Henley 4′s Head

It was a stunning crisp winter’s morning that greeted us at Henley this weekend and for all the ice and cold we were ready for some racing. The head is run over 3k into the stream, starting beyond Temple island and finishing on the Regatta stright.

My first race was in a senior 3 four with Gordie (stroke), James Roe at 2 and Andy at Bow. We rated around 30 for the course and put in some power to overtake Stains. It really started coming together after the first 1000m and a sustained effort led us to a time of 12.55.  Considering this was the first time we’d rowed as a crew I was seriously impressed with our joint second place. Southampton Uin won by some distance but we were well ahead of the provincials, including Warwick who were following us.

The eights race started with a bit of bad luck at the start when one of the shoulders split. This was only the second time the crew had been together but it showed signs of coming together. We finished 4th in senior 3 but right not far behind the winner on time. Its looking promising for the Head of the River.