Names, whether of roses or babies or boats, always present problems. My main experience of the ordeal has concerned litters of yellow Labradors, the descendants of Cliftonensis Juno ("The Wonder Dog" of my Clifton College days, who was photographed in mortar board and gown teaching Greek to the Scholars, and in academic dress preaching in Chapel, no less would one expect from a Goddess, besides on occasion accompanying me plus one of my Godsons in a Restricted single sculling boat) Some of these, like famous Rowing names - distinguished coaches (for our VIlls) and former Captains (Sculling boats) and international representatives (IVs) - have graced our boats in memoriam since I came here some seventeen years ago. Juno's bones lie buried at the bottom of the steps down to the river by the aqueduct, her spirit commemorated on the bows of the II+ built in my barn out on the Mendips when I still spent some time in body if less obviously in spirit in the Chemistry labs. or with set 5.3 Sums in the at last demolished Bursar's Huts outside the Old Hall. Lucinda (II-) was one of her daughters, and another was Melissa (my own lx). Valentine, daughter of Lucinda, was originally going to be the Tub Pair (not very appropriately, as she was rather a svelte little thing even in old age) but got superceded by Ready on Monday (after my predecessor in the workshop;very appropriately, but which Monday?) and since then I fancy must have been overlooked. Phoebe, daughter of Valentine, and her daughter Jasmine await the call to higher things and Merak her father hopes for greater, a naval destroyer perhaps.

These doggy departures from traditional sources of names or initials did not seem to provoke embittered or outraged outcries from the MCSBC Establishment, and a dozen or more aging former Captains will still find themselves remembered. But some there be who have no memorial...the latest batches of sculling boats sport other memos or allusions:GWB's Ix Indian Summer reflects his teaching interlude in India while acknowledging his timely return to at least occasionally competitive rowing. Most recently, we have IO built for Peter Alvis (ex-lst VIII and successful Oxford Brookes oarsman) a neat, ho- ho, combination of reference to farming, Oxford and size.

The M45 class lx for scullers under about 8 stone includes Mumff (Marcus Mumford , who risked all on the 'sea-trials' of the wooden prototype) and Ace of Arts (Adam A. did likewise for the first plastic version) and these have been followed by La Grenouille (still canvassing unsuccessfully for customers in France, chauvinism's nursery) and BCHH (Big Chief Hairy Hairy, finishing coach of the 1994 Colts crew, idle self- indulgence) and Annus Horribilis ( less to do with Her Majesty than with other more parochial affairs of a different nature)

The maiden voyage of the plastic production of the M55 class (8 to 10 stone) was this Summer on the canal, after a Henley style picnic lunch outside the workshop, with Mme Dorotea Girard, wife of M. Lionel, who manages the rowing from the PE Department at Universite de Nantes, as crew. She had been the cox of a Polish international IV+ (Lionel was a French representative at the same Regattas!) - Nazdrowie (=Good Health or 'Cheers') and Szczebrzeszyn ( a small, equally unpronouncible, village in Polska, just for fun) seemed to reflect the occasion and the new Europe; The Don, (Don Ellis, recently retired owner of Reredos Ltd, designer and manufacturer of plastic oars, sculling boats, etc.); McLusky (my corruption of sea-trialist McLurg, who first tried out the original plug for the plastic mould) and Maggot (the first moulding made, a failure and wriggly) complete the Class so far.

The VIIIs Percy Tolman and Philip II have been exported to France. Percy was a retired self-employed builder "of the Old School" who for many years helped part-time reconstructing 1,Church Cottages, and another part faithfully mending our boats in the '70s, usually with bits of 'four-by-two' as well. Philip II replaced Philip Denny (formerly a long-serving coach of Colts and other crews, Housemaster of Hill House) I wrote off his eponymous boat in a motorway accident after which the 2nd VIII boat Richard Blake (ex-2nd VIII coach and Housemaster of Eddystone) required cosmetic surgery, and WGRML (IV+) several replacement limbs, though WJ.LL-J (VIII - always known as The Vicar, the Reverend Bill Llewellyn Jones, a pre-war Monkton coach and Chaplain later and more widely known as a 'heavy' at both Radley and Oxford University, where he coached me, coincidentally) was unscathed - "VICAR SURVIVES MOTORWAY CARNAGE". Charles Grimwade (VIII) is looking for a suitable retirement home - he found Oxford Brookes a bit down-market and far away from his West Country roots; Bristol University may prove a Happier Haven. Dr Staines Reade (another restricted VIII) has succombed to the ravages of time and hundreds of Novices, but a few of his limbs and organs have found use as transplants. Other VIIIs include David Prichard (coach in the '60s and '70s, now Headmaster at Wycliffe), and Neomorph and Eleanor Ashton. The former is perhaps of interest - those readers in receipt of a real education will have no difficulty in seeing the relevance, as the design for this the 1st VIII boat until it was replaced in favour of a new presentation plastic boat from Aylings (The Titfield Thunderbolt) followed the guidelines suggested by contributors to a Schools' Symposium on "Rowing: a Scientific Approach" held at now defunct Beaumont College in the 1960s: these conclusions led to a rather longer boat than is now customary, nearer 60 feet than 56 or so, narrower by some 2 inches on the waterline and correspondingly deeper, and with deep-vee bow sections fairing in to semi-circular sections for about two-thirds of the length. It is a big boat, for 13½ stone plus, and is not surprisingly difficult to 'sit'. After one season of use by a not very expert crew and part of a second season by another, any conclusion about its viability remain unproven, and it is now dry-docked unloved in the boathouse roof. Eleanor, bought around 1980 from B and H at Ely for junior crews, honoured her devotion to a succession of Monkton multi-crew invasions of the Tideway for the "Heads"; Dick Ashton, her husband, was for many years Vicar at Parson's Green where on the Church Hall floor and later at Isleworth in the Hall and Vicarage, crews used to bed down. Eleanor was our hostess, producing magnificent day-lasting breakfasts, and generally "acting as Mum", as she continued to do for some crew members even when she retired to a smaller house in Wimbledon following Dick's untimely death. Rex Hayward (formerly a Colts VIII boat) reminded us for many years of his stalwart service at the river and the tank, and, after a short refit and metrification, is now in action again with Oxford Brookes University. Incidentally, Rex's son Chris has for some years been Master i/c at Berkhamsted School

Michael Edwards (who, notably with Charles Grimwade, lead Monkton's post-war revival and very considerable success story) unfortunately suffered fungal rot and had to be burned. as did Viking (donated by Eton Vikings to help us out after the Boathouse fire) a cross- channel ferry of a boat as those of you will remember who with 17 others as Novices struggled to carry her down to the water. Dick Hole was last heard of in use on the Severn at Tewksbury by a near-by technical College. Many of these boats, still in active service,were built in the '60s and early '70s by Terry Page, now nearing retirement from Pangboume, a great tribute to his skill. And the now painted pale blue hull to be seen at Bath Ladies' Minerva Rowing Club as you cross the Bathampton Toll Bridge is in fact Terry Page.

Two of the four restricted IVs that Terry built (WGRMLaurie and GTWestern) and the light IV (PJWebb) have all had hip replacements and continue to serve and thrive. Others (APMellows and AWLaurie) are somewhere in the boathouse roofspaces and on the waiting list for suitable operations. JRChester (IIx) still survives regular rebuilding and everyday use though anonymously - the first major rebuild followed a collision when crashed into an VIII by two very white-faced and frightened Colts in the late '70s, necessitating about 8 feet of new bows; and I'm afraid the initials never reappeared.

J N S Davison and R A Ireland, both 'fine' IV+s, follow in the 'famous names' tradition, our most recent internationals.

Around 1990 we had no ready-made Famous Men to praise. We searched Dick Hole's archive of Monkton Combe School Boat Club "1878 -1978": The Reverend H. Carpenter (J.Colts VIII) seems to be credited with founding the Club though he left never to be heard of again very shortly afterwards (too much flak from Cricket and Rugby even in those days?). At about that Victorian time the Club took delivery of a new IV+ Cedar (our new IV+ was made almost completely from cedar wood) from the builders Tallboys (Colts VIII) of Oxford.

The building of another purpose-designed, 'First for the World and for Monkton Combe' lightweight octuple sculling boat, called for special thought, a worry solved by JMB (himself now honoured as Mr B the latest 'state of the art' 1st VIII boat from Aylings, replacing the unsatisfactory Thunderbolt); in spite of some misgivings about the possible pious misinterpretation of HEX, the wizard of the computer age at Monkton's idea prevailed. Rodney Musters (another Junior VIII, from Sims Eel Pie Island, now converted to a second 'Oct') recalls his many happy and instructive hours of novice coaching, particularly up on the tank, in the '70s and '80s. And so we come to Out of Sight and Out of Mind (both IV+/IV+x for lightweight crews) .. Perhaps the Bursar or other non-rowing members of Staff could inspire or suggest the names for the next boats of this Class?

Note: A few copies of Dick Hole's History are available from Bluefriars if readers would like to have a more extensive record of the achievements of many of those Monktonians, pupils and teachers, mentioned non- trivially above.

And it's not long till we reach our 125th Anniversary.. Archivist? Suggestions/ volunteer to JMB.