Best of the West

Here follows an account of the 2008 Women's Head of the River Race by El Capitano Lancaster:

On Saturday, the club sent a (previously unmatched?) total of four 8s to London to fly the CoB flag and compete in the Women's Eights Head of the River Race. The day dawned with gale force winds, and although the row up the start was somewhat reminiscent of James Cracknell's cross-channel escapades, things had calmed down significantly by the time the starting gun was fired (thank goodness).

The first 8 had a decent row to finish 66th, the highest placing for the club for some years, and arguably one of the strongest results ever given the ever-increasing standard of the competition. Not only that, but they put UWE, Bristol Uni, Exeter RC and Edinburgh Uni (big rivals since Henley 07) well and truly in their place. And all that despite suspecting there's a little more in the tank.... Looking good for the regatta season girls!



The second 8 rowed out of their skins to finish in 91st place, demonstrating the depth that we have developed in the squad this year. So next year the women will have 2 8s starting in the top 100, and bearing in mind that the 1st eight finished 115th 3 years ago, it's plain to see how far the squad has come come!



We also sent no less than TWO novice 8s, testament to the hard work of Emma W (novice captain), James F (coach) and the girls themselves of course. The first 8 finished a very commendable 164th, leaving many an S4 (or even S3) crew in their wake. The second 8 finished a respectable 234th, establishing our novice squad as the place to be (and there's a waiting list to prove it!) Perhaps we are looking to a record tally of novice pots once the regatta season is upon us?






Many thanks from the whole squad to everyone who has helped out during the preparations. We couldn't achieve such sparkling results without such great support from our coxes, coaches and subs. What a fantastic squad we have - long may it continue! Well done girls.

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Well done girlies.
Gurt enjoys such a large women's squad and all that it entails. Wins, of course.