CHAIRMAN’S VIEW

The Club’s year drew to a close with the AGM on Sunday, 21 July and a nearly full Long Room with more attending on Zoom.

Club officers were duly elected including our new captain Rob Porter who takes over from Elizabeth Cottrell. Elizabeth has served for two years with distinction and dedication having rowed in the squad and held down a full time job. There were times when she seemed to be in three places at once and I really don’t know how she did it. Mike Baldwin thanked her on behalf of the whole club and presented a bouquet of flowers.

As always, we wouldn’t have a club without our volunteers and professional staff and our thanks go to those who give their time and effort to make LRC what it is.

Elizabeth summed up the rowing year, one of strong results, improving quality in the top squad and growing numbers of active rowers, evidenced by the Victor Ludorom win at the BR Masters Championships.

Philip Carre gave an overview of the finances which are healthy. Membership has grown in most categories, although we have seen a slight drop in the number of Associate and Out of Town members.

June saw a gathering of ‘8s and 9s’ and we aim to reach out in future to more of our members who may have lost touch.

The club keeps evolving and there’s always lots to do. If you would like to get involved in any role please do contact me or any officer.

As I write, the Olympic regatta has just finished with some terrific racing and a great medal haul. What a turnaround from Tokyo; the close verdicts at top level keep our sport fascinating to watch and some of the athletes’ back stories were truly heart-warming.

Wishing everyone a great summer and hoping you enjoy the close season. Don’t forget the battle paddling, see you there.

Bill Baker
Chairman, London Rowing Club

CAPTAIN’S REPORT

It is an immense privilege for me to write my first Captain’s Report for The London Roar. A big thanks to all those who attended the Club’s AGM (be it virtually or in person). It was great to see so many people turn out.

It would be remiss of me not to thank outgoing captain Elizabeth Cottrell for all the hard work, leadership and support she has given the Club during her two years as captain and I look forward to seeing the Club develop further on its upward trajectory.

The main rowing season may be over, but that doesn’t mean our members are taking time away from the water.

Following their success at British Masters, our LRC Masters once again took to the Henley track in full force on Saturday, 15 July for Henley Masters with a total of eleven crews entered for the event. A terrific day of racing was had, with members from across the “Millennials”, “Young Irregulars” and “Masters” all taking part. In what can be considered a huge testament to the continued growing strength and success of our masters rowers - three LRC crews battled through to the final stages of the event, racing valiantly against tough competition, and a further two crews raced through to semi-final stages. Congratulations to those who raced and a big thanks as always to volunteers who helped organise LRC’s contingent to attend.

Turning our attention to events north of the border, a number of LRC’s senior squad athletes took part in the Home International Regatta at Strathclyde Park on 27 July.

Six members of the men’s senior squad trialled and raced for England in the M4-, M2- and M8+. The strong M4-, composed entirely of LRC members, placed 2nd, the M2- placed 4th and the M8+ placed a strong 2nd in the 2K event before smashing through to 1st place in the sprint event, to help to secure a team win for England overall.

From the women’s senior squad, Laura Bates trialled and represented Scotland in three events and placed strongly in all of them - W1x (3rd), W4x 2K event (2nd) and W4x sprint event (2nd).

Likewise, George Cowley trialled and represented Wales in the M1x, M4x (2K event) and M4x sprint event, placing 3rd, 4th and 2nd respectively.

Huge congratulations to all our athletes who trialled and raced and to those who helped get our members there!

Senior squad members who represented England, Scotland and Wales at the Home International.

More recently, a contingent of LRC members from across all rowing groups made haste back to the Henley course for the much loved Henley Town & Visitors Regatta.

In total 12 LRC crews entered nine events. There were some hard battles fought across the events, including the Masters BC 4- entries against Marlow. LRC ultimately prevailed to secure first place in the Op 2-, ‘Mas BC’ 2x, ‘W Mas A’ 2x, and Mix 2x events.

Huge congratulations to all our members who took part and to those who helped organise our entourage there!

Op 2- winners Jed Campbell-Williams and Tom Stace.

As we move into the second half of summer, I continue to enjoy see so many members taking to the water on warm evenings and at the weekend.

August also sees the return of the LRC ‘Fight Nights’. The sign up sheet will be sent out each week via WhatsApp groups and the Weekly Brief - please do come down and join for some mixed crew racing and drinks after at the bar (or local establishment if LRC is already hired out for an event)!

I look forward to seeing members, present and new around the Club.

Bang the drum!

Rob Porter
Captain, London Rowing Club

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

See more detail for these events, visit our Calendar of Events…

LRC TAKES ON HENLEY MASTERS

Masters C8+ - Jason Bowyer

"Certainty of death? Small chance of success? What are we waiting for!"
Gimli, The Lord of The Rings.

Alongside our fellow crews competing, LRC entered 3 Masters VIIIs across Masters B & C in an attempt to claim one of those elusive purple boxes.

Racing in one of our newest additions to the Club’s fleet, Ed Snaith, our "first" C8 was crewed by:

B - James Sexton-Barrow
2 - Tom Killick
3 - Pierre Lhommet
4 - Paul Mascaro
5 - Jason Bowyer
6 - David Law
7 - James Robinson
S - Adrian Turner
COX: Emma Beardmore

Our first race was against a City of Bristol/Bideford composite. Earlier in the year, at the Masters Head of The River, one of our crews was beaten by a City of Bristol crew so we had a vague idea of what to expect.

Nevertheless, we deployed our Chief Intelligence Officer (JSB) to uncover the facts. He discovered the composite member was the national Concept2 record holder for 2k (6:38) in the 60-64 category.

We assumed he was averaging a few "young bucks" out. Not that I can talk, of course, being the 2nd youngest member of our crew (a spritely 38, before you ask).

Suffice to say, we won our semi-final by a comfortable margin.

Onward to the final, against our arch rival, Crabtree Boat Club.

Rumours of Crabtree not being able to race a C8+ turned out to be just that, and they duly turned up with a stacked lineup. We boated with heads held high. On our way down to the start we did our best paddling and practice starts to date. As a result, “We've so got this" was going through everyone's minds as we lined up for the start.

"London, Crabtree - Attention: GO!"

49 off the start, settling to 38. We were off. Adrenaline pumping - they were right beside us. "Time to overturn history". Stroke for stroke, we were in a dogfight.

Halfway approaching, they started to slip away. "We've still got this."

Emma calls a push to regain. "WALKING!" bellowed down from the Chief Intelligence Officer (JSB - remember him?) in the bow seat. We reclaimed a seat.

Approaching the last 350 we knew we had to throw the entire kitchen in, not just the sink. "Up 2, GO!" came down the cox box and we jumped up to 40. Crabtree are still there, but unfortunately slightly ahead.

Across the line... Crabtree by about a length.

Fiddlesticks.

Considering their pedigree, we did ourselves proud. Even though we are now 2-year rivals, the camaraderie persisted. We shook hands on the landing stage and congratulated each other on what had been an Incredible race.

Masters C1x - Matous Mechnevik

While going to Henley Masters with the highest ambitions, I was mindful that eliminating the eight seconds by which I had lost in Nottingham to Mr Barnett from Hollingworth Lake would not be easy.

Starting directly in semis on Saturday, Mr Riceman from Itchen Imperial Rowing Club represented a bigger challenge than I would have liked. Starting strong, I opened a lead of 1 length by 250m. Unfortunately, he returned the favour by 600 and my spirits were taking a hit. Realising I could not lose my first race with my kids cheering me on the bank, I pushed through and found myself level with my competitor with 150 to go. Continuing to push through, I won by just over a length.

The commentator called "this the best sculling race so far" which, of course, made me blush! That being said, sadly, I was not able to repeat this feat in the final, which presented another challenge, struggling with the waves in the 90s Empacher built for 10kg lighter rowers!

Despite the three decades handicap in boat ages, I think the gap was around 6 seconds in the end, a bit less than Nottingham. I was happy with that.

I will pay Hollingworth Lake back with interest next year.

Masters C4x (composite) - Evan Grace

This year 2 LRC members joined forces with friends from Bradford on Avon to mount a strong campaign in the men’s C4X. Simon Coles and Evan Grace represented LRC, with James Nash and Mark Stamper forming the BoA contingent.

First up on Friday was a strong crew from local rivals Tideway Scullers. In chatting with them afterwards we learned that they had seat-raced to form their crew, and it showed that the two crews were level at the halfway point. At this point, we picked up the pace and moved up half a length. The lead was extended in the final 250 and the race ended with a solid ¾ length victory.

Next up Saturday morning was a semifinal against Henley Rowing Club. We came off the line ahead, settled into a race pace between 36 and 38, and maintained a consistent pace throughout to a 1 ½ length win.

In the final, we faced off against a very strong Leicester composite. They won this event here and at BRMC last year, so we knew this would be a tough assignment. Despite a very strong row, holding a 38-40 for the bulk of the race and a “kitchen sink” last 250, we came up 3 lengths short.

While we would have preferred a different outcome in the final, we all came away from the regatta with heads held high and pleased with the performance. Special thanks to our friends from Bradford on Avon for making it possible.

Jason Bowyer, Matous Mechnevik and Evan Grace

YOUNG IRREGULARS REPORT

The Young Irregulars have been relishing this recent good weather, and with the fortunate addition of low tides coinciding with our regular outings on Wednesday evenings and Saturday mornings, the rowing has been extremely enjoyable. We have been grateful to Eilidh for her, happily steering more than usual to allow our other steers to focus on training for races.

The club coaching sessions have been great for us with strong attendance and some good tips for each of us to work on - thanks to all who have made this happen with Killian and Dave.

July has proved great for the summer regattas with Henley Masters and Henley Town & Visitors happening just 3 weeks apart. We were able to enter several crews into each of these events and have had success coming from them as well!

Henley Masters saw us enter two different boats - the W MasB 2x and the W MasB 4x.

With strong competition, and varying wind levels both boats were unfortunately beaten, but by the winners of each final! However each crew remained in high spirits when they saw the pizza van and pina coladas on sale halfway down the course, offering sustenance to keep them cheering on the rest of the LRC Masters crews right until the last race.

Pictured (bow to stroke): Minna, Heather, Rachel, Camile.

Henley Town & Visitors also had some great racing on display as we entered 3 crews into the regatta:

Open Mixed 2x - Rachel Evans + Tom Downes

A tough semi-final against some fierce competition in Tideway Scullers left our crew 3 lengths down at the finish line.

W MasA 2x - Rachel Evans + Camille Lanckneus

Back to defend their title from the previous year, Rachel and Cami went into the final as strong favourites to bring home the silverware for us! As the wind picked up on the start line and turned the glassy water into something resembling our wonderful tideway, the girls got off to a good start, but were held at half a boat length down on the Eton Excelsior A crew for 500m of the race. Not wanting to leave without putting up a fight, Cami (stroke) was able to drop the slide length, increase stroke rate and boat speed with it through the enclosure area, coming back to win by just 4 feet!

Pictured: Mike Williams - Vice President of LRC, congratulating Camille and Rachel.

Congratulations to the girls on defending their title from last year!

Open 2x (Composite) - Tom Downes + Dan Watterston (UCL)

The final race for our Young Irregulars brought Tom and Dan together in a straight final against Falcon RC and Reading RC. Reading shot off from the start taking the lead all the way home, but a closer and more entertaining race was happening behind. Kept at half a length down, Tom and Dan maintain a good rhythm and rate the whole way down the course. As they came into the enclosures the power picked up and they started to come back on the Falcon crew from Oxford, neck and neck with just 200m to go! With an unfortunate catch of of the blade in the water from the stroke man they went back to a length down - determined not to be beaten by a big margin, Tom and Dan managed to regroup and put the power down in front of the crowds and pushed Falcon all the way home, gaining on them with each strong to lose by just under 1/3 of a length.

Kathleen our greatest cheerleader captured the above picture: (left to right): Tom, Rachel, Camille and Dan

Tom Downes

YUKON RIVER QUEST 26TH/29TH JUNE

Some may remember my 2022 report on taking part in this 715 km canoe and kayak marathon race in Yukon, Canada, known as The Race to the Midnight Sun.

Well, in 2022 we had the particular challenge of being under-boated in an eight man Voyager of several 100+ kilo ex rowers and too much survival gear, which resulted in a capsize, carrying on and bowing out at the half way point due to impending rapids.

So there was something of ‘unfinished business’ which prompted six of us to have another go in 2024. Our crew, named ‘Billy Smart’s One Trick Ponies’, comprised ace steersman Rob Howe (ULBC and LRC), undaunted by back surgery earlier in the year, Paddy Broughton (CUBC and LRC), ocean yachtsman and our expert navigator and keeper of the sat nav tracker, Paddy Mant (CUBC and TSS), 6’5’’ 100+kg, good man to have in the engine room, this his fourth YRQ, Iain Burnett (ULBC and Thames Tradesmen), new to YRQ but took to it with enthusiasm and a great crewman, Angus Woods (Neptune RC), Irish lightweight team, farmer, solid as a rock and always upbeat, and yours truly in the stroke seat (I was in the bow but facing forward if you get the picture).

Invaluable support was provided by Andrew in a hired campervan who was to go ahead and meet us at the halfway stage.

Before the start with the Mayor of Whitehorse.

The Yukon River has a huge current, some junctions and, like our Tideway, fast and slow channels. It flows through proper wild country with no habitation for hundreds of miles, hence each boat has to carry tents and other survival gear in case of emergency.

After some days and two practice paddles from our base in the Yukon capital Whitehorse, start day arrived. Boat classes include 10, 8 and 6 person Voyagers, C and K 4s, 2s and singles and, almost unbelievably for the distance and environment, single stand up paddle boards (SUPs). The stage from Whitehorse to the halfway mandatory 10 hours rest point at Carmacs camp site takes approximately 26 hours and the second stage to Dawson City around 30 hours in a Voyager.

Our strategy was to each take 5 minutes rest per hour so the biggest challenge is the lack of sleep. The first 3 hours takes you to Lake Laberge, scene of our 2022 sinking and a 7 hour crossing in dead water. That safely executed, we were pulled in for an unscheduled 2 hours stop due to forest fires down the river. (This was in fact quite welcome).

Onwards into the night. The small hours of the morning are when one reaches one’s lowest ebb. Note to self: never again. The river contains huge swirling boils and many of us hallucinated through lack of sleep. I was convinced someone had set up a dining table and chairs on the river only for it to evaporate. Some banks appeared to be covered in graffiti which at first looked like the work of local kids until you realised there weren’t any, it was just the patterns of the undergrowth.

At last, we pulled into Carmacs at 10.30am the following day where we had to be physically helped to stand and get up the bank.

Blessed rest and a meal from Andrew. After some kip the news came through that the race was off due to forest fires further down river. The consolation was that we were the fastest Voyager to that point.

We couldn’t even drive to Dawson so back to Whitehorse for a few days rest and recuperation.

On the way home we had a 12 hour stopover in Vancouver so hired bikes to ride around the bay. There we came upon Vancouver Rowing Club whose members kindly gave us a tour of their clubhouse. They were very interested to know we were largely LRC. I seem to remember many years ago we raced them in a round of the Wyfold and lost (or won?) by a foot or two. Can any statistician bear this out?

Vancouver Rowing Club’s elegant clubhouse.

So, a fabulous experience, a great crew of mates and lifelong memories of the trip. Will I have another go? Er, no.

Bill Baker

NEW MEMBERS

We would like to welcome the following new members to the Club:

Benedict Edmondson
Callum Fletcher
James King
Josh Lyon
Ed Roe
Ben Wood

We hope you will enjoy being part of the London Rowing Club community and will help us build an ever happier and more successful club.

We are always pleased to have more members so, if you know of anyone who you think might like to join the Club, please either let us know or encourage them to get in touch with us themselves.

Read here for information on becoming a member on our website, or you can email the Club’s Membership Secretary.

Andrew Boyle
Honorary Secretary, London Rowing Club

FILMING AT LRC

On the 12th, 13th and 14th August there will be a team filming at LRC.

Their principal filming work will be on the 13th in front of the boathouse.

Please could you, therefore, avoid using the boating bays between 11am and 9pm on Tuesday, 13th August.

Rob Porter
Captain, London Rowing Club

LRC VICTOR LUDORUM

While there have been numerous stand out moments for LRC this year, in terms of participation by the widest cross section of members, one of the greatest has to have been the masters’ collective success in winning the Victor Ludorum at the BR Masters Championships at Nottingham in June.

In all 68 members took part, racing in 48 events and winning 2 golds, 8 silvers and 9 bronzes, and all contributing points towards the VL tally.

To win the Victor Ludorum, by my count, our crews totted up 442 points. Word around the lake on the Sunday of the regatta was that this score was 50 more than the second placed Tideway Scullers School.

I have been trying to find out from the regatta organisers whether this total is the highest ever achieved but, so far, they have not responded to my request.

My guess, and it can be no more than that for the moment, is that our team’s score was the highest ever achieved and, as such, set a new record.

If you know of any other winning team that has scored more points in previous years, please let me know.

Drum banged,

James Sexton-Barrow

REPORTING SAFETY INCIDENTS

All members are reminded that if you are involved in or witness a water safety incident, you are required to report it using the following email address – safety@londonrc.org.uk

The Club will file any necessary reports on your behalf with British Rowing and the PLA. Members should not submit reports directly to either body.

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

My thanks to everyone who has contributed to this edition of the London Roar. If you have an idea for an article or would be interested in submitting a piece for inclusion in a future edition, please email me on miles.preston@londonrc.org.uk

Please do not submit an article without first liaising with me.

Miles Preston
Editor of The London Roar