Results 2006
See archive-- 2007-2006-2005-2004-2003-2002-2001-2000

Vesta Scullers Head 3rd December 2006 The provisional results for the Vesta Sculling Head that took place today have been published on the Vesta Rowing Club website. Two Staines scullers competed and their results are as follows. Liz Lake start 301 finish 262 (12th of 12) 25 mins 00.20 secs and Phil Ansley-Watson start 318 finish 367 (13th of 13) 26 mins 24.67 secs.

Veteran Head of the River Fours 19th November 2006 The results for the Veterans IVs Head of the River Race have now been released and will be published on the official website shortly. The Staines results are 38th VetB 4- A. Douglas (4th of 8) 21 mins 14.74 secs, 65th VetC 4+ G. Carey (5th of 7) 21 mins 55.21 secs, 80th VetD 4+ A. Webb (6th of 10) 22 mins 26.42 secs, 48th WVetB 4- G. Medcalf (2nd of 3) 21 mins 31.81 secs.

Head of the River Fours 18th November 2006 The provisional results have been published for today's Fullers Head of the River Fours. They show the only SBC entry, Staines/Grey College, finishing in 259th place (44th of 52). Confirmation of this placing and timings will follow in due course.

Kingston Small Boats Head 12th November 2006 Ian Grant reports ----- Two men's crew were competing up at Kingston. There was a win for the S2 4- with a long battle with the Kingston/Walbrook opposition. After catching them quickly at the start, the crew failed to make the push through and ended up in a side by side battle most the way down the tricky course, including going through narrow arches Kingston Road bridge. In the second division, the Nv 2x had a good row, also catching one of the opposition boats in front and looking like taking home the Nov Win, but they unfortunately suffered the only penalty of the day, details to be confirmed, to miss victory by just 2 secs. Full results can be found on the Kingston RC website.

Pangbourne Junior Sculls 11th November 2006 Jim Pettitt sends this report ----- A huge field of 500 entries turned out on a fine Autumnal morning for the Pangbourne Junior Sculls but by lunchtime it had clouded over, the wind got up and it was perishing! Top marks go to Emma Corless in the J16 1x, who had a terrific 1st place in a field of 15 starters. Andrew Frost & Tom Oades had another excellent row in the J14 2x, though had to settle for 2nd place to a very impressive row from a Gloucester pair in a field of 11. Jonny Pettitt also rowed a fine race to finish 3rd in a field of 10 in the J12 1x. Another notable row was that of Gareth Jones in the J15 1x. In a large field of 36 scullers Gareth finished 4th, just 0.6 secs off 3rd place and only 5 secs off 1st place. A special mention for Rachel Lafbery. Rachel has missed most of the past 12 months with a knee injury sustained at this very event last year. She put in a good row and looks to be well on the way to race fitness again, well done! It is worth me making another observation, which wound up many spectators and competitors alike. The event was marred by some atrocious and sometimes non-existent marshalling along with inept organisation, leading many juniors, including some as young as J9, to be boated in the bitter cold for up to 3 hours! Full results can be found on the Mikrotime website. Also see Photographs Page.

Upper Thames Fours and Small Boats Head 29th October 2006 The full results of the Upper Thames Fours and Small Boats Head that took place on Sunday have now been published on the Mikrotime website. The results for the Staines crews are as follows - WS24x (5th of 5) 12 mins 13.6 secs, WS24- (4th of 5) 12 mins 43.4 secs, WS34x (6th of 7) 12 mins 5.3 secs, WS34+ (13th of 16) 13 mins 2.9 secs. See the photo on the Tideway Slug and the ones at onlyrowingphotos.com.

Weybridge Silver Sculls 21st October 2006 Jim Pettitt sends this report ----- Saturday saw the Weybridge Silver Sculls and Staines made a terrific start to the Head Season, scooping top prize in 4 events. The high wind and regular rain showers made for some testing conditions.  First up were Steve Ballantine and Gideon Shalom, braving the fierce elements to win in the VNOV 2x.  Emma Corless, starting last of a 13-strong field, overtook most of them to win the WJ16 1x in superb style. Tom Oades and Andrew Frost also broke clear of their rivals in the J14 2x, winning by a country mile. Cap'n Craig Twaddle had an agonising wait, having secured the fastest time in his category during the blustery morning division.  He then had to wait until the final division, with conditions having improved greatly, the wind dropping and rain abating before finally finding he'd won the VNOV 1x. A good haul of pots bodes well for the rest of the season.  Well done to all who took part. See Photographs Page.

Gloucester ans Ross V&J Regattas 26-27th August 2006 Rob Oades sends this report on behalf of the junior squad from Gloucester and Ross V&J Regattas -----

The Bank Holiday week-end saw the Junior Squad finish off their summer season with entries at the Gloucester and Ross Regatta's - both held this year at the Ross on Wye Rowing Club, due to road works preventing access to the Gloucester Club.

Gloucester Regatta took place on the Saturday and the squad performed well against strong competition. Making their debut's for the club were new members Shaun and Ryan Sullivan sculling at J15 and J13 respectively (Ryan a year up). Both brothers performed well in their first ever races and we look forward to them racing next year. In all we reached three finals and won two - Charlotte Morrison and Emma Parkes in the WJ16 2x and Tom Oades and Andrew Frost in the unbeaten MJ13 2x. Charlotte also reached the final of the WJ16 event but was disqualified for going into her opponents lane and forcing her into the side. A harsh decision.

The Sunday saw Ross Regatta Junior and Veterens Regatta take place over the same course. The Squad again performed well against all the main rowing clubs in the area and reached four finals, including the MJ16 4x- final after a canvas win against Runcorn Rowing Club in the semi-final. Could we finish the season with 4 more victories.

Charlotte Morrison again had reached the final of the WJ16 1x and she was determined to put right the previous evenings dis-qualification. By the time she came around the bend on the River Cam's 750m course, Charlotte was at least 5 lengths ahead of the opposition and cruised home. A similar result was achieved in the WJ16 2x final again partnered by Emma Parkes.

The next final was the MJ13 2x final with Tom Oades and Andrew Frost again in fine form. Could they win and remain undefeated at their J13 level. You bet they could easily beating a double from Evesham. This pair have had a great season five wins from five at J13 plus one at J14.

This saw the Juniors total victories for the season stand at 49. Could the MJ16 coxless quad of Nick Pollen (stroke) Rob Oades, James Kell and Tom Ryan (bow) make it the round fifty? This was the first time the lads had competed coxless and they did not disapoint. They had the stagger against them but as the rounded the bend they were a length up on the bigger Evesham crew and went on to win by 2 and a 1/2 lengths. They really wanted that victory and Tom Ryan steared a superb course.

So the season which started last October with the Weybridge Silver Sculls came to an end with a great victory. Fifty wins and a bronze medal making it the squads best season ever. Thanks must go to the coach's Jeremy Pollen, Ted Dyos and Bob "the Dog" Slade for all their hard work and to Carol Goldswain and Roy Frost as entry co-ordinators. We did not miss one entry this season. And of course last but not least - many thanks to all the interfering parents who have helped and supported the squad all year. Special thanks this week-end go to Mark (the torch) and Helen Lafbery who organised a fantastic BBQ for the Squad on the Saturday evening and even managed to cook Sunday Lunch also. The squad take a well deserved two week break now, before it all starts again. It will take that long for myself to recover from the pleasures of camping. Many thanks Junior Squad for a fantastic year I will not forget. Rob Oades (Snr). See Photographs Page.

Peterborough Regattas 12-13th August 2006 Adam Gill sends this report ----- The Staines massive turned up to the Peterborough Party Regatta with many crews and the women's squad on display this time in the form of the quad. The girls were entered at Senior 2 on both days and with little training together in this combination, it was going to an interesting two days racing. Conditions were tough; there was a nasty cross-headwind causing several capsizings, crabs and collisons between crews that really should know better. In the girl's first heat on Saturday congestion at the start and the late running of the regatta meant they had to go into the race cold, with no race warmup, but only needing to come second out of four to qualify for the final, they did just that behind only a tidy Molesey crew, beating Jesus College/York and Bedford Star's juniors. In the final they were joined by Tideway Scullers and a Leicester Composite; the girls really attacked the competition, giving 'the best race of the day' (Peterborough commentary) finishing two lengths down on Molesey, and just 3/4 length behind the Tideway crew. A super result given their opposition were all established outfits.
So Sunday saw some renewed determination to clean up in their final race of the season, despite slightly sore heads from watching Joe Woods dance off in the small hours of the morning. Due to a scratching, the first heat ended up being a race for lane order of the final, which is always a tricky type of race to handle, but the girls won it, getting the best lane for the final. However, the Star juniors, who had given the girls a good run as far as 400m on Saturday, were bitter from the previous day and really up for it. This left a two horse race, with Jesus/York and UWE off the pace, and coming into the final 200m Staines were still 3/4 of a length down with a lot to do. But an almightly push saw Star rowed down, and Staines winning their final race of the season by 2 feet! Thrilling to watch again, but never good on my heart!
This leaves the girls with 6 wins from 9, from Evesham to the Metropolitan Regatta, from Henley Women's to Peterborough; from singles, doubles, fours and the quad - a grand total of 29 tankards/goblets. A fantastic set of results, and an even more fantastic experience for all, with some outstanding racing, far exceeding everyone's expectations. And somehow, I've escaped being thrown in......so far.....
Ian Grant adds ----- A number of Men's squad crews made the trip to Peterborough for a weekend of racing. First up was Ian G in S3 1x looking for a top two finish to get through to the final but unfortunately just missed out by a foot to a Peterborough sculler after holding 2nd for most of the way. In Nv 1x Craig missed out on a place in the S-Finals by less than a canvas after putting in a last gasped burst in the last 200m, and nick being blown about in the wind a bit also missed out on going through to the S-Finals. Joe & Andrew made their 3rd appearance in a pair at S2 with some experienced crews from AK and Nottingham. Despite some minor steering issues they finished in 3rd place in the final a length behind AK and Nottingham. In the fours the S2 4+ of Andy, Nick, Terry, Damian and coxed by Mark AW unfortunately finished 4th in their heat just behind TRC, TTRC and Leicester after struggling in the strong headwind. The S4 4+ of Chris, Damian, Rob T,Rob O and Coxed by Mark AW/Rachel, finished 3rd in their heat to go through to the Repechage, but unfortunately due equipment problems had to swap boats last minute for the Rep. In this they missed out on a place in the S-finals finishing 2nd behind KCL with only 1st place going through. In the S2 4- the crew, with only 2 outings since Henley had a straight final against some strong opposition including the City of Sheffield crew beaten on the Weds of HRR.  After losing length due to a problem with a blade just after the start the crew moved slowly through the other crews to take the 2nd place behind TTRC. The contest of the day must have been the from the impromptu dance at midnight taken on by Joe W and a late entry by Ali L
The Sunday had slightly better conditions after a bit of early morning rain. In the Fours the S2 4+ had a much better race, but again just missed out on a place in the Rep by a canvas to Leicester to finish third. The S4 4+ had another good row but unfortunately missed out on a place in the Rep and finished third. In the S2 8+ made up of two S2 4's weren't able to match the three other crews and finished 4th. For the S3 2x Joe W and Ian G had a great start to take a length out of their opposition and hold on to take a place in the S-Finals. Andrew T and Mark AW didn't have a perfect start but managed had some good sculling to finish 2nd to go through to the repechage, but with some tough competition in the rep, missed out on the place in the S-Finals. In the S-Final Joe and Ian had a strong start but with 2 out of 3 crews going through, turned into a bit of four lanes after one crew had problems straight of the start. In the final the two of them had a slight lead up to half way but were unable to hold the position as two from Sudbury and Jesus College began to move away to take 1st and 2nd. In the Nv 1x Craig again missed out on a place in the S-Finals by a length and in the J16 1 x, Rob Oades pulled a win out of no-where as the third sculler in lane 1, leading their race capsized, 30m from the finish line and Rob stormed through to win. See Photographs Page.

Maidenhead Regatta 5th August 2006 Vice Captain, Craig Twaddle reports ----- Well done to everyone who raced at Maidenhead on Saturday. We had straight final wins in WS2 4+ (Liz Lake, Catherine Cran, Nikki Browning, Ali Lake, cox Rachel Lafbery) over Maidenhead, in WJ16 2x (Charlotte Morisson, Emma Parkes) over SWPS and in J16 1x (Rob Oades) over Eton Excelsior. There was some good racing by the other Juniors and also by the Seniors in the mixed 2xs events. In Nov 1x, yours truly won the first heat easily over Putney Town and then had a very close 2nd heat against Maidenhead with the Maidenhead sculler being disqualified at the finish line for failing to respond after several clashes. I lost my semi-final by 1.5 lengths to another Maidenhead sculler. Sir William Perkins School also had a win in WJ15 4x+ and so well done to them as well. Full results on the Maidenhead RC website. See Photographs Page.

Henley T&V Regatta 29th July 2006 Adam Gill sends this report ----- The 'Baker Tilly' Staines women's squad bandwagon once again rolled into Henley this Saturday for a less pressured but nevertheless important regatta. Two crews were entered; last years victorious girls with Katie Saunders subbing in for Alison Rolt, and an eight bringing together this years Henley four with last years. The conditions were pretty tricky, a nasty headwind/slight cross whipping up the water meant crews were finding the 1000m course heavy going. First up was the S1 coxless four in a straight final against Upper Thames. Staines had their usual trademark lightning start and pulled out a 1 1/2 length lead in the first 500m; but the girls took the brunt of the wind on the Bucks station and despite a good fight to the line, Upper Thames managed to claw them back to eventually win. After only half an hour on dry land, and hardly anytime to draw breath, the eight was out, in a three lane straight final against Maidenhead and Upper Thames. The UTRC boat contained the four that had just raced, with two GB internationals in the boat and have been training together for some time. But again Staines showed their talent is enough to match anyone, as they again pulled out a length lead off the start. With the wind buffeting both boats the majority of the course, Upper Thames had a strong middle section to bring them back on terms and then gain a length lead into the final 300m. The Staines put a herculean push in to the line, leaving themselves only half a length down on a talented crew, beating Maidenhead to an easily verdict. An impressive result from a crew that had only done a few starts together. Whilst no pewterware this weekend, a thorougly enjoyable afternoon's racing - even Olympians wanted in on the action (see photos). Full results can now be found on the official website.

Burway Junior & Veterans Regatta 23rd July 2006 Rob Oades (snr) reports ----- At Burway, Andrew Frost and Tom Oades continued their unbeaten run in the MJ13 2x event winning all three rounds with ease. Also on form was Jonathan (Tidler) Pettitt winning his MJ11 1x event, again in three rounds. As always many thanks to the coaches, parents and friends who came along to support the squad.
Liz Bernard sends this report on behalf of SWPS ----- The Staines/Burway weekend was a busy one, seeing SWPS winning 19 goblets/pots! At Burway on Sunday, the WJ15 4x+ won, Charlotte, Emily, Heather, and Ingrid and coxed by Alice, and the WJ16 2x won, Vikki and Rachel.  A successful weekend  - well done to all the crews (and Nick!). Results will follow shortly on the Burway RC website.

Staines Regatta 22nd July 2006 Rob Oades (snr) reports ----- At Staines, three victories were achieved, two by Emma Corless sculling with the girls from SWPS in the WJ15 2x and WJ15 4X+. Rob Oades won his first sculling point in the MJ16 1x event. As always many thanks to the coaches, parents and friends who came along to support the squad.
Liz Bernard sends this report on behalf of SWPS ----- The Staines/Burway weekend was a busy one, seeing SWPS winning 19 goblets/pots! At Staines on Saturday, the WJ12’s raced each other in the WJ12 4x+ and the WJ12 2x, therefore guaranteed wins!  The WJ15 4x+ won in a composite crew, Charlotte, Emily B, Emma Corless and Ingrid, coxed by Heather, and it was a composite crew which won the WJ15 2x  (Emily B and Emma Corless).  Vikki also won the WJ16 1x. A successful weekend  - well done to all the crews (and Nick!). Full results are available on the regatta website and photos can be found on the Photographs Page.

Molesey Junior Regatta 16th July 2006 Liz Bernard reports from Molesey Junior Regatta ----- SWPS had a very successful day’s racing in the blistering heat.  The parents provided the best barbeque yet, which was enjoyed by athletes, siblings, parents and coaches.  In the morning, we were placed in four finals, and won three of them.  Charlotte and Emily won the WJ15 2x, Vikki and Rachel won the WJ16 2x; and Helen, Emily, Kirsten and Charlie, coxed by Heather, won the WJ13 4x+, beating LEH into second place in two of the events.  We had no further wins in the afternoon, but the composite crew of Charlotte, Emily, Jenny Goldswain, and Ingrid, coxed by Heather, were closely beaten into second place.  Also worth a mention, was our WJ12 2x of Georgie and Jessica, who were beaten by EERC by only 2 feet!
Rob Oades reports on the SBC girls ----- two more victories in the J15 1x, Emma Corless and the J16 1x, Charlotte Morrison. Unfortunately the two double crews of Charlotte and Emma Parkes (J16 2x) and Emma C and Jennifer Goldswain (J15 2x) faired less well, losing in the first rounds. Jenny also sculled with the SWPS girls in the J15 4X+ which lost in the final.

ARA National Championships 14th - 16th July 2006 Duncan Speight advises ----- Just to let you know Jodi and Alison got Silver at the National Championships in the LW4-.  They were  rowing with Beccy (from London RC) and Cheryl (Vesta Rowing Club).  In the LW2- they got to the final and were 1 length behind the third place crew when they decided that they had a better chance in the 4- which was due to be raced 50 mins later so thought it best to conserver their energy!  They are both pretty chuffed with themselves... so chuffed they talked about it all afternoon and missed their flight home.... they are due back on the 7am flight this morning!! See photo

Jodi Davis reports ----- Four hungry lightweights arrived in a beautiful sunny Scotland on Friday afternoon to prepare for this years National Championships.
The race up first was the semi finals of the lightweight coxless pairs. We had lane 5 and much to our surprise the water was flat and there was no wind! We shot out of the start and hit a good rate and moved away from our competitors Reading and Agecroft in the closer lanes. Knowing the faster crews were in lane 1 & 2 we looked over at 1000m in to see we were in second place. Our push at 1100m pushed us through Aurial Kensington to win the heat by 3 seconds. We were really pleased with our performance as not only did we win the heat but we rowed well to get there.
In the evening we jumped into the four for a light paddle before ending the day with a mini salad as we had only weighed in with 300g to spare!
Sunday was finals day. With the 2 races only 54 minutes apart it was going to be a rush for both the weigh-ins and races. We weighed in successfully in the pair sparing a mere 250g then 54 minutes later weighing in for the four with a little more to spare thanks to Becci and Cheryl.
We headed up to the start for the pairs final at 2.18pm with now quite a strong cross wind on the course. In lane 3 we were against high quality crews included the England Commonwealth pair and Scottish Commonwealth pair, we got a good start are pushed hard out of the blocks as that was the only way were going to stay in contention. I think we surprised the Scottish pair out of the start as there were a few panicky shouts across to me for my steering (no change there then!). I think we can honestly say we rowed the best 1000m we have ever done in the pair (considering the windy conditions and looking at the times) but at 1000m we were down and made the decision to wind down as we would have been racing for fourth place. Looking at the times of the winners I think we made the right decision but we are stil very proud of of efforts and performance against some of the best pairs in the country.
After a stuffing down a few jelly babies we jumped into the Staines/London/Vesta composite lightweight four with Cheryl Gilliver (stroke, Vesta) and Becci Ledgewick (Bow, steers, London). As we rowed up to the start we were feeling good. We lined up again in Lane 3 and waited for the buzzer to sound! We went out of the start fast (45!) but not fast enough - perhaps a reflection of only 7 outings together! We were in 4th place through 250m but experience and determination saw us inch by inch reel in the competition. It was a close race all the way down the course with four boats all overlapping for medal positions. As we pushed through at 1500m we were in bronze medal position - I think in the last 15 strokes we showed our composure and pressured Reading to take the Silver medal with what must been only a canvas. The National championship was claimed by Mortlake and Anglian by 3/4 length and I am happy to say that 2 of the girls were the in the four from last year that took silver.
The adventures didn't end there as Duncan mentioned we were so excited that we ate junk food and drank wine so much so that we missed our flight and ended up staying in Scotland for an extra night!
We all had a great weekend and it makes all the training, aching muscles and boring salads worth while to come away with another national medal to add to the collection.
Alison and I would like to thank both Becci and Cheryl for agreeing to row with us in a lightweight four it has been great fun! Also thanks to Vesta for letting us use a brand new coxless four - VESTA BAR (which is quite apt after the reason for missing the flight!)
Mostly we would like to thank all those people who have supported us through another year and special thanks much go to our coach Mike Owen who brought our rowing on to another level again - we have really enjoying training with you and both feel that our rowing has really improved.
And finally I would like to add a special thanks to Alison Rolt who has been a brilliant pairs partner, training partner and above all friend. You have done so much to help put Staines Womens rowing back on the map and I and lots of others will really miss you when you head to Nottingham next year. Best of luck in Nottingham and I'll see you on a start line in the future ;-)

Bedford Quarts Regatta 9th July 2006 Vice Captain, Craig Twaddle reports ----- Some good racing at Bedford Quarts despite the very windy conditions at times. Well done to our winners in Nov 1x Div A (Andrew Roser), WS2 4+ (Ali Lake, Catherine Cran, Nikki Browning, Liz Lake, cox Rachel Lafbery), WJ15 1x (Jenny Goldswain), WNov 2x (Ali Lake, Catherine Cran) and S2 1x (Tom Goldswain). Tom's first race had to be rescheduled when his opposition had a collision before the start and broke a rigger. Tom raced at the new time, sculled back to the start and then raced again for the next round. Well done to everyone else who raced and particular mention to the Juniors in the S4 4+ who reached their final. Yours truly had a close race with a Bedford sculler but caught a crab near the finish and it was a final verdict of 1 length to Bedford. Full results can be found on the Bedford RC website.

Henley Veterans Regatta 7-8th July 2006 There were no wins for Staines crews at Henley Veterans Regatta today but some good racing. The Vet C4- (Carey) were in a good contest against Star but had an unfortunate clash with the booms at 3/4 distance and were unable to regain pace quickly enough. They lost to a younger Crabtree crew by 1 1/4 lengths in the Vet C4+ race later in the day. The Vet C- (Wood) lost to Thames by 2 3/4 lengths in their first round after taking an early lead off the start. The final first round Staines race, the Staines/Walton RC composite C8 was an exciting affair against Stourport with the Staines/Walton crew only 1/2 length down at half way. They clawed back a little in the latter part of the race giving the final result of a Stourport win by 1/3 length. Full results will be available in due course from the official website.

Egham Regatta 25th June 2006 Rob Oades (snr) advises ----- A quick report from the SBC Juniors at the Egham Regatta - four more wins to report: Andrew Frost J13 1x, Emma Corless WJ15 1x, Emma Parkes & Charlotte Morrison WJ16 2x, Charlotte Morrison WJ16 1x. I also believe Emma P and Charlotte won the Womens Junior Skiffing event representing Wraysbury.
Liz Bernard sends this reports on behalf of the Sir William Perkins's School rowing team ----- A limited number of  SWPS crews were entered for this regatta, and the WJ15’s won both the events in which they competed.  The WJ15 4x+, Charlotte, Emily, Emma, and Ingrid coxed by Heather came first and both the WJ15 2x won their semi-final race.  This resulted in a Perkins’s final, and a win for Charlotte and Emily. It was a very important event for our WJ12’s who have only been sculling since Easter.  This was their first regatta and we had two crews competing in the J12 4x+.  No winners this time! Full results here.

Thames Valley Park Regatta 18th June 2006 Rob Oades (snr) sends this report ----- Sunday saw the Staines Boat Club Juniors (along with a brand new flag (see photo's) kindly made by Jill Corless) compete at the Thames Valley Park Regatta against strong opposition. Out of seven events entered, five finals were reached and two more victories added to this years total. Charlotte Morrison won the WJ16 1x event and narrowly lost the 2x final partnered by Emma Parkes. Rachel Edwards won the WJ final putting in two very strong races. Andrew Frost and Tom Oades narrowly lost the MJ14 2x final to Reading by 1/2 a length - a great row seeing they were competing up a year and Jenny Goldswain came 3rd in the WJ15 1x final. Rob Oades came 2nd in his his semi-final of the MJ16 1x event as did the S4 4+ crew of Nick Pollen, Andrew Rozer, Tom Ryan, James Kell and Emma Corless (cox).
Many thanks go to the coach's Ted Dyos, Jeremy Pollen, Bob the Dog & Carol Goldswain and thanks also to Roy Frost and Jill Corless for towing. Thanks as always to the many parents who helped and supported on the day and a special thanks to Steve Kell for his training work with the boys. Next Regatta is Egham were we hope to add more pots to our seasons total. Full results will be available here shortly.

Marlow Regatta 17th June 2006 Ian Grant sends this report ----- The men's 4- went to the hot and sunny Marlow regatta at Dorney Lake on Saturday. In the second S2 4- heat the crew had a strong race but just missed out going straight into the final by half a length to LRC to finish 3rd to go into the Rep. This, at 14:30 in the afternoon, was another strong race where the crew took the lead straight from the word go to leave a closely fought battle either side for 2nd place between Rebecca and York. Unfortunately, the extra afternoon race took its toll for the final and after another good start, the crew were unable to maintain a challenge for a top place. A great improvement in racing from the crew in the past 3 weeks, with the hope of continuing success for Henley on the Wednesday. Thanks to those who came down to support and to Bob who we hope will be back on his bike very soon. Full results on the Marlow Regatta website.

Henley Women's Regatta 16th - 18th June 2006 Adam Gill sends his report from Henley Women's Regatta ----- The women's intermediate four (Ali Lake, Nikki Browning, Katie Cran, Liz Lake and Rachel Lafbery) reached the climax to their season competing at Henley Women's Regatta. The girls had had a good week training at Henley in preparation for qualification on Friday morning, and were looking forward to the racing. Qualifying was going to be tough as 49 boats were to be reduced to 32 for the knock-out phases, but the girls really attacked the course pulling away from Star Club who started behind them. Holding 44 strokes per minute for the first 250m, it was no surprise they nearly caught up Sons of the Thames who had started in front of them. Sure enough, qualification was confirmed, with the 1st round that same evening against Maidenhead RC. We knew nothing about this crew, but Maidenhead are a strong club, so it was going to be a nervy race. Some mis-timed shenanigans above the start led to Staines being late for the start and receiving an official warning, but this simply served to inspire the girls who led by the end of the island, making clear water on Maidenhead at the barrier with a massive push. From there on the girls dropped their rate and just sat in front of them, crossing the line barely out of breath - but were doubly surprised to find they'd clocked the fastest Intermediate Four time of the day at 5.33, just four seconds off the course record!
Saturday afternoon saw the second round match against Star Club. Whilst we were quietly confident as we'd pulled away from them in qualifying, you can never be complacent, especially at Henley. But the girls again delivered a storming start rattling out at 45 1/2 strokes a minute and had a lead by the end of the island, gaining clear water well before the barrier. Again the massive push coming to Remenham Farm only served to confirm their lead and the girls backed off to conserve energy winning the race comfortably. This set up a Quarter-Final race against University of Southampton on Saturday evening. We knew this was going to be a tough match (Southampton themselves were overhead talking nervously because we'd looked so strong) and knew we'd have to find our best row, so the girls went into it determined to prove they were the best. But some appalling marshalling at the start rattled the girls, and they mis cued their start which is their usual strong point. They had managed to pull it back to level by the end of the island but couldn't quite cling on and Southampton slipped away. Southampton eventually went on to reach the final on Sunday afternoon.
This was a fantastic performance by all involved; the girls never dreamt they'd get this far (last 8 from 49) when we started 3 months ago and are really inspired to go onto bigger and even better things. The time put in by all (including Claire Lovelady and Emma Corless) definitely reaped rewards. There are many many people we need to thank including all the support we had over the days at Henley and previous regattas (especially the invaluable gazebo erectors), Robin and Dunc for their advice, Gideon for finishing coaching and last but by no means least Bob for his help on all things rowing! Many, many photos to follow - Graham! Full details on the official website. Also see Photographs Page.

Weybridge Ladies Regatta 4th June 2006 Liz Bernard sends this report ----- SWPS attended Weybridge Ladies Regatta on Sunday .  We had some very good heat wins with Emma and Charlotte getting through to the final of the WJ15 2x, and Emma, Charlotte, Ingrid and Bertie, cox Heather getting through to the final of the WJ15 4x+; but the only win of the day was Vicky Deyong-Burgess in the WJ13 1x.  Vicky had to race three heats, a semi final and a final! Full results here.

Metropolitan Regatta 3-4th June 2006 Adam Gill writes ----- Here's the girls report for the Met: The Women's Senior2 four (Ali, Nikki, Katherine and Liz) had two full days of racing a the Metropolitan Regatta at Dorney Lake this weekend. Thankfully, unlike at Twickenham two weeks ago the summer weather seemed to have appeared with light winds and blue skies.
First race was a semi-final of Senior 2 coxed fours (3 to go through, Rachel Lafbery coxing) against some tough competition such as London, Marlow, Nottingham University and Molesey. The girls were first out of the blocks and to 500m pushing for 2nd place. At 1250m were still just holding off the London crew who eventually proved to strong and managed to beat them by just a length pushing the girls back into 5th place. For Ali and Nikki this was their first 2k race, and first multi lane race so a very very credible performance. Next race was the Senior 2 coxless, which was a straight 7 boat final against more big names of Thames, AK, Reading and Furinvall. The girls have only had a brief coxless outing before this race so it was a real test and they didn't dissapoint. At 500m they were 3rd, and rowing down Thames for 2nd. At 750m we had passed Thames and still going strong, with the more experienced crews pushing hard and pegged Staines back at 1000m. Still pushing hard though the girls started having steering problems as the rudder yoke had worked loose the the rudder jammed hard right; poor old bowside had to row harder and strokeside row light to just get to the finish. Two races with a lot to take forward to Sunday.
Sunday's coxed event (with Emma Corless coxing) was a much bigger affair than Saturday with twice the number of boats (24!) entered. The girls again found themselves in a fast heat, but at 1000m still in touch with the pack. At 1250m Staines were still in touch but in 5th with some work to claim 3rd, so they made a move first rowing down Trafford RC then Loughborough Students who had led the race until 1500m, claiming the 3rd spot in a thrilling final 200m where a just length seperated 1st place and 5th place. The girls only had an hour to prepare for the next round, where they'd been drawn against Molesey, Thames and Agecroft - another toughie! At 1000m places 2,3,4 and 5 were still overlapping with the girls pushing for that 3rd spot. At 1500m its was still an overlapped race with the girls moving up on 3rd place slightly but unfortunately couldn't quite cling on in the final 200m missing out by couple of lengths in the end. Another very spirited row producing their fastest time of 7:42. This left the coxless event in the afternoon; the competition was the same as the Saturday race, but a few other clubs dropped out leaving Staines to race against two Thames crews and MAA. Determined to put right the steering failure from Saturday the girls did that and rowed out another good 2k clocking their fastest time of the weekend (7:38) in the slowest conditions, but the personal battle of the two Thames crews proved too strong.
A superb weekends racing where the girls showed their speed to a level of competition above the seasons aim, leaving them just outside the final six in the coxed events on both days. All learnt a lot from the weekend, and are looking forward to taking it next weekends regatta at Reading where another large draw faces them including several Irish and American crews. Well done all and many thanks to Bob (first car at the regatta on Saturday) for all his help. Full results here.

Walton & Weybridge Regatta 3rd June 2006 Rob Oades (snr) sends this report ----- Staines crews were invovled from the very first race to almost the last at this years Walton & Weybridge Regatta. James Kell had a row over in race one of the day but the N 4+ mens crew were not so lucky with a defeat to Sons of the Thames in race two. In the second round of the MJ15 1x James Kell was beaten by Hazine of Maidenhead.Rob Oades won his first race at S4 1x by beating Carter of Ardingly but lost in the semi-final to Dombrowe also of Ardingly by a length. Dombrowe went onto win the event. The mens S4 4+ were beaten by HSBC in the first round but Nick Pollen and Craig Twaddle both got through the first round of the N1x event by beating competitors from Ardingly and Essex University repectively. Nick went on to win his semi-final but Craig, suffering from a painful back lost his race. In the final Nick put in a great performance to get within a length of Cowley of Burway but the 18 year old held on to win. Not bad for Nick who was giving away 2 years in age and sculling at Novice for the first time..The womens N4 4+ lost the straight final of the event to Curlew but the WS4 4+ crew gained revenge with a victory in the straight final against the same club. Coxing was Emma Corless. This was Emma's second pot of the day as earlier she had teamed up with Jenny Goldswain to win the WJ15 2x beating Weybridge and Burway on the way. Tom Oades & Andrew Frost won the MJ13 2x event with easy wins over Weybridge and Dragon School crews. This was Tom and Andrews third win out of three for the season. A good way to end the day. Full results here.

Coate Water Regatta 20th May 2006 Rob Oades sends this report ----- The Junior squad was out in force on Saturday at this weekend's Bradford and Avon County Regatta, held at Coate Water Park, Swindon. In very difficult conditions the squad came home with six pots and the Victor Ludorum prize of £200 for the most successful club on the day.The ball was set rolling by the girls. Charlotte Morrison won the WJ16 1x event and then teamed up with Emma Parkes to win the J16 2x. In the WJ 15 1x event the final was contested between Jenny Goldswain and Emma Corless with the win going to Jenny. They then doubled up in the WJ15 2x event which they won easily. All these events involved victories over, amongst others,  the SWPS girls. This was good since on the last occasion the squads met (at Burway last July) SWPS had the upper hand. The boy's then got in on the act with James Kell losing the J15 1x final in a close race. Rob Oades, rowing in his first S4 event lost his semi-final on the staggered finish, to the eventual winner of the event. A good first  effort at this senior level. The first boys victory came in the J16 2x final were Nick Pollen and Tom Ryan won their first pot together  as a double. This was soon followed by Tom Oades & Andrew Frost winning the J14 2x event in great style. This was a good victory for this double as they were rowing up a year against bigger crews. As Bob the Dog says; "Size isn't Everything". So the Squad ended up with 16 points in the Victor Ludorum, 4 more than the 2nd place Sir William Borlase School. Well done to all scullers and many thanks to the coach's Jeremy, Ted, Carol and Bob who had a very long day. Thanks to all parents for there help and support and to Jeremy for towing. PS - I believe Rachel Lafbery won a pot coxing the women's S2 crew at the Twickenham Regatta. Well done to all. Does this count as a Junior pot ????

Twickenham Regatta 20th May 2006 Adam Gill sends this report from Twickenham Regatta which took place today ----- The girls today battled with tough conditions of a strong tide, swirling gusts of gale force wind and lashing rain to compete in a straight final of Senior 2 fours against Warwick Boat Club. After some good starts in training this week upsetting some club stalwarts, the girls again produced a solid start to pull away from Warwick quickly gaining clear water with an aggressive row, having to row round the outside of the long Twickenham bend. Coming into the enclosure for the final metres the girls still had clear water, but the final sharp curve came to Warwick's advantage and a big push from their opposition meant Staines had to fight to hold onto the lead, but they did, winning by half a length. They really don't do my heart any good... Oh and of course, the rain and wind disappeared after the race, and the sun even made an appearance at one point!
Ian Grant adds this report ----- The Men's squad had 3 crews racing at Twickenham on Saturday. In the S2 1x, Tom G, comfortably, mastered the conditions in the S-Final whilst his opposition capsized, but he lost out in the final by two lengths to Thames RC after hitting a couple of buoys near the start. In S2 4-, the Staines-Brunel Composite of Nick H, Gary LJ and Tom S & Duffy (Brunel) had a bit of a scrappy race having to take the long way around the final bend and were unable to hold off Marlow RC to loose by 1 1/2 lengths. In the Second S-Final of the S2 4- of Mark AW, Joe W, Andrew T & Ian G had a slow first couple of strokes but soon got going up with a rating of 42 to slowly move through the Thames/Sons/ London crew to gain clear water by 400m and to win by about 3-4 lengths. In the final the racing was a bit more scrappy due to a stronger head wind, but again the crew moved off the start to pull about 1-2 lengths clear water by about 500m and move on to take the race for the second win of the summer season. Lets hope this success continues.See Photographs Page.

Ball Cup and Junior Championships 7th May 2006 Rob Oades (snr) reports ----- The Staines junior men competed in this years Ball Cup and Junior Championship's at Dorney Lake. The younger members competed as Staines Boat Club in the Ball Championships (J11-13). The Ball Cup however was only open to school competitors so the older boys represented their schools. Andrew Rozer (J18 1x Strodes College) came 4th in his semi final, as did Rob Oades (J16 1x Thamesmead School) so missed out on their finals. Rob lost on the line by a canvas.
James Kell competing for Magna Carta School qualified for the final of the J15 1x event and came a very good 5th. Nick Pollen and Tom Ryan (also competing for Magna Carta School) won their J16 2x semi-final but narrowly lost the final.
In the Championships Andrew Frost gained a bronze medal in the final of the J13 1x. Tom Oades was again close behind in 4th place. The success of the day was a gold medal for Jonny Pettitt in the J11 1x final.
Liz Bernard adds this report from SWPS ----- We had a very successful days racing, and SWPS were the overall winners and were awarded the Ball Cup Trophy. We had some good event wins. WJ13 single Vicky Deyong-Burgess . WJ13 coxed quad Helen O’Hara, Emily Lombardo, Vicky Deyong-Burgess, Kirsten Hilliard, cox Heather Stevenson. WJ15 double Charlotte Jackson and Emma Townshend. WJ16 single Rachel Martin. WJ16 double Rachel Martin and Vikki Wardle. These crews together with those which were placed in the first three in their event gained points towards The Ball Cup Trophy. Full results here. Graham Deyong-Burgess sends three photos including one of the victorious SWPS team . The girls for some reason didn't believe that coach, Nick Wilde, could walk on water as he claimed, so he set out to prove it!! See pic1 & pic2.

Evesham Annual and Sprint Regattas 29-30th May 2006 The first report from Rob Oades ----- Evesham Regatta and Evesham Sprint Regatta took place this week-end. For me it was great to see all sections of the club coming together to compete as one united club, helping supporting and competing with each other. And what a club we were. On both days we took over most of the river bank with three gazebo's side by side. The noise generated by the support on the bank was fantastic and I'm sure spurred on the Staines crews, particularly on the second day when this area was right next to the finish line. My own voice is very sore this morning !!
In this report I'll be more concerned with the Juniors but I'm sure someone will fill out the detail on the Senior side, but I must say how supportive the "bigger people" were to the juniors and I hope we race together at another Regatta soon.
On the Saturday we say some fierce racing and four victories. Mark Ainsley-Watson won his novice single sculling pot (or goblet I should say) and Tom Goldswain had a stormiing race to win the S2 1x final. Tom managed to hit almost every thing on the river including the bank, a four and an eight before rowing through his opponent from Evesham. But the performance of the day came from Rachel "the mighty atom" Edwards who won the S4 1x final and then teamed up with Emma Corless to win the S4 2x pot. This was Emma's Novice sculling win and took Rachel to S3. A win in the S3 2x the following day would give Rachel her S2 sculling classification. Could she do it ??? The rest of the crews performed well reaching many semi-finals and finals and this resulted in Staines winning the Victor Ludorum for the Saturday Regatta.
In the previous two Evesham regatta's I have attended, Staines have always faired worse at the Sundays Sprint Regatta, so with only 4 pots in the bag from the Saturday I must admit I was a little worried. However I should not have doubted the Staines team as they came out of the blocks with all guns blazing. Victory after victory came and before we knew it we had nine pot's and this could easily have been more as we had several losing finalists.
Rob Oades got the pot count rolling on the Sunday with his Novice pot victory in the single sculls. Rob also reached the J16 1x final where he was beaten in a close race by Tom Walker of Evesham Rowing Club, the Midlands inter-regional champion. Then Jonny Pettitt followed this up with his first regatta win at J11 1x. Charlotte Morrison & Emma Parkes successfully renewed their partnership in the double sculls with a victory in the J16 2x and Tom Oades and Andrew Frost easily won the J13 2x final. Tom and Andrew then had to become "enemies" for a short time as they both raced in the final of the
J13 1x event. In a great race, victory went to Andrew by 3/4 length.
The "bigger people" then got in on the act with both the mens and womens S3 coxed four crews winning their events. I apologise for not knowing all the crew members names but I'm sure another report will put this right. But I would like to mention that both crews were coxed by Junior members - Jonny Pollen and Rachel Lafbery who both won their first pots.
Could Rachel Edwards win her third pot of the week-end and achieve S2 status. You bet she could. Partnered by Charlotte Morrison they put in a fantastic effort to win the WS3 2x event. This gave Charlotte Morrison her novice sculling victory.
The regatta finished off with a great victory for the Junior boy's in the Novice Coxed 4 event. Stroked by Nick Pollen the win gave first pots to Andrew Roser, Tom Ryan and finally after three hard years trying James Kell.
In these years James has been so close to winning and it was fantastic to see him get that first pot - and on his birthday as well. Not forgetting the great coxing of Rachel Lafbery who won her second pot of the regatta. Of course these boys are all now S4 rowers !!
I must mention and thank the coach's - Ted Dyos, Jeremy Pollen, Bob "the Dog" Slade and Paul Goldswain. It must be great to see so many of the Juniors - Rob, Nick, Tom, Andrew R, James, Charlotte and Emma C get their Novice wins and become "S4 oars-people". And again I must mention Rachel Edwards achievement in winning 3 out of 3 events over the two days to move from S4 to S2 status.
Finally I thanks all the parents and club members who came to help and support the Staines competitors. They created a unique atmosphere on the bank-side which enhanced Staines BC's reputation as the noisiest club as well as one of the most successful. I look forward to the rest of the 2006 season, but now I'm going to have a lie down !!

This reports from Adam Gill ----- Adam Gill adds his report from Evesham Regattas ----- Report of the intermediate girls (I lost track of the juniors wins and goings on as there were so many - they were mostly responsible for winning the Victor Ludorum on Saturday). I'm sure others will submit reports of other squads The girls had a succesful weekend at Evesham Annual and Sprint Regattas despite being majorly hit with injury problems; Nikki is suffering cronic asthma and Ali is on doctor's orders to rest an ankle injury. So supersub Claire Ansley-Watson took a break out from university in Bristol (no-one likes revision anyway) to step in for Saturday's racing. It left us overpointed for the Senior 3 event which we had to unfortunately scratch, but this left the girls with a chance to concentrate on the Senior 2 coxed four event. In the first round they stamped authority all over Llandaff, winning by clear water, winding down at the half way point and then just sitting ahead. But in the final they met a very classy and well drilled Bedford who got the better us. Sunday saw the return of Nikki to the crew which meant we could race both Senior 3 and Senior 2 events. A 500m sprint means starts are important and whilst winning the early rounds of both events, the girls knew they had to step up a gear for the finals of both events, and they didn't dissapoint. The Senior 2 was first and whilst getting a clean start, the experienced crew from Ross just got the better of them by a canvas. Determined to put things right in the Senior 3 final, the girls delivered their best race just when they needed it beating Warwick by clear water, cox Rachel Lafberry celebrating in superb style as she crossed the line first - her first ever pot! Well done to all - big thanks to everyone who helping with the organisation for the weekend at a complicated event, the largest ever Evesham regatta.

This vote of thanks from Jeremy Pollen ----- Congratulations to all who competed at Evesham, it was a fantastic display of team work and support from everybody on and off the water, which was an honour to be part of. Well done to all the winning crews and scullers who did the club proud both in and out of their boats, and a special pat on the back for the boys Novice Four who managed to give Ted a little tear in the corner of his eye when they went across the finish line. Massive thanks to everyone involved.

And finally, this report from Ian Grant ----- Well, I’ll keep this report short if I can. On the Saturday, the S1 4- of  Ian, Gary, Joe & Mark lost out in a straight final against Llandaff after suffering some dodgy steering to collect local bank side plants and wildlife. In the S2 1x Tom also took the scenic root but still managed to take victory. Mark managed to win his N 1x event after gaining clear water in most of his races. Max and Fikret lost in the S3 2x and unfortunately lost the final of the S4 2x. On the Sunday the same four again lost to the same Llandaff crew at S1 4- but by only ½ length with a much straighter course. At S3 4+ with Jonny Pollen coxing, suffered quite a lot with a bad start, then a spectator shouting go from the bridge just before the starter umpire, having to wait for an hour for opposition to turn up, but managed to stay focused & improved with every race to win the event, jonny’s first every pot. The double suffered the same fate as Saturday and Tom G missed out of a second victory by just 1ft in his S2 1x final. Thanks go to BTD for his coaching, jonny pollen for coxing, all the juniors, seniors, and junior parents for their support.

Full results will be available shortly from the Evesham RC website. Also see Photographs Page and RowTV

Bedford Small Boats Head 9th April 2006 The results of Bedford Small Boats Head that took place today have now been published on the Bedford Rowing Club website. Staines entered 4 crews and the results are as follows -- VetC4+ (Wood) jnt 132nd overall (4th of 5 in category) in a time of 7 mins 39 secs, VetD4+ (Carey) jnt 65th overall (1st of 3 in category) in a time of 7 mins 22 secs, VetD4+ (Wood) jnt 145th overall (3rd of 3 in category) in a time of 7 mins 43 secs, VetD4- (Carey) jnt 36th overall (2nd of 2 in category) in a time of 7 mins 11 secs.

Vesta Veteran Head of the River Race 26th March 2006 The Vesta Veterans Head of the River took place today over 4¼ miles on the ebb tide from the Mortlake to Putney in which Staines entered just one crew. The results show Staines Vet C start 56th, finish 60th (13th of 26) 20 mins 38.73 secs. Alan Douglas sends this report ----- A fine, but windy day greeted us all as we gathered on Sunday.  After minor adjustments to the boat we had borrowed from IC (Andy Murphy was too tall to fit in), we had an uneventful, if bumpy, row to the start.  In the race itself, we settled well, despite Star flying past us almost immediately, and enjoyed the strong tail wind which pushed us quickly down to St Paul’s.  A thank you to the lone voice on Hammersmith Bridge - obviously, I don’t know who you are as we all know not to look up at the bridge, (but thank you Tim C).  Sadly, after Hammersmith, it descended into a long, hard slog of attrition into a head wind all the way to the finish.  Net result was overtaken once, passed two.  We finished 13^th in Vet C, the same as last year; took about 1.5 minutes longer than the Vet C winner, about the same as last year and beaten by one women’s crew, the same as last year.  Consistency, if nothing else.  A big thank you to Clare for steering, encouraging, hounding and cheering throughout the race (and the winter leading up to the race as well).  Another thank you to Bob T Dog for his coaching and help.  A further thank you to everyone else who has kindly “volunteered” or “been volunteered” to cox for us as well.  Finally, thank you to IC and Bill Mason for the loan of one of their boats for the race and technique tips. Full results are available on the official website.

Eights Head of the River Race 25th March 2006 The results for the Eights Head of the River Race which took place today are now available on the official website. The Staines '1' S2 8+ came 222nd overall (started 226) (64th of 83 in category) in a time of 20 mins 0.96 secs and the Staines '2' entry S4 8+ came 383rd overall (started 291) (70th of 76 in category) in a time of 21 mins 58.24 secs. Ian Grant sends this report ----- The men's squad were up bright an early to a nice sunny Saturday morning for the HORR, but having to start in the second half of the 420 strong crew, the clouds, rain and wind began to move in. The S2 crew starting at 226, again with 2 subs sitting in due to injuries, put in a good & uneventful race to hold their position to finish 222. The S4 crew, the first race on the tideway for all members, had a few clashes over the course and finished 383. Thanks to Bob an Jeremy for their help and support. Focus now turns to a hopefully less injury/illness prone summer season. Liz Brett sends this link to her Photobox site where she has posted some shots of the 2 Staines crews and Rob Oades senior has done the same to his Kodak site.

Kingston Head of the River Race 18th March 2006 Boat Maintenance Officer, Ian Grant submits this report from Kingston Head ----- The men’s squad entered two 8’s at KHORR in preparation for the Eights HORR at the weekend. Unfortunately things didn’t start off too well as, like a few other clubs, both crews boated late due to 3 different sets of road works on route. With the officials determined to start the race on time the S2 8 started directly behind the S4 8 along with 10 or so other eights, behind a back field of J4x+’s and WN4+’s. The S4 8, after putting in a strong effort to hold off the S2 8, continued to race well all the way down the course, weaving around the various slower boats to finish 7th of 10 in their category and 61st overall in a time of 20:51.6. The S2 8 pretty much stormed its way through the back field/late starters, with numerous slower boats to work off. This also meant that out of the 10 or so crews overtaken, we suffered 3 clashes, one of which almost caused a J4x+ to capsize after 1000m gone, and 2 WN4+’s between the bridges and finish. This gave a finish result of 12th of 14 in their category and 26th overall in a time of 19:22.3. A better performance by both crews from Burway Head and thanks go to everyone who subbed in last minute due to illness etc. and supporters for braving the cold. Our apologies to any members of other crews who we scared during the race. Full results can be found on the Kingston RC website.

Weybridge Junior ans Veteran Head 12th March 2006 The results for the Weybridge Junior and Veteran Head which took place today are available on the Weybridge RC website. The sole Staines BC entry, a J16 4+ came 19th overall (2nd of 2 in category) in a time of 13 mins 9 secs.

Women's Eights Head of the River Race 11th March 2006 The provisional results for the WEHORR which took place today are available on the official website. The Staines S2 eight came 196th overall (35th of 35 in category) in a time of 23 mins 11.1 secs.

Burway Head 25th February 2006 The results of Burway Head that took place today with 9 Staines and 2 SWPS competing, have been published on the Burway RC website. I have also published some photos to be found from the link on the Photographs Page. Cath Lake reports on behalf of the women's squad ----- It was a very cold and windy day on Saturday, but the Women's Squad were out in force for Burway Head of the River. Despite the weather conditions all crews put in a good solid row, including four very nervous novices taking part in their first event. The first division saw the women's eight of: Liz, Ali, Nikki, Katherine, Anna, Cath M, Suzanne and Claire competing at WS3. The wind hampered them about half way down the course but they managed to come in second with a time of 11.17 missing out to Maidenhead with a time of 10.54. The second division saw the girls take to fours with a WS2 crew of Nikki, Katherine, Liz and Claire,with a time of 12.07 missing out to Maidenhead again who came in at 11.25. A good row though and lots more to come from this crew....so watch this space.....also a lot more to come from our women's novice four of Sarah, Lorna, Corina and Cath B. The very first event for the girls who'd only had four outings together as a crew and generally have only been rowing for the past few months (with the exception of Cath B). They put their nerves aside and took on the task of the shortened 3K course with a mix of dread and enthusiasm. They put in a good solid row and managed to come 9th out of 11, beating Royal Holloway and University of Essex with a time of 15.28. Well done to them and all crews that took part.

Molesey Vets Head 18th February 2006 The results for the Molesey Veteran and Junior Head which took place today are available on the Molesey website. The Staines Vet C eight came 12th overall (5th of 7 in category) in a time of 10 mins 11.8 secs. Bob Hopkins has submitted four photos of the Staines eight which can be found from the link on the Photographs Page. On a sadder note, the sympathies of all at Staines Boat Club go out to the family and friends of Walton oarsman, Simon Mepham who collapsed and died whilst competing in the race.

Henley Head 11th February 2006 The results for the Henley Fours & Eights Head which took place today have been published on the Henley RC website. Please note that the 2 veteran entries were withdrawn at the last minute due to a combination of crew illness and trailer towing bar failure. Photographs are now available on the Bigblade website.

Remenham Challenge 22nd January 2006 Good weather favoured Vesta Rowing Club today as hosts of the 2006 Remenham Challenge. 6 Staines crews competed this year. Ian Grant emails this report on behalf of the men's squad ----- The men’s squad had 3 eights entered for this year's Remenham Challenge on a very flat and calm Tideway at Vesta RC. In the first division the Vet B boat, chased down the crew in front to take the lead and then just before Hammersmith Bridge had a collision with a pair. They quickly got things back together after the short break to finish with the fastest time of the division and 4th after the adjusted times in 15:11. The Novice eight with a mix of senior squad and juniors put in a good performance to finish 3rd in a time of 16:33. In the second Division the Intermediate eight put in a positive performance with more still to build on to finish 11th in a time of 15:35. Comment of the day has to go to one of the start marshals instructing a sculler heading downstream, ‘Sculler, there are about to be 30 eights chasing you down in a minute, so you might want to pull over.' -- Full results are available on the Vesta website. I have also converted them to PDF format here. Rob Oades has submitted some photos. See Photographs Page.

Oarsmen's Cross County 21st January 2006 Rob Oades (snr) sends the results for last Saturday's Thames Valley Oarsmen's Cross-Country race and writes ----- It appears that Staines had 3 winners - Trisha Corless - Wvet, Team for WJ16 - Charlotte Morrison, Emma Parkes, Becky Corless & Jenny Goldswain , Jonny Pettitt - MJ11. Rob Oades (Jnr) was the first Staines member home coming 17th overall in a time of 26:04.3. It was certainly the best performance by SBC since I have been a member. -- Jeremy Pollen has sent some photos. See Photographs Page. Full results should be available shortly on the Windsor Boys' School Boat Club website.

See archive-- 2007-2006-2005-2004-2003-2002-2001-2000