Weybridge Rowing Club News

By The Wey

A selection of 2003/04/05/06/07 news items, moved from the Home page, most recent at the top.

2007

Despite the rain, we boated a mixed VIII and a double on Christmas morning, before we returned to a warm dry clubhouse for the free hot rum punch. The Bermuda Black Rum for the punch was kindly donated by former member Michael Swain, who is now President of the Bermuda Rowing Association.

31 people attended the Christmas dinner. A big thank you to Jude Bowen and Derek Holmes whose culinary expertise ensured all enjoyed the meal, and to the juniors who served it with charm and efficiency.

Only a few of our hardy senior women braved the freezing conditions at Dorney Lake to compete at Walton Small Boats Head on Saturday. Ellie Wells and Alison Holgate were rewarded with a win in WS4 doubles - their first in Weybridge RC colours.

Congratulations to Claire and Carl Boon whose daughter Erin arrived at 1.30a.m. on 11th December, weighing 7 lbs exactly. Erin has already visited the clubhouse.

Walton Small Boats will take place this Saturday at Dorney Lake, since the river is still red boarded. The division times have changed - check the website for details.

The next Allan Whitwell Sculling Course is scheduled for the weekend of 26/27th April. Our members have first call on places, so get your names registered before we open it to the wider world.

Burway Small Boats Head. has been called off due to the state of the river. Next event is Walton Small Boats Head .

The events committee have published details for Weybridge Winter Head on Saturday 19th January. This event is open to seniors, veterans and juniors and gives people a chance to race in eights, fours and doubles a fortnight after the festive period. It replaces the 'Vets Head' which we have run for the past 15 years but always seemed to coincide with Mother's day.

Alison Jackson came an impressive third in WS2 in the Scullers' Head on December 1st, and was the 21st quickest woman overall.

The results of Hampton Head are now published.

Thursday's Annual General Meeting unanimously re-elected Derek Holmes as President, Tom Meade as Secretary, Ashley Tilling as Safety Advisor and Tim Owens as Facilities Manager. Paul Wielgut and Carl Boon continue as Committee Members. We have a new Treasurer, Sarah Young, and Clive Capel joins the Committee. There are two vacancies, notably for Social Secretary, since Sheila has decided to stand down. Any members who are interested in serving on the Committee should speak to Tom or Caroline.

A Silver Medal for Peter Morley in the Indoor Rowing Championships (heavyweight 60-64 category) at Birmingham on 18th November. Peter missed out on the gold medal by less than half a second. And a gold medal for Callum Russell in the Junior Adaptive category.

131 members and friends had a ball at the Annual Dinner & Dance on Saturday (17th), at the Hilton Hotel, Cobham. This year's Spreadbury Cup winner was Steve Heywood, in recognition of his years of coaching our successful women's squad. Jack Shepherd won the junior prize, which is awarded to the junior who has shown the most commitment and improvement over the year. Congratulations to Sheila and her team for arranging a first-class evening, and thank-you to all the kind people who contributed the 36 raffle prizes.

We had an array of 2nd places at Henley Sculls on Saturday. The results are here.

A win for Jack Shepherd and James Coxhead in J16 2x at Teddington Small Boats Head Two of our junior girls doubles missed wins by the narrowest of margins.

The Club has joined the new Whittet's Ait Neighbourhood Watch scheme. We shall be reporting any problems encountered, including anything suspicious, to the scheme co-ordinator whose details will be posted in the clubhouse.

We now have results from the Veteran Fours' Head plus photos.

At the Fours' Head our Women's Senior 2 quad came a respectable 15th from 39 in their event. P hotos are now available.

The lists of Past Winners have been updated in the history section of the Silver Sculls pages. Incredibly, Emily becomes the first Weybridge person to be added to these lists since 1971.

The results of the Weybridge Silver Sculls are now on-line. Last year's winner, Hugh Mackworth-Praed, retains the title, in a time of 14:29 with strong stream conditions. Fastest woman was our own Emily Kean in 17:03. Overall Weybridge won 9 events. Our thanks to the many officials and helpers who made the day an outstanding success.

Clive Capel reports that the latest order from Powerhouse has been fulfilled, so please collect your goods if you ordered kit recently.
T-shirts and hoodies from Rock-the-Boat should be with us very shortly. Clive also has Weybridge caps in stock at £12. Thanks are due to Clive for his efforts in keeping the squads looking presentable... it has been noticed and complimented upon at 'away' regattas !

Our 3 boats at the Pairs Head all did very well. Alison & Emily came 2nd in WS2 doubles; Peter & Jude came 2nd on handicap in mixed veteran doubles; and Tracey & Linda came 11th in WS4 doubles.

A reminder that subscriptions for 2007/08 were due on 1st October. Well done to all those many people who provided cheques and standing order forms promptly.

There was a win for Mick Howe in Vet C sculls at Maidstone Sculling Head .

The 2007/08 membership application form and the 2006 FISA Rigging Survey (conducted by Sarah Merryman, who rowed for Weybridge in the 1990s) have both been added to the reference documents page.

Rock the Boat are kindly providing emergency 'get-you-home' kit packs for people who fall in. The packs will be available for borrowing from the changing rooms. Please wash and return within 7 days.

Di at Rock the Boat advises that they have a new website. Clive has samples of new items of kit, including caps, polo shirts and fleeces, so have a look at smarten up for winter!

Four more wins at Cambridge Autumn Regatta, bringing the regatta season to a successful conclusion.

The juniors have really put the "Wow" into Weybridge this weekend, with no less than 12 wins at Lea Regatta. Well done everyone!

Well done also to John Turnbull, who has passed his Bronze coaching award.

Members and parents are reminded of a club byelaw that says parking on Whittet's Ait is only for drop-off and pick-up only. In addition, please do not drive near the residents' gates nor obstruct their access. This request comes from the residents' association who have noticed this year's increase in club activities.

The proposed vice-captains for 2007/08 are Jon Beagley, Richard Harris and Jude Bowen. Please support them as they help take us forward under Caroline's leadership.

Concept2 have issued a notice about metal fatigue for their model D and E ergos made in the last 12 months. The Club's equipment is not affected, but do check the serial number if you have a machine at home or know someone who does.

The ARA have issued advice concerning Leptospirosis (Weil's disease) which can be fatal if left untreated. There have been two recent cases in the Henley area which is very unusual and probably a consequence of the high river levels at the end of July.

Observant Weybridge people prompted the rescue of a small child from the fast-flowing River Wye as night fell after Saturday's racing. Despite a long day in the sun, Ross Rowing Club personnel were very quickly on-hand to assist and the boy was pulled out and attended-to by a nurse.

What's that big yellow thing in the sky? we wondered at Gloucester Regatta. Yes, summer had come at last. Some hard-fought races resulted in wins for the J16 girls and for Carl and Mick, and a touch of sunburn for Clive, who gallantly towed the trailer.

The long-suffering boat-bay doors have been attended-to. At times when the boathouse is quiet, Carl has been laying new steel track in the concrete floor. Please make sure the doors are closed if you are the last crew to put boats and blades away after an outing.

The Thames Regional Rowing Council have written to all clubs to say that all boats used on the Thames must display a unique identifier after 30th September. This is an EA requirement. We are now numbering the Weybridge and Weyfarers fleets. We have ordered sufficient vinyl labels to include private sculling boats so we all get a good price - only £3 per boat. If you would like a set of codes, please contact Carl, who can also advise on applying them. Or you can request a set with your boat rack renewal in September.

We are putting together a page on Safety Procedures and Incident Reporting. It's not finished yet, but keep an eye on it as it will be full of useful information.

The BBC Sport website includes a photo of the "Matts" pair - click on this link and go to photo 4. There's also an article on the WRC Junior website - click on the link at the top of this page. And we have just heard that they won the 'B' final, taking 7th place overall in their event, a great achievement.

Racing is underway at the Junior World Championships in Beijing. Matt Tarrant, racing in the pair with Matthew Anker from Oratory School, came 3rd in their heat on Wednesday but impressively won their repechage on Thursday to progress to the semi-final on Friday. Full results are on the FISA website. We've just heard that they came 5th in the semi-final and now go to the 'B' final on Saturday to compete for places 7 to 12.

The river is now below the bottom step but still flowing more than we'd expect at this time of year. Due to on-going maintenance on the weir upstream from the club, the main Shepperton weir stream is quite strong. If you're not confident in turbulent water, stay on the 'home straight' by the landing stage.

Full results from Sudbury Regatta are now up on their site. We had wins in S4 1x and Mixed J14 2x.

Congratulations to Matt Tarrant who has been selected for the World Junior Championships. The full team is listed on the ARA website and the event starts in Beijing on 8th August. We understand he expects to be in the coxless pair. Matt started rowing with us in 2004/5 although he has been in crews with Walton RC since the Spring. We'll report on his progress, but whatever happens, at only 17, he has another year of junior eligibility in 2008.

Those people who have been to Evesham Regatta might like to see the latest pictures from Evesham. No news yet of the state of their boathouse and equipment, but it must surely be damaged.

Molesey Regatta did not happen on Saturday and was reduced to an ergo competition on Sunday where Jack Shepherd won J15 the J14 quad won too. We cannot recall the last time a major Thames regatta was cancelled due to strong stream conditions.

At the National Championships in Nottingham, we had two J15 doubles competing. Conditions were appalling at times, and racing was suspended for 3 hours on Friday. James Coxhead & Jack Shepherd made it through their heat despite losing their lane number in a big wave, but they did not progress through the semi-final time-trial in a horrible headwind. Dan Fisher & James Amico did not have a favourable lane draw in their heat and did not progress but gained invaluable experience. Thanks to Clive Capel & Paul Shepherd for supporting the crews.

This year's FISA Tour is in the USA, starting on 21 July. Some of the Weyfarers people are participating.

The club's coaching launch is back in action. Please give it tender, loving care and record all use and problems in the log-book in the clubhouse.

Results from the Summer 200 Club draw are posted here.

Alison & Emily sent us the inside story from Women's Henley... "we had a hilarious experience! We always know that we would need a miracle - and one happened, briefly. The Leander stroke girl's bowside blade popped out of the gate about 5 strokes into our race. So we were ahead at the end of Temple Island. But then they pushed back during the second minute and beat us by 4 lengths in the end. Lenader went on to win the final of elite doubles." Great effort, chaps.

Despite at times torrential rain, we notched up a couple more wins at Thames Valley Park Regatta. It was third time luck for the novice women - Rachel, Trudie, Gemma and Marion, coxed by Kirsten. Jack and "Fred" again looked impressive winning J15 doubles.

Remember that if you've been involved in an incident where anyone was injured or equipment was damaged you must fill in an incident report. The form is now online, together with guidance information.

Two wins at Walton & Weybridge Regatta: Alex Tarrant demolished all his opponents in novice singles, whilst Jack and "Fred" continued their winning streak in J15 doubles. Also worthy of a mention are Alex Keenes and Elliot Tarrant making an impressive debut in J13 doubles. A big thank you to all the Weybridge people who made the regatta a huge success, including Ashley, Greg and JRB who did the lion's share of organising the event, Carl who transported the tents and helped lay the course, Claire who recruited the patrons then printed the programme, the parents led by Sheila who provided the fantastic catering, and everybody who helped with umpiring, timekeeping and all the other jobs, many of them behind-the-scenes.

Congratulations to Clive and Emma Curd, whose son Charlie arrived at 12.30 am on 28th May weight 9.05 lbs. Clive is a "graduate" of last year's beginners' course and a regular member of the Sunday morning recreational squad.

Three wins from three finals at Weybridge Ladies' Regatta. Well done everyone.

At Metropolitan Regatta , Alison & Emily won their heat but did not progress at the semi-final stage.

Alas no wins at Twickenham regatta although Alison & Emily did make the final of WS2 doubles. Gemma & Rachel made their debut in WNov doubles.

At Thames Ditton Regatta, we had crews racing throughout the day. The women's junior quad had the commentator's excited in winning their final by only a couple of feet. 'Fred' and Jack won the plate competition for first-round losers of J15 doubles; and Alex made the final of junior single sculls.

Further downriver at Putney Town Regatta Peter & Jude had to concede a 13 second handicap in Open Veteran E/F doubles. That does seem a little unsporting, as mentioned by the race umpire ! Not surprisingly, the gap was too great to make up over the men's crew.

Shrewsbury Regatta on the River Severn is normally a sunny, picturesque event. This year it became a bit of an ordeal as the weather deteriorated into incessant rain. Carl & Mick won 3 out of 5 races, including the final of Vet B on the Saturday.

At Wallingford Regatta, held over 1500m at Dorney Lake, Alison & Emily contested women's senior 2 doubles in which 16 crews started. They came 2nd in a tough heat to claim a place in the final, where they came an excellent 4th. That represents progress on last year and bodes well for the rest of the summer.

Congratulations to Linda & Tracey won their veteran-novice doubles event at Marlow Spring Regatta on Monday in blustery, rainy conditions. The regatta was later curtailed due to the foul weather.

A busy weekend for many of the juniors at Evesham Regatta. We had several finalists on Saturday (including a very impressive debut from Oli Tomalin in a double with Matt B) but no winners. Sunday was more successful, with wins at Vet B 2x (Carl and Mick beating their nemesis, Huntingdon, for the first time), J15 2x ("Fred" and Jack), and Mixed Novice 2x (Matt B and Kirsten with perfect timing after only 10 minutes practice). A big thank you to Clive for towing the trailer, Jonathan for keeping everyone on their toes, and Nick and Paul for making sure that the boats and blades were always in the right place at the right time. Here are some photos.

Mike Cumpper, former captain and president of the club, has kindly donated his single scull to the club. This boat is one of the very first made by Janousek back in 1981 and its first owner was a 19-year-old Steve Redgrave. It is therefore quite a big boat and has been ear-marked for the primary use of Matt Tarrant. By way of a thank-you, we have offered Mike three years of free membership.

Clive Capel represented the club at the trailer towing symposium at Marlow on Thursday. He has a lot of new information to share, and we'll try and get a summary online shortly.

We ran an informal training regatta for beginner juniors from local clubs in the Cut on Saturday.

Kirsten, Diana, Oli, Jack and 'Fred' who representing the Thames Downriver region at the Inter-regional regatta at Nottingham on Saturday came 7th in their respective events. Full details are on the JIRR website.

The new boat booking sheet is available online. With the regatta season approaching, there is bound to be pressure on boat availability, so make sure you book your boat by emailing Chris de Mauny by TUESDAY of each week. Also please let him know if you will not be using the boat you have booked.

A reminder to everyone that bicycles must not be taken into the boathouse. Our boat bays are narrow and falling bikes can do damage to boats. Bikes left overnight should be left locked-up outside, or short-term in the changing room.

James Whittingham is doing the 250 mile cycle ride from London to Paris from 26th July to the 29th for the Big Issue, which helps homeless people. He is trying to collect as much sponsorship money as he can for the event and would be grateful for support from WRC members. You can donate online here

Our men's Veteran D eight put in a strong performance at the Vesta Veterans Head on Sunday, coming 73rd overall (having started at 90). Full results here

Thank you to everyone who supported the Quiz Night on Saturday. It was very close between the six teams and in the end there were only 8 points between the winners and the wooden-spooners. Congratulations to Sheila and Claire for their organising and to Mrs Whittingham and Mrs Bramhall for their work in the kitchen, plus all those who helped with the set-up, bar duties and the tidy-up afterwards.

We had a men's veteran 'D' eight and a Walton/Weybridge women's senior 3 composite eight at Kingston Head. The results are available here.

The full calendar of club events (in Excel format) can now be downloaded from the Events page.

At the Women's Head, where 270 eights competed from Mortlake to Putney, the novice crew came 229th (6th from 17 in their event); and the Walton/Weybridge composite crew came 111th (31st from 66 in seniors 3s). Full results are here.

In last week's Schools Head, Matt Tarrant filled the 3 seat in the Walton boat that came an impressive 7th overall, with the same time as the Eton College 1st eight. Full results are here.

The National Junior Sculling Head was held at Dorney Lake last Wednesday. Four of the J16 boys, representing St George's College, came 5th from 20 in J16 quads. The following day, they contested J16 coxed fours at the Schools' Head and won their event.

The ARA are advertising for HSCT Scholarship coaches. It is anticipated that anyone taking on the Surrey post would be assigned to assist with coaching at Weybridge. The post is a 2-year contract at 20 hours per week.

We are having a Spring workday on Easter Saturday 7th April. The plan is to address some essential tasks which are listed here. Please let Tim Owens know which task you're prepared to have a go at, and he will assist with arranging the necessary materials in advance. Since the kitchen will be having a deep clean, the barbecue will make its first appearance of the season for the production of bacon butties for the volunteers.

We took the difficult decision this morning to cancel the Weybridge Veteran & Junior Head (18th March). The small number of entries, plus continued concerns about the state of the river, meant that we thought it best to pull the plug (sorry!) sooner rather than later. All entry cheques will be destroyed. We look forward to seeing everyone at Walton & Weybridge Regatta on 9th June.

The new Walton Bridge is delayed, according to this BBC article.

Despite a strong performance, our Vet D eight were unable to retain their title at Molesey Veterans' Head. And the river came up overnight, so the Hyne Cup race was cancelled.

Coxless four "100 Weys" has been despatched to a new home in a bar in Stockholm, Sweden. This boat was bought with the proceeds from the club's centenary dinner in 1980 and served us well for 25 years until it suffered an unexpected structural failure at the centre join which gave its crew an unwelcome swimming session.
Only two wooden boats now remain in the club's fleet : the eight "Take-a-Wey" (in service) and single "Theresa" (away for refurbishment).

Claire Boon has agreed to be Ashley's deputy safety adviser. Claire has been skiffing and rowing between Shepperton and Sunbury since 1992, so she knows 'our patch' well.

As rumoured since January, it's the end of boat building at Eton.

Full results of the Thames Valley Trial Head at Dorney Lake are now up. 3 wins, all of them from J16 girls. Plus a second place for the women's novice coxed four on their racing debut.

We have acquired 4 matching recreational/beginner single sculls from the late Pat Sherwin at Southsea. Greg Jones and John Burnett kindly collected them on our behalf. The boats do need some basic repairs and setting-up, and we plan to do this during the Spring.

We have despatched our last remaining wooden pairs/doubles to their new homes. The fashion outlet Ralph Lauren are proposing to use them in their Bicester store which opens on 18th March. The third boat in the collection is Mick Howe's old single, kindly salvaged from his garden. Thanks go to Carl & Claire for assembling the consignment and to John T for organising and making the delivery.

The Rowing Foundation have kindly granted us £2,500 towards the purchase of two 65kg Janousek doubles suitable for use by smaller juniors. The boats are in service now, but we can expect a naming ceremony when the weather is kinder. The balance of the cost is being met by the 2006 President's Appeal and a contribution from club funds.

John Whittet, the former owner of Whittet's Ait and supporter of the club since the 1950s has died. The club will be represented at his funeral today by John Burnett.

Last week, the funeral of Charlie Drake was held at St James' Church in Weybridge. Charlie used to live on Hamm Court and became a supporter of the club. The eight "The Drake" was purchased following a donation from Charlie in 1965; the bows of that once-superb boat are today hanging from the clubroom ceiling.

The clubhouse and outside boats escaped serious damage in the recent storms. However a couple of doubles did blow off their racks even though the ties were on them. The same boats narrowly avoided being crushed by a tree which came down on the landing stage. Thanks are due to Tim Owens for securing the boats and removing the tree.

The events committee have confirmed the details for the Weybridge Veterans & Juniors Head on Sunday 18th March. Plaques will be awarded to winning crews and entry fees have been reduced from last year.

We had a handy 5 wins from 7 entries at Maidstone Small Boats Head on Sunday. The River Medway was hardly flowing at all, which led to some quick times. Fortunately for us, it looks like Maidstone SBH was the only rowing race in the country which ran over the weekend. Oddly quite a few of the umpires were from our area, but there were very few Thames-based competitors.

The Hyne Cup will be on Sunday 25th February at 11am. Walton RC are the hosts this year.

All of the ergos in the clubhouse have been thoroughly cleaned and lubricated. The handfulls of fluff removed from the fan casings mean that those people who train 'scientifically' should check their preferences, since you might need to use a lower damper number to achieve the same drag factor. Thanks to Claire for giving-up her Saturday afternoon to get this job done.

Those who enjoyed Greg Jones' rum punch after the Christmas morning row should be aware that the Bermuda rum was personally delivered during last year by Michael Swain from Bermuda Rowing Club. Thanks, Michael, for your kind gift.

We are redeeming our 985 Tesco vouchers for core-stability balls and pump, a sit-up mat and a stopwatch. The order has been sent off. Thanks to everyone who helped us collect the vouchers during the autumn.

Eight Weybridge/Weyfarers people trekked around Ockham common on Boxing Day, covering 5½ miles before retiring for lunch.

We had a mixed eight and a double on the water for the traditional Christmas morning row, much to the amusement of the towpath walkers.

Clive reports that the latest orders for Powerhouse kit are now delivered and can be collected from him. Remember it is cash or cheque on collection.
The kit page has been brought up-to-date to reflect the colour brochure displayed at the clubhouse.

Almost 50 people enjoyed the delights of the Club Christmas Dinner on Saturday night. Congratulations to Sheila, Caroline and all the other volunteers for putting on such a good show.

There is a new 'for sale' item on the notice board.

Here are some key points from the AGM for those who couldn't make it... ● 3 new committee members : Tom Meade (secretary), Howard Simons (treasurer), Paul Wielgut ● rule change to make it clear that future rule changes must be advised in writing along with the meeting notice ● Caroline Turnbull and Carl Boon become honorary life members ● Alasdair Kean becomes a vice president ● Walton & Weybridge Regatta will be held on 9th June '07, but we need team leaders and volunteer workers if the is to be a success. The new regatta secretary is Ashley Tilling. ● major project for the year ahead is likely to be the upgrade of the boathouse drains and septic tank.

One fact that was skipped at the AGM was that Leif Mills is retiring as club chairman after 9 consecutive years' service. We owe Leif a vote of thanks for "keeping a firm hand on the rudder lines" as we passed some tricky obstacles along the way.

There's an assortment of pictures from the Dinner Dance on the Take-the-Pose site.

Over 130 people attended the annual dinner dance and it was an excellent way to remember the 2005/06 year and to look forward to even better achievements in the near future. The 2006 Spreadbury Cup for an outstanding contribution to club activities went to Clive Capel for his behind-the-scenes admin of the busy junior section and his inspired mentoring of junior beginners.

Here's some post-Silver Sculls trivia for those analysing the results:
- Mike Knowles fell out of his single at Shepperton weir, but got back in and raced - and won, much to his surprise.
- Claire Boon and Jack Shepherd were the only people to race twice for Weybridge.
- Fiona Parry was the 4th quickest woman of the day.
- our 5 wins gave the home team its best showing for at least 10 years.
- at least 50 volunteers gave up their time to help run the event.
- the conditions were so tough that Hugh Mackworth-Praed's winning time was the slowest since 1974 (set by Dan Topolski).
- Lewis Knollman from Walton, who won the Demerara Cup as the fastest junior sculler, was at work stacking shelves in the Weybridge branch of Waitrose until 10pm on Friday night.
- EJ Bradbury of Thames RC went for a swim mid-race and still came 2nd in J14.
- professional photographer Richard Ward was lurking on the bottom Cut bridge, and his photos are now on-line.

The 50th anniversary Silver Sculls took place yesterday in changeable weather conditions and a strong stream. Overall winner was Hugh Mackworth-Praed of Auriol Kensington RC and Master i/c rowing at Pangbourne College. There were 5 Weybridge wins: Mike Knowles in Vet F, James "Fred" Coxhead in J15 and Fiona Parry in Womens Novice singles, Alison & Emily in WS2 and Linda & Liz in W Vet Novice doubles. Many thanks to the marshals, timekeepers and other helpers who did a splendid job as usual, and to Sheila and her team for the delicious home-made soup and other goodies on sale at the Canoe Club.

Results from the Pairs' Head are now up. Alison & Emily came an excellent 2nd in WS2 doubles (and came 8th from 73 women's doubles overall). Peter & Jude also came 2nd in mixed veteran C/D/E doubles, to complete a good day on the Tideway.

Readers of Rowing & Regatta magazine will notice a proliferation of light blue and dark blue in the October edition, which is out this week. There is a spread on the Silver Sculls on pages 42/43 and an illustrated profile of the club itself on pages 30/31.

We received a friendly welcome at Maidstone Scullers Head on Sunday. The event is held on the River Medway, which is relatively narrow and bendy. Much to his surprise and amusement, Mick Howe claimed his 10th win of the year in Vet A/B/C handicap doubles, with Carl. Claire was happy to overtake three of her opposition to come home 3rd out of 6 finishers in women's novice sculls.

The 50th anniversary Silver Sculls has been given new mini-site on this server. Take a look at the newly-written brief history and list of previous winners. Additionally, a full picture article is planned for the October edition of Rowing & Regatta magazine.

We are introducing a Boat Usage Log. This is to try and establish some consistency in 'who-uses-what' as well as allowing us to determine which boats get the most usage. You will find the book next to the blade racks. Please record EVERY outing. The onus for doing this will fall upon whomever occupies the bow-seat of each crew.

Watch out for the little red arrows on the saxboards of each club boat which indicate the normal positions that boat's assigned rack. Please pay attention to exactly where you leave your boat so that you do not interfere with an adjacent boat.

2006

Five wins and some other very close verdicts at Lea Regatta on Sunday, all witnessed by Caroline who raced herself on the River Lea over 30 years ago. Unusual goings-on included vet B double opposition from Broxbourne falling in within sight of the finish (picture courtesy of Nick Coxhead) ; and later, a visit from the armed police in pursuit of local yobs who had harassed the nearby cricketers.

For the benefit of those who were at the World Championships last week, here is an article by TV presenter John Inverdale. Page down to the second part of his piece to get his opinion on the proceedings at Dorney Lake. Praise indeed !

Here's a quick summary of the Summer General Meeting:
- Caroline Turnbull was elected to be captain from today and becomes the 3rd lady captain in our 125 years. She outlined her expectations for the year under the headings of Safety, Education and Excellence. More details to follow in a newsletter bulletin to all members during September.
- 2006/7 subs are going to be £230 for seniors and £135 for juniors with a small discount for full payment by 31st October and a discount for second and subsequent family members.

The police are investigating a suspicious fire at Weybridge Sailing Club last weekend. Their Nissen hut workshop was gutted and several boats were destroyed. We must remind everyone that any obvious fire-lighting materials must be stored away from the boathouse.

Well done to Emily & Alison who won WS2 doubles at Peterborough on Saturday. In tricky windy conditions, they finished a length up on their decent opposition which included the likes of Mortlake, Tideway Scullers and Peterborough.

The Weybridge volunteers for the World Championships got together to pose for a photo on Sunday, courtesy of Greg and Judith. Hopefully picture articles will appear in the local media in the next week or two.

Thank you to everyone who supported the Rag Regatta & Visitors' Day on Sunday. Click here for a report and photos.

Here are some pictures of the ARA recreational tour.

We would like to welcome Paul Willcocks, of St George's College and Vesta RC, who will be helping with coaching our crews over the summer. His timetable will be based around the juniors' sessions, but that does not preclude seniors from joining the flotilla and enjoying the benefit.

At St Neots Regatta on Saturday, there was an afternoon storm that caused a suspension of the racing for an hour. The huge gusts of wind destroyed several tents and left the first-aiders out in the open as the temperature dropped by 10C in a just few minutes. On the river, we had a couple of finals to consider : in Vet C doubles, Carl & Eric lost to Ancholme and in Vet B doubles, a withdrawal due to injury meant that Carl & Mick had to scull-over the 1000metre course.

Greg Jones has provided a list of Weybridge people who are signed-up as volunteers at the upcoming World Rowing Championships. This is an excellent turn-out and Greg will be arranging a get-together soon.

There is summary of the juniors' exploits at Molesey Regatta on the juniors' news page.

A report of the President's Reception are now featured on the juniors' news page. And some excellent photos too.

The 5 seniors who travelled up to Bedford contested 7 races in blustery conditions. The only win in a final was Alison & Emily in WS2 doubles.

Regattas coming-up for us in July include Molesey, Molesey Juniors, Staines, Burway Vets & Juniors and St Neots. We can expect our crews to compete at all these events. Click here for links to posters, draws and results. Remember to file your entries and race fees in good time to Tracey Charge, our entries co-ordinator.

The summer general meeting/captain's election is confirmed as being on Thursday 31st August, which is the latest possible date under the club rules.

There is a shiny 'new' boat lurking in the boathouse. Second-hand Janouseks don't appear on the market very often, but Caroline has managed to acquire this coxless quad and it has been professionally refurbished by Andre Munday. We need to sort out the rigging and find some seats for it, but hopefully Caroline will be in the first crew to take "Turn A'Wey" out on the water during July.

The President is going-to-town with plans for his reception on 9th July. Apparently, there will be a launching of the newly restored coaching vessel. And everyone will have a first opportunity to get a limited-edition "Weybridge 125th Anniversary" shirt, specially designed by Rock The Boat. Here is the design in light blue which will be printed on navy short-sleeved T-shirts (either unisex or fitted) with "Weybridge" on the back. Price only £12.50. Contact Derek Holmes to reserve yours in advance.

Congratulations to Sheila, Caroline and the entire event team for putting on a first-class Pre-Henley Ball. There are too many sterling helpers to mention in one paragraph, but if you did your bit then give yourself a pat on the back. Hopefully everyone had a memorable evening. There are some pictures available, courtesy of the junior squad.

Mark Eshelby, director of Latchmere Properties who own Whittet's Ait, reports that they have put up a new sign to remind people not to park on the road. He also says that a few of the "Phase 2" (2005) apartments are still for sale. The show home at 12 Flockton House is open from Thursdays to Mondays inclusive.

Michael Swain, former Weybridge oarsman and current 200 Club member, is now residing in Bermuda. He send us pictures of their latest boat purchases. As you can see, delivery is not easy to such a remote location. We are so lucky to have boat factories on our doorstep here in the Thames valley.

Clare Groome reports that she completed the 5K Cancer Research "Race for Life" in Newcastle last weekend, although not in a record time - not that it matters. Thank-you to all who supported. Her sponsorship page will be open until 18th June.

The President, Derek Holmes, is holding a reception at the clubhouse on Sunday 9th July, around midday. All members and their families are welcome. Apparently the Mayor of Elmbridge has already accepted his invitation. Derek is launching an appeal to raise funds for more boats for the juniors, so bring your cheque books. If you can't afford a donation, then offer to organise a fund raising event instead.

At Weybridge Ladies' Regatta on Sunday, the sun was out again. We had 4 wins on home water: WJ15 quad (Julia, Diana, Emma D, Kirsten, TomC), WJ15 doubles (Julia, EmmaD), WNovice doubles (Linda & Liz) and Mixed Veteran doubles (Peter & Jude). For a better write-up, see the juniors' news page. Race results are now on-line too.

Sheila would like to express her enormous thanks and congratulations to everyone who helped with the regatta catering effort on Saturday. The teamwork was quite superb, from erecting the tent at 6am through to clearing-up at 8pm. Thank-you, too, for all the kind donations of food, equipment and time; these will greatly improve the financial result which will be posted in the clubhouse very shortly.

Thanks to Spike the regatta IT guru, the complete results from Saturday's Walton & Weybridge Regatta went on-line shortly after the last race. You'll see that we had 3 crews progress through to their respective finals. The new men's novice four - comprising our J16s and J18s - came within 1/2length of winning, a result that will give them great confidence. Claire Boon got tipped out of her single by a cruiser in the busy navigation lane, but clambered back in and raced her semi-final without delaying the regatta. Her event was the subject of a "stewards' inquiry" later when it was discovered that the "winning" sculler from Walton RC was not a novice and was disqualified.

At Thames Ditton Regatta on Saturday there were excellent wins for James Coxhead and James Whittingham in their respective single scull events. For full descriptions of their races and those of the other competing boats, see the juniors' news page.

170 miles away, at the Shrewsbury Regatta weekend on the picturesque River Severn, Claire Boon reached the semi-finals of women's novice sculls both days but was knocked out by the same sculler from Pengwern BC, the home club. On Sunday, Carl & Mick won vet 'B' doubles after battles with old adversaries from Huntingdon and Loughborough.

Many of the more recent recruits were off to Cranmore School swimming pool at West Horsley to undertake their capsize drill last Sunday, led by Caroline. This is a vital step in learning to row and scull. You never know when you might end-up 'in the drink' and knowing what to do in that situation is key.

There is a short report along with a nice selection of photos of Saturday night's party on the juniors' news page. Special thanks to the Whittingham family for decorating the clubroom, Theresa, Jude and Julia for all of the catering, Caroline for manning the bar and our house DJ Nick for getting everyone - including the coaches Jon and Clive - up on the dancefloor. And, of course, thanks to Sheila for masterminding the evening.

Thursday night suppers have raised £120 over the last 2 months. Well done all who have contributed to this effort through cooking and eating.

Our enterprising juniors (Jack, Chris and Tom C) have now developed their own website, with lots of information, photos and even video clips.

Rock The Boat have a stock of the brand new 2006 British Rowing Almanack, published only last week. For details of the special offer for Weybridge members, email Di or see the noticeboard in the clubhouse. Pages 157/8 of the book contain an article describing the career of Greg Jones, former president, captain & secretary of the Club, and a tongue-in-cheek description of the club kitchen.

The 10th Spreadbury dinner on 8th April was enjoyed by 40 people, mostly Spreadbury Cup winners from 1950 to 2005 plus a few of the current committee. Thanks to Greg Jones & family for organising the event.

Results from Teddington Sculls are now confirmed on their site. It shows wins for our women's J15 quad and men's vet B double. Our other crews all came well placed in their events. Full details to follow. Special credit goes to the J15 quad bowman Callum Russell who, despite his visual impairment, showed great skill in his first race on 'foreign' water. Thanks to Tim Owens for getting up early to tow the trailer and to all the other parents for their support on the towpath.

The Avid magazine article has been published following the photoshoot and interview back in January. It is available on-line.

News has reached us that Bill Stagg passed away on 28th February. Bill was a stalwart of the club in the 1970s and was Spreadbury cup winner in 1974. Bill devoted a great deal of time and energy working with the junior section at Weybridge. He and his wife Elsie were also well known at WLARC. The Club was represented at his funeral on 20th March.

On 2nd March, the Weybridge Mariners' clubhouse opposite Weybridge Ladies' was consumed by fire. This is a timely reminder that we too have a wooden building and should take extra care to minimise the risks.

Results for the Weybridge Veteran and Junior Head are now online. Two wins for our Junior squad - the Womens J15 quad stormed home a minute faster than their nearest opposition and the Mens J14 quad of James, James, James and James won by an even bigger margin despite some dodgy steering by their cox James (no I'm not making it up!) which earned them a 10 second penalty. Many thanks to all who helped on the day with umpiring, marshalling and time keeping and to the catering team for their delicious homemade soup and cakes.

The Vet D eight came 2nd out of 3 at Burway Head. By all accounts it wasn't the most pleasant of days : it was very cold with a bitter north-east wind, the crews were 20mins late starting and then got underway in pretty much any order they wished.

Following the confirmation of Avian Influenza ("bird flu") in France & Germany, it is more than likely that wild birds will bring it to the UK soon. Although the risks are small, if you come across a dead bird - maybe a swan, goose or duck - do not touch it since any infection could be passed by direct contact. We should report dead birds to DEFRA by calling 0845 933 5577. Further, it is good practice to wash your hands after going anywhere in the vicinity of where birds might have been present, such as on the landing stage.

There is a mistake in the results for Molesey Veterans Head. The Weybridge Vet D crew claimed the pennant for that event by just 0.9sec over Poplar since the Maidenhead crew were actually Vet C. However the result is insignificant compared with what follows...

Walton RC oarsman Simon Mepham collapsed and died from a suspected heart attack at the finish line of Molesey Vets Head on Saturday. He was 50. Simon competed for Weybridge RC in the mid-1980s and courtesy of Bob King we have a picture from the 1987 Head of the River* with Simon in the '6' seat. Simon's partner Sarah Birch is our coach for senior crews and to her and the rest of Simon's family and crewmates we express our sympathy at this difficult time.
*the full crew is bow-Peter Collins, 2-Adam Mills, 3-Bob King, 4-Andy Knot, 5-Alec? 6-Simon, 7-Crispin Lee, str-Peter Levy, cox-Julia?

Twenty four crews took part in the Hyne Cup in wet and windy conditions. Walton's youthful Senior 3 VIII retained the title, with the rather more mature S2 eights of Walton and Weybridge fighting a close battle for second. A strong novice four from the University of Surrey won the Allwork Cup, while the Henry Stebbing Cup for the fastest women's crew went to Weybridge (Jax, Fiona, Alison and Emily). The fastest junior crew were Tom O, Tom C, Jack and Jackson. Here are the full results . Well done to all who took part, and many thanks to those who helped on the day, especially Rosie, Marion, Veena and Anne P who warmed everyone up with hot soup afterwards.

The results from Saturday's Burway Small Boats Head are now online along with lots of pictures. Here is a summary of some very respectable performances:
Alex 6th out of 11 competitors in J18 1x
JamesC 2nd from 5 in J14 1x
Kirsten & Diana 3rd from 17 (yes - seventeen) in WJ15 2x
Alison & Emily 2nd from 4 in WS2 2x
Linda & Liz 2nd from 6 in WNov 2x.
A grand effort, especially from those juniors who had to contend with Shepperton and Chertsey locks in both directions.
So unfortunately no wins to add to the what is now the final winners list for the year.

60 people demolished the Christmas Dinner on Saturday evening. The highlight of the evening was a visit from Santa, with presents in his sack for all the juniors. Many thanks to Caroline, Sheila, Jacky and James W who did the cooking, Tom C, Tom O, Chris, Jack and Jackson who waited at tables, manned the bar (allegedly under the watchful eye of JT) and sold raffle tickets, Teri and the decorating team, and all the others who helped put it together and, most importantly, cleared up aftewards.

Photographs of the Anniversary Dinner taken by Take the Pose are now linked here, note there are 6 pages of thumbnails.

Results for the Walton Small Boats Head. are now online. Good solid performances from everyone, including JamesW & Alex who came 26th overall in their double first-time out, and Kirsten & Diana who won WJ15 2x after coming 3rd in WJ14 and WJ15 singles respectively. Geoff has clearly made a lot of progress in his single, coming 3rd in his event only 1sec behind Peter.
The prizes are presented next Sunday (11th) at 12.30pm at Walton RC. Photos taken from the bottom Cut bridge are now available.

Here is a picture received of Mr Beagley receiving the Spreadbury Cup at the Anniversary Dinner.

Club History CD Lynn Yeo is putting together a souvenir CD of the Anniversary Dinner, with historic photos spanning nearly 100 years of the Club's activity. We need additional material for the last 10 years, and some good photographs of the dinner itself. Please let Caroline or John have any suitable stuff (digital or hard copy) a.s.a.p. and we will pass it on to Lynn. Let us know too if you would be interested in buying a copy (for a modest price).

The Club rules have been updated to include the amendment to Rule 5 approved at the AGM. Prospective new members no longer need to be proposed and seconded but should simply complete a membership form and pin it to the notice board. However they should make themselves known to a member of the Committee so that their application can be considered at the next Committee meeting.

Key points from the AGM for those who couldn't make it... ● Derek Holmes elected as President ● John Turnbull becomes honorary life member ● Leif Mills becomes a vice president ● some vacancies remain on the new committee now that Judith and Caroline have stood down ● accounts show a busy but viable year has passed ● 30% of members have joined during the past year ● new insurance policy is in place ● a development sub-committee will investigate the feasibility of re-developing at our current site subject to achieving an improved lease ● Walton & Weybridge Regatta will be held on 3rd June '06, the name change reflecting the true nature of the event.

It's a non-racing week, so we've got space to mention two former Weybridge people who were in competition last weekend: Oscar Rogers came 2nd in J18 2x and 3rd in J17 1x at Pangbourne Junior Sculls and Chris Moat came 11th (time 7:08.5) in age 30-34 lightweight men's event at the British Indoor Rowing Championships at the NEC, Birmingham.

The 125th Anniversary dinner proved to be a night to remember. Generations of oarsmen & women from the 1950s to the present day came together to mark occasion at the Hilton Hotel, Cobham. Congratulations to JohnT, ably assisted by Caroline, NigelB, Derek, PeterL, Anne, Lynn and all those volunteers who comprised the event team. Also well done to the junior squad who raised over £1000 through selling raffle tickets on the night.
Guest speaker Di Ellis, chairman of the ARA presented the club with a framed certificate for display in the clubhouse. Winner of the Spreadbury Cup for 2005 is Jon Beagley for his support of junior rowing, not just his own attendance in all weathers on the towpath, but also for recruiting help from others. This is all the more remarkable because Jon has hardly ever rowed himself.
If anyone wishes to share any good photos from Saturday's dinner dance, please send them to:- facilities [at] weybridge.rowing.org.uk

The World Championships at Dorney Lake are 8 months away, hence the appearance of their banner above. The organisers are inviting juniors to sign-up for training sessions to become the start team - see the TRRC site for further details. Weybridge people will be especially welcome. Speak to Judith Packer for further information.

Photographs of the Anniversary Dinner taken by Take the Pose are now linked here, note there are 6 pages of thumbnails.

Here is a picture received of Mr Beagley receiving the Spreadbury Cup at the Anniversary Dinner.

More than a handful of Weybridge people helped with the running of the World Cup event at Dorney Lake back in May. It's not to late to join this contingent for the 2006 World Championships next August. For details of how to volunteer, see the ARA site.

Chris de Mauny advises that he has taken up the mantle of boat bookings co-ordinator from Gill Shaw. Chris can be reached via email chris.de.mauny [at] cantab.net or phone 01737 762208 or 07968 774435. Please advise Chris of any one-off bookings or any changes to the regular routine. The sheet will still be pinned-up in the clubhouse for the time-being.

Results from the Veteran Fours Head are now on-line.

For those who couldn't make it to the free seminar on the subjects of "Tideway safety and steering", Rachel Quarrell has put up a summary page.

The new Rock The Boat brochure is now out, you can find copies on the table in the bar. It includes some new products as well as some familiar photos. Remember to make it clear that you're from Weybridge when ordering so that delivery can be by hand for free. Additionally, there will be stalls at the Fours Head on 12th November, situated at Putney and Chiswick (Emanuel School boathouse).

A reminder to all members that subscriptions for 2005/06 became due on 1st October. The rates are : £225 for seniors, £115 for juniors & students, £30 for coxing & associates. Send cheques or standing order mandates to the Treasurer, c/o the clubhouse as per the address above. Please don't leave it very late and have to be chased-up since this wastes our volunteers' time and energy.

Peter reports that on Sunday morning his blade clipped a dark, hairy swimming mammal - almost certainly a mink. See the bottom of this wildlife page for a description and photo.

Over 40 people turned-up for last Saturday's Hallowe'en party at the clubhouse. It was too dark for photos, so you'll just have to believe that a grand time was had by all... Thanks to all the parents for helping out.

On Saturday, Judith was summoned to Guildford Cathedral for the regional Year of the Volunteer award ceremony. There she collected an "Award for Inspiration" for her work in recruiting and training juniors for officiating duties ahead of the 2005 World Cup and 2006 World Championships at Dorney Lake. Congratulations to Judith and to all those others who contributed time and energy into this project. More details and photos on the Thames RRC site.

The committee confirms that Jon Beagley has been appointed as Junior Co-ordinator. Teresa Capel takes on the Welfare portfolio, ably assisted by Clive Capel. The contacts page has been updated.

Full Silver Sculls results are now on-line, also by category. Congratulations to all the winners and thank-you to everyone else for taking part and helping the event to run like clockwork. Well done to everyone who helped on the river, on the towpath and behind the scenes...Silver Sculls is evidently in good health as we look forward next year's 50th anniversary event.

The Weybridge women's squad provided by far the two quickest women's doubles of the day : Alison & Emily won WS2, and Fiona & Jackie won WS3.
In addition there were several 2nd and 3rd places for our juniors, seniors and veterans. Check the classified results for details.
Photos are available from RGW Imaging.

At the Pairs' Head Alison & Emily excelled to come equal second in Wsenior2 doubles, a creditable 45secs behind the fastest women's double containing Olympic silver medallist Debbie Flood. In men's senior3 doubles, Nigel & JamesW came a competent 9th out of 12. Full classified results are on-line. Also photos from Eliot George and from BigBlade.

All members should read the Cold Water safety guidelines written by Jane Blockley. She is a doctor of medicine and has researched the subject following the drowning of her son in Spain in December 2000. There's lots more background information on the Leo Blockley website. All brand new boats purchased by Weybridge Rowing Club since 2001 have included under-seat buoyancy.

The committee is pleased to approve 3 vice-captains, as proposed by Peter this week. The contact details for Jonathan, James & Jackie are listed here. In addition, Anthony Saunders has agreed to be veteran rowing co-ordinator. Since we are already in October, the 'warm-up' period for the new incumbents will be minimal, and all members are asked to give them every assistance throughout the 2005/06 season.

All members and parents who drive to the club should take special note of the new byelaw adopted by the committee. This formalises the existing arrangement with Latchmere Homes where we promised not to hog the 8 visitors' parking spaces on Whittet's Ait.

Circuit training sessions run every Tuesday (except school holidays) commencing 7pm at Heathside School sports hall All are welcome, including friends & family. No experience necessary and we will build fitness week-upon-week. The price of hiring the hall works out at £3 per adult per session and £1.50 for juniors, which is a bargain compared with commercial sessions at leisure centres.

We finished the regatta season in style with six wins at the Lea, including first pots for Diana Llewellyn and Kirsten Owens. That makes a total for the season of 39 regatta wins.

A reminder that Weybridge Silver Sculls is on Saturday 22 October. The events offered are the same as last year. Full details are now on-line. Founded in 1956, Silver Sculls is the oldest sculling head on the Thames, as recognised by the history of Marlow LDS.

During the latter part of September, there will be less updates to this site than normal. For the latest national and international rowing news, keep an eye on The Rowing Service and David Biddulph's event calendar. And the Rowing Newsgroup is also a good source of gossip and information.

Row TV have provided video clips of semis and finals at Ross regatta.

We had 12 boats competing at Cambridge Autumn Regatta on Sunday. There was a win for Tom Capel & Jack Percival in J15 pairs.

At the FISA World Masters Regatta on Strathclyde Loch, Peter Morley won his VetE singles race by 6 secs. Here is a photo of Peter picking up his medal. Anne & Ruth came 4th in WVetC 2x ; Mick & Carl were 5th and 8th in their events. Margaret Fleming came 2nd in WVetE eights in a composite with other clubs from the south-east. Other people with Weybridge connections seen in winning crews included : Lynnette Skelton, Dave Hudson, Mike Knowles & Eric Wilson. The 2½-day event is the biggest regatta anywhere in the world this year.

Crazy local hero James Cracknell has succeeded in crossing the Channel on a surfboard.

Carl & Claire would like to thank everyone for their kindness, cards and pressies at their wedding in Shepperton on Friday. An early photo is available here.

Nick Coxhead provides some more photos of the juniors' Lechlade-to-Weybridge Row. The boys arrived back at base at 1630 on Saturday, having covered 113 miles, 44 locks and 7 counties in 5 days. They were sun-tanned, tired but very satisfied with their efforts. Well done chaps!

A reminder that all juniors become a year 'older' from today. e.g. this summer's J14's now become J15s.

Ross-on-Wye regatta was held in breezy but sunny conditions at the weekend. As usual, there was some close racing : On Sunday, Oscar & Alex (from SNBS) went out in J16 doubles by just 2 feet; the J14 quad stayed within a length of a useful Tideway Scullers/Runcorn composite. An all-Weybridge J15 pairs final resulted in a win for Toms Capel & Oxton. Mick & Carl had no problem overcoming two Vet B doubles from Ross.
On Monday, Claire & Clare got within 1/3rd of a length of Runcorn, and Oscar & Alex reached the semi-final of Senior4 doubles, which was the biggest event of the day with 14 entries. Mick & Carl profited from a mistake by their opponents Stourport in the final of Senior2 doubles. 31 wins for the season so far with possibly only Cambridge Autumn regatta to go.
Thanks to Nigel, Carl & Claire for getting the trailer & boats there and back. Boats should be unloaded tonight.

Thank you to everyone who attended the Summer General Meeting. Following a healthy debate that covered virtually all aspects of the club, and a cliff-hanger of a ballot, Peter Morley was re-elected as captain for 2005/06. The President thanked both Peter and Nigel for offering their candidacies.
In other business, the Treasurer explained how subscriptions barely covered basis costs of running the club. The first subs increase in 2 years was agreed : £225 for seniors, £115 for juniors & students, £30 for coxing & associates. Existing members who pay in full by the end of October can renew their membership at the old rates.

We have over 20 boats entered for Ross-on-Wye regattas next weekend (28/29 Aug). No draw available yet. Gloucester Regatta was cancelled some days ago.

A timely reminder to all members that equipment like trestles and hose-pipe should be stowed away, the boathouse lights switched-off and doors closed & bolted. It is the responsibility of the last crew back ensure this is done.

There are good finish-line photos from Peterborough Summer Sprint regatta on the NeneDigital site.

Anyone driving into Weybridge from the west/M25 direction should be aware of the daytime closures of the A317 at Woburn Hill. It does not affect evening travellers.

Nigel has completed the classroom parts of the ARA bronze coaching award at Kingston University. Courtesy of Graham Carey, here is a photo of the group. Spot the nicotine addict from Kingston in the front row !

We had a clutch of excellent wins at Peterborough Summer Regatta : on Saturday, Alison & Emily won senior3 doubles in a new full-course record time for that event. On Sunday, Gill & Tracey won senior2 pairs by a good margin; four minutes later, Jackie & Cath were in a composite senior2 quad with Molesey BC, and they won by inches in a 3-way battle with Peterborough and St.Neots. Coach Steve was reported to be "quite pleased" - or something to that effect !

Some news we missed last month : during 16/17 July, Tom Meade & Moritz Gregory completed the Oxfam/Ghurka Welfare Trust Trailwalker challenge by hiking 100km continuously along the South Downs in less than 24 hours. Their actual time was 22hrs37mins which put them amongst the top third of finishing teams. Well done, chaps!

RowTV were at Sudbury Regatta and video clips of the finals are available here. Note the quote at the top of the page, taken from the regatta commentary!

The Rag Regatta & Visitors' Day was enjoyed by around 60 people in bright sunny weather. If you have any good photos, please send them to "facilities [at] weybridge.rowing.org.uk" and we can all have a laugh. Thanks to Nigel & team for setting everything up from early on Sunday morning.

We witnessed some very close and exciting racing at Sudbury Regatta, in Suffolk. Our 13 boats entered contested 6 finals, winning 3 of them. All Weybridge crews demonstrated excellent steering skills, no-one gave away their race by hitting the bank or the reeds on what is an extremely narrow and bendy course.

Here is some reassurance for those wondering about our club registration : the Secretary has grappled with the 26-page form and filed our application with the Council, so we should be covered for normal service when the new government policy takes effect in November.

An update on the news that Judith has been recognised by the ARA for her work in recruiting and training junior officials in the Thames Region. Firstly, here's a photo courtesy of Richard. Secondly, Judith's plaque is apparently a large piece of stainless steel which comes with screws and rawlplugs!

Several Weybridge/Weyfarers people completed the ARA tour at the weekend.

Thanks to everyone who helped with Saturday's work-day at the club. The boats and boathouse are now in good order, but there are a few tasks still to be done : if you weren't able to help and are feeling guilty, please check the "To Do" list that will be posted on the main noticeboard.

The 21st Allan Whitwell Sculling course at Weybridge is scheduled for the weekend of 24 & 25 September. Applications are now open for this 2-day course. Weybridge members have priority on places until 1st August, after which it will become open to all.

We took a cross-section of crews to Bewdley for their mini-festival of sprint rowing.
On Saturday, over a course of 900metres, Diana Llewellyn excelled in her heat and semi to reach the final of WJ14 1x. James Whittingham dead-heated his J16 1x final, only to lose the re-row by a canvas. Cath Allaway & Jackie Builth created a composite quad with Molesey and won WS3 4x over Wallingford in the final.
On Sunday over 700metres and in incessant rain, James Capel won J12 1x and becomes our youngest-ever sculling winner. Older brother Tom then convincingly won J14 2x with Tom Oxton. In a succession of tight races, Carl Boon & Mick Howe got pipped by ¼length in veteran B 2x; the men's quad went out by ½length and the women's quad lost their final by a few feet to Warwick.
Thanks are due to Nigel & James for taking the trailer on a round trip of 260miles and to the parents for coming to support the juniors.

At Burway vets & juniors regatta on Sunday, the women's veteran C 4+ took an early lead over Molesey, but were unable to maintain it and finished a couple of lengths behind.

On Saturday at Staines Regatta, Liz Flavell and Linda Ross made their debut in a sculling event and got through a round of women's novice doubles. Later, Peter Morley claimed his second sculling pot of the year in veteran E/F singles

A win for JamesW & Nigel in Garrick doubles at Molesey Regatta on Saturday. And a convincing win in Pub Fours for the team from the King's Head, Shepperton, who practised from Weybridge and were coxed by James Coxhead. James has kindly provided some photos.
At Molesey Junior Regatta on Sunday, Oscar won J16 single sculls and the J14 coxed quad won their final over a crew from Maidenhead.

Both of our 1960s restricted single sculling boats are appearing in the Bonham's Rivercraft auction at Henley on Saturday. These matched boats have served many generations of Weybridge oarsmen/women but have been little-used in recent years since the introduction of plastic boats. Let's hope they find a good home.

At Henley Veterans on Friday, both Peter in his 'E' single and Carl/Mick in their 'B' double managed to meet the eventual winners in their first rounds heats.

So who's coming along to the Olympic Regatta at Dorney Lake in August 2012? It's inevitable that Weybridge people, past, present and future, will be there either officiating or spectating - or just maybe competing? Only 2578 days to go....!

Those arriving at the Club will notice some changes in the days ahead : firstly, Latchmere are at last installing some lighting on the path. And we now have a new glossy permanent sign on the front gate replacing the temporary ones used since 2001. That should help smarten-up the act in our 125th year.

The latest Wey To Row Beginners rowing course started on Monday 4th July. There are a couple of opportunities remaining so email us to reserve a last-minute place. It almost goes without saying that existing members will extend a warm welcome to our guests, but in addition please keep noise down to a minimum when classroom sessions are in progress.

A flotilla of 4 coxed quads from Frankfurt Rowing Club, Germany, boated from Weybridge last Monday, bound for Oxford over 5 days. Upon departure they gave a rousing three-cheers for the hospitality provided by Weybridge RC and the hut-owners on the lower island.

Peter has a new batch of Club ties. They are £15 each, exactly the same as last time. His contact details are shown here.

The Pre-Henley Ball was probably the best and certainly the most well-attended of recent years. We had 120 guests, many of whom were still enjoying the occasion well after midnight ! A big, big thank-you to all those who helped put on the event and clear-up afterwards. There is one marquee to dis-assemble, so we'd appreciate some help at around 8.15pm this evening (Monday).

There was a good turnout of Weybridge people at Henley Women's Regatta, particularly on Saturday to support Alison & Emily who were making their debut at the regatta by competing in Elite Doubles. The girls showed amazing determination and commitment in the first round against Hereford, coming back from a deficit of about 2½ lengths at half-way to win by a canvas. Photos are here and here. However, they went out to a good Henley RC crew in the quarter final. Click here for full results, and choose an event to view.

Thanks to everyone who assisted with the officiating at Women's Henley. The organising committee appreciated the efforts of the Weybridge contingent who manned the crossing point and landing stages.

A brief summary of last weekend's racing :
o an impressive win for Alison & Emily in WS2 2x at Reading on Saturday, beating Thames RC in the final. Here are some excellent action photos : one, two , three.
o James Coxhead reached the final of J14 1x, and James Whittingham reached the final of Sen4 1x at Bedford Star on Saturday.
o Four wins and plus finalists in J14 1x (Jackson Lippold) and Sen4 1x (James Whittingham) at Bedford Star on Sunday. Of particular note was the Senior3 coxed four which overcame Staines BC, since the Weybridge bow-pair were both J14s making an early debut in senior rowing.
o 3rd place WVC 2x at National Veteran Championships for Anne & Ruth. 5th place in VB 2x for Mick & Carl. Photos : one, two.

A reminder that the parking bays on Whittet's Ait are for drop-off/pick-up only, which effectively means "30 minute stay". Please don't hog all the bays by using them for longer than this, particularly at peak rowing times. Also note that road on Whittet's Ait is about to be re-surfaced, so please don't obstruct the contractors.

At Metropolitan Regatta, Alison & Emily came a very creditable 3rd from 7 in their heat of WS2 2x and narrowly missed out on a place in the final.
At Weybridge Ladies' regatta, the junior girls seemed to be racing all day. Several finals reached, but alas no wins this time around.
At Peterborough Regatta, Gill & Tracey came 2nd in WS2 pairs.

Here's the latest special offer from Rock The Boat : Tim's Foster's book Four Men in a Boat is available in paperback to Weybridge members for only £7 including delivery by hand to the clubhouse. Just send an email to di [at] rock-the-boat.co.uk to claim your copy.

Race-by-race results from Walton Regatta are now up. Two sculling wins to report : James Whittingham in J16 and Peter Morley in Veteran C/D/E. A special mention too, for Charlie Capel who became our youngest-ever single sculling competitor at the age of 10. He unfortunately fell in about 5 strokes short of the line, but he'll be back racing again next week. And Diana & Kirsten who lost to the eventual winners of WJ14 2x by only 3 feet.

Weybridge crews competed at the following four regattas last weekend : Walton , Weybridge Ladies , Peterborough & Metropolitan.

Another win to report : Nigel Gower won senior 2 single sculls at Northwich regatta on bank holiday Monday.

A thank-you note here from ARA Chairman, Di Ellis, who acknowledges the help and support offered by volunteers at the recent FISA World Cup held at Dorney Lake. At least 8 Weybridge people were on duty at the event which was the first FISA regatta to be held in England since 1986. Judith gets a special mention in the article about junior participation.

Congratulations to James Whittingham who won novice sculls at Doncaster regatta on Saturday. And just to make it more of an achievement, he raced a total of 8 times in one day!

Sunday 8 May was the busiest day of the year so far, with over 50 different people going afloat during the the morning. Congratulations to Nigel, Caroline, Tony & Jonathan for leading the beginners' groups with such enthusiasm, and thanks to all the others who helped out, including many parents.

The useful links page has been updated with information on clothes & shoes for extra-tall people; and a new Thames Guide, which includes an oh-so-true comment about a canoeist's lack of etiquette and navigation skills around Desborough Island.

There have been a couple of recent updates to the noticeboard.

A rewarding weekend for the Club at Evesham Regatta over the weekend with 3 wins over the 1000m course on Saturday: Alison & Emily dominated their WS4 2x event, James Coxhead won J13 1x on his racing debut, and James Whittingham won J16 1x with both his semi-final and final opponents falling in!
And 2 more wins over the 500m sprint course on Sunday: James Amico & James Coxhead won J13 2x by 2 feet, and the J14 4x+ overcame Evesham in their final, superbly steered by Jack Percival. A mention, too, of Mark Bakos who impressed by making the final in J15 1x.
Not surprisingly, Nigel was a happy chappy after seeing the juniors doing so well at their first regatta of the year.

The ARA have decreed that any boats being used on the Tideway must carry a boat identifier. Ours will be "WEY001" etc. The scheme, which only applies to boats going below Teddington Lock, will start this summer - probably from the end of June.