Today we got to row amongst some world class athletes paving the way and steeling all the pennants I may add. To be the best you must beat the best and what better way to do so than race some of GB’s finest athletes.
We were set of as the first women’s crew and start with the Leander A crew right on our stern. They had made a substitution since my last post with Emily Taylor being subbed for Rachel Gamble-Flint a promising U23 who represented GB at the U23 World Championships last year. They put the pressure on from the start and went for the overtake before Barnes Bridge we held them well although it was always inevitable that they would lose us you hold onto their speed for as long as you can. Coming through the bridge our bow was still in close proximity to their stern, what was to meet us on the other side could only be described as carnage.
The Women’s Elite 4x’s are set off behind the Men’s IM1 4x’s and with no minimum point limit some of them were pretty novice. For those who don’t understand the points system each time we win a summer regatta we are awarded a point on our racing licence which then dictates the level at which you can race. It goes on the crew average and you are able to race above you status just not below. Leander A had to make their way through these crews ahead of us which you would have hoped would have provided us with a nice path through the wreckage. Nope we though wrong rather than stay out of the way they then moved back onto the racing line only to have move again causing a lot of wash.
After overtaking several crews we then picked up a crew from HSBC rowing club who refused to abide by the rules and let the faster moving crew take the racing line. We had a collision just before Hammersmith Bridge which caused us to stop as they erratically cut in front of our bows. They steered in close on many occasions and we had to tussle with them all the way down the Hammersmith straight. The final straw came when we reached the Black Buoy and deciding they didn’t like being so close steered their boat over our stern pair’s blades. This once again caused us to stop while we tried to retrieve blades. Once we managed to get free of them we had a 500m straight in which to salvage what we could.
It’s hard to know how to handle this kind of emotion. If you perform poorly because you did not row your best you can accept it you can look at what you did well and what you need to work on. If you mess up and catch a crab or hit something you accept it and you move on. It’s hard to accept that another crew cost you your race by not obeying the racing rules. We were never going to win or at least we shouldn’t have racing a boat with 3 world champions in but you always want to come second and even better a close second. The HSBC crew may incur a time penalty or a disqualification but it will not alter our time or our disappointment.
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