Thames Ditton Regatta
On Sunday 14th May, the St Edward’s 2nd VIII, Shell girls and boys and J15 girls’ and boys’ squads travelled to race at Thames Ditton regatta. All junior crews gained valuable racing experience ahead of a busy summer racing schedule culminating at National Schools’ Regatta in two weeks’ time.
Head of Rowing, Adam Moffatt, reviews the day:
Boys 2nd VIII, raced in Challenge 8’s against Hampton School 1st VIII, Bryanston School 1st VIII, Shiplake College 3rd VIII and Oratory School 1st VIII. After beating Bryanston in the semi-final, they raced Hampton in the final, and in what was the closest race of the day it was a win for Teddies by 1 foot! This is the first time that anyone can recall a Teddies 2nd VIII beating Hamptons 1st VIII, a great testament of the strength and depth of the senior squad.
Boys J15 A VIII, were competing against Hampton School A & B, Shiplake College A & B & Kings School Canterbury. Teddies beat Hampton B in the semi-final by 2 ½ lengths but came unstuck against a fast-starting Hampton A crew in the final and couldn’t quite chase them down at the line. A win for Hampton A over Teddies by ¾ length.
Girls J15 A 4+, raced against Sir William Perkins School, Surbiton High School, Emmanuel School & Lade Elanor Holles School. Teddies won their semi-final against LEH by 3 lengths and were up in the final until the crew were hit by some launch wash causing a few problems and allowing Surbiton to nudge ahead. The verdict was a 1 length win to Surbiton, but the girls showed great determination and should be pleased with their first race this summer; more to come next week at Worcester Regatta!
Girls J15 B 4+, raced against Wallingford RC, Surbiton & Putney High School. The 4+ lost their heat to another strong Surbiton crew but can be pleased with their first race and on time they were quicker than the other heat of Wallingford & Putney.
Boys J15 4+, raced against Oratory School, Wallingford RC, Hampton School, & Emmanuel School. In a close race, Teddies lost to Emmanuel by 1 length. As with the girls, their time would have won any of the heats so overall a reasonable starting point for this crew to build on. They race next weekend at Worcester Regatta.
Boys J14 A & B Octo, competed in one of the hardest events of the day. This event had competitors from Radley College, Windsor Boys School, Kingston Grammar School, Shiplake College & Hampton School. Unfortunately, both our crews drew the eventual finalists in the first round and ended up in the Plate event where they once again came unstuck to the eventual winners. The boys are making great progress and are considerably down on time spent in a boat compared to their competitors; however, if they take a look at the J15’s and Seniors above them, they’ll realise that being patient pays off!
Girls J14+X raced in their first event and sadly lost both of their races against Putney High & Kingston Grammar School. As with the boys, the girls have only been rowing a term and should be very pleased with their progress. They were not helped by the delay in racing and waiting for their opposition for nearly two hours while sat on the water! They race next at Worcester Regatta and I am sure will continue to work on the skills during the week.
Congratulations to all the crews who raced. We are now looking forward to another busy weekend at Nottingham City regatta and Worcester regatta.