In a rare turn up for the books, Nottingham promised bad weather but delivered good. The almost-obligatory head/crosswind was present but the rain thankfully decided not to make an appearance. The squad wouldn’t have minded whatever the elements threw at them though, as they were raring to go for their first races of the season.

A solid performance in the time trial saw the ‘A’ crew finish third, coming in behind two GB Squad crews (featuring rowing legends such as the 2013 World Champions Helen Glover and Polly Swann). A third place minimum was needed in the semi to qualify for the A final. This was easily achieved and they cruised into second place ahead of Molesey. The final lined up to be a battle for both the Bronze and the University Pennant between CUWBC and Newcastle. Newcastle’s strong start gave them a couple of seats’ advantage,  but the Cambridge crew started to reel them in by 250m and were drawing level by the 500m mark. It turned out to be an exciting tussle with Newcastle and one the squad is looking  forward to revisiting in future races. Once they had their bowball in front of Newcastle, they increased the lead down the course, crossing the line approximately 1/3 of a length ahead, and well clear of the rest of the field. Sharing a podium with Olympians at the medal presentation is a memory all the crew will treasure.

The ‘B’ Crew were disappointed to narrowly miss out on qualifying for the A/B semi-finals, however the disappointment was channeled into determination to race harder in the C Final. Significantly ahead of the rest of the field, they posted a time which would have been competitive in the B Final.

Overall, both crews gained valuable racing experience, and it was great to have chance to compete at a multi-lane regatta so early in the season. They all had a great time racing and really enjoyed the weekend. Roll on Fours Head at the end of November!

Two CUWBC alumnae also had a successful weekend at the British Championships. Fran Rawlins (Lwt ’07 & ’08) won the LW2x category and Lizzie Polgreen (Lwt ’09, Blondie ’10, Blue Boat ’11) won the LW4x category.

Full results can be found here.