Fifty-six boys from the Boat Club made their first trip of the season to the infamous Boatrace Course on the Tideway in London on Saturday. They raced at the Quintin Head amongst 250 crews from other schools, clubs and universities.

The 1st VIII had a difficult race, never settling into a rhythm, although they still managed to finish a gutsy 8th out of 11 crews in their category, beating our hosts for the day, Emanuel School.

This event was the Year 10s’ first experience of the difficult tidal part of the Thames, and both crews did well to negotiate the course safely, with the 1st crew coming a respectable 13th out of 18 crews. A particular mention goes to James Steers who stepped in at the last minute to guide the B crew down the course.

The J16 squad raced in two VIIIs with the A crew, coxed by Harry Hayes, performing well and just beating the 2nd VIII by eight seconds over a 15-minute race. The J16 2nd VIII had a courageous race with some last minute changes.