Women’s Henley

Kris Johnson has had a fantastic season already winning 4 events in one weekend at the Metropolitan Regatta. Kris must therefore have had a lot of confidence going into Women’s Henley where she contested Senior 1x. Her confidence was justified and Kris competed really well winning three races to qualify for the final which she narrowly lost by a mere 1 length. Fantastic achievement, and Kris has qualified to race at Henley Royal Regatta.

York Summer Regatta

Sunday was a bright if blustery day in York and a good one for the Club! Most of our crews won races, many lost by very close margins, and four won their events:

J15 1x: Dan Guerrero – once again was in our first race of the day at 9:12 am, and started well with a victory over a St Peter’s School sculler. In his next race he faced a formidable opponent from Newark RC and lost by a couple of lengths.

J15 1x: Christian – racing above his age category drew Alex in the first round. The all-Leeds race was a close one but with Alex emerging victorious by ¾ length.

J15 1x: Alex – proceeded to the final where he too fell victim to the sculler from Newark.

Nov 4+: Thirzah(c), Josh, Ben, Simon Croft, Dan – were lining up to start their first race when they were told that their opposition had scratched. They took the opportunity for a row over which settled the nerves, and proceeded to their second semi-final in a week! Here they faced St. Aidan’s college, Durham, and despite being a length down at half way showed great fighting spirit to come back to half a length in the closing stages before slipping back to a one length deficit at the finish. A better race though from the guys, who showed more control and clear-headedness in their row. And thanks to Thirzah for great coxing.

WNov 4+: Milly(c), Thirzah, Danielle, Georgie, Katy – The women in their first regatta rowed with good cohesion and strength. They were unlucky to face a more race-hardened crew from Van Mildert College, Durham, and lost, but will learn from the racing experience.

Nov 2x: Tom Coverdale, Ben Coverdale – the brothers sculled well in their first heat, beating a Lincoln RC crew easily. They were given a bye in the semi-final and then raced a York City crew in the final. Again they sculled well, Ben steering a good course, and gradually pulled away to win by 2 lengths. The victory screams could be heard at the other end of the course – well done.

WIM3 2x: Vicky, Jenny – raced a good Bradford crew and lost by 1 ½ lengths.

J18 1x: Henry – raced a straight final against a York City junior who has been racing IM1. Henry was in touch for 300m but couldn’t match the York sculler who was exceptionally strong in the second half.

Nov 1x: Tom Coverdale – lost by 1 length to a good sculler from Hull University.

IM3 1x: Henry – again did exceptionally well, beating his first round opponent from York City by 1 ½ lengths, then providing one of the races of the day in his semi final, with his signature last 20 charge coming from behind to squeeze past his opponent from Sheffield City. In his final against a Lincoln RC sculler he came very close to repeating the semi final crowd pleaser, but didn’t have quite enough and lost by 1 foot! Well done to Henry though who only won Novice a month ago but is clearly showing the speed necessary to win at the next level.

J16 1x: Dan Guerrero – racing above his age category, Dan faced a good sculler from St Peter’s School. Despite being 1 ½ lengths down at half way he fought back well over the second half of the course, only to lose by ½ length.

J16 1x: Alex – also racing above his age category, Alex faced another St Peter’s sculler and also lost.

J14 1x: Christian – sculled confidently and smoothly to win his first race against a St Peter’s sculler. In the semi-final Christian couldn’t find the same speed and lost.

MxIM3 2x: Julian, Laura – the combination of Julian and Michelle, was changed due to injury and a scratch double was formed: despite this they sculled well and won both their races with some ease. Well done and another trophy.

WIM3 4x-: Vicky, Jenny, Kate, Karen – having won coxed quads in a slightly different combination at Durham the previous week, the women were brave to enter a coxless event despite never having trained in such a boat. In the event they again sculled well and Kate steered an excellent course, beating their first round opponents from Sheffield City by some 3 lengths and the home crew from York City by 2 lengths in the final. Well done again to the women scullers.

WNov 2x: Milly, Kate – Milly pretended to be nervous about this event but has clearly been concealing her sculling talent up to now. The women sculled excellently to win their semi-final by 3½ lengths, and narrowly lost their final to York City.

IM3 4+: Milly(c), Julian, Matt, Simon Harris, Chris – with new recruit Chris filling the bow seat (and shedding blood to do so!) the men had one of the first races of the day, in which they beat a York University crew easily. They then beat a St Peter’s crew by an even greater distance in their next race. The semi-final, against University College Durham, was an altogether closer race, with the lead swapping hands several times and the winner unclear until the announcer told us it was Leeds, by 1 foot! The final was the last race of the day, so that no-one was left on the water when the crew lined up against another crew from St Peter’s.  This was a much stronger outfit than their second crew, and the schoolboys took the early lead. The Leeds crew rowed with better fluency than in their first three races and great courage to push back into the lead in the last 300m, but couldn’t quite sustain their dash for the line in the last twenty strokes this time, and lost by 1/3 length. Frustration for the men, who have been so close to winning in all of their last 5 competitions, but many more positives than negatives as we know they have the speed to win soon!

Durham Saturday

Saturday was a fine day with sunny spells and large crowds on the bank (and in the Pimms tents) for one of the North’s major rowing events. The advance party who had travelled from Leeds on Friday night were woken by the testing of the loudspeaker system at 7am!

J15 2x: DanG+Elliott Sharp (Tees RC): Our first race of the day. DanG and his new partner sculled well and went on to win all of their races. More silverware for Dan: congratulations!

J15 1x: Alex: Alex sculled well, winning his first race by a commanding 3 lengths, and losing his second to a good Tyne sculler after being close for the first half of the race.

J18 1x: Henry: Henry had another close race, again leaving his push just a little too late and losing by ½ length to a sculler from Queen Elizabeth High School.

WElite 2x: Michelle, Laura: In the absence of an Intermediate women’s 2x event, Michelle and Laura set their sights high and entered the Elite competition. They certainly rose to the occasion, and raised their rating to 34 too, losing by just ¾ length to the eventual winners from Marlow RC.

Novice 4+: Sarah, Dom, Ben, SimonC, DanK: With Dom stepping into the breach as stroke in place of the injured Tom L the novice four were definitely short on practice, and  a little blurry-eyed for their first race at 9:18. However they easily beat their opponents from Tees. In the next round they were unlucky to draw a good crew from St John’s College, and despite rowing with power and aggression they lost by 2½ lengths – St John’s went on to reach the final in this 19-crew event.

IM3 4+: Sooze, Des, Fraser, Henry, Jez: This crew had not had much preparation and although they rowed aggressively, keeping their rating above 34, they lacked the cohesion required at this level and lost to St Aidan’s College by 1½ lengths.

IM3 4+: Milly, Julian, Matt, SimonH, Toby: After reaching two finals last weekend at Peterborough the crew’s expectations were high. Unfortunately we were kept waiting at the start for the first race against Van Mildert, until our opponents were finally disqualified 35 mins after the race time. The crew were cold after sitting immobile in the shade for so long and had just 15 minutes to regroup and try to focus on the next race. This they won, by 1½ lengths, against a spirited Bradford Grammar School crew, but rowing some way off their best. Having got the frustration out of their system they then rowed much better in the semi-final against Dutch crew ASR Nereus, Amsterdam. This was a thrilling race with the lead changing hands several times, and unfortunately the Dutch just pipped us on the line by 3 feet! A great race by the Leeds crew and surely our time will come.

Durham Sunday

Sunday was a wet day and the crowds on the bank were thinner. A larger Leeds contingent had stayed over and those in the hotels seem to have had a better night than the campers once more!

WIM3 4+: Brad, Milly, Thirzah, Sarah, Kay: The women’s first race was at the unearthly hour of 8:06, requiring some of the crew to leave Leeds at 5:30! They also had to recruit Brad to cox their first race – Brad was delighted to weigh in and be told he was the heaviest cox of the competition! The women rowed well and lost by just ½ length to University College Durham, who went on to reach the final.

WIM3 4+: Karen/Toby, Rosie, Naomi, Kersty, Sally: The other women’s four raced just 2 minutes later, but were more fortunate with their opposition in the first round, and beat St Hild and Bede College easily. In the next round they were awarded a bye when their opposition scratched. In the semi final they rowed well and were unfortunate to lose by 1 length, after a close fought race, to Durham ARC, who went on to win the final.

WIM3 4x+: Sarah, Vicky, Laura, Karen, Jenny: The women were rowing in a new combination, in a borrowed boat. Nonetheless they sculled extremely well, winning their first race easily, their second (the semi final) against Cambois RC by just a canvas, and the final against Bradford ARC easily. This shows what depth we now have in women’s sculling in the club – congratulations.

J15 1x: Alex: Alex sculled well but lost by a length to a very strong sculler from Yarm School.

J18 1x: Henry: Henry had a straight final against a sculler from Chester-le-Street. He sculled powerfully and, although down by 1 length at midway, this time he timed his final push superbly and rowed through the other sculler to win by 1 length. Congratulations Henry!

IM3 4+: Des, Joe, Henry, Jez: After yesterday’s row, the crew decided to scratch for the Sunday event. Their place, and crew number, were taken by a crew from Doncaster RC. To our entertainment, the announcer didn’t seem aware of the crew change, and when the Doncaster crew progressed to the final, he was still telling everyone that Leeds were in the race!

IM 3 4+: Milly, Jules, Fraser, SimonH, Toby: With Fraser subbing in for Matt and after coming so close in the semi final on Saturday, the crew were hopeful of greater success. Unfortunately they couldn’t quite find their rhythm in their first race, and despite a powerful charge in the last 20 strokes were beaten by St Mary’s college, Durham, by ¾ length. St Mary’s then lost by just a canvas to Nereus of Amsterdam, who had just beaten us on Saturday, and Nereus went on to beat Doncaster in the final.

Nov 4+: Sarah, Josh, Ben, SImonC, JonOC: Despite being in a field of 12 the men found themselves in the semi final without rowing a stroke, after being awarded a first round bye and seeing their second opponents scratch. Their start was rather messy but they were getting in to their stride and back in to the race when disaster struck with a spectacular overhead crab from Jon. Unfortunately Jon was struck hard in the rib cage and although they bravely tried to carry on it was soon clear that Jon was hurt too badly to continue. Hard luck guys and swift recovery Jon we need you back!

…..and other Club Members in the news. I’m pleased to report that Dave Coverdale raced at The British Masters Championships on Sunday with his old University crew. Once again Blue Star showed that they hadn’t lost their technique and they raced to Silver medal position losing the Gold medal narrowly to a crew from Upper Thames.

Metropolitan Regatta Saturday and Sunday

Pride of place over the weekend goes to Kris who went all the way “down South” to race at the Metropolitan regatta on Dorney Lake, one of the major domestic regattas. Kris made a massive breakthrough this weekend and won 4 events over the two days, a just reward for all her efforts over the last two years. On Saturday she won IM2 1x and IM1 1x and on Sunday she won IM1 1x and Senior 1x. These results changed her status from IM2 to Senior in one weekend Congratulations Kris on a magnificent effort.

Peterborough Saturday

 The sun shone brightly and the conditions on the course were almost perfect, promising some good racing and so it proved:

Mens IM3 4+: Our first race of the weekend and very early it was too. SarahB-Des-Joe-Henry-Jez got off to a reasonable start but were unable to settle at a good racing rate being as low as 29spm mid-race and so were unable to qualify to progress further.

Mens IM3 4+: Milly-Jules-Matt-SimonH-Toby. This crew started well and settled into a good rhythm at about 34spm. They were near the front throughout their qualifying heat and finished strongly as the other crews faded to win their heat and progress through to the semi-final. That first race was always going to be a hard act to follow and, in the semi, they settled a little lower at 31spm but were still easily able to pull away from two of the opponents but not quite able to catch the higher rating crew from Jesus College. First two was all that was needed to qualify for the final which was almost the last race of the day. In the final, the crew were again unable to emulate the first row but finished a close 2nd behind a strong Peterborough crew and 2 lengths ahead of the Jesus college crew that won their semi. They also recorded the fastest IM3 4+ time of the day in the first round, 3:28 – just three seconds off the category course record proving there is speed in the boat.

Ladies IM3 2x: Laura and Michelle. At the half way point, Laura and Michelle had the race well under control with a large lead which they maintained all the way to the finish to qualify directly to the final. In the final they raced very strongly and settled at a high rate for them, about 30spm, but whilst this enabled them to pull far away from two of their opponents they were unable to match the pace of the much higher rating crew from Norwich and were eventually beaten by just over a length. This was another very good performance for the club.

Ladies IM3 2x: Kate and Vicky were also entered in IM3 2x. In their qualifying race they had a few issues with steering and the buoys but were still able to row fast enough to qualify for the repercharge. In the repercharge they had a much better race and went about 20 seconds faster than in the heat but unfortunately it wasn’t quite fast enough to qualify for the final.

Ladies IM3 4+: Rosie, Naomi, Kersty, Sally and not forgetting the awesome Toby in the cox seat! This crew raced really well in the first race with a good rhythm settling at 34spm but despite this they were lying 4^th at half way although they were under 2:00m for the 500m. However their pace and rhythm then began to tell and they rowed right through the field narrowly failing to win the heat but qualifying for the repercharge in a fast time. Unfortunately they were unable to repeat the row in the repercharge and settled at a lower and less effective rate. This meant that they were much slower to half way and, although lying second, they were 2 lengths behind the leading crew. As in the first race, they then began to reel the leaders in but were not quite able to catch them finishing 2nd and thus were eliminated.

J18 1x: After racing in one of the first races of the day, here was Henry in one of the final races of the day. Of course he had three races in the Leeds Uni IM3 8+ in between! This was Henry’s first entry in the often highly competitive J18 category. Henry was up against a competitor racing at IM1. Henry rowed well but was unfortunately beaten by a more experience sculler this time.

J16 1X Dan was set a tough test this weekend which was to race in his own age category as well as up a age level. Dan had previously raced at this level at the Junior inter regional’s and performed well. Dan did very well in his heat comfortably reaching the final in second place just 2 secs behind. Dan G gave it all in the final and sculled in a controlled way finishing 3rd.

J15 1X This proved to be a extremely competitive event. Dan again rowed very well and looked in control finishing second in his heat to a large City of Oxford rower. Dan finished 3rd in the final to bigger opposition who sculled very well.  

J15 1X Alex. As with Dan’s heat, Alex faced stiff competition in his heat. Unfortunately Alex didn’t quite get his start right which made it harder to keep in contention with the pack. Alex’s has been working well on developing his technique and I know felt frustrated at his result.
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J15 1X Christie like Dan was set the task of racing up an age category this weekend. He rowed with a long fluid style and looked in control all the way finishing 3rd.  

J14 1X Christie – Christie was up against a silver medallist from the Junior National Champs in his heat. He again rowed very well and finished just 1 second behind in second place. Christie’s goal for the final was to finish 3rd which he did behind both of the silver medallists at the Nat champs.

Masters D 1x: Rafa was focussed on Dan’s efforts all day but rowed in a very stately fashion, nothing hurried about his race coming 3rd out of 4 in his race

Peterborough Sunday

Mens IM3 8+: DanG-Des-Matt-Jules-Joe-SImonH-Jez-Henry-Toby: 4th out of 4 in heat. After a short practice the night before and rowing in a borrowed York University boat, the crew were optimistic of a good showing. They started well and were well in contention after 250m but lost a bit of cohesion on the second half of the race. Nevertheless a creditable performance given we never practice in 8s and some of the crew had never raced in one before.

Mens IM3 4+: SarahB-Des-Joe-Henry-Jez 3rd out of 4 in heat. The crew had a more aggressive and faster row than on Saturday, but were unlucky to be drawn against two fast crews.

Mens IM3 4+: Milly-Jules-Matt-SimonH-Toby. 2nd out of 3 in heat, 2nd out of 4 in semi, 3rd out of 4 in final. The men were consistently quick to 250m in each of their races but were overhauled by Churchill college in their heat, by Warwick RC in their semi, and by both of these crews in the final. Neither Churchill nor Warwick had been racing on Saturday, and after 3 races on Saturday and 3 on Sunday the final may have been a race too far for us. The Warwick crew were exceptionally quick and the fact that the Leeds crew, in their first week racing in a new combination,  were so close to them in both the semi (where Leeds did a fast time of 1 min 38s) and in the final bodes well for the rest of the season.

J15 2x: (DanG+Dom Parnell from Nottingham): 1st out of 3 in final. Dan and Dom rowed very well and won their final easily.

Novice 1x: Ben Coverdale: 2nd out of 3 in heat, 2nd out of 4 in semi, 3rd out of 4 in final. Ben sculled very smoothly in all his races and did exceptionally well in a strong field of 14 scullers.

Masters C/D 1x (Rafa): Scratched – Rafa was so focused on being Dan’s supporter that he forgot his own race!

J18 1x: Henry: 2nd out of 2 in final. Henry adopted his usual tactics of lying in wait for 350m then sprinting to the finish. Unfortunately on this occasion the push wasn’t quite enough and he lost by ½ length. A very good performance though against a very strong sculler.

J16 1x: DanG: 2nd out of 3 in final: Dan rowed strongly in the year above his age group. Unfortunately he also came up against a good sculler but should be encouraged by beating the third placed sculler by some distance.

J15 1x: DanG: 3rd out of 3 in heat: DanG was drawn against two very fast J15s and unlucky not to reach the final.

J15 1x: Christian: Unfortunately Christian had to borrow a boat due to a clash, and arrived late at the start and was disqualified.

J14 1x: Christian: 2nd out of 4 in heat, 4th out of 4 in final. Christian sculled very strongly in an exciting heat. He was not far behind in a close final.

Mx IM3 2x: Mike-Laura: 3rd out of 4 in heat: the double rowed very tidily and were unfortunate to finish just outside 2nd place and be eliminated.

Womens IM3 8+: Michael-Rosie-Naomi-Kersty-KateOC-Milly-Sally-Sarah-Kay: 2nd out of 4 in semi, 4th out of 4 in final: The women showed the men that practising in an eight wasn’t really necessary, rowing well in their semi to finish second to a strong Christ’s College 8. In the final they again rowed well and belied their lack of practise, finishing within two lengths of Christ’s College who won overall.

Womens IM3 4+: Toby/Des-Rosie-Naomi-Kersty-Sally: 2nd out of 3 in heat, 3rd out of 3 in repecharge. The women were beaten by a strong Peterborough crew in their heat but were pleased with a good row and fast time of 1 min 53s. Unfortunately they couldn’t find the same boat speed in the repecharge.

Womens IM2 4+: Toby-SarahB-Kate-Milly-Kay: 2nd out of 3 in final: The women rowed well and finished a close second to yet another Peterborough crew, well ahead of  Bedford RC in third. A good performance at IM2 level which should encourage the women for the rest of the season.

Womens IM3 1x: Vicky: 2nd out of 2 in heat, 4th out of 4 in final. Vicky came up against a very strong Nottingham sculler in the first round but rowed smoothly and progressed to the final. Again she sculled smoothly but in an outside lane became isolated by the fast starting scullers alongside.

Womens IM3 1x: Laura: 1st out of 4 in heat, 2nd out of 4 in final. Racing in a 1x for the first time and in a borrowed boat Laura sculled extremely well. She sculled powerfully in her heat, catching her opponents in the last 100m. In the final, she started well and was always in contact with the other two scullers. The woman from Nottingham proved too strong but Laura overtook and then held off the sculler from Champion of the Thames to achieve a very impressive 2nd place.

Monday 31st May 2010 – Leeds Rowing Club Fun Day

Leeds Rowing Club Fun Day Regatta. Photograph courtesy of Quintessential Studios.

Saturday 15th May 2010 – Tees Regatta

Our first race was at 9:06 am requiring a very early start. Thanks to Jez and everyone who got the trailer loaded and drove up on Friday night to enable people to start from Leeds at 6:30 rather than 5:30 am!

Mens novice 4+ (SarahT, Josh, Ben, SimonC, DanK): This was the first regatta race for three of the novice crew, and unfortunately they didn’t show the kind of form they have been displaying on the lake. The first race started poorly for them and they were always behind, although once into their rhythm the other crews made little ground. The crew progressed to a 2-boat repecharge, and performed better, but again lost to a higher-rating if scrappier crew.

Womens IM3 2x (Michelle, Laura): The women were in a three-boat semifinal from which, rather bizarrely, only one crew were to progress, even though one lane was being left empty in the final. Although the women demolished one of their opponents and rowed powerfully and smoothly, they again lost out to a higher-rating crew.

Junior 15B 2x (Alex, DanG): The boys rowed superbly in a two-boat final to beat a crew from York. Starting strongly they gradually drew away from the first stroke, completely dominating the race to finish winners by a clear distance.

Masters B/C 2x (Brad, Michael): Brad and Michael decided to try a masters race, rather than novice 2x, at this regatta but unfortunately found themselves against three older crews, so were held back for 7 seconds at the start while their opposition raced away. The conditions which had been sunny and flat at 9:00 am had by now changed to a strong headwind. They managed to row through one of the crews, but in the conditions couldn’t claw back the deficit on the other two.

Novice 1x (Henry): Henry had a fantastic day, coping well with the adverse conditions and emerging winner from a strong field of nine scullers. In the first heat Henry showed his strength through the first half of the race and comfortably won the heat. This took him into the semi final where he found himself against the winners of the other two heats, Lincoln and Yarm. With first two home making the final, Henry settled into his row and paced it perfectly to ensure he was within the top two. In the final, Henry found himself against a very strong competitor from Lincoln who dominated the race up until the 700m mark leading by about 2 boat lengths. However, Henry made an amazing push for home over the last 30 strokes and drew level with the Lincoln competitor at the line. We had to wait for the commentator to confirm the result – a win for Henry, praise for his Churchillian ‘never-say-die’ attitude from the commentator, and no longer a novice sculler!

Junior 15 1x (DanG and Alex): After racing together, the boys then took on each other (and seven other scullers) in their singles over three races if they wanted to win. Both qualified comfortably from their heats, to face each other in the semifinal. Fortunately two out of three were to qualify for the final, and having both pulled away comfortably from the third sculler, they were able to conserve energy (though Dan made sure he won!). It was great to see 2 Junior Leeds sculler’s make it into a final in which Dan always had a slight lead which he extended to a couple of lengths at the finish, while Alex finished a comfortable 2nd after a powerful second half. Well done again to the boys who were completely dominant in this age group.

Womens IM2 4+ (SarahT, SarahB, Crystal, Milly, Karen): The women were drawn in a straight four-boat final against some very impressive opposition. They had a good start and were contesting 3rd place for most of the first half, but couldn’t sustain their pace into the strong headwind.

Womens Novice 2x (Vicky, Jenny): The women had a two-boat straight final against Lincoln, and looked untroubled from the start, rowing neatly and drawing away to a commanding lead even at halfway. They can be proud of rowing very well and they will certainly be competitive at IM3.

Mens IM3 4+ (Milly, Julian, Jez, SimonH, Toby): The men rowed to the start expecting a three-boat semi final, then found that due to two crews dropping out they were actually in a four-boat final. Not liking the headwind conditions, the crew had been told by Richard to ‘win ugly’, and they certainly got 50% of this right. The start was good, with only one crew, from Hull University, taking a lead and the other three boats glued together. Over the first quarter, the Leeds boat slipped behind, then made ground back on the third-placed Yarm crew with a mid-race push. Thereafter it was a race for third place, with Yarm successfully hanging on. Again the winners of the event were a very strong crew and the men will now work towards greater smoothness and length at the next regatta.

Overall this was an enjoyable and friendly regatta, well run and organised. The juniors again did us proud, and it was great to see Henry, Vicky and Jenny winning their first sculling points.

A special mention for another of our Juniors, Chris Andrews. Chris was also racing at Tees but for his school St Peters which is always a difficult call but school comes first during term time! Chris is still very much part of our club and his efforts and achievements are as important to us. Chris was entered into 2 races, J14 quad and single sculls. In both Chris rowed extremely well and reach both finals, only narrowly missing out in both to achieve second place in the quad. His single scull final was extremely exciting and we thought he had won it as he seemed to cross the finishing line first, but due to the staggered finish was pipped by a bow ball into second place.

Meanwhile Kris was racing at Poplar Regatta in the Docks (London). Kris was entered in IM2 and IM1 1x and I understand that the conditions were “wild” i.e. very rough and, looking at the times, it was a “howling head gale”. In the IM2 event, Kris won her heat comfortably, if you call racing in those conditions comfortable. She then went on to place second in the final a mere length behind the winner. The IM1 event was a straight final with Kris again coming 2nd to the lady who won the IM2 event. These are better results than last year and a great reward for all Kris’s effort over the winter

8th-9th May 2010 – Durham City Regatta

The weather was kind to us at Durham and the club had an excellent days racing. Pride of place must go to our juniors who recorded two wins and a near miss but everyone who raced performed well with great promise for the rest of the season.

Open IM3 4+ (Julian, Jez, SimonH, Toby): The men’s 4 had the honour of starting our regatta season for us at a very early hour. They raced really well against the home favourites (Durham) and they were overlapping the whole way but our final burst just failed to take us past the Durham crew with the final verdict being ½ length to Durham. The Durham crew went on to win the event and dealt with all the remaining competition very easily, so the crew can consider themselves unfortunate to come up against the event winners in the first round. Conversely they should be very pleased with a performance that shows that they have the pace and determination to challenge for victory very soon!

Nov 1x (Henry): Second on the stakeboats was Henry, who raced as hard as he could against a very experienced sculler from Stephenson College, eventually losing by 1½ lengths. His opponent went on to win the event rather more easily than his first round so, once again, we appear to have been unlucky in the draw but an encouraging scull by Henry who would surely have defeated many of the other scullers in the event.

J15 1x (Dan and Alex): Two entries in this event and we didn’t have to wait long for our first win of the season. Alex had a bye to the final and Daniel was drawn up against a competitor from Talkin Tarn. Daniel showed his dominance from the offset and finished comfortably over his competitor to reach the final against Alex. The all Leeds final was exciting throughout with both scullers racing hard for dominance over the other and both in with a chance of winning for most of the race. It came down to the last 100-150m when Daniel edged his way ahead to cross the finish line first. Well done both scullers.

J14 1x (Christian): Christian was entered into J14 1x and found himself against a competitor from St Leonards School. Christian dominated from the start, sculling very well and powerfully and more than comfortably won the race and the event.

J15 2x (Dan, Alex): Daniel and Alex also entered the J15 2x, the first heat was against St Leonards School, a pairing that Daniel and Alex had met before and lost to. Undeterred, Alex and Daniel showed their strength and commitment to win a closely fought battle – a great achievement for both. For the final they met a crew from Durham. This race was close and exciting, the whole way down the course. After a clash or blades near the finish, a re-row was agreed which was just as exciting as the first row. Both crews raced well and, this time, steered very well. Again Leeds showed their strength with both crews neck and neck right up to the 700m mark when Durham put in a push and sneaked over the finishing line first.

Ladies IM3 2x (Michelle, Laura): Michelle and Laura raced very well and dominated their first race from the start, sculling out to a very comfortable lead against a composite from Sunderland and Sunderland University. Similarly, in the final, they were so dominant that they had a couple of lengths lead before half way and continued to row away from their opposition all the way to the finish. A really good start to the season which is a great reward for the hard work that they’ve put in this winter.

Ladies IM3 4+: We had 2 crews entered in this event. Rosie, Naomi, Kersty and Sally drew a Durham crew in the first round, and having seen their opposition in the gym were a little apprehensive before the start. In the event the crew raced really well being neck and neck with Durham the full length of the course. The final verdict was half length to Durham who went on to win the event in great style. This showed, like the men’s crew, that they were close to the pace and shows great promise for the season. Milly, Kay, Sarah and Karen raced next. Their first round opposition was withdrawn/disqualified for having too many points so it was straight into the semi final. In the semi final they raced very well being neck and neck with the opposition throughout the course but unfortunately, just failing to be in front at the finish. As the crew hadn’t actually been out in this configuration before, this was a really good row and the whole squad can be pleased that they can put out a number of competitive configurations and compete well.

Saturday 24th April 2010 – War of the Roses

Saturday was a beautiful day which saw a large contingent of the Clubs ‘senior’ members at Bradford Rowing Club for the ‘Wars of the Roses’, a (not-too-serious) competition between the ‘masters’ rowers of Yorkshire and Lancashire. RichardA, Dom, SimonC, Brad, Rafa, RodW, PeterT, JonOC, Milly, Kersty, KateOC, Karen, Lucy and Georgie were all competing, PeterW and Liz were prevented from doing so by injuries but came along to support, DanG and Karen did a great job of coxing and wannabe veterans Julian, Fraser and Rosie were there to see how it’s done (and for the curry).

The afternoon kicked off with knock-out racing in coxed fours, randomly drawn from the various clubs and mixing rowers with between 6 weeks and 60 years of experience! Some entertaining racing ensued over a 400m stretch which was plenty long enough for some of the competitors! All the boats were equipped with old-fashioned macon oars which led to reminiscence and problems squaring in equal measure. There were some good performances from crews including Milly and SimonC, but the four with Rafa (I won’t take the rating up much…) at stroke and Rod plus two others from Ancholme and Runcorn rowing clubs emerged as overall winners after an exciting final in which they beat a crew featuring Kersty in the bow seat.

Next came a similar competition in coxed quads, with crews mixed up again. The racing was even closer with better matched boats. RichA salvaged some pride with a close-run victory over Dom, whilst Kate O’Connel won bragging rights with a victory over Jon which saw her crew through to the final, and this time the crew with Brad, plus scullers from Doncaster, Runcorn and York were the overall victors. Brad will have to keep rowing for some years though to match the experience of his bow man, who was 78!

The competition was rounded off with a race between an eight drawn randomly from the Yorkshire rowers and one from the Lancashire rowers. There was a lot of merriment as five of the Yorkshire names drawn came from Leeds and we hastily settled on a crew with Dom at stroke, Kate at 7, Richard at 6, Milly at 4 and Peter at bow. After a brief row to the start it was quickly off, and to everyone’s enjoyment the boat moved up quickly on Lancashire and went on to win by clear water. Lancashire had won this race on the two previous years, so it just shows that they needed more Leeds rowers in the crew!

The day was rounded off with a staggeringly good (and plentiful) curry at Bradford’s boathouse. Thanks are due to the organisers for a day which everyone enjoyed enormously.

Bank Holiday Weekend – Universities Regatta

The club had two of its members racing for their Universities over the Bank Holiday weekend along with Georgie’s daughter Ella who is proposing to join us in the summer so I’m sure that we can count her as one of our members. The weekend was mainly cold, wild and damp as you all know, but this didn’t dampen the enthusiasm over three days of intense racing.

Tom Coverdale: Tom was our first racer, racing for Newcastle University in lightweight Intermediate 1x. Raced over 2,000m and with 28 entries in this event, this was a pretty daunting prospect in a high quality event, especially if you have never raced 2,000m before. In the first race, Tom did what was necessary and qualified for the semi final, mission accomplished and a fine achievement. With the field reduced to the final 12, the competition was hot, Tom rowed well to come 4th in his semi final and just missing that vital 3rd place to make the final.

Andrew Saul: Andrew had a very busy weekend. His first event was also lightweight Intermediate 1x. Racing for Durham, Andrew’s race was almost over before it started because the boat marshals wouldn’t give him a lane number due to a misunderstanding by officials. A quick chat with the officials got him a number but the wrong one! He was actually given Tom Coverdale’s number but Tom was already on the course with the same number! He then had to race to the start to find his opponents already on the stake boats and received an official warning for being late. Not ideal preparation for his first ever 2K race. Anyway, he rowed sensibly to secure the important qualifying place for the semi final. In the semi, he raced really well, starting steadily, he was positioned 4th or 5th at the 500m mark by which time he had settled into a good race rhythm and pace. He then paced the final 1,500m rowing well through the field as they slowed to finish in 2nd place and qualify for the final. Then the wind began to blow and the course got really rough. Andrew struggled in the poor conditions and finished 6th out of 7 in the final having had the 3rd fastest qualifying time going into the final.

Moving onto Sunday, the conditions were again very poor. Andrew was racing heavyweight Intermediate 2x. His crew had a good start and settled into 2nd place by the 1,000m mark where they “caught a boat stopper” which left them in 4th. Setting off again, they made the bad error of cruising home thinking that they were safe in the 3rd qualifying position but, of course, they were 4th and didn’t qualify for the semi final – a bad mistake and big lesson learnt here. On Sunday, Andrew was again out in a double rowing in Championship Lightweight 2x. The conditions again caught them out and, in a severe tail wind and rough water, they could only manage 4th in their heat, just outside the qualifying position for the semi final.

Ella: Ella was rowing for Loughborough Beginners squad having taken up rowing last October. Having already won the Universities Head Beginners 4 and Novice 4’s at the Yorkshire Head, they had great hopes to do well. In the event they excelled. Sunday was Beginner 4+’s, and with Georgie spectating, they rowed really well to win their first race in the 2nd fastest time with Queens Belfast looking ominously fast in the other heat. In the semi final, they were kept apart from Queens but came up against a quick Cardiff crew or, perhaps, they were just saving themselves for the final which their second place in the semi secured for them. The final was a hard fought affair with the “ominously fast” Irish out in front leaving three crews battling for places 2–4. At the finish line, Ella’s crew were just edged out in 4th place but what a great result to come 4th in a major regatta in your first year of rowing.

Bank Holiday Monday was even better. Ella told me that they had only had a few outings in the VIII but it certainly didn’t look like it as they cruised down the course to win their first race with clear water between them and the second crew. So, onto the semi final and what a race that proved to be. Coming into the last 500m Loughborough were judged to be lying 4th with those “ominously fast” Irish way out front and things weren’t really going to plan but then they turned on the after burners and stormed through the field to take 2nd place at the line and a place in the final. I’m afraid that I didn’t actually see the final but I know that Loughborough rowed really well to take third place behind the “all conquering” Irish but what a fantastic result to get the Bronze medal.

Leeds Rowing Club Summer Dinner

The date and venue of the inaugural Leeds Rowing Club Summer Party has been confirmed. Club members, friends and family are invited to join the party on the evening of Saturday 26 June, at the Lakeside Café, Roundhay Park from 7:00pm.

The club hopes to make this an annual formal event, which will run alongside our other main social of the year, the Christmas meal. The ticket price will include a carvery dinner, and entertainment at the event will include a ‘race night’ whereby you can bet on horseracing. The dress code will be formal wear, so guests are encouraged to dress smartly for the event.

Tickets are on sale now, until May 30th, from Laura, Julian and Vicky, and will cost £25 per person. Cheques should be made payable to ‘Leeds Rowing Club’, alternatively pay in cash or via BACs (bank details available from Richard Ansell). All profits from the sale of tickets and the race night will go towards club development.

13th March 2010 – Yorkshire Head of the River Results

The club had a really encouraging day at the Yorkshire Head and performances are beginning to reflect the hard work put in at the Gym over the winter. Results for our crews as follows:

Mens IM3 4+: Karen, Des, Jules, Simon H, Toby. 3/3 in 19:20.5 (winning time 18:40.7) Although we shouldn’t be satisfied with last place, this was an improved performance, finishing only 5 seconds off second place. We beat 3 novice 8s and 2 vet 8s. Last year’s Leeds crew did 22:06. Although on analysis it appears this year’s conditions were about 40 seconds faster, that still means we have gained 2 minutes. It’s hard to benchmark against the performance at Doncaster as none of the same 4s seem to have been racing.

Mens Nov 2x: Brad, Mike. 4/6 in 20:15.3 (winning time 18:49.6) Considering Mike hadn’t rowed in a head race for twenty years and Brad had never raced in a head race before this was a pretty good result. Deciding not to get unsettled by the juniors (Dan and Alex) ambitious race plan to overtake them, they focused on their own race plan, keeping a steady rate and steering a good line. Since this was their first race this year after missing a lot of water time, it is a good bench mark.

J16 2x: Alex, Dan. 2/3 in 20:26.4 (winning time 20:04.0) An excellent row by Dan and Alex who were racing in a category above their age group and gave York City J16 2x and our men’s novice 2x a good run for their money!

Mens Nov 4+: Laura, Josh, Simon, Dan, Joe. 8/12 in 20:52.1 (winning time 18:08.4) This was not only faster than any other 4+ on the day, but faster than the fastest Nov 8+! The novice four also beat last year’s time for the Leeds Mens Sen 4 crew by a big margin.

WIM1 1x: Kris. 1/1 in 20:52.4 Kris was not only the fastest woman sculler but was just 40 seconds behind the winning male IM1 1x. A significantly better performance than last year and well deserved for all the effort that she has put into her rowing over the last year.

WIM3 4+: Toby, Rosie, Sara, Karen, Kay. 3/5 in 21:20.7 (winning time 20:32.1) This ladies 4 rowed strongly again putting in a very good performance beating last year’s race time by over a minute.

J16 2x: Luke, Tom. 3/3 in 21:21.3. A promising row from a crew that have only doubled together twice this year, and a good experience for them in terms of learning to negotiate bridges and bends which are daunting at the best of times for a novice crew.

WIM3 4+: Julian, Milly, Naomi, Kersty, Sally. 4/5 in 21:55.3 (winning time 20:32.1) This ladies crew also rowed well with a higher rate than at Doncaster and a correspondingly better relative performance. They also beat last year’s crew race time by almost a minute. Overall this is very encouraging for the ladies squad to have two much stronger crews than last year.

Nov 1x: Henry. 5/5 in 22:04.7 (winning time 20:03.3) Henry didn’t row as well as he could and was disappointed with his row, however I’m sure that this was a good learning experience and I’m also sure that he will be happier with some of the shorter distances this summer.

WIM3 2x: Michelle, Laura. 3/5 in 22:09.4 (winning time 20:25.0) Michelle and Laura had a few “issues” with the bank, trees, etc. They rowed well between the obstacles but it really wasn’t their day!

It may have gone unnoticed but the club had another couple of rowers in the race. The Coverdale family was out in force. Dave rowed in a York Veteran B 8, finishing 12th overall. Meanwhile, Ben was rowing in the York University IM3 8 which finished 5th overall and, staggeringly, still didn’t win IM3 8 event, missing out by a mere 3 seconds after 5k.

Well done everyone, now let’s look forward to some warmer weather and idyllic days by the river during the regatta season.

WNov 2x: Vicky, Kate. 3/3 in 22:24.2 (winning time 21:03.5) Vicky and Kate had some “issues” with their sculls i.e., they had the wrong ones and weren’t able to row satisfactorily.

21st February 2010 – English Indoor Rowing Championships

Hot off the press! Richard Ansell competed at the English Indoor Rowing Championships in Manchester. He raced in the Lightweight 40-49 category and finished with a great time of 6:47 placing him 5th of 16 entries. The winner did 6:33 which is impressive for a lightweight veteran so get pulling those ergos lads, looks like your coach is leading by example!

21st February 2010 – Universities Head

Two of our club members raced in the Universities Head for their respective universities. Ben Coverdale was racing for York in an intermediate 8 which was placed 16th out of 33 entries and a championship coxed 4 in which they were placed 12th out of 30 entries. Andrew Saul was racing in a championship coxed 4 for Durham and was placed 21st out of 30 entries. Both Ben and Andrew were taught to row at Leeds before going on to row for their universities.

13th/14th February 2010 – GB Trials

The second GB trial assessment took place at Dorney Lake and once again, Kris Johnson was flying the flag for Leeds Rowing Club. The format for this assessment is a time trial to seed the crews for side by side racing later in the weekend. Kris was entered in Ladies Heavyweight division and, racing with all those Olympic and world superstars, Kris was placed 28th of 48 scullers racing in the time trial and then placed 3rd in the “F” final. This is a fantastic effort on Kris’s part and shows what a lot of determination and training can do!

13th February 2010 – South Yorkshire Head Results

The weather might be keeping us off the lake but that doesn’t mean that the club is inactive for some of our members have been out there performing as if nothing was stopping us training. Firstly a few words about the South Yorkshire Head at Doncaster:

The weather was ice cold but absolutely calm so a great day for racing and our crews responded with some excellent rowing and some good results. Pride of place goes to our ladies 4+ which won IM3 4+. I have received the following report of their race from our correspondent in the cox seat:

Ladies IM3 4+: Rosie, Vicki, Sarah, Kay.

To quote Friedrich Nietzsche “…and if you gaze into the abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.”  Our esteemed colleague Rosie was this quote made flesh as her women’s IM3 four sat in the debris strewn and (apparently) biologically dead River Don start area this Saturday.  Her haunted eyes speaking volumes of the devastation rowing can cause to the human mind.

Fortunately she had pulled herself together sufficiently by the time she rolled her crew over the start line to give just about a textbook demonstration of how to row a head race.  From the off the whole crew settled into a pacey rhythm with a high rating.  Even dramas induced by wayward doubles, over enthusiastic attempts to take the inside line and the urge to dive up the slide were succinctly recovered from as the pressure climbed in the first 2 kilometres.

But as the Doncaster boathouse was hauled into sight the girls decided to stop messing about.  Teeth were gritted, pins were pulled and Rosie even decided to take her sunglasses off (clearing indicating the gravity of the situation).  On command the crew responded as one to a push command and built the power relentlessly to the finish over the final kilometre, reeling in and overtaking a Bradford men’s quad whose collective neck they had been breathing down for much of the course and significantly closing the gap on a number of other boats ahead.  Despite all the blood boiling power the crew were laying down in the dying metres of the race they all maintained excellent form and rhythm, whilst still committing 100% to each stroke. All in all this was a great row and an exhibition in control, determination and power from Kay, Sarah, Vicki and Rosie. Nice one guys!

We also had a number of other notable performances:

Men’s IM3 4+: Des, Jules, Simon H, Toby. The crew rowed strongly in a division with fierce competition. Although placed 6th out of 7 in their classification, they beat all the novice 4+s by a considerable distance so are clearly in the correct classification.  

Men’s Novice 4+: Simon H, Simon C, Dan K, Ben. A really good row by a crew of rowers, some of whom learnt to row at Leeds in the last year, (some of the ergo times are awesome), and for whom this was their first competitive outing. The crew rowed well and were placed 2nd in the Novice classification. A really good result with lots of promise for the summer.

Ladies IM3 4+: Kersty, Naomi, Milly, Sally. Our other ladies 4+ entry executed the race plan perfectly. I set them a time to beat of 16m which they easily beat with a controlled row.  

Ladies IM3 2x: Michelle and Laura. A first race and a good time for this new crew showed that they have the potential for success in this event in the summer.

Ladies Nov 2x: Vicki and Kate. A good controlled row beating the course record for this event, which had stood for 10 years, by 19 seconds. Unfortunately this event had some excellent crews in it with 3 crews actually beating the course record and our crew was placed third in the event.

Novice 1x: Henry. A good row by Henry which was interrupted by a double running into him outside the boathouse. This collision caused Henry to stop whilst they untangled the sculls. Eventually Henry got started again and was placed 2nd overall by a mere 9 seconds. Disappointing for Henry but a very promising row going into the summer season.

J18 1x: Henry. A glutton for punishment, Henry volunteered to race a second time over the course. This time he was unimpeded and completed the course 1 second faster than his first row.

J17 2x: Luke and Tom. Tom and Luke rowed very well and were placed second in their category. An excellent result in their first race of the winter.

J15 1x Alex. Alex had an argument with a tree part way down the course which didn’t help his sculling or his rigger! Despite this handicap, he sculled well and was placed 3 out of 7 in his category and only 1 second behind the 2nd placed sculler. After his mishap, this was a very good and determined performance.