Trials and trial exams went hand in hand for the first two weeks of term during which crews had some useful outings. On the day that the crew was selected, the weather broke, the river rose and the storms did not abate for nearly three weeks. We made do by going to Saltford - we are more than usually grateful to Bristol University BC and Avon County for putting up with us so often - and we also went to Bristol Docks to get some outings in. The logistics (particularly on short afternoons) were not easy, and we soon longed for the peace and relative ease of going on the water at Monkton. One of the outings at Saltford started with the boat being lifted bodily out of the water and onto the raft by the wind while the crew were fetching their oars; one would not have thought it possible! Just at the time when a new and inexperienced crew was most vulnerable to its own faults, it was buffeted by wind and wave, allowing no natural stability, and they were rushed to and fro in buses, hardly pausing for breath (and certainly not for tea..). Morale stayed surprisingly high, but technical progress was slow; the coach had his mind on safety and survival rather than the finer points of rowing, and precious launch time had to be shared with colleagues equally anxious to get their crews afloat.

The crew was booked to go to Oxford for half term training with Brasenose College. The ISIS was flooded beyond recognition, and all training there was banned for some days, so we went instead to Putney where BNC joined us for some much needed company. On the first day, the crew paddled up from Putney and the crew was coached on the water for the first time; all previous outings had been so fraught with difficulty that serious coaching had been impossible. After turning at Chiswick, we came alongside Brasenose, rumoured to be a good crew. The College crew coped with the waves more efficiently than Monkton, but the crews were well enough matched to allow some good work together. We stayed in Oxford for the night (at the house of a former Captain), and went back to Putney the next morning to have a less friendly tussle with Brasenose. We were in good heart, but the undergraduates were grumpy even before the outing started. The plan was to row several short set pieces, to help Brasenose prepare for their bumping races which were imminent. The water was dreadful, with high winds causing sinking conditions at Hammersmith, where we had to get out and tip gallons of water out of the boat. Then we followed local advice and rowed straight over towards St. Paul's, parallel with the waves: from the launch, the eight vanished below the highest crests, and we were lucky to get across safely. Once under the shelter of the Surrey shore, we met Brasenose and rowed a two minute piece with them, starting about a length up, because it was our first serious row of the season. We coped well, and went up steadily, so on the next piece we started down; when we overtook, the Oxford heads hung lower. By the time we reached Putney, after a shortened outing, the day was ours, and we were as pleased as Brasenose were disappointed. They returned to Oxford, where two weeks later they did well in the Torpids, and we went to Maidenhead to rest for the remainder of the day because the wind had strengthened and made further outings impossible that day. 'Rest' at Maidenhead included some serious training at an indoor swimming pool, where the crew did circuits involving swimming and wading as well as more usual landwork. There was a further outing on the Monday during which the crew tackled the Schools Head Race course; confidence and technique had been boosted the day before, so it was a useful exercise.

The weather was still bad when we returned to school, so a further outing at Saltford was necessary. Then we returned to Monkton waters for the first time. How good it was to get back to home waters! We would miss the distance, of course, but at least transport problems could be forgotten for a while. On this first outing, we did a timed head race and started a habit of more racing against the clock than we have had in recent years; mileage was to be higher too, because the crew had a foundation of good basic fitness to build on. Within a week, the head course was raced in an average time of 6.21, and the crew then went to Saltford to train with Canford on the day of Henley Head Race which was cancelled because of the bad weather.

Leap-frogging with our own Colts and with Canford First Eight was good experience, as was a race over the Saltford course. We were faster than Canford by about 15 seconds.

Spirits remained high in the short time available before the week which included nearly all our racing. It is not good that there should be such a concentrated period of racing, but no crew that starts work in January can expect to be ready to race much before the time that we do, and we need racing experience in the Lent Term as a preparation for the Summer. Without it, the lonely training would be too long for most oarsmen to contemplate! The first race was at Bristol Docks; conditions were still windy, and our row was not as expert or tiring as it should have been; however, we came home in front, beating local clubs and university crews. The Schools' Head followed on the Wednesday; conditions were good, and we came in the top 20 for the first time for some years. On the face of it, this was pleasing, but the crew were very disappointed with their row. Our third race of the week was at Saltford, where we and Eton were the only first eights entered. Eton started about 40 seconds behind us so they might finish roughly level; we managed to hold them off at the line, crossing it about half a length ahead in a determined and aggressive finishing burst.

Illness hit the crew in the following week, so preparation for Bristol Ariel was inadequate; although the crew were beginning to learn about leg drive, these new skills could not be put to the test properly, and we came home some way behind Abingdon. The 'flu was not particularly virulent, but more members of the crew were laid low for a few days in the last week of term. All were fit in time to row our last practice head race on the last day of term, in an excellent time (6 min 18.8 seconds) - missing the record by just over a second. The Head of the River Race followed; conditions were good, and the crew enjoyed rowing in this major event. France

After about ten days off, the crew went to France for the second half of the holidays; the venue at Nantes was new to us, but the daily routine and the welcome we had were reminiscent of previous visits to Macon. The overnight ferry trip from Portsmouth to St Malo was uneventful; we all tried to get as much sleep as possible because the crew was entered for a regatta on their second day in France. The drive to Nantes was much shorter than that to Macon, and we visited Rennes on the way before stopping for a picnic lunch not far from our destination. We clocked in at the Centre Jean Mace which is sited in the middle of town next to the river, then returned to the boathouse hoping for a short outing. We found it all locked, so training had to wait until the next morning. All the Club crews had gone to the regatta at St. Nazaire by the time we arrived at the boathouse for a quick outing. (Our races were not until the afternoon). Conditions on the Erdre were reminiscent of the Tideway, with high wind and white horses. We did not attempt any starts, hoping that a Head Race start would be sufficiently fast to get us going against three French crews in the afternoon. We were on our way to the lake at St. Nazaire by mid-morning and arrived in time for an excellent picnic lunch where we met one family who had come to support. Conditions at the lake were atrocious; so-called 'music' blared forth from loudspeakers, and the wind was apparently gale force. Many regattas would have been cancelled in these conditions, but we carried on. The Colts went out to race before we did, and we saw them waiting on the start for about 45 minutes (a record, surely?) while the umpire vainly tried to get seven Cadet (Colts) crews straight and ready. In the end he gave up the unequal struggle, and split the race into two parts. Conditions were just as bad when we launched, but the greater experience of just four older crews led to a quicker start. In the high wind, we failed to hear "etes vous Pret? Partez!", so we got going some time after the other crews with a few chosen and effective words from stroke. We coped with the waves without apparent difficulty, partly because the Captain had insisted that we had washboards. (The coach was not inclined to go to the trouble, but the Captain was right!) One of the local papers, in its report of the race, said that the English crew seemed to slice through the waves as if they were not there, while the French were much troubled by them. We won the race comfortably. There had been no time to prepare for it, and to be honest the opposition, who were three selected crews, were not of high standard. Satisfying, all the same.

The next day (Monday) we had two training outings on the Erdre, exploring about five miles upstream on this beautiful river, and down towards the centre of town where the river goes through a long tunnel on its way to join the Loire. We were still much troubled by high winds, but managed to find some shelter while covering a large mileage. The wind had gone by the next morning, and we were able to tackle two long outings in calm conditions. The longest stretch was up to the third chateau (about 5 or 6 miles). Rowing starts were attempted and several set pieces were rowed. Everyone was worn out by the end of the second outing, and no persuasion was needed for all to get an early night after a brief visit to the fair and the dodgems in particular. On the Wednesday morning, we visited the market and bought an excellent picnic which we took with us to a local chateau where we had booked in for a guided tour and wine-tasting. This morning off came at just the right time, because some rest was needed before training again. The afternoon outing was short, and we concentrated on loose paddling and starts. Another early night, after supper at the centre. (Lunch and supper seemed always to be based on chips, and there was not much sign of green vegetables.) In order to have variety, the pattern of outings on the Thursday was different. It was a warm sunny day, so we bought a picnic, and aimed to take it upstream with us. The outing was delayed when the Colts had an accident with their boat; a fist-sized hole was patched up within the hour, and we eventually set off at nearly lunch time in good weather conditions. It was not difficult to find a quiet river bank for a picnic and rest before returning in the afternoon. Much good work was done improving leg drive and learning more about the vital first strokes of a race. We lacked the company of another crew of our standard, and could not learn about racing; this would have to wait. In the evening, the club gave us and other visitors a reception. A club from Paris had been there for a few days, as well as juniors from the region. Throughout our stay we were impressed by the amount of activity on the river, with a large number of boats training at all hours of the day. The boathouse was huge, and the quality of equipment outstanding. After the reception we went off to a local restaurant for supper, celebrating a birthday in the crew. The food made a pleasant change from the fare of the centre, which was adequate but rather dull.

The following day (Good Friday), there was a training outing in the morning, with steady improvement being maintained. It rained all afternoon, and turned cold. Some of us went to the Cathedral for a short service; those with rusty French found it a bit difficult, but St. John's Gospel story gave us a hint of the theme, which was much as we might have expected at a similar service at home. Then a visit to a cafe for hot chocolate, and to the local art museum, or simply a quiet hour or two at the centre. Blue skies returned in time for the evening outing when we did some starts with the Colts for the first time. Both crews were worried, and technique immediately deteriorated. (Not an unfamiliar problem!). There was improvement in both crews when they learned to get on with their own job. It was good to start to learn this lesson before our first important event. The 1st VIII start has been a race winner in recent years, but the coach is conscious that these first 16 strokes can wear a crew down and lead to trouble in the second half of longer courses; this year greater emphasis is being placed on strokes 17 to 26, where the big men should have a chance to settle into hard work without feeling rushed off their feet.

Saturday was another different day. We packed the boats, and went to Château Gontier (about 60 miles from Nantes), which is a small town twinned with Frome. They have a good boat club, and had won the club trophy at St Nazaire the week before. We had hoped to train with our French opposite numbers, but the race was all that seemed to matter. After a picnic lunch, we went for a short outing before seeing the opposition, which was the Junior crew of the region; they brought their supporters with them on bicycles and in launches, but we had four Monkton families supporting us. We started on 'Partez!' this time, and went straight into the lead. The French crew chased for most of the 1200 metres course, but they appeared to lose heart towards the end. We won comfortably, but did not settle into the row as much as an experienced crew would have done, and came off the water feeling that there was room for much improvement. The crew found its own supper in a good restaurant in town free of the coaches' company, while the coaches had a quiet evening free of crews' company. All parties enjoyed the change of routine and returned to the centre for an early-ish night. On Easter Day we managed to arrange a late breakfast before some went to the Cathedral for the service at 10 a.m. We arrived 'in good time' at two or three minutes before, only to find that the Cathedral was packed, with all seats taken. The service lasted an hour and a half, which was too much for most! The cathedral is the only one in France which has been completely renovated inside, having suffered a bad roof fire recently. All the stone work is clean, there are new paintings, a newly decorated roof and (on Easter morning) a lively and large congregation. It was good to share Easter with them and with representatives of the Orthodox church who were (unusually) celebrating the festival on the same day. We emerged from the Cathedral to the sounds of 'Carillon de Westminster', and retumed to the centre where other members of the party had been to the market and organised our picnic lunch. The boats were still on the trailer, so we drove them about 10 miles upstream to Sucé where we had lunch before launching the boats in front of crowds of people who seemed never to have seen racing craft before. The work for the journey home was to be a large pyramid 2-4-6-4-2 minute pieces rowed at full pressure. This was asking a great deal of a crew which was already tired after a week's training, but they undertook it with enthusiasm and determination. The Colts rowed a similar pattern, but for shorter times, and we arranged that they joined us for the latter parts of our rows. It was with a sense of achievement that we finished the last two minutes as we neared the boathouse. We ate out together in the evening, having found one of only a few good eating places which operate on Sunday evenings. We set off for St. Malo promptly at 0630, having stirred at 0530, and the journey went well. A nine hour sea trip went quickly; some read, some saw a film and all of us celebrated yet another birthday with delicious French cakes and hot chocolate. We scattered in various directions from Portsmouth to enjoy the last 24 hours of the holidays. It had been a thoroughly worthwhile trip; the rowing, the venue and the company had been good.

We returned to our own river to find it blocked by trees. On the first day of term, the whole club turned out to drag out the worst offenders which were making Bad Corner impassable. We lost an outing the next day when one man was away on an academic trip and another had food poisoning. The high wind which has been a feature this year returned on the Saturday, and the upstream mile record was unsafe. We had a go at it, and completed the course in 5.09.5, only 1.5 seconds outside the very good time set last year. It would not have been right to allow a record in those conditions, but it was an encouraging performance all the same. The crew reckoned that the wind helped them by five or ten seconds, but it was probably nearer twenty! The next two days training were disrupted because of a long standing commitment for one member of the crew; then another had to attend a family funeral. The coach then had to miss the following two outings, so the fonner cox took over, with instructions to look at legs tens and 'Merak', which as well as being the name of a dog who has no fear of physical exercise and is at his happiest when heaving logs from the water, is the code word for our secret weapon - a rate raising powerful ten strokes used in emergencies as a 'now or never' routine for winning races. The technique learnt in these outings was to be put to good use at Wallingford, where it probably won us the first race.

In the following days, various distances were rowed, and times recorded were fast. The 500m record nearly fell twice; the first time by half a second, and later by just 0.1 seconds. The mile was done in 5.24 and then in a scrappy but determined effort in 5.12. Records at these distances seemed set to tumble. The crew had the detennination to break them, and watermanship was improving sufficiently to make them vulnerable.