SCBC

Winter Head gave the M1 VIII and IV the first chance at an extended piece
in race conditions. So far both boats had been of variable quality, and so
the outcome of today was far from predictable.

The IV went first. A slow wind from the start left us settling on 28, not
nearly high enough but the rhythm felt good. The corners seemed to go
well, holding both the pace and the balance. Onto the long reach the wind
really took its toll, but we held it together well. A series of technical
calls from Hannah got us back where we should be, and we picked the pace up
under the railway bridge. Winding up to the finish produced a slight
increase in speed and we finished strong. All in all a decent, solid row,
but we knew we had rowed well within ourselves and so we relished the
chance to go back out and race in the afternoon.

On paper, even we wouldn't have bet on our VIII having a good race. Two
subs and a disastrous last outing did not bode well. However winding up
well away from the start and settling on 30, the ratio felt good. Strong
corners and inexperience on the course from St George's' left us rowing in
very dirty water, and the technique suffered as a result. Coming round
Ditton things picked up, and the push out of the corner felt strong. The
long reach itself was variable, but a fantastic piece of coxing from Hannah
saw the speed rocket under the Railway bridge as we wound for the finish.

Both boats finished 11th out of the college crews racing, the IV 109th
overall in 10.33, and the VIII 20th in 9.14. Perhaps a twinge of
disappointment, but we know that this was not our best rowing. The focus of
this year is a build towards May bumps: there are not three individual
projects, but one. As such, this was a solid first step which we can build
off. Lessons have to be learnt if we want to go faster, but we proved that
we can come through when things aren't looking good. We will only get
stronger from now, only improve, only get faster.

The first step has been taken, we move forward to the challenges ahead.