24 minute read
Rowing
1ST VIII To say the 2021-22 season has been a rollercoaster would be an understatement. It has been more of a moonshot. Beginning with the worst top eight average 5 km results in the last ten years of SPSBC, there was a lot of work to do. With only two returners from last year‘s British Championships winning and PE finalist eight, we set about building a senior squad culture – after traditions like whole squad trips to Nando’s had been halted by the pandemic – which would percolate through the club as the year progressed.
Bobby always says that “the first eight selects itself,” these are words I kept in mind throughout this year but in particular when some young guns, mavericks even, were added to what can best be described as a learning experience at Wallingford Head. Jumping into an eight the week before Christmas the boat flow was unexpectedly good and for the first time I started to believe. We racked up the training miles over Christmas and kept returning to one thought about what we were doing: “Will it make the boat go faster?” The phrase is simple enough in its essence but with far-reaching implications.
As the spring term began, we got ready to race at Quintin and Hammersmith Heads with the prestigious Head of the Nene cancelled due to a lack of water in the river. We found ourselves a few boat lengths behind the leading crews but very much in the tightly bunched top six pack. As Schools’ Head rolled around we put together an average row to finish 5th.
With the first full boat club dinner since 2019 behind us, we embarked upon the legendary Portugal trip with dreams of shredding radical barrels surfing on our day off. Although the surfing was more of a washing machine, we made significant steps in the right direction with some very encouraging 1km pieces with a roaring tailwind. What was lacking in weather was more than made up for by renditions of Sifu Bwana and Himalayan throat singing.
As exam season started, we prepared for the National Schools’ Regatta where the wind played some tricks on us, but a very encouraging first 1500m only strengthened our belief that come Henley we had the potential to win. A very positive biomechanics session with Valery Kleshnev buoyed the crew and showed the strong improvements we had made since the first session in February.
Completing the Metropolitan and Marlow Regattas, our base pace was there, but we found ourselves lacking in the first ➦
500m. After working on starts and getting a forearm pump bigger than a prime Arnold Schwarzenegger, we were ready for Henley Royal Regatta.
We eased into the week with a positive race against Windsor Boys’ School before being faced with the Schools’ Head winners, Shiplake. We completed our first row-through of the week, snapping their belief around the mile marker and finished with a one length margin. Next up were the Australian national champions, King’s School Parramatta, who it turns out were not up for a “dog fight”, as they had put it, being dispatched as we controlled the race from the start to keep them at arm’s length. As our confidence grew from race to race we made sure to keep the pressure on the others with the mantra #hakunamatata being repeated as we made sure to recover better than any other crew.
Next up were the once self-proclaimed favourites for ‘The Triple’, KCS. Again, we rowed our own race and broke them shortly after the mile, having been down after being down at the Barrier and Fawley. Finally we prepared for the final against Radley who were strong contenders, having beaten Eton coming through the Stewards’ Enclosure the day before. Again Junior Rowing News in their infinite wisdom counted us out, but Radley could not match the ice in the veins nor the fire in the belly of this crew. We led from the beginning and would not loosen our grip on the race until we crossed the finish line – 1/3 of a length ahead – and our cox was overcome with jubilation as he screeched with joy crossing the line in the secondfastest time (6:15) ever recorded for the Princess Elizabeth Challenge Cup. Having completed what, some say, was the greatest cup run in PE history, we did our very best to stay present and soak it all in, from the scenes on the landing stage to lifting (and in my case dropping) the cup itself.
Our immeasurable thanks goes to: our head coach Bobby Thatcher and technical guru – the Yoda to Bobby’s Skywalker – Donald Legget; to all the other SPSBC coaches and President Smith; to the High Master and Dr Killick for their efforts organising the first SPS post-COVID trip to Portugal; and to the Surmaster and all the other staff members who remain ever-interested and accommodating in the corridor, classroom, and especially lunch hall.
For Jonathon Catmull, Alexander Dyvik Henke, Mrinaank Chilkoti, James Trotman and myself this is not the end, or the beginning of the end, but perhaps just the end of the beginning. For Jack Stephenson, Philip Wolfensberger, Felix Peerless and Alp Karadogan it is very much the beginning as they become stewards of the Club and take it forward. To any younger pupils reading this, try rowing, trust that Bobby has EL PLAN, and most of all, enjoy it!
I leave you with a quote from the Henley house Zen Dog: “He knows not where he’s going for the ocean will decide, it’s not the destination, it’s the glory of the ride.”
And this year has indeed been one heck of a glorious ride. #sptid ❚ Basti Marsoner
2ND VIII At a glance there is little to remark upon. The St Paul’s 2nd VIII of 2022 won’t go down as the strongest, fastest or even flashiest crew on the circuit, but success at this level is not a zero sum game. When the crew formed in January, many among us had little to no experience in high level junior rowing and much of the early work required us to learn well on the go, with racing fast approaching.
The head season is long and attritional, with patience being the name of the game. For much of the spring term’s racing we occupied something of a concealed position towards the middle of the pack. Unappealing finishes at Quintin and Hammersmith Heads reflected our inexperience. With The Schools’ Head looming, however, speed began to arrive. The results in this race can often be decided by who blinks first, and this fact showed, as we dealt damage in the last third of the race, pushing away from Eton and KCS, ultimately poaching a top three position.
The Easter training camp proved a baptism of fire for many of us who were new to the persistence required to make it through the week. It did, however, mould a strong attitude and, importantly for us, a coherent style of rowing to take into the summer.
We found out early on in the summer season that there was an eminent standard of competition for second eights. At BASHER and Wallingford regattas we closed a 30 second gap between ourselves and the frontrunners, reducing it to 6 seconds. The National Schools’ Regatta demands that a chance of a medal be met with a standout performance, and whilst racing was hard, we crossed the final finish line in 5th place, three seconds off a medal position. We had delivered some strong rows but we came away unresolved.
After two years of Henley Royal Regatta preventing the entrance of international crews, 2022’s Henley qualifiers saw a bumper year in entries in the Temple Challenge Cup for student eights. Having thrown our hat into the ring, and aware of the enormity of the task, we faced down some of the best crews on the university circuit; we boldly stepped up for a final row (the last at SPSBC for some of us). The performance was notable: we overturned Eton and St Edward’s to return to the top three fastest second eights nationwide, as well as coming four seconds off one of only seven qualifying spots (contested by some 50 crews). Deeds are not less worthy because they go unpraised; for the leavers, as well as those ready for another year with Charlie, whose wisdom and guidance has been our greatest asset, this season has been remarkable. ❚ Callum Elder 3RD VIII The Third Eight of 2022 had about it the feeling of a reunion. Meer Dougramachi was back having first been roped in as a Fourth former in 2018. His cavalier steering still raised hairs, but ensured fast progress along any crowded waterway. Oscar Vitou was also back, regaining what the first lockdown had cut short in 2020. For Finn Lavington, Eamon Coates, Jack Davies, and Toby Thorogood – all veterans of the 2021 silver medal crew – it was not so much a case of coming back as never leaving. Until Toby left at the end of the spring term. Or tried to leave – nobody who rows both sides and lives only five minutes from school can ever be allowed to give up rowing. Fortunately, Ethan Lim was tempted back to replace him. Jim Roberts left behind his dalliance with cycling and Adi Jain stepped up from last year’s 4th IV. Finally, Noah Leach took up rowing only this year and, though he initially gauged his progress by the number of crabs caught per outing, he became a solid oarsman in record time.
Although there were no illnesses or injuries during the season, the usual rosta of SATs and grandmothers’ birthdays did mean there was often a ride in the boat on offer. Sometimes that was an offer that couldn’t be refused, usually by Toby. This was also the first complete Third Eight to travel to Portugal for the Easter training camp, where there was some friendly jousting with the J16Bs. The standing push off was mastered, speed was found, and poor choices of outfit were made. Some nearly wore out the work room at the hotel, anticipating the juggling act that would be needed as A Level exams would hit eight of the crew well before the National Schools’ Regatta at the end of May.
With three weeks to go to NSR, something wasn’t quite working. There was power, but not enough strokes per minute. A tweaking of the order and a few magic words from Donald Legget during a drizzly games half got things going with just “a little more nudge on the front end.” With one week to go, the crew did some speed testing at the Docklands. In a brisk tail wind, the new ➦
form was evident: multiple pieces well ahead of record pace.
After studying the wind forecast for the main event, a daring plan was hatched: take the time trial lightly, and bet on a fair wind and fresh legs in the final. After a pacy 650m off the start to warm up, Meer called the crew down to a paddle and had them doing drills past the supporters’ tents. This proved a bit much for the officials and, as the boat was being lowered onto trestles after the paddle, the nearest loudspeaker crackled into life: “Some crews have been seen not paddling at full pressure in the time trial. A reminder that all crews are expected to paddle at full pressure. Crews that do not may face a warning from the umpires.” No warning was forthcoming, and an eight hour wait for the final began.
For most of the crew, this was one last race in black and white. As they picked up the boat at half past five, the wind was helping down the course. By the scheduled race time nearly an hour later, the wind was low. And half an hour after that, when the delayed final got underway, the wind was hurting: a direct cross, leaving lane seven exposed. No medal, but no tears either. ❚ MJPS
J16A J16A had a season that both began and ended on highs. In the early part of the season, before a distinct A boat was formed, a string of good performances were put together. Throughout the autumn term, mixed boats were greeted with wins at Reading Small Boats, Wallingford Head, BASHER head, and Quentin head. At the return after the Christmas holidays, the first iteration of an A boat was formed containing Pip Benninson, Ben Atkinson, Seb Harker, Fintan Delaney, Nathan Fairclough, Rohan Suri, Sam Fowlie, and Paddy Barry with Rex Weber-Brown as cox. A few disappointing results unfolded with 4th place at Hammersmith Head and 5th place at Schools’ Head.
Heading off to Portugal for a week provided the booster needed to begin the push back to the top even though illness forced Paddy to stay at home while Laurenz Orlando replaced him for the remainder of the season. Overturning Westminster at Wallingford Regatta after being behind throughout the spring term lifted some heads and the form was held through to the National Schools’ Regatta where we just missed out on a medal, coming 4th. Everyone would agree on the pinnacle of the season arriving for Marlow Regatta, where an amazing performance once again returned the crew to 1st place.
A quick trip down to Henley Qualifiers didn’t bring any results but was a moment to remember for the whole crew and it never hurts to end the season with a boat heading down to GB France. In Paris, Rohan, Nathan, Laurenz, and Sam teamed up with Radley to form an eight that beat the French by four seconds. ❚
#YeahPauls #VP #MarlowTime Seb Harker
J16B The J16B season started with mixed boats, with the A and B boats being mixed to form two high-achieving eights, with close results at both Wallingford and Quintin heads, with both boats placing first and third at both events. We then entered one quad into the Fours Head, which would provide a useful insight into racing in the Schools’ Head, held over the same course. Despite racing in a J18 event, the squad successfully carried out their race plan, and delivered a promising result. Going into Schools’ head we felt quietly confident, with faith in our base pace and technical ability, but still conscious of our competitors’ potential to surprise us with a strong result. We were pleased to find out that we had come third, with only a seven second gap to Eton ahead of us. Going into the summer term, we knew we had only a limited amount of time to close the gap ➦
on Eton, and potentially challenge Radley, who gave a dominant performance at Schools’ Head. We were fortunate enough to be able to travel as a boat club to a lake in Portugal, to improve our still water racing ability, which would be crucial to our success at Nationals. Despite the eight weeks of GCSEs we then faced, we all managed to continue our training, getting out on the water to perfect and fine-tune our race plan to give us the best possible chance of winning that coveted National Schools’ medal. The race was a tough one, with both Eton and Radley storming out of the blocks, and so despite our best efforts to catch up through the middle kilometre, they were ultimately the faster crew, resulting in our earning the bronze medal: a well-earned reward for all our hard work.
I would like to thank both the B boat coach, Ms Milanova and the head J16 coach Sam Lapage, both of whom were instrumental in leading us to the success we received. ❚
The boat consisted from cox to bow of: Theo Westcott, Ed Spiers, Lazlo Kasas, Jamie Young, Ollie O’Donohoe, Teo Rossbach, Adi Jayaram, Cillian Knowles, and Rafi Saladin.
The J15A crew of 2022 was, from cox to bow: Victor Bocquet, Patrick Wild, Matthew Galea, Jacob West, Kynan Tallec-Botos, Christian Reese, Henrik Helsen, Milon Kalia, and Theo Hiorns.
J15A Armed with a dream and a meal plan put together by German, we got on the bus to Dorney at the crack of dawn. Wolfing down litres of porridge and with nerves setting in for the day that was about to come, we rigged the boats ready for the time trial. Although the last few weeks had been shaky due to exams and ill rowers, we paddled to the start line ready to put down the best performance we could. The time trial went by in a blur with us being rate-capped to conserve our energy. We finished with a good result and top placement, setting us up promisingly for the rest of the day.
After waiting a few hours, we set off to the start line for our second race, the semi-finals. Conditions looked very promising with a strong tailwind. After trying and failing like many other boats to line up at the stake-boats we set off hard and took a quick lead, before following the plan to the tee. That was, until the last two hundred metres where we finished with a quick build to ensure a first place in the semis and a promising lane choice for the finals. While getting out of the boat we were told from German that the gap we believed to be short was instead a length difference between us and second place and we had put down a 6:20 2k which was four seconds off record pace. So, with this high concluding our semis, we were left with high hopes towards the finals.
Another long wait sat between us and the end. However, eventually, with nerves setting in again, we initiated the quick consumption of last-minute Haribos before rushing our blades to the pontoon and setting off for our final race of the day. With the warm-up complete, we prepared ourselves at the stake-boats for the second time that day. However, where before we had only been focused on getting here, now, the record that we wished to break was firmly in the forefront of our minds. As the lights went off and the race started, we set off at a blistering pace with Radley and Eton on either side. Before long, we broke free of the pack and, as we neared the 1k mark, we found a new pace, surrounded by the cheers echoing across the lake. Nearing the end, the wind flipped to a headwind, but, undeterred, we pushed on to the finish in the hope that the record was still in reach. With a last-ditch effort, we pushed the boat across the finish line in a clear first place with some slightly scrappy blade work. Sadly, no record time was achieved, but that no longer mattered to us at the time.
Minutes after, still out of breath and struggling to comprehend the race that had just passed, we pulled into the pontoon. With a good performance from the crew and a brilliant victory, I would like to end with a huge thanks to the coaches and German for making this result possible. ❚ Matthew Galea
J15B The J15B squad began the rowing season enthusiastically as we were introduced to ‘sweeping’ in eights. For many of the rowers this was their first time rowing with one blade and we spent the initial water sessions developing our technique and adjusting to the new style of rowing. We spent the autumn term improving our skill and speed on the water and worked on our fitness and power in ergs and circuit sessions. This set us up well for our first head race at Wallingford where our mixed A/B crews finished first and second place.
As the head season really got going in January, we worked hard on our stamina, technique, timing, and coordination. The erg sessions on a Wednesday were really tough but everyone stayed on track and watched their times improve. This put us in a strong position to compete in these much longer 4-7 km races. In the final two head races we rowed as the J15Bs for the first time and in the gruelling 7.2 km Schools’ Head topped J15 2nd eights event and rowed faster than most of the J15 1st eights from other schools.
We continued to train hard over the Easter holidays and began our preparations for the summer regattas. This included: seat racing at Dorney, home training routines, and a five day camp at Moseley where we worked together to develop a strong racing rhythm and practice racing starts. During this time the final crew for the regatta season was formed with Alex Eakins in the cox seat, the synchronised pair of Pennington and Rueger in the stern, Kasolowsky, Hueffer, Baughan and Shammas the driving forces in the middle, and the strong bow pair of Zayn Shabeeh and Kush Patel.
The main event of the season was the National Schools’ Regatta at the end of May. In the build up to NSR, we gained valuable short racing practice at BASHER and a fixture against Mossbourne at London Docks. By the time we boarded the 5:30am bus to Eton Dorney, we were all well-prepared and keen to get racing. Our time trial went very well and we secured ourselves the best lane in the second semi-final which we won and qualified for the A final. This would be a much tougher race but we managed to win the silver medal and only missed out on first place by the narrowest of margins. Two weeks later at Marlow, with a small crew change, we went one better, achieving gold.
We had a huge amount of fun throughout the season and are very grateful to all the coaches, especially Luca Nicolaou for his guidance, support and style tips. ❚ Olly Pennington
J15C
J14A The season started out with the Junior Sculling Head where our mixed A boats finished in the top 18 over the brutal 3.6 kilometre time trial course, despite the unrelenting Saharan rain and rough water over the whole lake. A few weeks later, a short weekend fixture of only one kilometre proved a large success with our two A boats winning all their races against other schools including Dulwich and KCS. All our technique and power were greatly improved during the week-long Peterborough rowing camp in the Easter remedy and, now in the summer term, our newly-formed A boat started to take shape at BASHER Regatta where we finished ahead of every other octo in the competition and many more senior rowing boats. However, our nemesis was yet to be met side by side – Windsor Boys’ School.
At Bedford Regatta, an unlucky draw meant rowing against Windsor in the first round. We managed to hold it together but in the end a combination of their experience and the slight bend in the course resulted with them taking the lead to the finish line by 3/4 of a length. Over the weeks leading up to our most important regatta yet, National Schools’ Regatta, we worked on our race-pace coordination and starts, also beating the 15Bs and 16Bs in friendly races out on the tideway during our normal training sessions. With NSR looming, we practised our two and three minute pieces every session in preparation for the one kilometre course we would be racing.
At NSR, a ravaging crosswind meant lots of waves throughout the course. However, we came together in the time trial, finishing 4th, with the top four boats separated by less than one second. In the A final, a bad start put us in fourth place after the first 250 metres. However, from the 500 metre mark we started creeping up on third place and with 300 metres to go we were nearly in second place after Mossbourne. As we started to gain again on Mossbourne, the finish line seemed to come too early and we finished third by less than half a second separating us and Mossbourne. Inevitably, the first place medal was awarded to Windsor.
As the season came to a close, Marlow Regatta would be our final sculling race ever. Determined to do better than at NSR, we went out hard on the two kilometre time trial and finished half a second behind Windsor, who were in first place. In the final, we pushed together to secure a second place finish by the one kilometre mark, but an unexpected beep at the start instead of a go cost us a slightly slower start, even though our two boats were the same speed throughout the race. In the end, we finished second at this regatta.
Throughout the season, our coaches have expertly guided us to improve every session and we would like to give special thanks to Nelson, who inspires us with his charm and stamina when he runs alongside our boat during our races. Overall, our season has been exceptional and all of our A boat members have improved, with some never having rowed before. ❚ Apollo Andreichuk
The J14A crew of 2022 was, from cox to bow: Nathaniel Barnes, Apollo Andreichuk, Jonathan Miles, Felix Kirchner, Charlie Pye, Wilder Daffey, Jacopo Tans, Eyad Ohlmeyer, and Justin Li
J14B The J14B boat has had an excellent season. They hit the ground running at BASHER in April, putting down a marker for the season by being the second-fastest J14 boat behind only our own A boat. At Bedford Regatta they swept aside opposition in the first two rounds before coming up against a very strong Windsor Boys’ crew in the final. In a tense race they came back from a length down but ultimately lost by just a couple of metres. This led to a month of determined training and the B boat built unstoppable momentum leading into National Schools’ Regatta. In the final, Windsor Boys’ again pushed out to a lead of a boat length but this time the St Paul’s push started with 400m to go and was so effective that
the race commentator said it looked like the boat had been lifted out of the water and thrown forwards. Within 200m St Paul’s had gained the lead and surged on to win the Dulwich Cup by nearly a length in a time that would have placed them 4th in the A boat category. ❚ NF The J14B crew of 2022 was, from cox to bow: Samuel Christie, Max Wiseman, Dominic O’Sullivan, Alex Barea, Benjamin Thomas, Alexander Scafidas, Charlie Pama, Felix Patel, and Hugo Parkins-Godwin
J14C “Is that your C crew? They look like a B crew” said an astounded Radley coach. And in many years members of this group (for a group it was, with a number of different line ups raced through the season) could have easily graced the B boat line up. They have turned up (90% of the battle in any sport), worked hard, and listened well. It is only at the very end of the term that a slight tendency towards in boat water fights has emerged.
It has also been a very competitive group, which has produced some fantastic results: fastest C boat at BASHER I, winning at Bedford, fastest C boat at National Schools’, a fun last regatta at BASHER II racing as an octo and quad, as well as some great tussles in the local Tideway races. The pupils should know that all of them, whether or not they were in the boat for a particular race, have played a full part in all of these successes. It has been a pleasure to coach them and I am sure they will all enjoy further success in the future. ❚ TNRK
The J14C squad included: Josh Ferro, Lucas Perry, John Beck, Henry Whittaker, Leo Bertolo, Max Walton, Niko Saladin, Sam James, Alex Khosrowpanah-Falcone, Sid Chaudhary, Kai Szerkowski, Philipp Goetz, Theo Martin, and Anderson Daffey
