The Club's Results

On paper this was a tough heat. Next to me was Johnny Logan, a lightweight with local knowledge who'd put in some good performances through the year at GB trials in Boston; then came Phil Vincent, the bronze medallist in junior sculls at last year's championships from Worcester, with Ashley Prestidge, a member of last year's Junior World Championships 4x, completing the heat. Only one of us would go straight to the final, with last place being eliminated.

The Worcester sculler was first out of the blocks and was a good length up on the field after a couple of hundred metres. No stranger to last place at the stage of the race, I dropped to the best part of a length down on the other two scullers before working my way back towards the rapidly tiring Vincent.

By the halfway marker, Logan had disappeared into a comfortable lead, while the rest of us were more or less level. A series of strong pushes through the middle of the race saw me break through to about a length up on the other two, allowing me to match my speed to Vincent, who continued to fall back gradually.

Just as his start was quick, however, so too was his finish, and I was almost caught napping after a few hundred metres of relative paddling, conserving energy for the repechage, when Prestidge was forced to work hard for his third place and almost overtook me. In the end I just managed to secure the better lane for the next race .3 of a second up, doing no more work than I had to... (Alex)

As I returned from my wind down paddle the previous evening, the NCRA sculler who had come third in my heat walked up to the raft to tell me his back had twinged just before the start and he probably wouldn't be able to make the repechage the next day. He was also racing in M4x-a race in which last year's Junior Worlds quad (broadly speaking) were pipped on the line for the gold by this year's crew- so I wasn't too surprised to see an empty lane at the start.

This made the repechage something of a formality, with only two of us to be eliminated out of 5, and by 500 gone I had an uncharacteristically healthy lead. The wind, which had been swirling around all weekend, somehow managed to be blowing slightly from my side of the course for all my races, and though gentler than it had been in my heat, there was still a fairly stiff headwind. I put in some bursts a bit earlier this time round, and had soon broken clear, and was able to reduce my work rate by halfway.

The Chester-le-Street sculler in the lane next door, however, wanted to race for lanes. I hadn't expected to be in quite such a comfortable situation, and was in two minds as to whether to stay in front. Several times I demonstrated I could take half a length at will, but eventually decided to paddle home with about three hundred metres to go. A short burst for the line saw me home second just in front of Chris Mollinson, the only big name in the rep., who won the Fawley last year, but hadn't been in a boat between then and April. (Alex)

The wind had picked up again for the final a few hours later. I was back in lane 1, next to the Chester-le-Street sculler, with Andy Barron, a Marlow sculler who'd also won the Fawley a few years ago in lane 3. Someone from Burway had got straight through from the easy heat, Logan had drawn lane five while Mollinson made up the numbers.

The stronger wind and repechage contributed to an all too familiar lethargy. Sure enough, I was almost immediately a length or so down, but I gradually managed to work my way back to level pegging with the Chester-le-Street sculler by halfway. In the meantime, the three scullers in the middle of the course who hadn't raced the rep. were long gone, and Mollinson had drifted gradually backwards, struggling in the crosswind.

After a fairly fierce fight through the third five hundred, I managed to break the Chester-le-Street sculler, leaving only a forlorn wind for the line in the vacuum behind the chase for the medals. I was very pleased to come fourth, though, and even more so to finally break my record of never having beaten another crew at Nat. Champs. Bring on St. Neots... (Alex)

Having listened to Eton Boy's and RTT's ideas about sculling and rowing, I decided to have a go at emulating their success. I was on the inside station, so my oppo had about 1/2 length headstart. I quickly dropped down to 1 1/2 lengths behind, but managed to settle onto a smooth, relaxed rhythm. Coming out of the corner I was 3/4 length down, at which point I really started moving and in the next 5-or-so strokes (the best race-pace sculling I've done) got back to almost level, by which point I knew I was going to win.

However, at hands away on the next stroke there was a bang - I had clipped a buoy. At first I didn't notice anything wrong, but as I approached the catch, something didn't feel right. I looked down. My bow side scull had bounced completely out of my hand without me noticing, and was trailing along the water parallel to the boat. At this point, I should have stopped sculling and taken time to sort it out. Unfortunately I instinctively chose to reach out past frontstops to grab the handle, putting most of my weight above the unsupported rigger. The predictable result occured.

The Boston sculler went on to win the final by one foot. At least I know I should be competitive tomorrow, although winning seems unlikely with Boy, E. competing in the opposite side of the draw. (JPD)

JPD said I was rating about 16. The Star sculler was kind enough to crash at the bend, despite me shouting (in good time, even) to warn him. (Alex)

This paddle was won as soon as told my opponent I'd beaten his clubmate Chris Mollinson at Strathclyde. (Alex)

I had to do a bit of work in parts of this race. Yare must have got a bit fed up with me over the course of the weekend. (Alex)

I was a little angry at being disqualified, and decided to see how much I could win by. Unfortunately, the Yare sculler crashed coming out of the corner. I hope he didn't look round after that. I'd be surprised if I ever win a race by quite so far again (City Sprints excepted). (Alex)

This was quite a good race; both of us hit a few buoys. I can't remember what the verdict was. (Alex)

This was a tight race. I went up slightly in the first couple of strokes, but soon my lead from the stagger was gone. We went round the corner pretty much level; right on the ragged edge, I was slightly on the wrong side of the buoys the whole way round. A good push saw me move half a length up. By this time the umpire on the bank had started to shout at me, and just as I'd managed to start correcting my course, the other sculler crashed. At no point did I or my puddles come anywhere near the Yare sculler, but in the opinion of the umpire, I impeded him.

My standard practice, when I see my opposition out of their water, for what it's worth, is to err on the side of steering for the bump (obviously exercising discretion as to whether it's worth being washed down), to put them and the umpire under pressure, not to steer for the bank instead. (Alex)

Well this wasnt my greatest race. I had a fairly dodgy paddle up to the start and then a few pretty poor attempts at starts, having not practised these much due to cancelled outings on thrusday and friday, this wasnt surprising. The race didnt really go much better and if the other sculler hadnt been so far in front then I would have been disqualified for my poor steering, but thats the way of it. clearly i have a fair way to go before ill be seriously competitive in my single scull. But then at least I didnt fall in :) (Dan)

It was against a Sudbury guy, apparently where Graham Sills has been training. Anyway he wasnt too bad so unfortunately I lost. The steering was marginally better than yesterday though :) (Dan)

Nothing much to say here - his start was about 1 length quicker than mine (have been experimenting with a different one, will revert back for next race), and gradually closed back half a length by the end. (JPD)

I hadn't had any breakfast apart from some Maxim, and was almost embarrassed by a young (guess J16)sculler from Boston. It was all a bit nerve-wracking till he hit a buoy just as I was starting to move through him, at which point he gave up. (Alex)

Still suffering from not having had my Weetabix, I was lucky to sneak through when the Bedford sculler hit a buoy in the closing stages. (Alex)

This was a repeat of the previous day's S4 semi-final. The Yare sculler had done almost as many races as me, and was quite tired. With his technique favouring a longer course, this was a much easier race than I'd expected. (Alex)

Thanks Eton Boy! If you keep bigging up the RTT regatta like this it will gain Henley Qualifier status in no time.

On a different note, are you not intending to participate in trial VIIIs or any seat racing before next March? (Rose the Twat)

In keeping with my attempts throughout the day to provide an exciting spectacle for the crowds, I pushed off, as usual, without doing my gate up. This time, though, I had to stop suddenly, and the blade popped out. The RTT regatta was yet again to prove its worth as I managed to stay dry despite a fairly hefty crosswind.

The Furnivall sculler wasn't very talkative. He'd sneaked off to the start without telling anyone; when I finally caught up with him, he admitted to being somewhat hungover, and perhaps it showed in his steering as he clobbered several buoys in succession. This boy, however, escaped to another fairly routine win to round off a successful day's racing. My next side by side race in this country (with opposition not from CULRC: sorry Tom) will be against Oxford... (Alex)

Local knowledge wasn't enough to save this energetic marshal. Despite not gaining any sort of advantage till the very end, I held my nerve to come through at the finish. (Alex)

I was a little disappointed not to be facing JPD in this race. Still having had no food, this was my fourth race in quick succession, and the Yare sculler perhaps sensed this as he tried to hurry proceedings along. In the event, though, it was he who ran out of steam: after going maybe three quarters of a length up, and still hanging on in the lead with only a hundred metres to go, he finally succumbed to a last minute do or die push for the line. This was my only half-decent sculling of the day. (Alex)

My only race against another Empacher. The Globe sculler said afterwards he that he was rating 40. (Alex)

This was a rematch of our S4 quarter-final. This time, though, I was sculling a little better and had some energy, and, despite some errant steering, won so efficiently that JPD didn't even notice as he dozed in his car. (Alex)