Since 1829 Oxford and Cambridge have been battling it out upon the Thames (except for wartime, when they rowed elsewhere). It started as a competition between two friends at the rival establishments. Cambridge remains the forerunner in the series, leading 79 to 75 wins, however Oxford won last year.
The 4½ mile Oxford Cambridge Boat Race course begins at Putney Bridge and ends at Chiswick Bridge in Mortlake.
Peter matriculated with a Masters from Cambridge, whereas I, of course, support Oxford. He stands on the bridge wearing his Peterhouse scarf and cheering on the enemy, whilst I in my Magdalene college scarf, cheer on the boys in dark blue.
Top to bottom: Cambridge to Oxford
Here is a summary table of the races from the inaugural race...
I have a few pints riding on Oxford again this year.
Above: The Oxford lads
Below: The Boat Race
The Great Race
The Boat Race sparked a similar event in our new home town, Hamilton. This is known as The Great RaceThe Gallagher Great Race Festival is a rowing regatta on a 4.2km upstream course on the Waikato River through central Hamilton. The feature races of the festival sees the two premier University of Waikato crews (men's & women's) challenging International competition. The penultimate race of the festival has the two women's crews racing for the Bryan Gould Cup and then culminating in the actual "Great Race" between the two men's crews who race for the coveted Harry Mahon Trophy (Harry Mahon, one of the most influential coaches of the 1980s in NZ and internationally).
The race takes place between the University of Waikato Senior Men's 8 crew and an international University crew (previously Cambridge, Oxford, Harvard and Washington Universities) who are invited to NZ to compete.The Great Race is held on a 4.2km "against the flow" course through central Hamilton, on New Zealand's largest river - the Waikato. Waikato means "flowing water" and the 425km long Waikato River, begins life in the snows and ice fields of Tongariro National Park. Before entering Lake Taupo it is known as the Tongariro River for part of its length. On leaving Lake Taupo it flows in a well-defined bed through steep uplands before reaching the flat plains of the middle Waikato basin. After passing through the Taupiri Gorge it reaches flat country and finally enters the Tasman Sea south of Auckland at Port Waikato.
The course, which begins at Ann St Reserve and finishes at Ferry Bank Park, has four significant bends in the river. The effect of a bends is to alter the course of the river current from one side of the river to the other. As it is very difficult to row into a current, the racing crews are constantly trying to find the "slack water" and are often changing course in order to do so.
Previous Crews & Victories
(w = winner)
Cambridge's victory wave after the 2008 race...
Last year the competition was Oxford, who sadly let the side down...
Never mind, at least they always have a Great Race Ball for celebrations and commiserations...
Video Highlights of The Great Race:
The other main rowing event of The Season is
The Henley Royal Regatta
The Henley Regatta was first held in 1839 and has been held annually ever since, except during the two World Wars. Originally staged by the Mayor and people of Henley as a public attraction with a fair and other amusements, the emphasis rapidly changed so that competitive amateur rowing became its main purpose.
The 1839 Regatta took place on a single afternoon but proved so popular with oarsmen that the racing lasted for two days from 1840. In 1886 the Regatta was extended to three days and to four in 1906. Since 1928 its increased popularity meant entries exceeded the permitted numbers in several events, and so Qualifying Races are now held in the week before the Regatta to reduce the number of entries to the permitted maximum. In 1986 the Regatta was extended to five days, with an increase in the maximum entry for certain events.
In 1851 H.R.H. Prince Albert became the Regatta's first Royal Patron. Since the death of The Prince Consort, the reigning Monarch has always consented to become Patron. This patronage means the Regatta can be called Henley Royal Regatta.
During the course of its history, the Regatta has often been honoured by visits of members of the Royal Family, of which the most recent was that of H.R.H. The Princess Royal in 1999.
Rowing at Henley
As the Regatta was instituted long before national or international rowing federations were established, it occupies a unique position in the world of rowing. It has its own rules and is not subject to the jurisdiction either of the governing body of rowing in England (British Rowing) or of the International Rowing Federation (F.I.S.A.), but is proud of the distinction of being officially recognised by both these bodies.
Unlike multi-lane international regattas, Henley still operates a knock-out draw with only two boats racing in each heat. This entails the organisation of up to 90 races on some of the five days. To complete the programme by a reasonable hour, races are started at 5-minute intervals.
The length of the Course is 1 mile 550 yards, which is 112 metres longer than the standard international distance of 2,000 metres. It takes approximately seven minutes to cover, so there are often two races at once on the Course for much of the day. The number of races is, of course, reduced on each successive day, leaving only the Finals to be rowed on the last day.
There are 19 events in total: 6 classes of race for Eights, 5 for Fours (3 coxless and 2 coxed), 4 for Quadruple Sculls, and races for Coxless Pairs and Double Sculls. In addition there are single sculling races for both men and women. 1993 was the first year women competed over the Course in a full Regatta event when a new event for Women Single Scullers was inaugurated. In 2000 an open event for Women’s Eights was introduced, whilst in 2001 there were new events for Women’s and Men’s Quadruple Sculls.
In 2004 there were significant changes to the Coxed Fours events. The top event, The Prince Philip Challenge Cup, was withdrawn due to declining interest internationally. There are now two events at the lower level – The Britannia Challenge Cup, restricted to just club crews, and an event for student crews, The Prince Albert Challenge Cup.
Recent years have seen entries of international quality from Australia, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Poland, the Netherlands, the U.S.A., Germany, the Czech Republic, the Ukraine, South Africa, Slovenia, Greece and Great Britain. Every year Henley is visited by many crews from abroad and last year 93 crews were from overseas.
There is a magnificent array of Challenge Trophies, the most prized being The Grand Challenge Cup for Eights which dates from the first year of the Regatta. In 2006 Imperial College London donated a new trophy for the Men’s Student Coxed Fours event. This trophy has been named The Prince Albert Challenge Cup, after the Regatta’s first Royal Patron. In 2008 there was a new trophy for the Men’s Quadruple Sculls event - The Prince of Wales Challenge Cup.
As with so many of these social events during The Season, fashion styles are strongly dictated by the customs of each event. Rowing blazers and club attire tend to be marvelously loud, the bolder the stripes, the better!
Above: Putney Rowing ClubIf you don't want to wear a panama with your blazer then, of course, there is the boater...
As spiffing as their Ralph Lauren Uniforms are, I think the US Olympic Rowing boys might feel a little under-dressed at Henley...
