Although as has doubtless been mentioned elsewhere, this year has been a difficult one for getting down to the river, thanks to foot-and-mouth and flooding. However, it has by no means been a boring or empty year for the Junior Colts rowing group.
The group carrying on from last year was the smallest in the Fourth Form for some time, an eclectic group of six well-motivated and various young men whose skills and stamina have been tested hard on a number of occasions, especially recently.
Races during the Head-race season were very few, for most of us our only competition being a trip to Bristol docks! And there was great excitement there, for we managed to put together a scratch Quad with the expert assistance of Matt Kong from the Fifth, who stroked for us; but Robert Colborn, big lad that he is, was head-hunted by a Senior Monkton Eight and so rowed the course a second time, rowing on the opposite side to that which he normally rows, and fitting in exceedingly well!
Our quad had hoped for a row at the Schools Head on the Thames at Putney, but was sadly deprived of that chance due to restrictions on crew numbers. However, Rob rowed again in the Senior Eight crew, gaining some very useful experience of head racing on the Tideway, and completely wearing himself out in the process!
At the beginning of the Summer Term, the group broke down into small boats, with Robert and Hugo in a double, and Jon Kirk and Peter Carne rowing in sculls. This was just as well, for we lost an excellent and rapidly developing cox, Adelin Choy, who decided to go and play tennis for the term! I hope very much that she will put her experience to good use at some later date! This Squad combination worked well, and at least the double had several racing experiences before going on to compete at National Schools at Nottingham.
Although racing against crews of greater experience, who had possibly rowed together more during the season, and although suffering from an admittedly abysmal start, Robert and Hugo rowed with the best of them and by no means disgraced themselves, coming 11th out of 15 in a strongly competitive class. Whatever the results, what experiences to file away for the future!
Bridgnorth Regatta provided us with more competition, and our last races of the season. Robert and Hugo rowed well, and with a much better start this time, against a monster novice double from Shrewsbury, in a good hard fought race, the verdict being two lengths. This regatta was notable too, for the rowing of Jonathan Kirk, who sculled in his first ever race against an Arnie Schwarzenegger look-alike from Bewdley Rowing Club, who played with him and then, diplomatically, won verdict, easily. The only useful experience for racing in small boats is racing in small boats, and weve had plenty of that!
In terms of technique and development, Jonathan Kirk has shown himself to be an excellent stylist, closely followed by Hugo, especially at the end of the season! Robert Colborn has been a pillar of strength during the season, several times recording sub seven minute thirty ergo times! There is much promise in those muscles, and senior crews and coaches have eyes on him! During the summer term, Peter Carne came on in leaps and bounds in both confidence and technique, and though denied a real race this season, he will surely be a racer next year.
Robert Groves joined us during the summer term, and proved himself a real athlete. He took to rowing easily, and will be an asset to any crew in the future! Overall, a frustrating but fruitful and at times exciting year! Very well done, all of you!
DRJ