Head of the Charles
During a recent trip to visit my family in Massachusetts, I had the opportunity to go and watch the Head of the Charles regatta in Boston. My sister has recently taken up rowing and wanted to watch some racing and I was keen to see what the event was like as I have never been before and it was one event I always wanted to take part in while I was rowing.
Racing over 3 miles, the event has taken place since 1965 and is now claimed to be the largest two-day rowing event in the world with over 7500 competitors. The event has a great atmosphere which I would describe as a mix between Henley and the Head of the River in London. The regatta attracts around 300,000 spectators and the banks of the river are lined with stands.
I'm interested in putting together a Bluefriars crew to take part in the 2009 event and I'd like to hear from anyone who would be interested in taking part. It could be a great opportunity to get back in a boat and take in a tour of Boston at the same time.
Appointing a sports coach
I was interested to receive the Bluefriars letter, but must confess that it is under false pretences. When RDH asked me at supper on my first evening at Monkton, "Wilson, isn't it? Are you an oar?", I had - after a moment's thought to decide what the question meant - to admit that I was not. His next salvo, "Oh well then, you'll be in charge of Junior Colts hockey", left me wondering if I had given a wise answer, as I didn't know the first thing about hockey either. However, I did share the running of the cricket 1st XI with TMW.... Anyway, I had better be removed from the distribution list, meanwhile wishing you all an excellent day in April, and very best wishes to our Monktonians in Beijing.
A day out in Henley
Had a most fortuitous time at Henley on Saturday! We were babysitting for Jessica and discovered by accident that the 'Town' was giving a parade to all the Leander Olympians. So on a glorious day we went down and saw everyone come past in an 'open topped' bus - but then by extreme luck we found that we had placed ourselves right next to where the bus stopped to disgorge them all into the Town Hall. Much to Sydney's delight various members of the squad signed autographs, including Steve and Alex, which was very kind of them indeed.