AN aggressive sea lion attacked a university rowing boat in New Zealand’s Otago Harbour, took a chunk out of it and then chased the crew back to shore. This is the result…..
Click on the link to read all about it!
Congratulations Martin and Nicole
…on arrival of first child.
I found the below in my files, have no idea idea who originally wrote it and for whom (honestly not me), but seems appropriate!
Rowers make better parents: As parents of an infant:
- They understand sleep deprivation
- They are unfazed by incessant crying and whining (a skill developed after years of ignoring coxes and coaches)
- Immune to the horrors of nappy stench, thanks to years of training with other gross stinky people
As parents of an impressionable teenager:
- Will ensure their child doesn’t contribute to the obesity epidemic, by teasing it about its skinfolds and how it will never make lightweight in a million years if it keeps on inhaling those lettuce leaves.
- But will also make child feel better about its own image, by proudly parading his/her middle-aged body around in form-clinging lycra. Especially when child’s friends come over to visit.
- Will be cool about child testing boundaries and experimenting with alcohol and drugs (“You passed out after how many drinks? You’ll have to do better than that if you ever want to do a Rutherglen regatta”).
Jim Cooper
Captain's Challenge
The captain has decided to throw down the gauntlet.
Rules of the Challenge:
Round the Island Old School
- Can be rowed in any class of sweep boat. Pairs/ Fours/Eights
- Can only use Carbon Fibre Macon’s (there are at least 10 1 set of eight and a pair)
- Can only be attempted by the crew once every 30 days
- Must be officially timed, witnessed and recorded
- Course as per Round Island from light pole in front of RRC & back.
Prizes
- Slab Beer (or wine) for first crew stupid enough to try it
- Slab beer for fastest crew by presentation night
- Fastest time will win a new Perpetual Trophy “The Captain’s Challenge”
(potential for 2 slabs of beer for 1 crew or re-rig the Hendley/Crunden 1 slab each)
Head of the Yarra Female Squad – Cutoff is 29/08/2010
Female rowers who are interested in competing in this year’s Head of the Yarra (“HOTY”) have until Sunday morning *29 August* after the time trial to let me know.
For those who don’t know much about HOTY should have a look at the event website
The race will be held on Saturday 27 November. It is only for 8s and is a time trial 8.5 km long, going upstream from the judges’ box to hawthorn rowing club. Our top women’s crew will be looking to beat the 35 minutes mark, and will be at a rating of about 26 – 28 at near full pressure for the distance. If you don’t understand what any of this means then talk to me or your coach.
This is very demanding and is likely to suit rowers who are fit and particularly good at rowing extended lengths of time. What becomes important is the ability to keep rowing with good technique when you are very fatigued. This is what a lot of the training is about, particularly our October training camp. It is one hard race no matter what your skill level or fitness.
Many of our current female rowers are at or near this level and I believe many could well be capable of building up to this.
For everyone who intends to say yes, I would like to know how your fitness on an ergo is at the moment. In conjunction with your current coach, you need to do two ergos which I will use as baselines for training and evaluation – a 1000m sprint and a 20 minute session with rating at max 24.
For the 1000m ergo, please record your time, watts and average rating.
For the 20 min ergo, please record your distance, watts and average split (i.e. 500m split time).
For either ergo you MUST warm up beforehand for 5 – 10 mins rowing lightly (rating max 18) and cool down for 5 mins afterwards, again doing about 18.
Please send me your results by email.
Selection for the final crews will be quite competitive, but there is another time trial event the week before HOTY, called Melbourne Head, which is downstream from Big Bend to Princes Bridge (about 4.5 km). Most people who don’t quite make it to the HOTY crew will get a row in this regatta and it’s a very good time trial event.
Finally, the upcoming club time trial, going from RRC round the island and back, will give you a practical idea of what you are capable of doing right now.
Derek Begg
Pre Set Order of Events – Season 2010/11
What are our feelings on the races orders for the next season? I must admit I was unimpressed with the order of events last season as it prevented boating crews in more than one race as many classes of rower and boats were back to back.
EG c-grade quad backs onto C-grade 8 etc through most regatta programme.
You lose the opportunity to enter multiple events which is what makes travelling some of these distances worthwhile. I personally am not keen to drive 2-300km for only a couple of races.
I also would like to see C-grade coxless pairs on the program in both male and female. Especially at states. D to B grade is a big jump otherwise.
We need to formulate a reply to RV in writing before the 30th of August.
Happy to collate suggestions/feedback to RV.
Post your comments on the blog or email me at [email protected]
Barry Campbell
RRC Captain
Richmond Rowing Club AGM – President's Speech
Listen to the 2010 Richmond Rowing Club President’s Speech by Emma Catford:
Listen to Emma’s AGM Speech
Canvas Photo Prints – Limited Offer from Kev
Fancy a canvas print of your greatest moment in rowing or any other photo that you would like converted into a piece of art that would look great on the wall at home? If so
then contact Kev Burrows and organise one at a never to be repeated price for RRC Club Members, family and friends.
Presentation Night – Oh what a night….
Oh what a night…late December 1963…oh, sorry, mid July 2010. I was just having a flash back to my Uni days of awards dinners and late night dancing…good times
What a difference a month makes!
Having braved the cold night and wandered (or tottered for those of us in heels) up Swanston street in search of Gate 6 at Melbourne Uni, we were rewarded with Emma’s warm greeting and the very welcoming bar staff at Tsubu. And who knew just how glamorous our club could be….75 Richmond Rowers left the lycra (and woolly knits) at home and showed that it is not just the Men’s crew who know how to strut their fashion sense (or bulging biceps).
Having finally recognised all the members of my squad (sorry about that Kelly), remembered just how tall Tams, Em and Karen are even without 4 inch heels and given/received a great round of hugs from the long lost non-winter rowers, tables were selected and we all settled in. And the Japanese food extravaganza began. Oysters, sushi and gyoza, were all demolished in record time and then it was onto the main stage for the whole point of the shindig…presentations.
The first presentations were made to the Club Time Trial Winners.
Rachel Button took out the women’s tub scull
Sam Morrison the men’s tub scull
Geraldine Goss and Susie B the women’s tub pair
Martin Foster and Dennis Beck in the men’s tub pair
Half of Franzi’s boys lead by Charlie took out the Men’s tub 4
Rochelle Stokes, Anthea Amos, Karen Doggett, Susie Ballentyne (Mike Numa) took out the Women’s tub 4
The DS led the charge on the coaches presents with Denise Castro presenting wine and to Justin and Comedy Room tickets to the squad of coaches who have been supporting him over the last few months and la Plonketts making a special award to Kev.
With everyone duly celebrating and exclamations made over how we would have done better time trials if we had only just sorted out a crew and actually done the race, it was on to main course. Wagu, wine, wagu, beer, chicken, potatoes, wagu, beer, did I mention the wagu? It was obvious the Men’s squad had influenced the menu and we loved their work! Fabulous!
As the meat coma settled in it was time for the rest of the coaches’ presents. While Barry and Simon scored night passes to Mens Meatfest 2010 at La Luna (date still to be confirmed), Kev got a chunk of GPS, while Derek and Mike got some beautifully wrapped items (code for the beer was now adding to the meat coma).
Now the club has some big awards they make every year for people who have made significant contributions over the year both in rowing and other activities to support the club.
Big awards for the night
Simon highlighted the amazing achievements of club members in the last year presenting a series of new photographs commemorating this year’s achievements to grace the club walls;
Geraldine Goss, Carolyn Manning and Ray Dennis for their achievements at the 2010 Australian Masters Championships;
Team Richmond and their achievements at the 2009 World Master’s Games in Sydney;
Laura Schouten for her brilliant row in the single scull at the NSW Club Championships in Sydney; and
Emma Catford, Dennis Beck, Martin Foster and Nicole Stupka for their two year reign as Australian Masters Champions in the mixed quad scull (2007/08)
The major club awards were then presented to:
Don Edwards Trophy (Coxes): Derek Begg
John Sawyer Trophy (Womens’ Trophy): Geraldine Goss – was there anything she didn’t compete in this season?
Having been warned by Simon a few months ago that there was serious competition for the Mal Scott, in the end it was a three way (be still my beating heart!) between Barry Campbell, Sam Morrison and Dennis Beck
President’s Award: Simon Crunden
Then it was on to the year in photos. Collated by Karen Doggett, she had carefully pulled out all the shots where our rowing was less glamorous and focusing instead on all of the champagne rowing moments both on and off the water.
With the formal celebrations over, the camp seems to split in two, those whose only aim was to find a bed (any bed) and those who were set on dancing (or at least talking) the night away. While we missed out on the bands, we got the best of Melbourne’s lane way bars culminating in what I understand to be a RRC tradition, KFC at 3am and the long walk home. When are the bunk beds going to be installed in the sheds?
In closing I would like to propose a new post-presentation night award for bravery and sheer hardcore attitude. For while many of us were nursing hangovers or still walking home, Franzi’s Men’s 8 were out training on Sunday morning – and she isn’t even in the country! Well done boys, we expect to be celebrating your great regatta triumphs next presentation night!
To Emma and everyone who attended the evening, thanks so much for a fantastic night and see you all at camp in October!
Please note: no responsibility is taken by the author for any factual inaccuracies, it is how presentation night happened on her world, your world may have experienced a slight time shift or altered reality on the night in question.
PS – Jim is an awesome MC if you are thinking of getting married at some stage soon.
Sally McArthur
Winter Training @ Richmond
Head of Rowing Nicole Stupka has posted an update on Winter Training for members and potential new members looking to join the club.
Plenty of
activity happening at the moment so to find out more click on the following link, sign up and get involved:
RRC Metro Men
The men of Richmond have ‘slipped into preppy v-necks, new look wind cheaters and knits so chunky you could eat them’ according to the Herald Sun’s weekend magazine.
Johno Downie, Nick Schouten, Martin Foster, Andrew Smith and Sam Morrison looked very much the part modeling a ‘stylish’ range of winter wears for designers Kosi Kosi, Jack London, Leopold, Britten and Trimapee.
The article quotes all of the lads with Andrew stating that his jumper was slightly strange – ‘I’m not sure of the reaction I get in the clubrooms – but it’s warm and comfortable. Something I could think about wearing after rowing’ he said.
The opening paragraph sets the scene on the Yarra on a cold winters night:
‘Backs straining and biceps bulging, the power down the Yarra on a winter’s night. And when their oars finally come to a rest on the river’s edge and they haul themselves out of their boats, members of the Richmond Rowing Club rug up fast in winter jumpers.’
Oarsome…