May 11th marks the 158th Bedford Amateur Regatta. Notable for its 1200 meters of side-by-side racing down the River Great Ouse, Bedford is one of the most popular river regattas across the UK. This is a very small draw of three crews from two clubs, but nonetheless will make for some good racing experience ahead of the upcoming National Schools’ Regatta.
Bedford Girls’ School
A home regatta for the Ouse based crew, Bedford have chosen to enter two boats into the J18 category. With this being only their second regatta of the year, it will be an interesting test to see how the crews stack up against their London based opponents. Latymer Upper are no strangers to them, having competed against them at both Wallingford Regatta and School’s Head of the River earlier this year. Though they came in 30 seconds behind Latymer at Wallingford, Bedford managed to finish a promising seventh place at the Schools’ Head, the best result the school has had in a number of years. It is clear that they are on the up, and with the home water advantage, this time they may pose a threat to their visitors from the Tideway.
Latymer Upper School
Celebrating 400 years since the foundation of the school, it seems only fitting that Latymer have had a strong start to their regatta season. The quicker crew coming out of last weekend’s Wallingford Regatta, Latymer will likely come into the race with a fair bit of confidence. Despite losing in this event to Bedford in 2023, their clear victory down at Dorney will surely help move the crew forward this time around. Yet, it is true that over a shorter distance, against a home crew, it remains unknown how Latymer will fare.
Prediction
I am anticipating a decisive Latymer win, conquering not one but two of the Bedford crews. While there are clear advantages to Bedford’s ability to navigate the twists and turns of the Ouse, I think Latymer have developed an extremely strong crew this season who are ready to take Bedford by storm.
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