Allom Cup 2018

Novice Women

After seeing our fresher women reach the finals of the Novice Regatta, the Senior women were keen to get involved in some sprint-racing. Unfortunately the majority of the UH clubs didn’t feel the same, and we found ourselves in a straight final against RUMS. Our start was clean and easily put us ahead of the RUMS VIII in the first 200 metres, however we lost our nerve slightly and the choppy water unfortunately led to a ‘crab’ which gave the RUMS boat a significant lead. We showed our grit by chasing them down over the rest of the course, finishing just 3/4 of a length behind. I was incredibly proud by just how determined my crew was, and we gave RUMS a good run for their money after recovering so well. We’ve learnt a lot from this race, and will undoubtedly come back stronger and faster.

Intermediate Men

Coming into this three way race between Bart’s, St. Georges, and Brunel, we were certainly

looking like the underdogs with a crew of 4 second years against both other universities top 4’s,

however the boys were determined to put in a good race and so lined up. After a dodgy start Bart’s

was slightly behind both crews however an enormous effort was put in and Brunel was dropped by

2 lengths coming under the halfway mark, the boys were now gaining ground on the Georges Top

IV who appeared surprised the underdog was keeping up and even gaining on them. A dramatic

finish with Bart’s just coming second by an inch was certainly an unexpected one and one the boys

were extremely proud of.

Cambridge Head 2018

From the Women’s Captain

For BLBC women at Cambridge Head, we have gone from racing a single women’s IV in 2016, to racing two women’s VIIIs  and a IV at the 2018 Winter Head. We went to Cambridge with the biggest group of BLBC women in recent memory, and I am extremely proud of how much the club has grown. Everyone had a really enjoyable day down by the Cam, with Cambridge Head continuing to be my favourite Head Race.

The first VIII began the women’s racing, chased by the George’s women’s first VIII, who disappeared into the distance behind us early in the race. Despite it being her first race on the Cam, our cox Olivia easily took us round the two infamous 90 degree bends, and we finished strong with our overall time putting us just behind Vets and RUMS. The 2nd VIII also had a strong race, with the majority of the boat having their first race on the Cam, including our cox Mat, who again handled the challenging course well. Following on in the same division, four women from the first VIII rowed the course a second time in a IV, and were the fastest women’s IV out of the UH crews racing at Cambridge.

It’s been a positive start to the Head Race season, and has motivated the entire women’s squad to push through the tough winter training.

From the Men’s Captain

The men raced in the student division and came 5th in the 1st tier student category behind local colleges; Downing, Pembroke, Trinity and Jesus. We placed 9th in whole competition with a time of 08:25. BLBC was the top boat out of all UH crews. The men’s 2nd boat came 11th in the second tier student category and 71st overall with a time of 09:47

Doncaster Training Camp 2018

From the Men’s captain:

The first weekend of November saw the BL men’s squad travel up north to train with Doncaster RC for the first training camp of the season. The 1st VIII had several successful outings in preparation for Cambridge head. Many of the men’s squad also tried sculling for the first time, with some hilarious consequences. Seat racing for the last bow side seat in the 1st VIII was successful. All in all a fun weekend.

From the Women’s captain:

Following the success and all around enjoyment of our training camp to Doncaster last winter, we returned to Saad’s home in the North for a weekend of technical work and fitness training. We brought double the rowers this year, and packed in even more outings. We had a big focus on technical work, and with some coaching from members of Doncaster Boat Club we saw big improvements across all the boats.

Not only was it a great opportunity to practice rowing on a smaller river in preparation for Cambridge Head, but also allowed many of us to try small boat rowing for the first time. Overall a very developmental and progressive weekend for BLBC.