Most sane people when faced with weather of the kind we had on Sunday would probably just roll over in bed silently praying that someone will bring them a cup of tea and a bacon sandwich. Us in RUMSBC aren’t most people, we enjoy the weather as it came hand in hand with a chance to kick UH ass. The chosen form of ass kicking was a one on one sprint race, over a distance of about 800m, with the winner progressing on to the next round and the loser taking home nothing. This is UH Winter Regatta.

The novice men were up first against the novices from St. Georges Hospital. So far this year they have been an unstoppable force but that was no more. What was to scupper their chances was an unfortunate series of crabs bringing them to a screeching halt. They rallied and powered back up again giving it everything they gained significant ground, but it was too late. I think its safe to say that the only people that more disappointed that the guys in that boat were the other crews who weren’t able to properly prove themselves against this years big dogs of UH Novice men’s rowing.

The novice women fared a lot better they were able to put on a really clean display of rowing with no trouble they knocked away GKT and VETS 2 to reach the final. When it came down to it on the day, they weren’t able to match  the RVC 1st novice crew but once again took away the second place. The fires have been thoroughly stoked and they will be an interesting crew to look out for come the 22nd February. I couldn’t put it better than the words of their Life Coach and Mentor – Tom Hughes “we’ve lost in three finals and we know how bad you want it”.

The Men’s senior squad are having a bit of a troubled year something that they all hoped to change at UH regatta.

In a repeat of the first round at Allom Cup the 1st crew were drawn ICSM in their first round, understandably they were apprehensive but it also freed them so going in to the race they were much more relaxed than before, however it was to no avail putting up a brave fight they were knocked out of the competition.

The Men’s 2nds had been drawn Barts and the London in their first race, with ease they were able to push them away and make it through into the final. In the final, against ICSM, they were unable to repeat the performance of the last race falling behind by a short amount and with that the medals. Having been given a taste of victory it just makes them want it more, lets hope both crews can improve when it comes round to the next race.

The women’s 2nds had been pulled up into the senior category as they had scared away all of the other competition. They were drawn against Georges 1st and they held their own as an intermediate boat in a senior category, but it wasn’t to be their normal medalling glory. It is however safe to say that they are still the best intermediate women’s crew in UH.

As the day wore on the clouds parted and the brightest light wasn’t the sun it was from the medals draped around the necks of our Women’s 1st crew come day end. It wasn’t an easy win; to get through to the final they had to beat GKT then Barts, this pit them against ICSM and keen to avenge their male counterparts they gave it all and did us proud.

Special mention to the RUMS WS8 aka The Champions

Alex Willsher (cox), Jess Rankine, Alice Taylor-Bennett, Hannah Orrell, Claire Rowden, Daisy Newberry, Eimear Mckavanagh, Mary Sisley, Joy Schmidt

Allom Cup has come and gone, and once again RUMSBC has dived in and, as usual, caused as much trouble as possible.

The event started at 9am sharp, a lot of races to get through meant there was tight control over the schedule, any tardiness could mean disqualification. When it came to the draw UL must have taken that into account as RUMSBC’s first race wasn’t till 10.30 something we could, just about, get down for.
A buy in to the semi-finals for both Women’s senior crews pit the 1sts and 2nds against ICSM and St. Georges respectively. You may recall that the Women’s 2nds aren’t too fond of Georges after their performance at Cambridge head so they leapt at the chance of knocking them out of the cup as soon as possible, which they did in true RUMSBC style, leaving nothing to chance they charged through winning by 4 boat lengths. The Women’s 1sts took it nice and easy to have a respectable win of 1 length. Straight on into the finals for both crews.

Between these races were the Novice Heats which saw RUMS men versus UCL 2nd Novices, a shoddy start but a save out of set left a RUMS win by 1 and 1/4 lengths seeing them progress into the semi-final. The Novice Women also had a heat against Barts and the London, one of their better starts and a controlled win was easy for them.

The first races of the day for the men’s senior crews came shortly after, both the 2nds and the 1sts had been drawn up against ICSM. This was a tough draw for both crews, ICSM consistently field incredibly strong crews, their 1st crew having a huge 45s lead over the men at Cambridge meant there was a bit of disappointment before the event had even begun a pep-email from the Captain got the guys straight and back came the fighting faces. The 2nds were up first and were able to push ahead of ICSM for the first half of the race, however a mixture of a bend in the river, lack of steering and the presence of another boat in their path meant they had to fully hold up costing them the race. They were allowed a re-run but it was too late, the damage being done, ICSM were able to recover much more quickly and although holding for a large part of the race ICSM took the win progressing to the final, the 2nds vowing to train harder and to use the experience to their advantage.

The 1sts had a much more straightforward race, a good start led to a solid settle and allowed them to keep up with an incredible crew, putting on a good performance but ultimately loosing by 3 Lengths. They were able to identify areas in which to improve and have a hope for a change. In the space of a few minutes hopes of medals in the men’s senior squad were dashed.

The Novice semi-finals brought good cheer back to the club, both crews against RVC and both winning by 3 boat lengths, which put RUMSBC into 2 more finals. The competition then paused for a bit of lunch  and allow the set up of the reversed start and finish lines due to the change in tides. It was time for the Allom Cup finals.

 THE FINALS

First up for us were the Women’s novices against UCL, from a distance it looked as if the girls were holding the UCL girls, however a huge crab leading to a broken oar meant that the girls had to fully hold up rowing to the finish with six oars. After a similar techinical fault failing them at UH Novice Sprints the girls were incredibly disappointed they weren’t able to come home with some medals to make up for it. Don’t worry there is always UH regatta.

Next up was the Men’s Novices, against Royal Holloway University who consistently put forward incredibly strong Novice crews so it was likely to be an incredibly close final. Coming down the course it was clear that RUMS were marginally behind, but were still giving it everything to catch up. Rowing is a sport where skill and fitness and a little bit of luck are important, Royal Holloways crew catching a huge crab 100 metres before the finish line, gave the boys  a chance to push past and were able to take the lead and hold for victory. RUMSBC first win of the Day.

The women’s 2nds were up next against LSE. The 2nd’s are a very strong and determined crew that were not going to accept anything but a win, they aimed and they delivered. Storybook rowing from start to finish; well and truly earning their medals.

The big final of the day was the women’s 1sts against UCL, could RUMSBC hold onto the Anne Redgrave cup or will UCL be able to tear it from their grasp. It was a race against two crews that had easily made the final and the rivalry was strong. By the last 150ish metres UCL were leading by about a boat length but RUMS were having none of it and were pushing ahead, preying on UCL’s tiredness. Perhaps if the course had been a little longer RUMS would have been able to push past but alas UCL were able to take the coveted blade. Commiserations to the women’s 1sts who came so close, but not close enough I can already see a determined fightback next year.

A thoroughly enjoyable day of races was had by all. Making four finals is impressive enough, winning two of them makes it all that much better.

Special Congratulations go to our winning crews

Women’s 2nds

Leah Rosenbaum (cox), Tintin Larsson, Izzy Goldrick, Katie Westbrook, Laura Cousins, Steph Glavin, Eimear Mckavanagh, Lauren McDonagh and Rachael Alcock

Men’s Novices

Naomi Gostelow (cox), Ben Jacobs, Andy Luckiweiz, Sam Gunning, Aubrey Capern Burgess, Ed Bragg, Santiago Martinez-Sosa, Michele Bertoli, Tom Clay and their captain Johannes Staufenberg

Final Word from the Pres
“HUGE well done to all crews racing at Allom cup. This rounds off a strong showing from us this season and I am really excited to see what we can do next term!” – Alex Willsher
 

Middle Middle Middle!

Next week is the annual University of London college sprint off that is Allom Cup. The equivalent cup for the Women’s crews is the Ann Redgrave cup of which RUMSBC is the current holders off.

The Women’s Crews

The 1sts
Lets hope that again our women’s 1sts can put in the performance to keep it in the face of some stiff competition from the other strong colleges.
Alex Willsher (cox), Jess Rankine(c), Alice Taylor-Bennett, Maja Donaldson, Claire Rowden, Daisy Newberry, Mary Sisley, Libi Hawkes, Joy Schmidt

The 2nds

After Cambridge Head our women’s 2nds crew has some unfinished business with a to be left unnamed UL crew. Will that rivalry blind them or drive them to victory only time will tell.

The Women’s 2nds for Allom Cup will be.
Leah Rosenbaum (cox), Tintin Larsson, Izzy Goldrick, Katie Westbrook, Laura Cousins, Steph Glavin, Eimear Mckavanagh, Lauren McDonagh, Rachael Alcock

The Men’s Crews

The 1sts

The Men’s 1sts were very disappointed after their Cambridge performance and are hoping to wash it away with their performance this weekend. Will a slight crew change and a modified training schedule give them the result they desire?
The Men’s 1sts
Kit Hunter (Cox), Will Mclaughlin, John Hall, Louis Robertson(c), Tom Morgan, Neel Raja, Alex Cowan, Mike Foxall-Smith, Adam Pickard

The 2nds

The Men’s 2nds astounded all with their performance at Cambridge Head a few weeks ago, the squad wasn’t able to maintain that crew necessitating a number of changes bringing up men from the very successful development squad let us all hope they are changes for the better.
The Men’s 2nds
Leah Rosenbaum (Cox), Lucas Belon, Angus Dawson, Tom McLay, Andrew Cole, Ali Williamson, Sam Jackson, Charlie Hensher, Rory Shadwell.

The Novices

Men

After dominating UH sprints last week we have high hopes for the continued success of our men’s Novice squad. A big powerful crew that can sometimes be let down by their technical ability. Having beaten all UH crews last week, and UCL’s Novices the week before, KCL beat them to the finish at Cambridge our hopes that two weeks more training and the confidence boost from last week can lift them past all other UH crews.
The Men’s novices
Marcus Ghosh (cox), Ben Jacobs, Andy Luckiweiz, Sam Gunning, Aubrey Capern Burgess, Ed Bragg, Santiago Martinez-Sosa, Michele Bertoli, Tom Clay

Women

The women’s novice crew feel cheated, loosing in the final of the UH novice sprints last week can be strongly attributed to a technical fault. They are hoping to wipe the slate clean and replace that 2nd place with a winners medal come saturday.
Our Women’s Novice Crew
Kit Hunter (Cox), Kate Friedlaender, Chowa Nkonde, Beth Hughes, Beth Welch, Phoebe Aubugeu-Williams, Alexandra Scholey, Caitlin Healey, Liz Ck

Good Luck to all crews, do your boat club proud.

UH novice sprints are the first Sprint races in the RUMSBC season and are unique in that they are held for Novice boats only.

The first race of the day was the Novice Boys against a crew from the Royal College of Vet’s both crews looked strong and together. A start that the boys would have been less than happy about put them on the back foot in this race, but through sheer power and determination they were able to push their boat past the self proclaimed medic bashers to take a victory of about 2 boat length. Victorious they were able to row back to the boat house to have a short rest.
Winning their first race put them through to the next round, the semi-finals, the crew with the privilege of facing them was Barts and the London who had put in the effort to beat ICSM 3rds in their heat. The boys had a much better start this time, were able to push in the power and win easily by about 3 boat lengths, a truly impressive display putting them through to the final.

Next up it was time for the women, having had a buy into the semi-finals they were able to have a bit of a lie in before coming down for their first race, again it was against Barts and the London, this was a much closer race than the boys just scraping through the win by a canvas. A win none the less. This put them through into the final which meant that the UH categories were DOMINATED by RUMSBC.

The finals were due to take place after lunch so the crews rested and recovered, cheered on some other crews before getting their heads back into the game.

After lunch was a rapid fire set of races, the repecharge finals were up first, giving the opportunity for those crews that had a bad luck in the draw to redeem themselves. After that came the UH novice sprints finals. The Women went first, drawn against a crew from St. Georges Medical School who are a strong force in UH and beyond. Disaster struck at the start when an incorrectly closed gate meant that a blade was lost, once they got the blade back in the gate they were able to start going pulling back a boat length but unable to save the race. A massive disappointment for the girls but entirely expected from a crew who have only rowed for 2 months.

The display the boys gave was on a completely different level. Drawn up against the unstoppable force that is ICSMBC the boys were nervous. Their rowing had improved throughout the day and they had reached a stage in the competition far beyond where they had hoped. They boated with the aim of doing their bests and their bests they did. It turns out the boys had no reason to doubt themselves, storming ahead to win by 2 boat lengths.


What a way to end a day, with their medals slung around their necks the Novices and the seniors that stuck by to support went off to celebrate on the infamous UH Novice Sprints Pub Crawl.

The entire club is incredibly proud of the performance of both crews; reaching the final is achievement enough winning is the icing on the cake.

Last Sunday mornings was a triumph for RUMSBC a sign of more to come maybe? Especially with Allom Cup around the corner. Well done to all crews for taking part, congratulations go to the Men’s Novice Squad, their Captain Johannes Staufenberg and their Cox Marcus Ghosh.

An alarm clock going off at 5.30 is not uncommon for rowers and in this respect last Saturday was no exception. But on this Saturday RUMSBC weren’t making their usual pilgrimage to Chiswick, no they were heading to the Bloomsbury Theatre to jumps on a coach to take them to Cambridge for the annual Cantabrigian winter head. The coach journey was very uneventful with most falling asleep as soon as they touched down on the chairs but rest is always required before a busy day and the journey was soon over.


The first order of the day was division of the Men’s 1sts and 2nds, this meant that as soon as we arrived the whole club had to work together to make sure their boats were ready and rigged for winning, that having been done the men’s crews grew a little lax and were nearly late for their race luckily this only resulted in a telling off from the marshal.


The race for the 1sts by Louis Robertson 


“I would say that it was a good, if unpolished row, with our crew working together and putting power down well but sometimes failing to hit all the technical points. Our start was scrappy, and we also had some trouble going taking the corners due to the length of the Hudson, but I’m very happy with how we rowed, if not with the final race time we put down.” 

The women’s senior crews were up next, their turn to get their boats in working condition before hitting the water. Disaster nearly struck the women’s 2nds when their unfamiliarity with boating from a solid bank nearly cost them their fin, sharp eyes and fast as light responses from the cox, Naomi Gostelow, managed to avoid a potentially sticky situation.  Both women’s crews set off looking happy and ready to row.


How the Race was for the 1sts – Jess Rankine 


“After several weeks of training the women’s firsts were excited to see what we could achieve at the first race of the year. As we got on the water a few nerves were showing but these were quickly blown away by a strong warm up. Before we knew what was happening we were spinning onto the start line and building for the race. The first half was about setting up a good strong rhythm which we somehow managed to do better than in any training! There were no boats in sight behind to push off but we kept the pressure up as we raced down the course. By the time we rowed passed the supporters on the bank Alex called for a ‘middle four lift’ and we flew past onto the final straight. A few slightly rushed strokes at the finish just showed how much effort we’d all put in and by the time we crossed the line no one could row another stroke! We managed to finish ahead of all other UH crews which is a fantastic result – a really strong performance from everyone involved and a great place to work off for the next race!!”

Celebrations reached a fever pitch as the club made the walk down to the familiar supporting spot 500m before the finish line where the cheers reached such a level as our women swept past that other clubs were shocked into silence and dumb stares. RUMSBC is renowned for supporting as hard as we row and this is a quality we really showed on Saturday.


Not long after the women had boated the provisional results of the 2nd Division were released. An unexpected result was to leave some over the moon but others disappointed. The Men’s 1st’s had completed their course in a time of 9min25s and they were happy with their time, that is until the 2nds discovered their result of 9min18s, put them faster as well as it at the head of their category this sent the crew into an understandable frenzy of celebration.


Next up in a division where they were a lone RUMS representative were the Men’s Novices. When I say they looked nervous as they set off it is most definitely an understatement, but under those nerves you could clearly see that they were excited for what lay in store.


The Novice Boys Race by Marcus Ghosh 


“With a broken cox-box, a delayed start and numerous bladder problems the build up to the Men’s Novice VIII’s first race was far from idyllic. Our draw stroke however, set the precedent for the race to come; long powerful strokes sent the boat flying through the start line, the early corners proved no problem and soon, as we rounded the final bend onto the straight we were hot on the tail of UCL Novice 1st VIII who were themselves catching a IV. Mid double over take we came to a juddering halt due to a remarkable 4-man crab – we however reassembled, and, urged on by the entirety of RUMSBC and some manic coxing managed to drive past them on the final straight; finishing with a good three boat lengths to spare. 


Special thanks go to Ben Jacobs for his composure and technical stroke separation in the face of a cox looming over him” 

In the final division of the day the Women’s Novices and the Men’s IV were all RUMS had left to offer, as the division before had been running late the rest of the club had yet to return from supporting the Novice boys this left these two last crews to prepare alone. Thankfully the club returned last minute to give the crews a proper send off with a cheer as they pushed off the bank.


How was the Race for the IV – Tom McLay


“The nerves in the IV were definitely showing in the row down to the start line, having had a very short training period, forming a month previously and with only one outing a week, they did not have their sights set high. Traffic on the water way meant they had a very stop-start row down, but this was a blessing in disguise as with every stop came improved rowing. The start of the race went off well, nerves however meant we moved up to a higher rating than planned but we were able to take it down steadily and as a crew. Watching the boat behind always coming towards us gives no chance to slack and that was how we remained, pushing as hard and as fast as we could maintain. It was a truly wonderful race, we may not have had the best time, but as a crew we agree that we had never rowed better together and the time we got and the race we had was far better than we could have ever hoped for.” 

How was the Race for the Novice Girls – Kit Hunter 


“Starting with an amazing pre-race chat was a good omen of things to come, Beth (stroke) had some unusual song games?in an attempt?to psych out all competition!  


It was a bit of a shaky start with a few crabs through the corners, to be expected in a nervous novice crew, but it came together beautifully?coming out of those tight corners when the girls really started to put the power down. 


Some really strong rowing down the straight allowed us to push forward and overtake the men’s crew in front of us, then wall of noise cheering us on from the rest of the club gave a huge lift and everyone coming together as a crew?to find a new gear pushing us through that final stretch. 


Unfortunately there was one final crab through the finish but this was unable to ruin a good row all round. 


One happy cox, one tired crew.” 

“After a rather shakey row up to the start we all pulled together to overtake two mens novice crews and hold off UL womens novices, a fantastic first race and day out with RUMSBC, can’t wait for the rest of the seasons races!” – Beth Welch, Stroke for the Novice Girls boat.

Watching the girls come in I don’t think anyone could say after looking at them that they didn’t put in 100%, every member of that 9 strong crew looked exhausted, red faced and gasping for breath, especially the Cox.


As the last two crews were coming off the water the novice boys were able to see their results they, like the men’s seconds, were in utter shock. They had pulled an absolute scorcher of a time; the second fastest of their category beating our friends (and occasional rivals) UCL and behind the winning crew by only 5seconds! A great way to end the day.


With only a short time remaining before the trailer had to be off the common we had to rapidly de-rig the boats and get them back on the trailer before it could depart back on the short journey back to London. The happy athletes knew it was time to head back to London and the Huntley and get celebrating, karaoke style.


Statement from the Men’s captain


“I think that the day went extremely well for the men’s squad, with the second eight coming second in their category and the development four performing well. The general standard in terms of fitness, ability and commitment is very high and following “Crew Optimisation” we are going to put in some impressive performances in the races of the next few months.” 


A Final Word From Our President 


Big thanks to both the captains and those that made sure our boats got there (and back) in one piece. Too a massive well done to all rowers and coxes; a very proud President!




The Final results 


Men’s 1st came 22nd in their category and 39th overall with a time of 9min25s


Men’s 2nd came 2nd in their category and 33rd overall with a time of 9min 18s


Men’s Novice came 2nd in their category and 107th overall with a time of 10min49s


Men’s IV came 5th in their category and 94th overall with a time of 10min 31s



Women’s 1st came 5th in their category and 85th overall with a time of 10min 19s


Women’s 2nd came 6th in their category and 137th overall in a time of 11min11s


Women’s Novice came 6th in their category and 203rd overall in a time of 12min39s



Full results available here


http://sdrv.ms/HT2n2B

For a full blow by blow written account visit http://rumsbc.co.uk/2013/11/cambridge-head-2013/

http://youtu.be/dRl2Z3JSScc

http://youtu.be/7h35ib629Dw

http://youtu.be/jENUcYXbXHU

http://youtu.be/vA9O3GPnWgo

http://youtu.be/bwuTlsZ1W-A

http://youtu.be/0roeGQK0WrA

http://youtu.be/1SNLxPxu3vk

http://youtu.be/brgUq0gOngU

http://youtu.be/kF4Q9DuH-YI

http://youtu.be/dK9MhYKt7Xw

http://youtu.be/68j4TFib5JM

http://youtu.be/8p3ifdzriqs

It is one week till the first race of the season. For most this is often regarded as a warm up race for the senior crews and a taster to rowing for the novices, this year however there is something different in the air… Could it be that our old friend Competition is raising its head before December has even begun?
This is the announcement of the crews, for those in the know this is very old information, and for the rowers themselves this has been their lives for the last 4 weeks. The boat club has been very fortunate this year and has had a hugely positive response in regards to joining; with many new experienced rowers all fighting for positions against the old on both sides of the club, inevitably there was disappointment for some. But let’s hope that the new knowledge brought and the old power retained can drive us to glory on the river Cam.

The Men’s Boats

Men’s 1sts
Kit Hunter (cox), John Hall, Will McCaughran, Alex Cowan, Neel Raja, Andrew Cole, Mike Foxall-Smith, Jack Wilson, Louis Robertson
The powerhouse that is our men’s 1sts are excited for this year, this is a boat half filled with experience and half with power, could this combination bring home those coveted hip flasks?

Men’s 2nds
Marcus Ghosh(Cox) Lucas Belon, Angus Dawson, Tom Duggan, Adam Pickard, Ali Williamson, Charlie Hennings, Jacob Rapier, Tom Morgan
Our steady engine, ticking over and producing steady results our 2nds crew will be a formidable match when it comes to races. They stress (and dress) to impress, a strong crew.

Men’s IV
Alex Wilsher(cox), Tom McLay, Stefan Mitrasinovic, Charlie Hensher, Rory Shadwell
After the glorious display last year when our IV rowed home to victory (not literally) can this slapdash crew of misfits, who have yet to actually catch in time never mind sitting the damn thing, actually come together when it counts? Only time will tell.

The Women’s Boats
Last year our women’s squad was the force to be rivaled within UH our 1st’s rowing to glorious victory at Allom cup over St George’s scooping up the Anne Redgrave Cup and the 2nd’s managing to hoover up every medal going. Let’s see if the women can improve on that this year.

Women’s 1sts
Alex W(cox), Jess Rankine, Alice T-B, Maja Donaldson, Claire Rowden, Hannah Orrell, Georgie Lloyd, Libi Hawkes, Joy Schmidt

Women’s 2nds
Naomi G (cox), Tintin Larsson, Izzy Goldrick, Daisy Newberry, Laura Cousins, Katie Westbrook, Eimear McKavanagh, Lauren McDonagh, Rachael Alcock

On paper our best crew of the 2012/13 season. There is a strong remnant of last years crew within the boat, but also some very experienced new faces can they maintain that coveted status?

Lets hope our senior crews can really do themselves proud.

The Novices

For our novices this will be the first rowing race of their lives, in what feels like seconds to the senior crews to these novices it will feel like minutes or even hours.
We will be entering our Novice girl’s 8 and our Novice boy’s 8 into this race. Both have been training incredibly hard and are looking really strong, the Novice girls are taking it so seriously that they will be spending most of Sunday at the boathouse.
Lets hope all their hard work pays off and may the best Novice Crew win.

So if you’re around the River Cam on Saturday morning, pop down, sit on the bank and enjoy us doing what RUMSBC do best, finishing first.
MIDDLE MIDDLE MIDDLE!

We’ve all had the date pencilled into our diaries for the last few weeks and we’ve sat by our computers patiently waiting for that all important invite to one of London’s more exclusive events.

Not many people can say that they were RUMS RANGERS but those that endure(d) the ergs or constantly being hoarse due to faulty wiring or a broken speaker and we did it for times like these; times when we can get together as one big (dysfunctional) family and celebrate all that is and ever shall be RUMSBC.

On behalf of our VP’s Officers I present to you Winter VP’s.

The date for our not-to-be-missed Winter Venerable Person’s dinner has been announced.

It will be on the 14th December 2013.

So that gives 2 months for you to get the night off work and think up excuses to tell loved ones. Missing this night is not advised.

The boat club would love to see you from the freshest members to the most senior all are welcome.

Once again the 14th December 2013.

Put it in your diary now!

On Saturday the 1st of December RUMS boat club headed down to the Thames for the Allom Cup, a sprint race regatta held every year by ULBC. With six VIIIs and two IVs entered, it promised to be an exciting day.

First off were the novice VIIIs. The men had a good day, ending up in the semi-final where they unfortunately lost to UCL. However, they beat Barts & the London and KCL on their way there and have proven that there is still a lot to be fought for in UH winter sprints in January. The Girl’s had a tougher time and after holding Royal Holloway, for most of the course, eventually lost by less than a boat length.

Next up were the senior crews. The women’s 2nd VIII raced extremely well against but unfortunately were knocked out by a very strong crew from ICSM.

The men’s 2nd VIII had a good race and held UCL’s 2nd VIII, who went on to win the intermediate category, until the last 200m of their race where unfortunately they pulled away, knocking RUMS out.

The men’s 1st VIII beat Barts 1st VIII with seamless ease in their first race, but again UCL pipped RUMS to the post and they were knocked out in the semi-finals.

The women’s senior IV had a fantastic day beating one crew from KCL, who are always a strong club, only to be knocked out in the final by another KCL crew, who had just beaten UCL. They were however, extremely happy to make the final and put in a great performance.

The men’s senior IV put in a gutsy performance, knocking out St. George’s as they went into the final where again RUMS were knocked out by UCL despite leading at halfway.

The champions of the day were the Women’s 1st VIII who fought their way to the final, smashing both Vet’s and Imperial College crews. The final against George’s was one of the closest races we’ve seen on the tideway for a long time but the women gave everything and triumphed!

A huge congratulations to Hannah Orrell, Joy Schmidt, Jess Rankine, Leah Rosenbaum, Niamh Hanna, Rosie Howitt, Alice Taylor-Bennett, their cox – Naomi Gostelow, Alex Simmons – their brilliant coach and the women’s senior captain – Claire Rowden. The ladies take away the prestigious Lady Ann Redgrave Prize and a fist full of medals.

By Will Chambers