As the weather gets (marginally) warmer and the days longer (albeit by only minutes!), WEHORR ’23 is rolling ’round the corner to kickstart our holy trilogy of head racing on the Tideway. Raced along the full 6.8 of the championship course, just like the following HoRR, and SHoRR, the school / junior category provides us with 46 crews, all vying to take home the silver pennant that symbolises victory.
Henley Rowing Club
As is often the theme of an article on junior women’s rowing, HRC look well set to add another notch to a chronological belt that spans many years into the past. With a comfortable win of 13 seconds over Headington at Quintin Head and a similar result at Four’s Head, beating St Paul’s Girls’ School and setting the new course record, WeHORR is unlikely to pose a challenge to this talented, and experienced crew. These results are a testament to a world-class program that creates world-class rowers.
Headington
While there’s not much in terms of data that can be said about Headington just yet, due to their absence, which has been noticeable (yet predictable), from many of the bigger events in the earlier months, if anyone has a chance of besting HRC, it’ll be Headington. As mentioned, they came 2nd at Quintin, and also raced in the 8+ which shows this crew’s potential. And speaking of world-class programmes, unlike any of the others, HSOBC has a win at HRR, in the inaugural year (2021) of the Prince Phillip Cup, so it would be unwise to easily discount the girls in bright blue!
Other notable entries
A rule of thumb I like to use in head racing is that the start order is often a good indication of the finish order! The organisers of WeHORR have seen fit to adjust the start order to accommodate some of the decorated, more experienced crews entered in the Sch/J 8+ category, by shifting them from positions 200 up to anywhere between 16-40, allowing them to race against university and senior women’s club crews of a more similar calibre. Some of these clubs are HRC, Headington, Teddies and St Paul’s, so if you’re hedging your bets on anyone, this pool is a good place to start!
Predictions
It will be no surprise if HRC finish first, followed by the names mentioned above. However! Racing 7k down the Tideway is no easy feat, in terms of steering, stamina or conditions. WeHORR ’22 took us by surprise with white horses and winds that were more suited for sailing than rowing, so there’s a chance that any of the 46 crews entered turn out to be our dark horse, so keep your eyes peeled!
Britney Steers
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