - 2nd VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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I was very pleased with this row. We performed to the best of our ability but were up against a better crew. They pulled away at a pretty much constant rate over the whole race. It was nice that we kept everything together even though we were clearly losing ground and were able to put in a decent lift at the railway bridge.

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Event: Lent Bumps Getting-on Race 2005 -
Posted as: BJ
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Fastest time ever recorded for a FaT crew that didn't get on. Only beaten by 2nd and 3rd VIIIs; beat a 2nd VIII and four 4th VIIIs.

It was an awesome row, very disappointing not to get on. They deserved better!

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2004 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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A video of the start can be found here.

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Event: Lent Bumps 2005 - Tuesday
Posted as: BJ
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A disappointing row, no doubt largely due to first day nerves. Hopefully it will go better on Thursday.

Our start was merely quite bad, enabling us to close to about a length on Downing II ahead and stay level with Queens' II behind. We then put in a push of spackiness, allowing Queens to close rapidly through the gut and around grassy. If they didn't get overlap they certainly got within a very small number of feet, but Wolfson (who are quick) saved us just when the bump seemed inevitable.

Once the danger from behind had disappeared the work dropped, and we never threatened Downing for the rest of the race.

The main positive is that we've rowed better than this all term, so a row anywhere above mediocre on Thursday should give us a fair shot at Downing.

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Event: Lent Bumps 2005 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
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A much more satisfying row. Of course, the beauty of bumps is that our shameful performance on Tuesday got us a row-over, whereas our hard work today got us bumped.

Knowing that we were being chased by a quicker crew who had bumped Queens' just when they were about to bump us outside the Plough, we planned on burning out by grassy and hopefully bumping Downing before then. Well, we managed to burn out on schedule but didn't get bumped until Ditton (very tiring). We got to about 6 feet off Downing, but unfortunately just couldn't force the bump before Wolfson caught us. If only we'd rowed like this on Tuesday...

It bodes well for tomorrow that Wolfson bumped us a good couple of hundered metres later than they did Queens', and in roughly the position where they would have been 4 lengths up on us on Tuesday. But that probably means another painful row-over tomorrow...

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Event: Lent Bumps 2005 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
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Our start was lethargic and Queens' II were already being given 3 whistles by first post corner, albeit a little prematurely. Coming into grassy they had it deservedly, but a slight crab kept them off a little longer. We started to put in some good pushes and held them off around Ditton and all the way up the reach. This was extremely knackering, as we had their bow hanging just off our stern for what seemed like a lifetime, but was actually about five minutes. They finally put in one last bumps 10 and got us about 20 strokes after the railway bridge (and about 20 strokes from the finish).

Then it turned out Wolfson I had lost their rudder at Ditton and we'd bumped them.

So for the second time Wolfson have deprived Queens' of a deserved bump on us. We feel particularly sorry for Queens' as they were very gracious after the bump.

That's the third day running we've got a result we didn't deserve - let's hope tomorrow goes according to plan! CCAT bumped Downing back, so it's a case of 'as you were'.

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Event: Lent Bumps 2005 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
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We're soft. After three days of hard racing (yes, ladies, being bumped does hurt more than bumping), we just didn't put up any kind of fight. At least we didn't have to row much past first post corner... Oh well. A bit of an anticlimax after the drama of the previous days, but we finally got a well-deserved result!

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Event: Head of the River Race 2005 - Novice VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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I don't know if we're meant to be counting ourselves as the 1st VIII... The announcer certainly did, as he told the amassed crowds that we'd finished second in the Lents. We were possibly a bit of a let-down.

The race itself was great fun - marshalling and racing with 400 boats is pretty exciting! It felt as hot as mid-August (although I see it was actually only 20 degress) and everyone had their shirts on their heads to try to prevent sunstroke. For the first 10 minutes we rowed as well as we have done all term; on the Cam we would have got a pretty good time for the head course. Unfortunately the HORR is a bit longer, and we got a bit tired.

So, in the end, 17s off our top-250 target, but we put in a lot of effort and it was a good way to round off our time together as a crew. And Wales and England both won so I'm happy.

By the way, Jacob won S4 with the Dev Squad. Well done!

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2004 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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A video of the start can be found here.

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2004 - 2nd division
Posted as: BJ
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A video of the start can be found here.

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2004 - 2nd division
Posted as: BJ
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A video of the start can be found here.

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2004 - 2nd division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

A video of the start can be found here.

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2004 - 2nd division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

A video of the start can be found here.

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2004 - 2nd division
Posted as: BJ
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A video of the crew coming past the P&E can be found here.

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Event: Foster Fairbairn Pairs 2005 - Men's 2-
Posted as: BJ
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Won or lost easily...?

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Event: City Sprints 2005 - CRA Nv 4+
Posted as: BJ
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Unfortunately that doesn't address the far more important issue raised - child labour and human suffering in the far east. Dan's appears to be the only workable solution.

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Event: May Bumps Getting-on Race 2005 -
Posted as: BJ
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There's a justifiable amount of pride to be taken from this row. Absolute commitment all the way through, great control, no crabs, good timing, three corners taken better than the 1st VIII... What more could an LBC ask for?! Only 8s behind the fellows and we'd better have beaten the women...!

PS Sorry for the lack of race photos but I was too busy cheering you guys on!

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Wednesday
Posted as: BJ
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Neither the marshal nor the Jesus women appreciated our rendition of You've Lost That Loving Feeling. Lessons to be learnt for tomorrow...

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Wednesday
Posted as: BJ
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Well, we found out today that the quickest things around in this part of M5 seem to be Jesus IV (ahead) and us. Downing IV (behind) are not.

The three boats ahead of us got involved in one of those great bumps concertinas, unfortunately without Jesus bumping. We had to hold it up, at which stage we had about 4-5 lengths of clear water separating us from Downing. They came back to about 3 lengths before we started paddling through the carnage, but we then had to hold it up again. They saw the opportunity for the bump and, to their credit, were quick enough to bump our stationary crew. Dilini got a bit of a blade in the head and they got a fine. Fortunately, the good ship Titan seems to be good to go tomorrow. I hope Iain's nerves are.

Anyway, a great performance today, but more significantly still with room for improvement. If Jesus have a bit of a bad one we can get them, otherwise I guess it'll have to be the overbump...

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
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Hands up anyone who's a bit peed off with Corpus... As predicted, Jesus had already bumped by first post corner and we had made up multiple lengths on both the Corpus crews. It was a case of a 'straightforward' overbump. Unfortunately someone at Corpus doesn't have an eye for picking boats and their '3rds' bumped their '2nds'. An overbump on either of them would hardly have pushed us to the limit.

Never mind, from here on in it should be up 2 (touch wood)... Girton tomorrow then Corpus 'II' on Saturday. Now Jesus are out of the way let's hope they do their job...

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
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Today's Highlights
Not rowing very far
The inevitability that tomorrow will be a better day...
The lack of equipment damage
Watching the Homerton women stretching when we got back to the boathouse

Today's Low Point
We only took about 10 strokes before we hit the bank...

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
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The 2nd VIII are legends. Obviously much better than Caius!

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
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I love the 2nd VIII. Please don't bump before Ditton next time - I want to see it.

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
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The women rowing down to the start of W3 were treated to two hearty renditions of You've Lost That Loving Feeling but we saved our best effort for Homerton 1st Ladies (our "Charlies" - watch the film...) as we sent them off from the balcony. They even gave us a round of applause.

The following conversation may or may not have occurred between the Arrows and the Homerton Ladies following the song:

Homers: Do you often use this approach?
Arrows: No, actually we've only done this twice.
Homers: Oh? How'd you do?
Arrows: Crashed and burned on the first one. It wasn't pretty.
Homers: The second?
Arrows: We don't know, we'll tell you tomorrow. But it's lookin' good so far.

So maybe tomorrow we'll ask them to formal. Anyway, we also got bumped in something called a rerow (this is apparently something a bit like a pre-bumps coxing talk - 1/3 of crews don't make it and the remaining 2/3 send entirely different crews as their representatives) but who cares. CUCBC suck.

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
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Eight people lost their bumps virginity today. Dilini is now only down 7. Regulation bump, dealt with professionally by first post corner. Bring on some revenge bumping on Corpus tomorrow!

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
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No problems, job done. That brings most of the guys back up to a zero bumps aggregate, so well done! We'll just have to get Dilini in an up 6 crew next year...

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Event: May Bumps 2005 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
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So we didn't quite get Kings back for yesterday's fiasco, but never mind, that's bumps. Our steady state paddling race plan has definitely proved to be a success in comparison with our manic one (and those of the boats around us for that matter) and it's a shame we've never managed to bump. If only we'd rowed properly on the first two days...

In other news, Homerton women agreed to a formal, so the song worked. To the fathers of Rachel and Jenny: thank you for appreciating our website and sorry for ogling your daughters.

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Event: FaT vs BPBC Cricket Challenge 2005 -
Posted as: BJ
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I don't remember the batting line-up, but I think that's roughly right...

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Event: Clare Novice Regatta 2005 - Cup
Posted as: BJ
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The girls kept everything together well and rowed very neatly, but were unfortunate to come up against a physically much stronger (and pretty tidy) crew in an early round. Jesus went on to win the competition so there's no(t much) shame in losing to them... At least we rowed at full slide.

A lot of positives to take into Fairbairns - with the vastly improved technique from the second race we have the ability to row the course at a good sustainable pace.

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Event: Newnham Short Course 2006 - Lower VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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Not bad for a first outing. We would have been a lot quicker without Mike, but beggars can't be choosers.

Maggie (II?) tried to overtake us on the way back, but failed due to a combination of our immense strength and Honey's steering. In your face, Maggie.

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Event: Robinson Head 2006 - Lower VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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Another day, another crew.

Pretty good race overall, but our strong restart at Ditton was possibly indicative of our underachievement up until then... We didn't quite catch Newnham II, which was annoying.

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Event: Robinson Head 2006 - Lower VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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Oops, we didn't think about the blade issue... Sorry! Not convinced it was your boat though.

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2006 - Lower division
Posted as: BJ
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So we've finally rowed as our fixed crew - we still need another 9 outings before bumps... Our 1st round win wasn't convincing but nor was it tiring. Gentlemanly in every sense of the word. We were largely helped by multiple Maggie seat failures, but it would be nice to think that we could have raised it if we'd wanted to (and had a cox box). Next round should be harder - let's hope we can reach at least 90% effort!

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2006 - Lower division
Posted as: BJ
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So apparently it wasn't an entirely bona fide Jesus 3 crew... In an ideal world we'd like to be able to beat most 2nd VIIIs too, so that's not really an excuse...

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Event: Lent Bumps Getting-on Race 2006 -
Posted as: BJ
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A very tidy and committed row at an efficient 30+. Fingers crossed that we had the raw power to back it up - we'll find out later tonight!

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Event: Lent Bumps 2006 - Wednesday
Posted as: BJ
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Not quite convinced it was win-win... Personally I prefer up 1/short race to staying level/long race.

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Event: Lent Bumps 2006 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
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The race felt different from the 5 seat...

From where I was it appeared that Caius dropped out of our radar completely and would never have got close to bumping us - Maggie will probably still spoon as a result of downwards momentum but I think the coveted 3rd VIII headship is ours fair and square!

And I never heard the Man In The Water call, which might explain why it was scrappy...

But yes, it was nice actually to row properly for the first time, especially after the frustration of yesterday. If we do it again we'll have a decent shot at Christs and hopefully save Homerton in the process.

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Event: Lent Bumps 2006 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
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Thanks Will for pushing us off every day, for your fine bank partying and hooting and for making what would otherwise have been an uneventful row-over a bit more interesting...!

On the plus side, it gave us a chance to show Maggie III we really are much quicker than them.

PS Albert thinks there should be some sort of report saying what actually happened: there was carnage at First Post so Will told us to wind it down. We paddled through only to be told to wind it back up again (he trusted our ability to row over more than the SU's to give a technical rowover...) by which time Maggie were half a length off us. We chased an 'imaginary boat' up the reach and re-opened a comfortable lead by top finish.

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Event: 2nd Trinity Challenge Sculls 2006 - Shell
Posted as: BJ
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Well done Tom on beating Albert by the narrowest of margins! A really surprising result, I didn't see this coming.

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Event: Lowe Double Sculls 2006 - Mixed 2x
Posted as: BJ
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Is three dead heats in a day some sort of record?!

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Event: Foster Fairbairn Pairs 2006 - Men's 2-
Posted as: BJ
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We suffered from indecision about what we were doing during our row over, so didn't exactly race it and didn't exactly paddle it... We more just spacked. At least it gave us the confidence that, however slow we were, at least we were going to make it around the course.

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Event: Foster Fairbairn Pairs 2006 - Men's 2-
Posted as: BJ
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We were ahead coming out of Grassy, but then I had sunglasses issues as they fell off my head and blocked my view. I tried to push them back up again but they fell back down, so I then put them on properly and rowed the rest of the race in near-darkness. One-handed rowing in a pair is not particularly clever. Tom called us a length up at the Plough reach timing posts and we put in a bit of a push to go into Ditton slightly up. Unfortunately, any potential drama of a tense finish was ruined by their bowman's getting stuck in his heel restraints and thus steering Ditton without a rudder. The last 500m served to prove that Jacob is more of a man than me and we wiggled our way over the finish line.

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Event: Foster Fairbairn Pairs 2006 - Men's 2-
Posted as: BJ
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We knew that we were up against it, as our oppposition had been proven to be exactly the same speed as Dan and Tom. Tiredness meant we probably rowed a bit more consistently but more slowly than in the earlier races. They were 4s up at the Plough so we knew we had to put in a big push - unfortunately they fancied catching us and put in a much bigger one. On the reach our rowing went to pot and they loomed ominously, but we managed to hold them off by about 3 lengths. If they hadn't hit the bank two strokes from their finish line, it could have been a different story...

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Event: Cambridge Head-2-Head 2006 - Novice 1x
Posted as: BJ
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According to the official results, you beat a women's VIII, but if you're that keen to be last then I'm not going to change it...

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Event: May Bumps 2006 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
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Basically, it turns out that we're just much slower than we would have liked... I guess that's what happens if you only have 'exactly 10' outing. Fortunately, our row today was incomparably better than yesterday's (while still leaving plenty to be desired!), and our practice burst on the reach is hopefully an indication that by the end of the week we might be capable of a half-decent turn of speed.

In the meantime, we're chuffed about getting the 3rd VIII headship and looking forward to bumping Clare II tomorrow to maintain a pleasing symmetry with the Lents.

Most importantly, my fitness and tan are improving on a daily basis.

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Event: May Bumps 2006 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
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Bumps: 3
Blades: no

Thunderbirds performances: 4
Thunderblades: YES!!!

I think that tells you all you need to know about this crew.

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Event: Michell Cup 2006 - College Boat Clubs
Posted as: BJ
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The Michell Cup is presented by the Cambridge University Combined Boat Clubs to the most successful college boat club over the course of each academic year. Points are awarded to the winners of major college competitions, with further points being added and subtracted on the basis of Lent and May bumps performances. First and Third last won the Michell Cup nearly a decade ago, with Pembroke the most recent winners.

First and Third's Michell Cup campaign got off to a bright start, with the club winning two out of the three point-scoring competitions in the University IVs. Unfortunately, these proved to be the only points won during Michaelmas term, as both the Clare Novice Regatta and the Fairbairn Cup were less successful, although both Fairbairn VIIIs came close in the latter.

Points were only available in Lent term from the Lent Bumps and the club performed superbly. The 7 crews went up a total of 12 places, with the 3rd men's VIII also gaining points by rowing over once as head 3rd boat.

May term began with the Small Boats Regatta, with First and Third represented in the Fairbairn Junior Sculls, the Lowe Double Sculls, the Maiden Sculls, the Magdelene Silver Pairs and the Foster Fairbairn Pairs. Points were won by Tom Coker in the mixed Lowe Double Sculls and by Lilie Weaver in the women's Foster Fairbairn Pairs, both racing in composite crews.

Like the Lent Bumps in the previous term, the May Bumps were very profitable for First and Third. The 8 crews went up 14 places, this time with the 2nd men's VIII rowing over twice as head 2nd boat.

Congratulations to all involved in rowing, coxing, coaching and supporting over the last year, and a special mention to the Club Captain, Pia Schäfer, and Men's Captain, Rachel Munro, who orchestrated the success. Although on the men's side Caius are still the club to beat, few would question First and Third's all-round strength in 2005-2006, with only Jesus providing serious opposition for the trophy. The achievement was made all the greater by the high starting positions in bumps of the club's crews (with most crews now in their highest positions since 2000). Long may First and Third's success continue!

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Event: Cambridge Autumn Head 2006 - Upper College IV+
Posted as: BJ
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One word, two syllables: glutamaxe. Like glutamine, only better.

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Event: University IVs 2006 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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Our final week's preparation was disrupted by the last minute substitution of Pedro Cunha for Darren Anderton and the breaking of our rudder on Saturday, so we were unable to do many long pieces. We quite fancied doing one today, but unfortunately the safety car came out just before grassy and we had to paddle through the plough reach at 28 going down to 24 before being allowed to overtake on the reach.

In other news, Darren slipped into the river while trying to get out of the boat by the lock, much to the amusement of all who saw.

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Event: University IVs 2006 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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The dream is dead. Long live the dream.

If this had been a competition based on whose college represented more of the faces of God then we'd have been home and dry; unfortunately it was about rowing and the better crew won.

Darren managed to get out of the boat and back in again on two occasions without getting wet.

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Event: University IVs 2006 - Light IVs
Posted as: BJ
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The official verdict of 'easily' doesn't really tally with the view from the bank, but the fact that the official results come in at least three units is perhaps an indication of their reliability...

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Event: Cambridge Winter Head 2006 - Student Beginner VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
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The claim that you're better than me clearly isn't a reference to your grammar: you rowed well, not good.

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Event: Emma Sprints 2006 -
Posted as: BJ
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A solid victory.

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Event: Emma Sprints 2006 -
Posted as: BJ
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The umpire made the controversial decision to start the race with us half a length down, but then the opposition was Emma. We were also on the outside of the bend and, without a staggered start or finish, the result shows that we were probably about the same speed as Emma.

That said, this was still a race that we could and should have won. A bit of work this week on maintaining length at higher ratings will see a more experienced and practised crew at Clare Novices! Other than that, a tidy and committed row, with promising signs of things to come.

PS I forgot to mention the rendition of Row, row, row your boat in a round. It was awful.

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Event: Michell Cup 2007 - College Boat Clubs
Posted as: BJ
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Final calculations could be wrong, but only in the details. Jesus won, we came second.

(For those interested and for posterity, the final number of additional points from dead heats counting double is:

Jesus     18
1st & 3rd  6
Downing    6
Peterhouse 6

This means that Jesus would have won anyway.)

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2006 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
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Unfortunately, the yellow flag this term has had much better correlation with our scheduled outings than with bad weather conditions, so our preparations for this race were only slightly better than England's for the Ashes. The start sequence therefore bore uncanny resemblance to Steve Harmison's first ball, and took a few years off my life. After we got that sorted out, it was a generally tidy and committed row. We seem to have posted a fairly competitive time, so it's just a matter of seeing how everyone else fared! Didn't quite manage the bump on Girton by the finish line.

You might be interested to know that you covered the course 25s quicker than Phil and I did as novices (and I know exactly what your response to that will be)...

Congratulations all on losing your novice status, and good luck in your first race as seniors tomorrow!

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2006 - 2nd division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Lucky girl.

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2006 - Lower VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Loving the photos - I've never seen a crew row Fairbairns in just all-in-ones before!

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Event: Cambridge Head-2-Head 2007 - 2nd division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Afraid not - pots were only awarded in categories with three or more entries.

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Event: Head of the Nene 2007 - S3 8+
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Due to some sort of mix up we started ridiculously low and had to spend a lot of the race overtaking. A solid first half, but the second half left a little to be desired - in particular, we didn't attack the last k the way we'd planned. We got the result we were looking for though, making up in part for the embarrassment of the head to head. Plenty of room for improvement before bumps, but fortunately we still have the time to make the necessary changes.

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Event: Robinson Head 2007 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Good commitment, but still not tidy enough.

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2007 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

To be fair, I would rate this one okay-good: we did work pretty hard! A long day at the river (arrived at 6:45am, left at 6:15pm...!), but ultimately a satisfying conclusion.

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2007 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Poor-poor does not do this justice. We didn't think it was great at the time, but our rows in the semi-final and the final really put this into perspective.

I should say though that Clare were quick, much quicker than we expected, and should do well in bumps.

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2007 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

I've guessed at what the margins looked like from the 5 seat... If anyone with a clearer view cares to correct me then please do so!

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Event: Lent Bumps 2007 - Wednesday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Charles, that's just not true. As the coach of last year's 5th VIII headship crew I'd like to point out that on three separate occasions you rowed-over ahead of the lock. And good work on retaining that headship this year!

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Event: Lent Bumps 2007 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Good work - even better than yesterday! At the risk of doing a Bullock, I think that's the first time a FaT 5th Lent VIII has bumped since 1998...!

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Event: Lent Bumps 2007 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

I'd be lying if I said that I'd enjoyed much of the past week up until about 4:48pm on Saturday. My first feeling on crossing the finish line was just relief after the pressure we've been under since we unwisely started winning stuff this term, but as time passes by the realisation of what we've achieved starts to sink in and the satisfaction is incredible.

If it's a sad testament to the quality of college rowing that a crew of such limited talent and experience could come from a disappointing Fairbairns result to such a successful Lent Term, then it's an even sadder testament to the quality of CUBC's selection process that we ended up with Ming coaching us this term. Without him, we'd have finished down this week. We should have been disqualified for having ten men in the boat. In his own words, while marshalling next to Caius on Friday, 'I find it amusing that they're better rowers, a head taller, have an international at stroke and you still bumped them'. Fortunately not the motivational words he used on Wednesday...

I think it wouldn't be fair not to mention how sporting Caius and Jesus have been. Despite our slightly over-exuberant celebrations on the first day, Caius were always friendly during the week. We only had one chance to race directly against Jesus but they were (nearly) the first to congratulate us when we crossed the line and again back at the boathouse. It's nice when rival crews share a mutual respect for each other that unfortunately often isn't there in the rowing community...

Finally, I'd like to echo Will's thanks to all our supporters. It felt like everyone from the club who took part in Bumps and then some was waiting for us at the P&E and the noise was deafening. And of course our travelling support - I can't believe so many of you made the effort to come! You really put the Jesus fans to shame at Ditton and we're all incredibly grateful that you all came out to support us.

It's been an amazing term - we'll enjoy it for a couple of days but then it's straight back into training for Head of the River and the Mays! This is just one step towards our ultimate goal of beating St Pauls on the Tideway...

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Event: FaT v BPBC Football Challenge 2007 - Football XI
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

I think all would agree that we were worth more than 2-1.

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Event: Head of the River Race 2007 - Senior4 VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Thanks to the Dans for rowing, Hayley from Maggie for coxing, Simon for taking us out on the Tideway the day before the (cancelled) race, Andrew for coming down to London to row the boat back for a vomiting Phil (obviously seasick in anticipation of the weather), Westminster School II for a cheeky bit of sparring, and all the crews who sank for providing us with entertainment.

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Event: Lowe Double Sculls 2007 - Men's 2x
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

It's not a typo, 'Trnka' really does have that few vowels.

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Event: Lowe Double Sculls 2007 - Mixed 2x
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

All that faffing with trestles and people to scull boats all over the place turned out to be pointless. It would have been nice if Catz had let us know...

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Event: Foster Fairbairn Pairs 2007 - Men's 2-
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Well. What a nightmare.

After many emails, phone calls and discussions about how we were going to cope with four races to be done in the same boat and only three divisions to race in, we ended up rigging a pair at Christ's boathouse at roughly the time we were meant to be marshalling. The boat was weighted for 90kg, less than 10kg too much, but rigged very high with it. And it could only be bow-rigged due to minor damage on strokeside. And the shoes gave me blisters and were much too big for Dan so that he couldn't steer properly. So, armed with a new crew order and much lower river, we set off full of confidence.

We knew from previous results that we had 30s to play with, so we played with all of them. We were still level at the Plough and only a couple of seconds up at the bottom of the Reach, but the potential shame of losing led to a titanic push of effort and a resultant tiny increase in effective power. Fortunately we won, just. I don't want to row at stroke ever again.

Having said that, massive thanks to Christ's for lending us a boat and to Karthik for sorting it out for us. I really wouldn't have wanted to scratch.

So luckily we didn't lose to someone called McCool, but he did lose to someone called Jane. (They're friends anyway, so it doesn't really matter.)

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Event: Women's Championship Sculls 2007 -
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Borchers had been tipped on the message boards, but a good clean row saw a very comfortable victory.

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Event: Magdalene Silver Pairs 2007 - Men's 2-
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

The start marshall was keen to use the beeper on his megaphone despite its not working, so the race was started with an 'Attention... <whimper>'. We set off but the opposition didn't, so we stopped, assuming the race would be restarted, but then they set off and no one told them to stop so we did started again. Great fun. The fact that the same start marshall was starting races with deliberate feedback later that day rather than just shouting 'Go' meant that Dan's loud call of 'Wanker' was fully justified and added to my amusement even if not the boat speed.

As for the rest of the race, they had a much greater cruising speed but an even worse steerer than me (who at least had the excuse that he'd never steered on the Cam before). Consequently we gained on each corner a decent proportion of what we had lost on the previous straight, and in fact gained a little bit for free when they scraped a moored boat on the Plough Reach. Unfortunately the Reach doesn't really have any corners so we lost by a few lengths. We stopped once they did so I've no idea what the recorded margin will be...

Good practice for our 'real' race tomorrow, when the opposition should hopefully be of a lower standard.

Looks like we got a pretty poor time, nearly 30s off what we had done in training (in better conditions), and slower than Coker in his scull...

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Event: Foster Fairbairn Pairs 2007 - Men's 2-
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Everything went better. I've never loved a boat named after a Nobel Laureate as much as I did today. Tiredness was definitely an issue (as was steering, as ever) but we were psyched and put in a row that, while not quite our best, was still pretty decent. Nice to win. Thanks to Tom for banksteering loudly and not seeking revenge on any of the corners.

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Event: Colquhouns 2007 - Open 1x
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Particularly frustrating as Pascovitch went on to win and certainly didn't appear to be significantly faster. A slight confusion on calls between sculler and steerer (I'd never banksteered Tom before) led to my parking him on the inside of First Post Corner. Sorry Tom. Next time I'll remember that 'AWAY HARD!' call...

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Event: FaT vs. BPBC Golf Challenge 2007 -
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

The scoreline flattered us.

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Event: FaT vs. BPBC Golf Challenge 2007 -
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Unfortunately any victories I had were only moral: my putt from off the green for bogie was a highlight, but as Graham went on to get par it was fairly irrelevant. Still a better round than my first attempt, but I should probably stop hooking every single tee shot. I like to think that it was down to the pressure that I was putting him under that he carded the best round of the day in this rubber.

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Event: Poplar Regatta 2007 - S4 8+
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Job done: now we can enter HoR4s without necessarily having Fletcher in the crew, although we'd probably still take him just to guarantee the win.

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Event: Poplar Regatta 2007 - S4 8+
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

What about favourite comeback to a coxing call? Emma calls 'Last 500m, we're going to empty the tank', to which Tom replies 'NO WE'RE NOT'.

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Event: May Bumps 2007 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

6th VIII headship?

I blame the MLBCs.

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Event: May Bumps 2007 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Not our best row, but even at our best we'd have struggled to keep up and certainly couldn't have put in a performance today that would have seen us bumping Caius. Very disappointing not to threaten them, but it shows how far we've come this year that we're disappointed to finish three lengths down to a crew rowing from head station whose stern IV was from CUBC. Once again, looking at the crew list we have to be honest and say we over-performed.

Only Phil is leaving (hopefully - it depends on how results go for me on Thursday!), there are some strong guys who chose not to row this term and the mainly novice 2nd VIII is frighteningly quick, so if we train as hard and improve at the rate we did this year we'll be able to provide a better challenge next time round. We don't want to get stuck in second place for three and a half years...

Credit is also due to Maggie: they put in a much better row today and, having fallen behind up to Ditton, stormed up the Reach and were probably only a length off under the railway bridge until we sorted it out and opened up again towards top finish. Good effort and good sportsmanship all round from the top three.

In the back of our minds we'll already be training for the first day of the Mays next year, but for now we're looking forward to Henley, and maybe even winning a round or two...

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Event: May Bumps 2007 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

'Quite possibly one of the best races we've done as a crew'

Well it was certainly better than Wednesday and slightly better than Thursday, so yes, this was the best race we did as a crew!

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Event: Henley Royal Regatta 2007 - Temple Cup
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

We were pretty happy with the draw; indeed, there were only thirty crews that we would have preferred to come up against and only one station more favourable than ours. Cal were undefeated in all competitions, but there were rumours flying around that American universities were, contrary to all indications, rubbish. We were psyched for this, as both crews realised that whoever won this race would probably win the event. (The same is true for all of Cal's races.) There was also an emotional involvement after Tom reminded us of 'America and their fascist bombs' and suggested that we 'do this for our boys in Afghanistan and Iraq'. Our race plan, described by Emma as 'not a race plan but a travesty', was to intimidate them with some witty yet cutting chat on the way to the start line, rate 50 off the start and sprint as hard as necessary to maintain overlap for as long as possible.

We took the early honours, reaching the stake boat before Cal. Tom cleverly adapted their adopted nickname 'Golden Bears' to 'Golden Showers' and proceeded to raise some important religious dilemmas with the aim that the Cal freshmen would be distracted in the later stages of the race as they pondered these fundamental issues. (This probably gained us a length or two.) From there we held them until the umpire said 'Go!'. This was one of the quickest starts we'd ever done, with the rating reaching 49, and we managed to restrict them to a narrow lead by the end of the island, with Cal only slightly over a length ahead. The next fifteen strokes saw them take only one more length out of us, and both crews knew that this could go right down to the wire, provided that Cal crabbed or hit the pontoons. Having watched All for One: In the Spirit of the Race, we knew that this was pretty likely.

Unfortunately, we failed to execute that part of the race 'plan' and Cal continued to underrate us by only four pips down the course, which was sufficient to extend their lead to four lengths by the enclosures. We were still relaxed, as we planned to take a single stroke that would be worth a full five lengths on them. But disaster struck, as on that single stroke Tom took an air stroke, and we were condemned to an 'easy' defeat.

With all three Cambridge college crews going out in the first round, it's probably good for the big fish to get out of their small pond once in a while. On the plus side, Phil had a book of vouchers that meant we were able to save nearly £35 at Wetherspoons.

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Event: Henley Royal Regatta 2007 - Temple Cup
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

We were divided as to whether this was a good or bad row. On average it was average, and in any case comfortably enough for us to qualify.

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Event: Cambridge Autumn Head 2007 - College IV-
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

We can't let the result disguise the fact that this was an awful row and we have some serious work to do if we want to compete at Uni IVs and Fours Head. I don't think that having just rowed the VIII helped us find the appropriate 'subtle' mentality, but this has been an ingrained problem since we started in this line-up and we need to sort it out. The steering is also a problem, and I need to sort that out.

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Event: Cambridge Autumn Head 2007 - College VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

This was much more fun than I expected. I wasn't convinced that sticking the two fours together was really going to work and, in the later stages of the race in particular, our pushes lacked cohesion and failed spectacularly. That said, we were pretty nailed and seemed to move the boat quickly even if not very nicely.

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Event: University IVs 2007 - Light IVs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

I noticed that Coker's stash of university medals was starting to get a bit out of control, and that was when I started a campaign to sort it out. I was successful in the Colquhouns sculling race earlier this year, but unfortunately couldn't quite pull it off today. We hit the grey barge relatively hard (he came out of nowhere (in the stationary sense) so I had no warning) in the Plough Reach which allowed Maggie to get back on distance. We then hit the little sign before the railway bridge pretty dramatically, forcing Phil to catch a boat-stopping crab. Not having been in that situation since I was a novice, I couldn't remember which way to turn his handle, so that took a while to sort out. This time Maggie were inside distance. We went a bit mental from the railway bridge, and won.

We were very keen to go under 10 minutes, and conditions were perfect, so I'm really sorry to the guys for cocking this up so badly. The clock on Tom's rate meter stops when he stops, and that timed us at 9:49, so we probably had it in us.

Fortunately we're all still here for another go next year, and Iain seemed amenable to the idea of setting it up to be stroke-steered. Someone lighter should also sit at bow.

P.S. I've just noticed that Tom submitted a report marginally before me, but I can't be bothered to remove the duplicated information.

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Event: Head of the River IVs 2007 - S3+ (A)
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

We haven't raced this badly for a while, probably not since the Head to Head. I think we learnt a few things, otherwise it would have been a complete waste of time.

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Event: Cambridge Winter Head 2007 - Student Senior VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Marcus Aurelius raced the Winter Head. This was not it.

Putting in-jokes to one side for the moment, this was ok but nothing to write home about. We need to do some work at high rates.

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Event: Cambridge Winter Head 2007 - Student Senior IVs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Comparing this result with the Fours Head, it seems I lost my seat race with Pedro quite comfortably.

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2007 - Senior VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

As with Uni IVs, this race was won in spite of rather than because of me. I spent the morning throwing up and was in no condition to race, but decided that a sub would be more disruptive to the crew. I still think that this was the correct decision, and hope I wasn't overly influenced by a selfish desire to win Fairbairns. It became clear not long into the race that I was dead weight, which isn't ideal in the heaviest crew member. Sorry about the lack of middle four pushes, guys...

It was frustrating that this felt like the best row we've had in a while, and I'm sorry not to have contributed to it. There's clearly some sort of negative correlation between how hard I pull and how well we row - perhaps something to think about for the future.

It would be nice to think that, if I'd been healthy, we would have beaten the lightweights and maybe even dipped under 14 minutes, but who knows and, ultimately, who cares? We still got the shield and the big races are a long way off. The honeymoon period looks to be drawing to a close, though: Maggie and Downing are closing rapidly and no doubt Jesus and Caius will follow soon enough.

Our other aim (other than beating the lightweights) was to be closer to CUBC than the colleges; luckily Strawson seems to have done the job for us on that one...

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2007 - Senior VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

'Spelt' is spelt correctly in this report.

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Event: Fairbairn Cup - IVs 2007 - Senior IVs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

I'm not sure if a four that never rowed together in a single training session or race really merits a crew list, but it felt right to put it up there anyway...

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Event: Michell Cup 2008 - College Boat Clubs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

The qualifying events in Michaelmas term were the University IVs (light IVs, 1st men's and women's coxed IVs), Clare Novices (cup competitions) and Fairbairns (1st men's and women's VIIIs). Michell Cup points were divided rather uninterestingly, with First and Third taking all three qualifying senior men's titles, Christ's both the senior women's and Jesus both the novices'. This gave us the lead by virtue of both the light IVs and the 1st men's coxed IVs earning points at Uni IVs.

A storming set of Lent Bumps saw us surge into a lead which, strengthened by a Foster Fairbairn Pairs win for Richard Fletcher and Philipp Preiss, left us 30 points ahead of our usual rivals, Jesus, with only the May Bumps remaining.

The May Bumps themselves were a little disappointing (Michell Cup points-wise at least), and dark horse Pembroke made an unexpected push for the line, but our results were just enough for a half-point victory.

For a more detailed summary of the year's results, please see the Mich Term round-up, Lent term round-up and May term round-up.

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2008 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

I was probably more excited about this result than ours; you guys were looking great and thoroughly deserved this. (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)

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Event: Pembroke Regatta 2008 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

This was Iain's first chance to see our controversial but 'fun' racing start. He didn't approve.

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Event: Lent Bumps 2008 - Wednesday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

By the Mays, FaT should be running its own intercontinental service on +447797800300. You read it here first!

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Event: Lent Bumps 2008 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

The neutral observer (or indeed Richard Bullock) might have called those early margins closer than Tom and might also notice that, although 18s equates to five lengths, only four of those were clear water. However, as Chris was keen to point out, if Maggie were inside station on the reach it was 'only ever spatially' and not temporally; unfortunately, in bumps, it's spatially that matters.

[Edit: our timing team was a step ahead of me: the 18s was stern to bow so it was five lengths clear water.]

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Event: Nottingham City Regatta 2008 - Senior3 VIII
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Raced into an immense headwind. Lost to Brookes, beat St Pauls and Trafford.

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Event: Nottingham City Regatta 2008 - Senior3 VIII
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Racing had been delayed due to the weather, and the hired coach needed to go home.

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Event: FaT vs BPBC Cricket Challenge 2008 -
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

I apologise to everyone for my temporary sense of humour failure when given 'out' (and many thanks to Chris for retracting his team's appeal - perhaps he should captain England?) and to JPD2 for making him ineligible for the man-of-the-match award by asking him to play for the wrong side.

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Event: FaT vs. BPBC Golf Challenge 2008 -
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

In a rematch from last year, I was pleased to make it to the ninth tee with the match still live for the first time ever. Unfortunately the match was over by the time Graham made it to the ninth tee.

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Event: May Bumps 2008 - Wednesday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

It's hard to describe the euphoria when you've been training for 263 days for one race and one bump and achieve it so emphatically. We couldn't have been more fired up for this by the time of the start gun, and we set off hard, kept it hard and hit them hard. We expected them to be quick off the start, so were pleased to have taken a quarter of length out of them by the exit of grassy. However, the next thirty strokes really showed the difference between the two crews and we went into Ditton within a canvas of them. Ming postponed the inevitable with a brief encounter with the inside of the corner, but this gave them only a few extra feet and we got them within ten strokes of coming straight.

For the six of us who had been in the boat or coaching it last year, this was the culmination of two years' training and was a satisfying reversal against the same CUBC stern four who had held us off last time round.

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Event: May Bumps 2008 - Thursday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

We had found out on Sunday that Toby would have to leave us to train with his CUBC four, which was racing as the Great Britain second four at the World Cup meeting in Poznan. We decided to keep him for Wednesday and hope that if we could bump Caius with him then we could hold them off without him. Laff agreed to row with us from Thursday onwards, which was selfless of him given how it would have felt if we'd been bumped back. There were worries about how well it would gel with a new rower but he couldn't have fitted in better - we had had subs all term, including Laff, and were used to pulling hard despite any lack of balance or coordination. In Laff, we knew we had someone who would commit fully from first to last stroke in any situation, which was exactly what we needed.

After Wednesday, we were pretty confident but still wary of what Caius could throw at us. We were boosted by the sight of their day-one stroke man on a bike rather than in the boat - apparently he broke a rib in Wednesday's race, so I hope he was ok. We set off as if we were going for another quick bump, left Caius behind easily and were five or six lengths clear when they were bumped by LMBC at the railings. Jesus showed no interest in the overbump and wound it down but, for reasons that I still don't fully understand, we only took it down to a relaxed 5k pace and completed the course in 7:46.

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Event: May Bumps 2008 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

We expected LMBC to go off hard, so hit the first two minutes as hard as yesterday, but also expected to have them behind us for the distance, so took the next two minutes in a more sustainable manner. Our suspicions were confirmed as LMBC were still at most two lengths off at Ditton but faded over the second half of the course to finish five lengths off and narrowly avoid being bumped back by Caius. Maintaining a solid 37-38, we raced flat out all the way to the end to make sure that LMBC wouldn't harbour any hopes of bumping us on Saturday, but the stream was stronger than on Thursday and we finished in 7:50.

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Event: May Bumps 2008 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

This was the worst row of the week, but no one cared. Adrenaline got the better of us and we maintained an inappropriate minimum rate of 40 until the exit of Ditton. We were slightly surprised by the mild headwind on the Reach, and Fletch generously took us down to 38. Coming into the railway bridge we had four lengths of clear water but we were at best dying and at worst dead. The rate had sagged to 37 and, despite our pushes bringing us back to 38 again, LMBC took a length back by the finish line in an impressive last-ditch push for the headship. There's no doubt that we could have gone significantly quicker with a bit more length, time and technique, but this was all about the result and we still managed 7:56. LMBC and Caius couldn't have been more gracious in defeat; it must be tough to have been in the Caius boat this year or the Lents last year so to congratulate us so genuinely confirms their status as worthy champions over most of the last decade.

Huge thanks to the old boys who gave us the blades and boat: the blades give us an extra pip or two and the Empacher feels like it wants to go much faster than we can manage. Thanks must go to everyone who has been James or Toby this term: James Curran (City), Peter Ford, Dan Holland, Phil Horler, Dan Jane, (Will Laffan,) Colin Leonard (Robs), Nick Morrell (Robs) and particularly to JPD who was Toby for a continuous fortnight. Thanks to James and Toby for fitting in extra sessions around revision, exams and CUBC training. Thanks to Ming, whose results as coach and captain over the last five terms say far more than I can here.

The biggest thanks of all go to coaches Tom Rose and JPD for bringing the dream back to life and turning an incohesive, disillusioned, demoralised crew into a headship crew in five weeks, and for making rowing fun again. This wouldn't even have been close to happening without you.

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Event: Cambridge Winter Head 2008 - Senior 3 IVs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

We won?!?!

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Event: Head of the River Race 2009 - Senior3 VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

No one has yet commented that St Paul's finished 171st and 230th, so the three-year old target of beating them on the Tideway has finally been achieved.

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Event: May Bumps 2009 - Wednesday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

As ever, it's generous of Christian to give the opposition a sneak preview of tomorrow's tactics and a taster of our mindset. (It's reassuring to note that it's exactly the same information as he put in an email to the crew.) Some would label this a tactically poor decision, but what do they know?

However, if you're a member of Pembroke II or Christ's II, you're probably thinking: 'That's all well and good as far as it goes, but I'm left wanting more. I know they're going to be sprinting, but where are their pushes going to come? What are their specific technical foci (Latin plurals are 'in' at Pembroke and Christ's) and, when it comes down to it, where exactly are they going to blow up?' Fear not, and read on.

Our start is pretty standard: three draw, five wind and ten lengthen, although we haven't yet come to a unanimous agreement on precisely what 'draw', 'wind' and 'lengthen' mean. For now, the consensus seems to be that if we rush up and down enough, and splash up enough water, then no one will notice. By then, we'll be into what we optimistically call our 'rhythm', and bowside will stop bothering with their finishes, so look out for some comical lurches from side to side! In contrast to today's row, tomorrow will see us rating as high as possible - expect to see numbers in the high 40s or low 50s. Don't expect to see it translate into boat speed, we're just trying to scare you!

Fingers crossed, we'll make it to first post corner without being bumped, and Sarah will call for Martin and Charles to get their 'catches in' and the 'work on early'. Christian and I will obligingly ease off until Sarah tells us that we're straight, at which point Martin and Charles will ease off in equal measure.

In the gut, WE SHALL TAKE OUR FIRST PUSH. Call us unconventional, but we like pushing out of corners. Bow four will return to normal pressure, while Chris and James will take it up to half pressure. Get ready for a serious increase in boat speed! But again, don't be concerned, they can't do it on their own, and they'll have to give up when they realise no one else is going with them.

Grassy should be one for the spectators. Rowing connoisseurs will recognise a classic example of 'skying at the catch', as Christian and I attempt to go for length we haven't had for years. If we've made up any distance on you at all before now, this would be a good time to get some back.

On the Plough Reach, WE SHALL TAKE OUR SECOND PUSH. After the failure of the previous push, we'll all really go for this one, and this will probably be the closest that all eight of us get to trying our hardest, on average. Pembroke II, this is where you really prove yourselves as a crew - if you survive here, you've earned your rowover. We'll certainly have enough left in the tank for at least another push or two, but they'll be a little despairing and we won't go for them with quite the same gusto. REMEMBER, if we haven't got you by Ditton, you're safe.

Christ's II, this is the point at which you can bump us, if you haven't done so already. My advice to you would be to hold back a little - there's not much you can do about whether or not we bump Pembroke II, and you'll want to be in the best possible condition to capitalise on our lack of fitness.

I'm sorry if I've gone into too much detail, but it could be useful for you to know it all. If there's anything you need clarifying, or if you're just curious about erg times, get in touch - we'd be delighted to help you out.

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Event: Michell Cup 2009 - College Boat Clubs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Magdalene ended up fairly comfortable winners, but the fact that we have come in the top two for the last four years, despite still having to defend high bumps positions, is an indicator of the current strength of the club.

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Event: May Bumps 2009 - Wednesday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Did rowing in the Great Eight make you any faster?

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Event: May Bumps 2009 - Friday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Heroes

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Event: May Bumps 2009 - Saturday
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Despite the relentless bullying that we've given him over the last term, and the last week in particular, I'm confident I speak on behalf of the whole crew in thanking Christian for getting us together. It's been a fun week - just a shame we couldn't get him the up five he was so keen for! I think up two was at least one more than we deserved...

(Thanks to Emma as well - you're not forgotten, but I think we were less cruel to you.)

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Event: Novice Fairbairn Cup 2009 - 1st division
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Gonzalo, you flirt, may I ask what your full intentions are towards these young ladies?

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2009 - Invitation VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Apparently someone misread a 6 as a 9, so you were actually 3 minutes quicker!

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2009 - Senior VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

JPD, I'm glad you posted that link, because it meant I saw this photo of you.

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2010 - Invitation VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

With the exception of Fordy, we were very well prepared for this race, having spent varying but long periods of our recent lives not rowing. We were pleased that this hard work was rewarded by the race cancellation, and that we broke the course record in spite of this.

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2010 - Invitation VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

How did you get your nickname?

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2014 - Invitation VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

This is the most seriously I have ever taken a race; I had been on a two-year warm-weather training camp and had been tapering since October. In the spirit of inclusivity, Black Prince fielded a diversity VIII, where all were welcome: short, tall; weak, strong; good-looking, ridiculously good-looking. We arrived at 11, introduced ourselves to each other, started our alcohol ban, warmed up our excuses, and were ready to go.

Once we had all gone (our bladders aren't as strong as they used to be), we got in the boat and set off at approximately the time that Jesus (or his representatives here on earth) wanted us to. At this point, a few of us came to realise that the 'two-stroke practice' gag isn't as funny as we first thought, as the boat was inappropriately set up in various ways that would have been easily rectified if only we hadn't been bloody racing. That said, I'd rather be slow than have to marshal.

Our pace felt pretty sustainable initially, until it transpired that the race finished by a different road bridge. Fortunately, some of us had practised setting off too hard on an erg earlier in the week, and I had already worked out what I would say to myself when I needed to dig deep: 'when they ask you in the pub, just say you were pushing at your limit - they'll never know'. Experience has taught me that apathy is a more energy-efficient route to having no regrets than emptying the tank.

The rest of the race was a blur or, more accurately, I'm losing interest in reporting it. We took an eternity to overtake a crew down the reach, who eventually turned out to have dispiritingly white hair.

At the end of the race, we unfortunately didn't hear the marshal's instruction not to spin until it was too late to abort. I noticed that the other Black Prince crews suffered similarly. Obviously hearing declines with age, and we felt very foolish and are thinking of suing under the Equality Act 2010 for the distress caused. I also think Jesus women need to realise that 'the marshal told us we could go before you' doesn't cut much ice at Fairbairns if you're Jesus women.

Overall, a good row, with just two things missing: Jane and Coker.

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Event: Fairbairn Cup 2015 - Invitation VIIIs
Posted as: BJ
Event Link

Over the first minute of the race I was reintroduced to the Byrne microclimate. I said something to the effect of 'I'm not going to lie to you, Matt - I'm already quite wet.' (I wasn't breathing particularly heavily.) AND HE STOPPED. Oh my. It was heaven. The rest of the race was stroke after stroke of sheer unbridled dryness. Why did no one think of just asking him a decade ago? After the race, while waiting for the final crews to float over the finish line, I was forced to share a pair of flip flops with Jon, which in some ways was one of the low points of my existence.