CHAIRMAN’S VIEW

Pride of place this month must go to the results achieved in the Fours Head. Our squads produced a remarkable set of results with the men winning all three club events and the women finishing either second or third in theirs. We also had a quad scull in the top ten and delivered further wins in the Veteran Fours Head the following day. Those who were not present will be delighted to hear of the success of the party on the Saturday night. I would like to thank Stu and his team of coaches for their hard work and expertise in preparing the crews, congratulate all the athletes who took part and thank Chris Goodfellow for his work in ensuring the success, and maintaining control, of the party.

I am pleased to announce that Killian O’Shea will be joining us in January as Assistant Coach. Working with Stu, Killian will focus on developing our senior squad athletes. Killian joins us from Argonaut Rowing Club in Canada, where he has been the Senior and U23 Lead Coach. In addition to his coaching, Killian is also very experienced in sports psychology so will be able to offer wider support to our athletes. Please do give Killian a warm welcome when you see him about the Club.

Over the next few weeks there will be a lot of activity at the Club both for members and for our clients in the events space. Members will appreciate the balance that we strike between securing revenue from events and supporting our membership. These are inherently linked as the income from the events business subsidises our rowing activities. Please enjoy those events that you are able to attend and support Annabel, Geraldine, Helena and the team in their work; they will be very busy this month. Many thanks should also go to Kate MacDonald for the sterling marketing work she is doing for the Club.

May I take this opportunity to wish all of you and your families health, peace and happiness over the festive season. As a Club we have worked our way through an eventful and difficult year and we are emerging stronger. I look forward to working with everyone to meet the challenges of 2022 and see our Club continue to grow and thrive.

Simon Harris
Chairman, London Rowing Club

CAPTAIN’S REPORT

In this the last edition of The London Roar of 2021, I am inclined to reflect not just on the results of the past month but on our year as a whole. For much of the early part of the year we were living under one form of lockdown or another, with all training taking place in the makeshift gyms we built in our hallways and garages. Special thanks goes to Vice-Captain, Lizzie Cottrell, whose Thursday night Zoom circuits enabled members from across the Club to come together and burn off some of the Christmas excess.

Even as the rules eased and we could return to training in groups at the Club, the hangover was still being felt by the racing calendar. With the major Heads and even the first Dorney regatta cancelled, it wasn’t until the Metropolitan Regatta in June that our senior squad were given their first opportunity to test themselves and see if all those hours spent on the ergo in isolation would pay off. With no racing for such a long time, it was a nervous affair, with no form guide to read on the whole field. What resulted was a series of wins for LRC in the men’s club 4- and 4+ events, as well as the champ 2-. Our top women’s 4- also proving to be the fastest club crew of the regatta. A fantastic pay off for all the hours put in over one of the most turbulent seasons in recent memory. Well rowed London.

As summer rolled on, the rowing world was finally able to turn its eyes towards that famous stretch of water at Henley. After the cancellation of the Henley regattas in 2020, it was simply fantastic to see racing back on the stretch, but it would be even more special for LRC.

2021 saw our largest entry to Henley Women’s Regatta, ever, with 8 crews competing across 6 different events. Our 4- made it all the way to the final, beating local rivals (and recent event winners) Vesta, in the semi-final. Another notable result was that of our top 4x, who made it through to the semi-final, narrowly missing out on a spot in the final by half a length. Given the size of our women’s squad just a couple of years ago, it was staggering to see the number of LRC women representing the Club at HWR, let alone the brilliant results. A special mention must go to our then Captain, Mark Lucani, whose stated aim was to make last season “for the women of LRC”. There can be no mistaking that this was achieved. I would also be remiss in reporting our results at HWR not, at the same time, to mention the tireless work of volunteer coaches German Pradera and Luca Nicolaou, who, under the leadership of Chief Coach Stu Heap, created so many fast LRC women’s crews. On behalf of the whole club, thank you.

With Henley Royal Regatta put back to August, next it was the turn of our masters to race on the Henley stretch. Across our Masters and Millennial groups, 2021 must surely have been one of our largest entries to Henley Masters Regatta, with entries in categories ‘B’ through to ‘E’. The highlight of the regatta was the win by our C4-. Honourable mentions should also go to the C2x, who lost out in the final by 2 lengths, and the E4- who also lost out in the final, by half a length.

Racing at Henley Royal Regatta finally returned on 11th August, and the very next day both LRC and HRR history was made when the inaugural Wargrave Cup for Women’s Club 8s began. After their success at HWR in the 4s, our women’s squad came together and qualified for the event with just a few weeks dedicated training. Though they were beaten by Marlow it was fantastic to see LRC represented in this event of only 12 qualifying crews.

Elsewhere, LRC qualified crews for the Visitors (1 crew), Thames (2 crews), Britannia (2 crews) and Wyfold (1 crew), and we also had representation by Jess Eddie in the Stonor Challenge Trophy and Alex Cawthorne in the Ladies Challenge Plate. The standout performance of the regatta for LRC was our Britannia ‘A’ crew, who made it all the way to Saturday. This is the furthest into the regatta a LRC club crew has gone in a long time and the occasion was marked by tremendous support in the boating area to clap the crew out before their race. Other outstanding performances was those of the Thames ‘A’ and Wyfold crews, both of whom made it through to Friday. 2021 showed the greatest strength and depth London has had at Henley in a decade and has firmly put us back on the road to becoming one of the top clubs in the country again. In addition to our athletes, congratulations must also go to Chief Coach, Stu Heap, and his army of volunteers, Mark Ruscoe, Richard Philips, Mark Lucani, German Pradera and Luca Nicolaou. A special mention also goes to Rebecca Heap for all her work behind the scenes.

So the benchmark was set high for me as incoming Captain for the 21/22 season.

The delayed HRR meant a delayed start to the formal training programme, and with a re-arranged Scullers Head, this race now fell before the start of our season. But none the less, what a race it turned out to be for LRC. Our 22 entries made us the second-best represented club (TSS taking the top spot with 28), but the real excitement came from our 6 wins!!

Rui Xu, Novice, 4th overall
Rob Leonard, Club, 12th overall
Gregor Maxwell, Senior Lightweight, 13th overall
Nathan O'Reilly, Masters B, 15th overall
Meg Jackson, Women's Masters A, 101st overall
Grace Bake, Women’s Club, 102nd overall

The prize giving at Vesta was a fantastic place to be for all LRC members and the fizzy wine was flowing on the balcony.

3rd October stands out in my mind as a brilliant day for our club. It was the first day of formal training for our senior squad, but it was also the culmination of the Great London Row. These two events coming together on the same day gave us an excellent excuse for a party, and I had a real smile on my face after seeing the clubhouse being used by members of all ages and rowing groups. The cheers given to the Great London Rowers from the balcony was so special and it was great to hear their stories of the row in the bar afterwards. A special thank you goes to Kathleen Curran, who organised this year’s GLR (as well as many previous).

Later that month our top scullers were back in action at the Wingfield Sculls. Grace Bake represented LRC in the women’s race, finishing 5th, just behind LRC stalwart, Meg Jackson (rowing as Upper Thames). And in the men’s race 3 LRC scullers made up 50% of the draw. Rui Xu continued his fine form from the Scullers Head and finished 2nd, beaten only by Team GB’s Graeme Thomas. Gregor Maxwell and Nathan O’Reilly finished 5th and 6th respectively. Overall, it was a great showing for LRC and the changing tide made the men’s race a real spectacle to watch.

With days getting shorter and November rolling in, we turned out attention to the Fours Heads’ weekend. This proved to be yet another moment of outstanding representation and success for the Club. On the Saturday we boated 8 crews for the Fours Head and a further 10 crews raced the Vet’s Fours Head on the Sunday, where LRC won the A4+, C4- and E4- events.

The results on Saturday were spectacular. Our Champ Quad placed 10th overall, giving LRC its highest placing in the race in 10 years, and we took a clean sweep of all three (quad, coxed and coxless 4s) men’s club events. Our women’s crews also put in fantastic shifts, with our top boats placing 2nd and 3rd in all three of the club events. It was incredible watching these results come in and I am so proud of all our athletes and coaching team. The success we saw in the singles at Scullers Head has been translated into the bigger boats and with it comes a real sense of momentum. I cannot wait to see what 2022 holds for LRC.

*Club 4x winners: Borja Portos, Sean Blake, Nathan O’Reilly, James Sanders.*

*Club 4+ winners: Ed Davis, Ed Thomas, Heather Scott, Grum Ord, Matt Reeder.*

*Club 4- winners: Calum Young, Zac Baxter, Harry Smallman, Harry Dorrance-King.*

*MasC.4- winners: JP van Tiel, James Lindsay-Fynn, John Williamson, James Brown.*

*MasE.4- winners: Stewart Harries, Adrian Theed, C D M Riches, Matt Parish.*

*Jason Bowyer, James Sexton-Barrow, Julian Hyde, Paul Crewe, Theo Robinson (cox).*

STOP PRESS

On Saturday 4th December, the British Indoor Rowing Championships were held remotely. 4 LRC members competed across various events, but a big shout out goes to Robert Leonard, who won a bronze medal in the men’s lightweight event, having pulled a 2k score of 06:17.5. Congratulations to Rob, and his coach Mark Valentine on their achievement.

*Coach Mark Valentine (left), with British Indoor Championships bronze medallist Robert Leonard (right).*

James Sexton-Barrow
Captain, London Rowing Club

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

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

IRREGULARS’ REPORT

Some members are still wearing rowing shorts but only those that think they have good legs I reckon! You know who you are.

Outings continue and good numbers are reached on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday mornings despite the worsening weather.

Some of us had a wonderful lunch with our dear friends Andrew and Caroline Keat a couple of weeks ago. Andrew was a regular and hugely liked member of the Irregulars but had to retire from rowing with the onset of Motor Neurone Disease a few years back. He and Caroline are coping with his worsening condition with immense stoicism, bravery and bonhomie - they have an enormous number of friends and I don't think a day goes past without someone coming for a meal or a chat. It was wonderful to see them and Andrew was delighted to hear of the Club's progress, squad numbers and general optimistic atmosphere. We send them and all their family our very best wishes.

We had three crews in the Vets’ Head, joining eight other LRC crews and forming about 5% of the total entry - a big achievement in itself. Unlike other crews from the Club (well done to you), we had unspectacular results (make of that what you will) but a great deal of fun – it’s the taking part that counts you can hear me say! Humph!

Our enthusiasm and spirits remained undimmed - they spilt over into the bar after the racing, where drinks and hot dogs were well deserved and hugely enjoyed.

We send our congratulations to those who achieved such wonderful results for the Club and also our appreciation to the cleaners who turned up on Sunday morning to clean up after the party. I had difficulty walking across the Fairbairn Room early on the Sunday morning - akin to walking across a clingy muddy field – but by 10.30, no problem.

We now look forward to the Christmas Dinner this evening and the Christmas VIIIs in ten days’ time.

Happy Christmas and New Year to all.

Eddie Markes

NEW MEMBERS

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

Niall Browne
Patrick Carr
Cecilia Collins-Taylor
Nigel Foster
Paul Hartley
Matthew Holland
Craig McLean
Matthew Parish
Anna Robotham

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 think might like to join the Club, please either let us know or encourage them to get in touch with us themselves.

There is information on becoming a member on our website: https://www.londonrc.org.uk/membership-enquiries or you can contact the Club’s Membership Secretary, Jessica Salter, whose email address is membership@londonrc.org.uk

Andrew Boyle
Honorary Secretary, London Rowing Club

DRC BULLENACHTER

If you cast your mind back to Henley this year, you may remember that London qualified not just one but two crews into The Britannia Challenge Cup.

On the first day of racing, the Britannia ‘B’ crew of Tom Westbrook, Calum Young, Harry Smallman, Andrew Wakefield and Sophie Isles (cox) came up against an unfamiliar international crew from Deutscher Ruder-Club von 1884, Hannover. The crew of Hendrik Hellhammer, Malte Engelbracht, Kurby Dietrich, Tom-Otis Brandes and Jana Hülsmeier, who are used to racing over 1000m in Germany, had a fast start and took early control of the race, leading the whole course and beating our crew by 1 1/4 lengths.

The Friday saw a similar story for the Hanover crew, nicknamed the Bullenachter, as they lined up against a second London crew of Troy O’Riley, Louron Pratt, Finn McGahan, Alex Woodhouse and Rosie Margolis (cox) who had beaten the coxed four from Nonesuch BC, a Bristol ‘Alumni’ crew, the previous day. This was another tight race which saw our London ‘A’ crew take the win over the Germans by a canvas. “It was a hard-fought race and both crews were dealing blows to each other throughout the course. We managed to gain that extra bit of momentum off our start and from our pushes that resulted in us just managing to beat this strong crew. It was a great race to be involved in” says Louron Pratt, Men’s Squad Captain.

For an international crew who hoped to come to Henley to race crews from all over the country, facing two crews from the same club may at first sight not have been ideal, however this gave the crew from Hanover a chance to form some real connections and friendships. This led to kit swaps and drinks in the Angel on the Bridge!

With the Fours Head approaching quickly, Alex Woodhouse and I extended an invitation to our new friends to join us for the race, which they gladly accepted. And with entries for the Head filling up fast, the Germans managed to sneak in an entry mere hours before they closed, a success! Now to find a boat. With all of the LRC boats being used by our ever-growing squad, and the majority of fours on the Tideway already accounted for, it was Alex who managed to secure a high quality Filipi from his old university club, Kings College London.

With everything sorted, the Bullenachter crew flew into Stansted on the Friday evening, this time with Milan Dzambaseciv, winner of the Ladies’ Plate 2011 with the German development crew replacing Malte. They were welcomed into Resis with a pre-race dinner served in the Ashton Room and joined by fellow Resis, Ed Davies and Joe DeBanks.

Over dinner we exchanged some great stories and we were presented with a gift from DRC, a framed photo of the city of Hannover, that will be put up in the Ashton Room.

After dinner, the crew went for a walk to stretch their legs after travelling. Minutes later I received a text from Hellhammer… “Went for a walk, found a pub”, and a photo of them toasting LRC with a pint in the Half Moon.

Race day arrived and the crew headed up to Scullers, where the boat was racked. Thanks to the help of Chris Williams, everything ran smoothly and they finished a very respectable 4th place in Club 4+, with our LRC crew taking the win in this category.

Post-race, the crew headed back to LRC and joined members for drinks at the bar where stories were shared about rowing in the UK and Germany.

The afternoon soon led into the evening with the kick-off of the Fours Head Party! The Germans were on top form and even frequented Vesta for an after after-party, once we had closed at 1am. They also posted in advance, a locally brewed spirit, Bullenschluck, which was passed around; I can only describe it as warming and herbal flavoured, with an aftertaste of farmyard.

Special thanks here go to Heather Scott, Megan Cliff, Ed Thomas, Ed Davies, Joe DeBanks, Chris Goodfellow and Annabel for helping organise the party and further thanks go to everyone who helped make the evening such a great success!

After a quick breakfast, and the realisation of how bad the club floor smelled post party, we said “auf wiedersehen” to our German friends in the hope that we will see each other again soon, be it Hanover, Putney or even the Heineken Roeivierkamp. A final thanks to the guys and girls of the Bullenachter. I hope the relationship between LRC and DRC is long and successful.

Hellhammer says: “It was fantastic to be able to race at the Fours Head and to see so many familiar faces from Henley. We felt really proud and honoured to receive such an invitation and a warm welcome by LRC! It was great to be part of this impressive rowing club for one weekend and we are looking forward to many more exchanges between LRC and DRC.”

Bang the drum!

Harry Smallman
LRC, Squad member

CASAMAJOR CLUB

As you will know, this Club Lottery raises funds for boat maintenance and repair. If you are already a member, thank you very much for your support. If you are not, perhaps you might like to join. It will cost you only £5 a month and there are regular prizes of £75.

There is also a special Christmas Star Prize of £600, the winner of which will be announced at the Club’s Christmas Dinner this evening.

You can join the Casamajor Club here.....

https://pay.gocardless.com/AL0002R9Y4C4S8

The quarterly draws for July and October 2021 have been carried out and the winners are:

James Halliday 75.00
Harry Smallman 75.00
John Auber 75.00
AT & CA Donaldson 75.00
Roger Marsh 75.00
Kirill Anurov 75.00
Michael Gormley 75.00
Andrew Bokor 75.00
MB Burrow 30.00
G March 30.00
AM Ivey 30.00
Ben Helm 60.00
John C Pearson 30.00
RJMcG Coupar 30.00
Pauline Rayner 30.00
Andrew Lawrence 15.00
MJ Blogg 30.00

A very Happy Christmas and a Healthy New Year to one and all.

John Auber
Casamajor Club organiser

STEERING AT LOW TIDE

A few weeks ago, I had the experience of steering at low tide on consecutive Saturday mornings when the river was busy. On both occasions we had a close look at the shallows and another crew, but fortunately no harm was done. For the benefit of new and occasional steers, I thought it would be helpful to share some observations. You can refer to pages 7-14 of the Rowing Code and this Google Earth photo, which shows the river at low tide.

The first thing to do before an outing is to check the predicted time of low tide and its height on a website such as www.thamestides.org.uk.

This site provides information for Putney Bridge and Chiswick Mall, which runs behind Chiswick Eyot. Notice the difference between the times. The turn of the tide creates confusion and is dangerous, particularly when a westerly wind moves the surface water against the incoming tide above Hammersmith Bridge. Less experienced crews should avoid scheduling outings during a change in the tide.

The difference in the time it takes the tide to change from Putney to Barnes is quite well covered in the Rowing Code on page 8. The change to the ebb means the stream and the tide are working together. The change to the flood sees the stream working against the tide and hence is much slower. Ben Helm notes that if you boat just after the change at Putney on a flood tide, you will always overtake the tide change as it takes 41 minutes for the change to reach Barnes. This is why we ALWAYS row on the starboard side when on the fairway. Then it doesn't matter if you meet a crew coming down the fairway as you will pass on opposite sides like cars on a continental motorway. It is also why you do not move over to the port side to let a crew through, that is like crossing to the opposite side of the motorway and driving in the wrong direction. The other crew should move out as you would on the motorway and take a big look for any crews, launches or motor vessels in the middle of the Fairway.

The tide always changes first at the sides, hence those in the inshore zone will automatically move out to the Fairway prior to those in the Fairway realising the tide has changed and moving inshore. It is nature's safety mechanism for rowing in the inshore zone, provided you are paying attention to the flow signals, which include moored boats, buoys and jetsam.

The height of the river is measured roughly against the lowest possible tide level in "average" stream conditions. It is not the depth of the river and so low tide can be a negative number if the water flowing down the river is lower than average. You should remember that all tide data are predictions and so you should observe objective reference points such birds wading on Fulham Flats. When the fluvial flag is black the river will be exceptionally low due to the low volumes of water in the stream (Rowing Code page 10).

Overtaking or being overtaken in the inshore zone is tricky at low tides. The slower crew should stay inshore to allow the faster crew to pass. In practice, it might be wise for the slower crew to pull over and stop if necessary rather than fight for water of a sufficient depth. Likewise, the faster crew should anticipate the slower crew not being able to make room and make as much accommodation as possible.

Remember that as a steer you are in charge of the boat. Check the rudder, fin and your position and then ensure that every crew member fulfils his or her shared responsibility to perform the checks listed on page 84 of RowSafe. Make a plan for the outing and undertake a risk assessment. Weather, wind and tide conditions will be important factors.

The obvious point about low tide is that the width of the river narrows significantly, particularly at Barn Elms, the approach to Hammersmith Bridge, above St Paul's and the approach to Barnes Bridge. The shallows at the top end of the Chiswick Eyot straight deserve a special mention. This is the narrowest part of the championship course. It has a nasty tendency to push those in the inshore zone out into the crews heading down on an ebb tide.

It is critical to look over both shoulders and not to take a position from the bank only. The recommended maximum number of strokes between looking around is five and in restricted zones and other difficult areas is three. As a rule of thumb, the distance between oncoming crews closes at about 10m/s (22 mph), which does not allow much time for surprises. An eight and a quad will close at approaching 30 mph at race pace.

Buoys are greater danger at low tide. In particular, Black Lion between St. Pauls and Chiswick Eyot is usually unpassable on the inside. Similarly, deciding whether to take the Surrey arch of Hammersmith Bridge can be difficult. If there is enough water to get through, low tide causes a sharp turn into the river after the bridge. If in doubt, stop before the bridge (not within 75m). If you can see the brickwork below the ornamental design of the pier, take the central arch. Note the extremity of the lane against the flow marked by the yellow disc when taking the central span (Rowing Code page 77).

I find it best to break the river into sections and set my course relative to the next obstacle or navigational reference point. In this way, I can keep oncoming dangers in mind. Using features along the river as mental triggers is helpful. I have attached my checklist for steering at low tide. I suggest you make your own that takes into account the speed of your boat and the nature of the outing you are steering.

Lastly, please be aware of LRC's process for authorising steers (LRC Boating Rules), but also recognise that accreditation is only the start. Ultimately, steering requires you to map the river in your mind so that you know what is coming next. Unfortunately, the size of our river, its bends, the weather, the number of clubs and of course the tide result in a countless number of rowing conditions that you might face. This is why study of the river and a variety of experiences are essential. Search online for information, walk the riverbank and observe the river from a sculling boat and when you are not steering.

Good luck! The club needs capable steers, but I also recommend steering as a rewarding adjunct to your rowing experience. It can also be an important criterion of crew selection!

Many thanks to Ben Helm, Alan Foster and Eddie Markes, who reviewed a draft of this article. I am sure they would be pleased to share their extensive knowledge of steering with you.

LOW TIDE STEERING CHECKLIST:

Surrey

1. Shoal before Barn Elms
2. Barn Elms buoy
3. Mile Post buoy and nearby underwater shoals
4. Tea Rose buoy
5. River View buoy
6. Hammersmith Bridge - Surrey arch?
7. Black Lion buoy – inside?
8. Chiswick Steps buoy
9. Crossing point
10. Corney Reach extended shoreline before Barnes Bridge
11. Ship Inn buoy and crossing point

Middlesex

1. Craven Cottage
2. Fulham Flats
3. Dove Pier and nearby buoy
4. Moored boats
5. Chiswick Eyot
6. Shallows at the top end of the Chiswick Eyot straight
7. Crossing point and LEP buoy
8. Dukes Meadow buoy
9. Extended shoreline at Emanuel School boathouse
10. Middlesex arch of Barnes Bridge
11. Tradesmen’s buoy
12. Bulls Alley buoy and crossing point

Andrew Boyle
Honorary Secretary, LRC

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 on 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