The National Schools’ Regatta is by some counts the largest school event in the country in terms of attendance. From a kilometre out from the finish, the rowers are hit with a wall of spectator exuberance that helps to eke out every bit of needed strength and stamina, which is all the more impressive when there are 64 boys in 8 eights barreling down, neck and neck.
As usual, the Oundle boat was a quad, but this time, we were in the second most prestigious category of a three day event, the championship quads. The event begins with each boat racing in a morning time trial, and if the finish time is in the top 14, the boat qualifies for a semi-final later in the day. Our goal was to be one of the fastest 14 quads in the country; a necessary goal if we were to qualify for Henley later in the summer. We knew we were capable of it, if we had a good row.
We sat on the water for about half an hour, queuing to start the time trail, and during that half hour, the wind picked up considerably, meaning it would be harder to sustain the necessary high rate for an efficient race piece. So, we decided to place our clams, little plastic collars, on our oars to ease the gearing and make the stroke feel lighter; the trade-off being that we would move less water with each stroke because our fulcrums were shorter. To compensate, we would most definitely need the higher rate. We came off the water, pleased with our performance, but unsure if we had made the cut.
In the 30 minutes or so before the results were released, the wind picked up further, so much so, that it ripped out our marquee pegs from the ground and almost carried the whole thing away. By the time we had got the marquee back on the ground, the results were out, with an unexpected outcome. We came ninth, higher than we had anticipated or even hoped for.
This meant we easily qualified for a semi-final, racing against Claires Court School, winners of Henley last year, and Maidenhead favourites for this year. Our average crew weight is about 75kg, roughly what some of those guys can bench press on an off day. Where we could press an advantage, though, is through technical skill, and rating higher. If we put more stokes down, it didn’t matter if theirs were more powerful.
Lining up at the Olympic venue’s start, it was painfully clear that the training wheels were well and truly off. We were drawn into a tussle with King’s School Canterbury, who we struggled to shake all the way down. This distraction took away some of our focus, especially when they encroached into our lane, drawing a warning from the marshall. We crossed the line just ahead of them, after trailing for most of the course, but behind the rest of the field. The final would remain out of reach, a goal for next year. However, we were pleased with our result, as we exceeded our original aim.
On the following Sunday, we travelled down to the Thames to practice on the Henley course. The bobble caused by the boat traffic and the stream were factors that are usually absent from the slowest flowing river in Europe, our own River Nene, and this session gave us a vital chance to practice coping with it. In about five weeks, we will find out just how well we can contend with it under pressure.
Anthony Orr (F)