Autumn 2004 Newsletter

Here are your 300 Club Numbers for the season 2004/2005

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Ordinary General Meeting 20 July

Was attended by 20 members. The Captaincy team were all re-elected. Mike Collier continues as Captain, Marjorie Israel as Deputy Captain and Chris Davidson as Vice Captain.

The 300 Club accounts were adopted.

Captains Report and Season's Results

In his report to the Ordinary General Meeting the Captain emphasised the club achievements during the recent season. These covered entry and qualification for the Goblets in this year's Henley Royal, entry in the Vets Henley and National Vets regattas and a top ten finish in the 30-34-age category in the British Indoor Rowing Champs. Naturally he made reference to regatta wins which are listed in this newsletter. He also commented on coaching, boat purchases, the Sculling Camps, the Club Regatta and recruitment. His objectives included buying a new heavyweight single, rowing in eights and singles during the winter, success in the Rhine Marathon and a crew finishing within the top 100 in the 2005 Head of the River.

At an end of season Club Management Meeting on 12 September he stated that winter training would start on Saturday 2 October at 9.00am on the water and on the Sunday at 9.30am on the water. Mid-week land training would consist of weight training on Mondays, ergo tests on Tuesdays, Pilates or a 60 minute UT2 session on Wednesdays and circuits on Thursday. Fridays would bring a day of rest. All winter land training would be performed in conjunction with Barnes Bridge Ladies. Nine members of the club would be taking part in the Rowers Revenge triathlon (4k ergo, 25k cycle, 7.5k run) in Marlow on 3 October and two Cygnet pairs along with two Cygnet composite crews will be taking part in the Pairs Head on the

9th October. Congratulations also to Cygnet member Nick Wyatt who recently completed the Moscow marathon in a fantastic 3 hours 30 minute.

2004 Regatta Season Wins and Henley Results

Putney Town - Saturday 15th May - S2 2- S.French (bow); S.Keating - qualifying
VetE 2x N.Jackson (bow); S.Otterburn (AKRC)

Barnes & Mortlake - Saturday 12th June - Nov 1x C.Davidson - qualifying
S4 4+ A.Naylor (bow); D.French; N.Wyatt; N.Pickford; M.Israel (cox)

Richmond - Saturday 26th June - S4 4+ A.Naylor (bow); D.French; N.Wyatt; N.Pickford; M.Israel (cox) - qualifying

Henley Royal - Thursday 1st July - Simon French (bow) & Steve Keating beat B.J.Wylie and A.J.Wylie
of the Oratory Cardinals' RC, verdict 4 3/4 lengths in The Silver Goblets & Nickalls' Challenge Cup.

Henley Royal - Friday 2nd July - Simon French (bow) & Steve Keating were beaten by R.P.Di Clemente and D.Cech of Trident Rowing Club, South Africa, the eventual winners of The Silver Goblets & Nickalls' Challenge Cup for Coxless Pairs
Kingston Amateur - Saturday 10th July - S3 4+ A.Naylor (bow); D.French; N.Wyatt; N.Pickford; M.Israel (cox) - qualifying

Molesey - Saturday 17th July - VetD 4- N.Wylie (bow); P.Rawkins; A.Rawkins; N.Davison

St. Neots - Saturday 24th July - Mixed S4 4x M.Collier (bow); D.French; E.Wingrove (BBLRC); T.Salter (BBLRC)

St. Neots Sprints - Sunday 25th July Mixed S4 4x M.Collier (bow); I.Golder; E.Wingrove (BBLRC); T.Salter (BBLRC)

Henley Town & Visitors - Saturday 31st July -VetE/F 2x N.Jackson (bow); S.Aitken (AKRC)

Sculling Camp 13th - 19th September

Desborough cut fishermen were subjected to a surprise this year as the catch of the day was a week's worth of Cygnet and BBLRC sculler’s. For the first time the Bungalow based sculling camp was extended for a week and lead by our Captain. The standard of sculling is much improved as the camp has it's share of regular attendees. This is not to say a few beginners didn’t learn the hard way about the down side to sculling. Novice sculler Stephen from Australia took the early lead with two swims but showing his island based swimming skills he remounted swiftly in deep water. Lisa from BBRLC was the best of the ladies, a highly competent beginner; it wasn’t until late on the Sunday that she fell in.

BBLRC 'love' burgers were on the menu and the overall catering was superb. Nick Wyatt having completed the Moscow Marathon provided the Vodka around the barbecue. Overall the spirit and teamwork has the programme running slicker than ever, it’s a well-oiled machine. Plans for the next camp, scheduled for

15th - 17 April 2005 include possible two lane races in front of the Bungalow. Thought is being given to making this exciting biannual event even better.

Thanks for all the effort people put in and most of all thanks to everyone that has a part in maintaining the mighty Bungalow. Chris Davidson

The Club Historian writes: This year being the 60th anniversary of D-Day, I thought it might be appropriate to ask some of our older members to recount something of life on the river at Chiswick and their rowing escapades during the Second World War. Two pieces follow: the first from Ronnie Lambe, our secretary, and the second from Rene Rawkins (Paul and Andy’s mum), who rowed at Green’s Boathouse from 1935-47.

Three Youths in a Boat

(But not George, Harris and Jay and no Montmorency))

In the early summer of 1941 John, Peter and Ronnie (me), three 16 years old youths, decided to camp on the river. We were due to take our Schools Certificates in the coming December and hadn't really started swotting. But remember in those days there was none of this GCSC nonsense because then you had to pass in at least five subjects each from a selected section. So swotting would become necessary.

We hired a double sculling camping skiff from the Eton College Boathouse at Windsor for two weeks at a cost of £1.15s 0d ( £1.75). This included the cover, which rolled up during the day. In distance travelled we were successful, reaching Lechlade. The practice was to scull for an hour. Changing from stroke to bow after half an hour and then half an hour steering. But there were problems such as the cover leaking badly and of course limited food supplies.

For food we had scrounged a variety of tins from our parents, remember food was severely rationed in 1941 but vegetables, particularly potatoes could be bought. Unlike Jerome K Jerome's three heroes we did remember to bring a tin opener. Water was obtained at locks and kept in a stone crock rather like a very large old fashioned hot water bottle. For cooking, on a Primus Stove, and washing the Thames was adequate. For other more intimate functions, holes were dug. We slept in the boat on the boat cushions and under blankets made into sleeping bags by the use of blanket pins. Sleeping bags were almost non-existent. On the way up river when passing through Boulters Lock, which was always considered the most fashionable, I caught one of my blades in the lock wall and it snapped in half. So for the rest of the trip we rowed using the sculls as sweeps, to be met by a very irate boatman on our return.

You must remember that this was wartime and a very long while ago. But it felt to me as if we were travelling in pre 1914 times. In those days life in the villages and small towns near the river was very quiet and slow moving. A different world. The three of us repeated the adventure in 1943 shortly before being called- up to the armed services. But for only 10 days and at the inflated cost of £2.10s 0p (£2.50). And we only reached Dorchester on the River Thame. But by that time we were much more interested in beer. Have you read "Three Men in a Boat"?. Ronnie Lambe

Rowing at War

I remember hearing about Ronnie’s three men in a boat escapade at the time, but I didn’t meet Ronnie until much later, although I believe he may have boated from the same boathouse – Tom Green’s – as me. Tom Green’s Boathouse was a rat infested wooden shack situated immediately adjacent to Barnes Bridge on the Chiswick side, close to the site where Thames Tradesmen’s Rowing Club now stands. There were no showers and to get to the loo you had to pass through an erstwhile Saloon Bar door. Ma Green – Tom Green’s wife – cooked on a large Primus stove, there being no electricity either. Needless to say, no insurance company would touch the place with a proverbial barge pole! For all that, we had some good times there.

A large number of clubs boated out of Tom Green’s during the war, some of them refugees from the Civil Service Boathouse, which had been requisitioned as a morgue in 1939. My own club – the Savings Bank (today’s NS&I) – had fallen out with the powers that be at the Civil Service before the war (it was ever so!) and moved to Green’s in 1935. Other incumbents were Alpha and St George’s. Come the war, we were joined by the likes of the Ministry of Pensions and the Ministry of Health.

Tom Green was one of the river’s great characters; a professional boatmen, he was given to binge drinking and frequently disappeared for days at a time, before being brought back much the worse for wear on the ferry that ran between Barnes and Chiswick. Ma Green was forever purloining our sweaters and shoes while we were out on the water. Yet, if you enquired about the whereabouts of a missing item of clothing she’d swear blind that she’d never seen it, even when she was standing before you actually wearing it! Her saving grace was that she was an excellent cook, although we rarely got to taste any of her creations.

Despite the war, rowing at Tom Green’s followed a very familiar pattern with outings during the week and on Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings. On just one such Sunday morning in mid May 1940, I remember standing on the foreshore and watching a whole flotilla of brightly decorated craft – we didn’t call them gin palace’s in those days – heading down river. It was quite unexpected although it was not long before we discovered their destination. Two weeks later, again on a Sunday morning, less than half their number made their way back up river, all painted in battle grey and very battered – the remnants of Dunkirk.

Women’s rowing flourished during the war, most men having been called up. Even so, some men’s crews still rowed out of Tom Green’s – these were mostly Thames Lightermen and the like. There was still a lot of commercial traffic plying the Thames during the war. Our outings were not without their high spots, often attracting ‘cat calls’ from Italian prisoners-of-war who were billeted somewhere up at Kew and permitted to stroll on the towpath. There was a very full regatta programme right the way through the war including the local ones like Hammersmith, Putney and Weybridge, mostly held in aid of the services and the Red Cross. We ventured as far afield as Torquay. I still have the trophy to show for our first encounter with coastal rowing and damned hard work it was too! Rene Rawkins

The Club Historian with apologies to his mother for any errors in transcription!

300 Club

For those of you who might have forgotten enclosed is a further application form

Veterans Lunch - Henley Saturday 30 October

For the tardy amongst you I have enclosed a reservation form with full details

Christmas Party

A joint clubs event from 12.00 noon of Sunday 12th December.

Club Trophies and Memorabilia

Several of these have disappeared from view. Please search in cupboards, on top of the piano and the mantelpiece for these. Contact me and you and I will arrange their delivery or collection.

Ronnie Lambe 01483 537346 - 26 Foxglove Gardens, Guildford, GU4 7ES - ronald,

Gongs

In the past few members, friends and associates of Cygnet have been the recipients of a variety of honours. We congratulate all three.

ARA Chairman Di Ellis

Always a friend of Cygnet Di was honoured in the Birthday Honours List with CBE. A well deserved Honour.

Stan Collingwood

Oarsman, multi-lane umpire, coach, administrator, commentator and all round 'Good Egg', Stan could claim membership of several clubs. His career on the river started in 1957 when he coxed veterans and continues up to the present day. Stan Rowed with Cygnet in 1973 and coached the Club 1998. His ARA Medal of Honour was richly deserved.

Stan Collingwood receiving his award from ARA Chairman Di Ellis CBE

Nina Padwick

Joint President of MAABC Nina has been awarded the ARA Medal of Merit. A new award, she is one of the first two recipients. These were announced on Saturday 25 September at the ARA AGM. It is mainly for those who have made an exceptional contribution to the sport through clubs and regions. She is of course one of our Club's only two Life Honorary Members.

‘Subscriptions and Donations

Are always due, please return this tear-off slip with your cheque to the Treasurer, Dr R P du Parcq, 152 Castelnau, London, SW13 9ET. Active Members - members of the Civil Service Sports Council - £140, Others - £198, Club Friends - Suggested minimum - £20 - Enclosed my subscription/donation of £………….

Name………………………………………………Address……………………………………………...

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..

……………………………………………………..Post Code………………Tel No……………………

Three Marriages and a Birth

Alan and Sue

Congratulations to Alan Cox and Sue Jackson who became as one at the West Retford Hotel on Sunday 30th May. Alan was Club Captain for four terms up to October 2001

The Bride and Groom and some recognisable Club faces.

Included in this group are Ute and Matthias Macharowski from RGB Benrath

Steve and Helen

Huge congratulations to Steve Keating and Helen Sanderson who tied the knot on Saturday 4th September at St. Peter and St. Pauls Church in Newport Pagnell. Steve was Captain from July 2002 until July 2003.