Not Operational
Lighting Times
September 8th:
06:55-20:51
September 9th:
06:57-20:49
Posted: Thursday 19 February 2009, 3:46PM by Mike Marsh
It's that time of year again...
Best of luck to all those competing, in particular M3, M4 and W3 competing in the getting-on race on Friday.
Actual racing times are as follows:
*M1*
Tue - 4:40pm
Thu - 3:20pm
Fri - 3:20pm
Sat - 3:20pm
*W1*
Tue - 4:00pm
Thu - 2:40pm
Fri - 2:40pm
Sat - 2:40pm
*M2*
Tue - 2:00pm
Wed - 2:00pm
Thu - 2:00pm
Sat - 12:40pm
*W2*
Tue - 2:40pm
Wed - 2:40pm
Fri - 1:20pm
Sat - 1:20pm
and should they get on:
*W3*
Tue - 2:40pm
Wed - 2:40pm
Fri - 1:20pm
Sat - 1:20pm
*M3 and M4*
Tue - 2:00pm
Wed - 2:00pm
Thu - 2:00pm
Sat - 12:40pm
Mike
Posted: Saturday 21 February 2009, 7:39PM by Mike Marsh
On Friday three SSBC crews, M3, M4 and W3, took to the water to race 2000m to 'get on' to the Bumps.
All three crews put in very creditable performances against stiff oppostition in one of the most heavily oversubscribed Getting-On races in some time.
Unfortunately, despite very strong rows from the two crews, M3 and M4 did not quite manage the time required to get in one of the eight available qualifying spots. However, W3 put in a storming performance to qualify as one of the six fastest women's crews racing and earn their place, joining W2 in the 3rd women's division.
Results for the Men's Getting-On Race were as follows:
Qualifying crews (in no particular order):
1. Homerton II
2. LMBC IV
3. Churchill III
4. Christ's III
5. Corpus Christi II
6. Magdalene III
7. LMBC V
8. Christ's IV
Non-qualifying crews (in time order):
Darwin II 08:25
Pembroke III 08:28
Hughes Hall II 08:28
Wolfson III 08:28
King's III 08:31
Sidney Sussex III 08:32
Anglia Ruskin III 08:39
St Edmund's II 08:52
First and Third V 08:52
Fitzwilliam III 08:53
Magdalene IV 08:55
Sidney Sussex IV 09:11
Jesus IV 09:14
Homerton III 09:19
Girton III 09:24
Results for the Women's Getting-On Race were as follows:
Qualifying crews (in no particular order):
1. Downing II
2. St. Catharine's II
3. Magdalene II
4. Sidney Sussex III
5. Fitzwilliam II
6. Churchill II
Non-qualifying crews (in time order):
Christ's III 09:41
Homerton III 09:44
Queens' III 09:45
Hughes Hall/Lucy Cavendish II 09:53
Emmanuel III 09:55
Emmanuel IV 10:01
Lady Margaret III 10:11
Downing III 10:22
Anglia Ruskin III 10:38
King's III 10:48
Posted: Tuesday 24 February 2009, 11:25PM by Lisa Meegan
Bumped Anglia Ruskin
Arriving at the boat house today, I'd have been lying if I'd said revenge wasn't somewhere in the back of my mind - and I think the other four crew members who'd been in W1 last Lents would have agreed. Two places ahead of us, a very poor CCAT boat had given an easy get-out to every crew we chased, and faced with the prospect of a long, hard row over, we'd cracked under the pressure three days out of four. Only on the last day had we produced what we should have been capable of from day one, setting up this year's first day encounter with CCAT (now Anglia Ruskin). Finally, we had the chance to put last year (and ARU) firmly behind us!
The term's racing so far suggested a bump should be all but certain, but then this is Bumps and nothing is ever that easy! Ahead of Anglia Ruskin, Pembroke II were a concern, and we knew we had to get to ARU before they got to Pembroke. The row up was tidy, with a couple of decent practice starts, but this didn't stop the nerves at the one minute gun.
The start wasn't our best but still felt pretty quick, and behind us Caius II were vanishing fast. We wound to 43 (our best all term!), and by the time we reached our stride we were already approaching our first whistle. The wash made things difficult, and we didn't settle as well as we had in training, but the whistles were now coming thick and fast as our bank party all tried to out-do each other! Two whistles quickly became three, and three continuous, and one and half kill calls later the job was done. For the first time in several years, W1 were able to row home with greenery on the first day of Bumps, and we will be hoping for a repeat performance later in the week!
Posted: Wednesday 25 February 2009, 8:33AM by Lisa Meegan
Rowed Over
Report by Mhairi McNeill
It was with the thought of last year's bumps success that the members of W2 turned up anxiously at the boathouse. After a motivational speech from Joe, we pushed off, aware that the row ahead of us might not be the easiest. Boat ten in the third division, we were chasing a strong Christ's II, who rather unfortunately for us were chasing the rather unimpressive Pembroke III.
Our practice start under the railway bridge was described as the 'worst ever' but a second attempt at the plough fared much better and it was with confidence that we paddled up to the start line, hard on the heels of Trinity Hall, who later would be chasing us. At our station Robyn decided at the 4 minute gun that she needed the bathroom, changed her mind, and adjusted her footplates instead. With less than 30 seconds to go, as we were being pushed out from the bank, the screws still wouldn't tighten. Luckily we got it back just in time, heard Veronica call 5 seconds, and were rather surprised by the almost immediate cannon. The start wasn't our best, but was reasonable with the girls both winding and settling high. Christ's drew away slightly off the start, and despite our best efforts to catch up, were quick to bump out Pembroke III just before first post corner. With Trinity Hall nowhere to be seen, we rowed on hard, aiming for the over bump on Queens. We gained to within 2 and a half lengths, but it wasn't to be, with Queens bumping out in front just out of grassy. Disappointedly, but not unexpectedly, we rowed over.
With one of the stronger crews in the division immediately in front and chasing a far poorer boat, we knew we would be lucky to bump on the first day. Conservative predictions were for a row-over, and setting out what we achieved to, W2 rowed home fairly happy, excited by the prospect of chasing Pembroke III tomorrow and hoping for our first bump! A great row from the girls, who maintained the boat speed and pressure the entire length of the course, despite an unlucky draw leaving us neither chasing nor being chased!
Posted: Wednesday 25 February 2009, 4:54PM by James Gill
Report by Henry Scarlett
Technical Row Over
Day 1 of Bumps for M2, although not the race of our dreams, proved to be a very encouraging start to this year’s Lents. With it being the first bumps ever for over half the crew and the culmination of a term’s hard work, the crew certainly had a lot to prove. Starting tenth in Division 4, the boat was behind Hughes Hall first boat and in front of Selwyn III in the starting line up.
Sidney had a great start from under the motorway bridge, gaining half a length on Hughes Hall very quickly and making ground between them and Selwyn III at an impressive rate. Unfortunately before we could capitalise on this start, Selwyn were bumped by Anglia Ruskin II just after the motorway bridge due to their cox’s peculiar decision to row in diagonal lines from one side of the river to the other. This bump created chaos amongst the boats behind and so the chief umpire made the decision to halt the back half of the division, including Sidney despite the fact the boat was well clear of the unfolding carnage behind.
Whilst disappointing that we were unable to finish the job off with Hughes Hall, who ended up bumping Downing III, it resulted in Sidney being awarded a technical row over before entering The Gut and thus avoiding the possibility of a tiring row over on the first day, and looking knackered in front of the women crews marshalling/ogling at us by the finish. The crew goes into Day 2 in front of ARU II, chasing Downing III. Many thanks must go to Rich Hughes and EC Gill for subbing in at stroke and 2 respectively.
Posted: Wednesday 25 February 2009, 4:56PM by James Gill
Report by Henry Scarlett
Bumped Downing III
Going into Day 2, we felt confident of a bump against Downing III who had been bumped by Hughes Hall, whom we had held ground with before our premature finish to the race the previous day. As on the previous day, the crew had a brilliant start getting within a length of Downing III almost from the offset. Entering The Gut we had closed to within half a length of Downing III, and on top of that ARU II, the boat chasing us, had taken a very wide line around 1st Post Corner, unlike the Schumacherian line taken by our cox, Sam Tan. Approaching Grassy we gradually overlapped and Downing III’s cox finally conceded. Grabbing greenery as soon as we had cleared the river, we enjoyed our first row back after a bump this Lents. Tomorrow we hope to finish what we started on Day 1 with Hughes Hall, and that the umpire won’t save them from us again.
Posted: Thursday 26 February 2009, 4:23PM by James Gill
Report by Henry Scarlett
Row Over
Day 3 for M2 was probably the most comfortable day for the crew in many respects; we knew that the crew chasing us, Downing III, whom we had bumped on the previous day, were not going to be challenging us at all as they were a slower crew than us and being chased by a decent second boat from ARU. We were also sure in our minds that we had a quicker start than the crew we were chasing, Hughes Hall, who had been spared a bump from us on Day 1 by a decision from the umpires. As predicted, we had another one of the consistently quick starts that we have displayed this Lents, gaining to within a length of Hughes Hall. Unfortunately the crew in front of them, Clare Hall, who are eligible for spoons, crashed into the bank and so Hughes Hall had made an easy bump. On top of this, Kings II who started in front of Clare Hall bumped Queens III meaning that an over-bump for us was also impossible. All that remained for us to do was to make it to The Railings without Homerton II over-bumping us (ARU II predictably had bumped Downing III). This proved to be an easy task and as we came around Ditton we were able to row across the finish line leisurely at a rating of about 24s/m. Although frustrating that Hughes Hall managed to escape our bow yet again through no lack of speed on our part, we are set up for what should be a very successful Day 4 when we hope to bump Clare Hall and ensure they are awarded spoons.
Posted: Thursday 26 February 2009, 9:57PM by Lisa Meegan
Bumped Pembroke III
Report by Tasha Scott
After an unexciting row over on Tuesday, W2 gathered at the boathouse ready to give their all. We were to be chasing Pembroke III, who had been bumped quite convincingly by Christs II the previous day. After warming up we marshalled and watched a triumphant M2 row past, making us more determined to achieve an up one.
After being mistaken for W3 and told to marshal in the wrong place, we managed to row up in vaguely the right order, although unfortunately not hot on Emma III’s tail (the crew who were to be chasing us) and spun to park. A longer than usual wait enabled everyone to be ready for the start, with many reminders from Mhairi to de-kit and sort footplates early, even though Robyn was no longer with us.
The cannons sounded and we took a steady start, Emma III managing to hold on to us. However, we soon pulled away from them in anticipation of a bump on Pembroke. Hearing whistles from the bank spurred us on, as well as numerous powers for ten called for by Mhairi. We pursed Pembroke III down first post reach, eagerly listening for more whistles, and on constant whistles found a final few ‘kill’ strokes to complete our task.
A few clearing issues had us mounting the bank, with an interesting effect on poor Roger Andrew, captured nicely by the Jet Photographic man. We were all extremely happy though, and even screams of ‘Shit, there’s a hole in the boat’ could not dampen our spirits. Collecting greenery, we proceeded to row home very solidly, hoping Tim would not be too angry. All in all, a good day for W2, with revenge on Pembroke for denying us any real first day bumping opportunity. Let’s hope we can make an imprint on Clare Hall I tomorrow!!!
Posted: Friday 27 February 2009, 10:08PM by James Gill
Report by Beth Parker
Bumped Pembroke II
After 2 days of quick bumps we knew we were in for a harder row today; Pembroke II were much quicker than the crews we had been chasing the previous two days and we knew they would be out to catch Robinson in front of them quickly. We had a solid start but from the bows I could hear whistles for the boat in front of us along first post reach. We managed to get our first whistle not long after which seemed to give us an extra push, which, combined with an excellent line around first post corner from our cox, helped us to gain on Pembroke. They, however, were still hot on the heels of Robinson and it took another sterling line around grassy from our cox and some strong pushes for ten to keep the pressure on Pembroke. Calls from our bank party of “You have to get them now girls, GO NOW!!” followed by a resilient ‘up-2’ call along plough reach made quite a difference to the state of affairs. The boat lifted and as two whistles were sounded the determination really kicked in with three whistles being heard shortly after. One final tight corner from our cox really finished off the race as we bumped not long after Ditton corner. This bump had been hard to come by but was definitely worth the pain!
Posted: Saturday 28 February 2009, 9:52AM by Lisa Meegan
Rowed over
Report by Tasha Scott
A day’s rest had left W2 fresh and raring to go. We had high hopes that we would be able to follow Christ’s II up the chart and bump Clare Hall I. Having a full crew again made for a very solid row up, everyone focusing in on the task ahead. Both practise starts went well, building our confidence even more.
Arriving very early, never having had to row straight to the lock to marshal, we sat around for 20 minutes fiddling with cameras and suchlike, and making sure we were ultimately prepared.
The last cannon sent us off in a fairly together start, and before long we were hearing calls of ‘within station!’ from the bank. However, these soon changed to frantic calls of ‘go right, go right’, and we were extremely disappointed to find that Clare Hall had somehow managed to bump Christ’s right off the start. This was entirely surprising seeing as Christ’s II were pretty much our biggest threat in the division, and had previously bumped Clare Hall. We later discovered that Christ’s four had had an overhead crab, causing them to stop soon after starting, and giving away an easy bump and any blades possibilities they had.
So, after all this confusion, we carried on rowing, settling well. Not much further up the course we found that any overbump possibility on Queens II had gone yet again as they bumped Newnham II. This meant yet another steady row over for W2. Eventually we took it down and down again, sailing through the finish well ahead of Downing II (as an aside, Downing II managed to crash on the outside of Ditton, giving a lucky Catz an easy overbump just 20 strokes from the finish!).
Overall, an unfortunate day, showing the unpredictability of bumps, and especially lower division bumps. Perhaps tomorrow we can wreak some revenge on either Christ’s II or Newnham II. Either way we have a hard row ahead of us...
Posted: Tuesday 03 March 2009, 3:04PM by Lisa Meegan
Overbumped Newnham II
Report by Mhairi McNeill
There is a subtle difference between believing and expecting...
With Lisa's motivational email in our minds, a focused and excited W2 rowed up to marshal, determined after two long row overs to go home with greenery. We were chasing Christ's II one of the best boats in the division and knew that our chances of bumping them before they caught Clare Hall I were slim, so it was with gritted teeth we set our sights on the overbump on Newnham II. We learned on day three just how unpredictable bumps can be and hoped as we rowed up to marshal that both luck and strength would be on our side as we entered the final day of the competition.
Our practice start at the railway bridge went well and the crew pulled in to marshal in high spirits, nervous but excited for the row ahead. As M2 passed us unfortunately without greenery, our determination to get another Sidney bump only increased. The girls rowed up solidly to the start line with a good practice start outside the Plough and waited nervously for the four minute gun. With Motty predicting 60-40 that we wouldn't bump, it was clear that the task ahead would be a difficult one.
The final cannon saw us set off fairly well, seeing the chasing crew, Emmanuel III get progressively further behind. The impressive Christ's II were quick to bump out Clare Hall I just past first post corner; and squeezing through the clearing crews we increased the pressure, excited and hoping for the overbump!
"Four lengths, three and half!" yelled voices from the bank as we emerged from grassy corner into plough reach with the girls pushing hard; we still had a lot of ground to make up and we knew it. As we passed by the plough pub we were hit my an incredible wave of noise, people on the bank screaming "Go SIDNEY!". With the shouts of the crowd to spur us on, the girls increased the pressure once more, gaining to a length and a half entering Ditton. A length, a half, canvas.... the whistles became continuous within a matter of seconds. Before we realised what was happening, the Newnham cox's hand went up and shouts of hold it up came from the bank. Sidney Sussex II had overbumped Newnham II, just out of Ditton! (The marshal at this point fell off his bike.)
A triumphant W2 rowed home with greenery and the occasional squeals of 'We overbumped!' Back at the boathouse there were Sainsbury's cakes, Champagne and much W2 toasting before the cox and freshers were thrown in the river (which we can confirm is freezing in March!)
A fantastic end to W2's Lent Bumps and a great row by a great crew. Moving up four in our division, from 10th to 6th place, we secured W2's permanent place in the bump charts, not to mention being the first Sidney crew to overbump since 2001!
Posted: Thursday 05 March 2009, 11:53PM by Lisa Meegan
Bumped Robinson - Awarded Blades
So this was it - up 3 in three days, and this was the one that mattered. We knew it should be possible - the previous day we'd bumped Pembroke II when they were just an canvas off Robinson, effectively making up 2 and three quarter lengths on the Robinson crew by the time we'd bumped - but Pembroke II had been a difficult bump and today we expected pressure from behind for the first time. One mistake could ruin the whole thing.
No matter how many times Sparky told me that "up 3 is a fantastic result for any crew", that "only lucky crews go up 4", and that I "can't be disappointed if we don't do it," I wasn't already a double blade winner, and I knew that if we failed, I wouldn't be able to help feeling that the whole thing was kind of worthless.
Friday evening had ended with Nick's world-record breaking attempt at "corniest e-mail ever" (I'll spare you the quotes), and if it was possible, I think Nick wanted a prow more than I wanted a blade! Our coaches had invested a huge amount of time and effort in us over the past two terms, now it was time to deliver.
No pressure then! After a stressful morning of Norovirus, subs and broken bike related crises, I was beginning to wonder whether the whole day was cursed. At the boathouse, my nerves were eased a little as we designed DIY stash for Nick, and on the row up there was more distraction as we discovered W2 had pulled off a fantastic overbump on Newnham II.
The row up was solid with two decent practise starts, and we kept Robinson well behind us all the way to the lock. At the four minute gun, the nerves really hit, and my anxious mood wasn't helped by our proximity to the cannon!
Never has the gap between the one minute cannon and the start cannon felt so long, but eventually we were off, producing what Abi would later describe as our best ever start. Suprisingly, Pembroke II were nowhere, disappearing rapidly backwards and looking in danger of being bumped by Anglia Ruskin. This eased the pressure a little, but by half way down First Post Reach I was very, very worried. For three days, Tim's shouts of "inside distance" and "well done girls, well done" had reassured me throughout the gaps between whistles, but today there was nothing, and Tim doesn't lie. Surely they couldn't be pulling away...?
Finally, around First Post Corner, we got the first whistle. After that, it all happened very quickly - through the Gut we seemed to progress rapidly to overlap, finally achieving the Bump on the entrance to Grassy corner - with a whole army of Sidneyites there to congratulate us, we couldn't have timed our bump better if we'd tried! For those on Facebook, Sam Kirsop's video probably tells the story better than I ever could (even if it does provide pretty damning evidence of celebration before clearing), although the night before when I'd played out the "W1 bumping Robinson to get blades" video in my head at least twenty times, not one of them had ended in chants of "EC Gill, EC Gill..." from the whole of Grassy corner!
A triumphant W1 rowed home with plenty of greenery and the Sidney flag flying at the stern (looking incredibly classy with a branch as a makeshift flagpole). Back at the boathouse, there were plenty of champagne bottles, cakes and crew photos to be enjoyed, and luckily I wasn't held to my promise of going in the river if I ever won blades!
This has been a fantastic term for Sidney W1 and we'd like to thank everyone who's supported us, in particular our coaches Nick Evans, Mark Jacobs and Pete Langley.