Tuesday 19 July 2011

Coming Up on Lucky Duck

Just a note about what's coming up on the blog over the next few weeks. Over the next four days, I'm afraid that we shall be somewhat pre-occupied with the most anticipated set of rowing races on the River Cam, the Bumps.

For any non-rowers, these races are a type of rowing competition in which 20 boats line up along the bank, about 60 ft apart and then when a cannon does off, all begin frantically rowing in order to catch the boat in front before they are caught be the boat behind. If they do catch the boat they are chasing, they swap places the next day. This runs over 4 days, and its chaotic, a bit dangerous, terrifying, and great fun!

It looks something like this...

Photo: Ed Brambley

...and produces charts which look like this as boats switch places over the course of the four days. Our ultimate aim is to move up four (or more!) places over the series of races. I am rowing in our W1, and James is again coxing the M1 boat. Our club, Chesterton, also have three other boats, M2, M3 and W2. So I shall be reporting on the club's progress as we attempt to bump rather than be bumped!

On Friday night, there is a party for all the rowers which tends to go on long into the night, with much drinking, eating, and analysing the week's rowing. Saturday will see us rising late and setting off on the first leg of our month long summer cruise towards London. So, from Saturday, the blog will become a cruising log of our adventures on the inland waterways. I will try to intersperse it with some different features, but it will all depend on our internet connection. I'll post an itinerary so that you can see roughly where we'll be when (although that can of course change!).






No comments:

Post a Comment