It’s a somewhat chilly morning and technically the second day of the regatta for these crews, since they had a day on hiatus to recover. With three of them having only arrived yesterday, the competition should be feeling pretty fresh coming into the quarter finals.
Headington Sch v Hinksey Sculling Sch
Headington had been eagerly awaited, given their later arrival, and certainly did not disappoint. They looked sleek and cohesive as they immediately took a half length lead off the start, which they maintained and extended to three lengths over the course of the race. Hinksey, by comparison, looked slightly off balance and kept a higher rate, though they did manage to take back a half length through the one and an eighth mile marker; partially thanks to the growing headwind it was quickly lost. Headington took a commanding win of almost three lengths. Headington will be racing Henley next, who they have beat numerous times recently, so they should be emboldened by their history with the crew. It won’t exactly be low pressure, since this determines which one will get a place in the final, but I have faith that Headington will take the win.
Henley RC v Tideway Scullers
Henley took an immediate commanding lead off the start, but kept a fairly high rate for the majority of the course. Conversely, Scullers settled too early, allowing Henley to pull away. Eventually Henley shifted into a lower gear as they took the win. Like Headington, Henley looked perfectly synchronised and powerful — perhaps down to their matching sunglasses. Next they’ll be racing Headington for a place in the final, who they came second to in this event at both Henley Women’s and the Junior Championships. Headington have seemed untouchable lately, so it’ll be a tall order beating them for a place in the final.
Shrewsbury Sch v Lady Eleanor Holles
In perhaps the most nail-biting of the JWE races today, LEH took a small lead off the start but the crews remained mostly neck-and-neck for the majority of the race, scarcely gaining a lead of more than a third of a length. LEH put a push in around the Remenham Club marker, gaining a little on Shrewsbury who may have been pushed back by fairly slow catches. To their credit, they rowed long and looked more relaxed than their opposition. The race heated up when Shrewsbury built to rate 40 in anticipation for the end, but despite this LEH won by a canvas. It was a valiant effort from both crews, and unfortunately six seat of the Shrewsbury crew required medical assistance after the finish. The Regatta released a statement saying that the athlete recovered fine. Tomorrow, LEH will be racing Surbiton, who have been blisteringly fast as of late. Given the risk of how close this race was, LEH will have a fight on their hands if they want a place in the final.
Surbiton v Green Lake
Green Lake was a bit of a dark horse coming into today, since they arrived later and we are broadly less familiar with the US rowing climate. They had a good start, pulling ahead very briefly before Surbiton made up the time and got ahead by a third of a length in the first quarter. They efficiently kept growing their lead throughout the race, dropping the rate when they felt comfortable. There was brief hope Green Lake could pull a Teddies and row them through, but Surbiton’s symbiosis as a crew nailed them the win — despite this, Green Lake are still far and away the better thing to come out of Seattle when put against the Twilight saga. Surbiton are next racing LEH: as I said above, given their striking success I think the odds will fall in their favour.
It’s been an eventful and decisive day for the JWEs, and the tensions will only be growing higher in the semi finals tomorrow. The bout between Henley and Headington is sure to be a grudge match, and the match between LEH’s canvas win and what we’ve seen of Surbiton’s speed should make an interesting comparison. 2112m is all that stands between these girls and a place in the final.
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