Sidney Sussex
Boat Club
Sidney's largest and oldest society. Undergraduate and postgraduate rowers and coxes of all abilities, and no membership fee.
Sidney's oldest and largest society
Founded in 1837, Sidney Sussex Boat Club is the student rowing club at Sidney Sussex College, University of Cambridge. Subscription-free, the aim of SSBC has always been to make rowing accessible to any member of College, and to assist them in competing at whatever level they desire.
Rowing in Cambridge is not just a sport, it's a massive part of the culture. SSBC is more than a sports club: it's a community which can honestly feel like a family, with students across all subjects and years, undergraduate and postgraduate.
- Michaelmas
Learn to row
Our season starts with a fresh intake of novices and new members. Within eight weeks, novices who have never stepped in a boat before are competent rowers, racing at Queens' Ergs, Emma Sprints and, at the end of term, the Fairbairn Cup: a rite of passage for every novice.
- Lent
Race as a senior
Lent Term brings the chance to row in a senior crew and race in the Lent Bumps. SSBC crews venture off the Cam too, to events like the Head of the River races on the Thames.
- Easter
May Bumps
The Cambridge sunshine arrives, and rowing is the perfect way to stay fit and healthy through an exam-heavy term. It all ends with May Bumps: four days of racing that keep rowing on the Cam famous.
Everyone is welcome, and it's free
Learn to row or cox
Most members had never stepped into a boat before joining. Michaelmas is for novices: within eight weeks you'll be racing.
How to join →Rowed before?Join a senior crew
Rowed or coxed at school, at another university or at a club? Get in touch early and we'll find you the right crew.
Senior rowing →PostgraduatesNot just for undergrads
The Boat Club is for every member of College. Postgraduates are just as welcome, as beginners or as experienced rowers.
Find out more →
Best club on the Cam
In May Bumps 2026 Sidney moved up 14 places in total, the best of any club on the river, and won the Pegasus Cup.
- O1 +1
- W1 +3, back in Division 1
- O2 +4, with Blades
- O3 +3
- W2 +3
Latest from SSBC
The old website's photo archive is back online
Over 700 photos, mostly from 2000 to 2015, rescued from the club's old website.Pegasus Cup winners: May Bumps 2026
Up 14 places in total, with Blades for O2 and W1 back in Div 1: Pegasus Cup winners.Report: 99’s Regatta 2022
Back in May, three Sidney crews rowed in 99’s regatta. This was a crew against crew 1000m race up the reach. M2 Starting off with M2 who first raced Fitz M3. M2 lead off the…Over 180 years on the Cam
Hundreds of photos from Bumps, Fairbairns, boat namings and garden parties, plus the club's history.
Follow SSBC for the latest from the river