Peterborough Regatta, 2008

While the rest of us were sheltering from the rain and then BBQ-ing, Chris and Cli were up in Peterborough representing the club at the annual regatta there. Hopefully a full report from one of them will follow soon, but I'm sure Clio won't mind me mentioning for now that she came second on both days - a very impressive result at a highly competitive regatta - well done & we all look forward to hearing more details soon...

Woodbridge Regatta

Sunday 8th June witnessed the return of the Woodbridge Regatta and I think it's fair to say that a good day was had by all - even the sun came out to join in the fun!

The DRC main event was a grand BBQ, superbly organised by the Notcutts, staffed by them and their little (and not so little) helpers. Not only was it a 'No Food Miles' event (produce coming from Five Winds, Notcutts and the Cake Shop) and "the only BBQ with a riverside view", but it also tasted pretty good and raised lots of all-important pennies our the clubhouse fund, as well as the official Regatta charities. As the crowds streamed past, Keith made sure as many of them as possible were diverted to try the burgers and hot dogs.

Just behind the BBQ we set up an ergo challenge for anyone who wanted to see if they could beat the target times set by Will, Jane and Alexander.

Then, at 3.30pm we thought perhaps we should show that we did actually go out on the water in our fancy boats sometimes, so Eversons kindly set up a race for us. Starting by the quay at the tidemill, competitors had to row down to the first green channel-marker and, leaving it on their left (surprisingly tricky when you're facing the wrong way!), complete a speedy u-turn and row back up the channel to the finish line, level with the Cruising Club. Terry, John, Roger, Malcolm, Will and I all took part and after Formula1-esque start, Malcolm took the lead as we headed towards the green buoy. Luckily for Will, Malcolm thought he was racing to Ramsholt and back and forgot to turn round, leaving Mr Notcutt to steam ahead as the rest of us wobbled along in his wake to the finish, carefully negotiating all those yachts.

As always, many, many thanks to everyone for helping out on the day and taking part - it was one of those days that made me really proud to be part of our club, so big smiles all round!

Woodbridge Regatta & DRC BBQ Sunday 8th June

As you should know by now, Sunday 8th June is the date of this year's Woodbridge Regatta.

The Grand Opening will take place at 13.45 outside Eversons (and our clubhouse, of course!), where the Mayor will be on hand to formally start things off.

There are a wide range of activities taking place on the day - please click here for a list, or I can email a pdf to you.

DRC will be holding a BBQ, so mark the date in your diary and encourage all your friends, families and colleagues to come along. Please get in touch with Will & Nicola if you will be able to help out as well.

Look forward to seeing you there!

City of Cambridge Sprints

Clio won her first pot of the season at the City of Cambridge Sprints on Sunday. Drawn against one of her local rivals and former doubles partnersfrom Rob Roy, it was all to play for in somewhat of a grudge match as they stood one apiece at the start of the regatta.

Drawn on the favoured inside of the short 400m "banana" along the front of the Cambridge boathouses, Clio was not out of the blocks too well against the more specialist Robs sprinter, on her home patch, but dogged determination kept our girl in touch.

With the volume of bank side noisereaching a deafening roar, Clio inched back, lined up for the last 100m and let loose her ever-improving power sprint, passing her opponent in the last few strokes to win by 3 feet.

The long day was capped off with a stylish paddle up the course to collect her pot, as the opposition for the final scratched.

All in all it was a great day's work, made all the more impressive by the fact that she had also competed in the Head to Head in the morning, consisting of back-to-back 2000m pieces down to the A14 bridge.

Congratulations, Clio!! And many thanks to Chris J. for this write-up.

Junior Team-EAST Selection for Clio

A rather belated note to say that, following her success in the regional trials, Clio will once again be representing the eastern region in the Junior Inter-Regional Regatta in Nottingham on April 19th. More information about the event can be found out on the website: http://www.jirr.org/index.html

Anyone who can't remember how well she did last year can also check out our blog archive!

Good luck, Clio! We're all looking forward to hearing how you get on...

DRC Makes a Splash in Cambridge

Cambridge Winter League

This was to be another weekend of windy conditions and off-putting weather forecasts, but fortunately the race went ahead as planned and lots of red t-shirts took to the water in singles, doubles and Raedwald. Ken and Chris started off with their races in the 1st division; Jane & I, the Gentleman's 4+, Clio, Em and Tim raced in the 2nd; Chris and Tim raced for a second time in the 3rd division, whilst John and Terry also went out in their trusty double; finally in division 4 Clare & Em and Ken & Nick battled against the pouring rain and wind in their doubles.

Once again club members put in an excellent effort and it was another really enjoyable day. Sadly the weather wasn't quite as good for photography as last time (and also I was the only one wielding a camera!), but I have a few more to put in the album soon. Full results can be seen at CRA online too.

Two results that deserve a mention right now, however, are wins for Clio in the jnr women's singles (is there any stopping her?!) and for Jane & I in the women's doubles. Hurray!! The boys really have some catching up to do now...

Cambridge Champs Junior Head

For the second year running, Clio (seen here showing off her medal from the NJIRC) represented the club at this special head race for juniors and came away with two prizes - one for her single and one for a composite double.

National Junior Indoor Rowing Championships

Clio took part in the NJIRC yesterday...and came home with a silver medal!!

This is an outstanding result - she hasn't yet told me what her time was, but let's just say I don't think I'll be challenging her to any 2k competitions in the near future (or ever, in fact).

Anyone interested in finding out more about the champs can click on the link above.

WELL DONE, CLIO!!