Categories
Torpids 2016

Men’s Report 2021

New year, new challenges! After the past academic year of rowing was not less than drowned in an endless drizzle, new developments – apparently, there was some kind of virus going around – should see the new rain-induced creativity in our training schedule to be carried over to 20/21. However, the motivation to enjoy the water-time whenever restrictions would allow it may have been higher than ever: The combination of a great amount of experience remaining in the club well mixed with new energy from the novice ranks it turned out to be a fantastic year for rowing in Merton, which is best summed up by sheer excellent performances in Summer torpids.

As customary in Michaelmas term, we focused on those Mertonians new to the college or who are taking a new interest in the sport altogether. Many appreciated the companionship, structure and beautiful sunrises which accompany rowing in an otherwise isolating and chaotic start into the term. And so, it was not twenty, not thirty – but sixty Novices between the women’s and men’s side who gave rowing a go.

Given the precious opportunity of outdoor activities during that time, every effort was made by our novice captains and many additional helpers to safely run a relentless program that saw up to five boats out on a single day and a record-breaking total of 22 confirmed training sessions in week 2.

The initial euphory was soon dampened by what should soon be known as “the second wave” of Covid cases flooding the UK and Oxford, halting all in-person training for Hilary term. Furthermore, cancellations of all novice regattas or Torpids meant that, once more, the experience of an actual boat race was delayed into the foreseeable future. Making the best of the situation (…after all, if there has to be a period without actual outdoor rowing, what better time than the coldest and darkest of the year…), training buddy-ups, regular online circuit-exercises, a virtual training camp and theoretical sessions built the bridge to keep us going over the winter.

With spring it came: Rowing was back and there was “some sort of summer bumps event” in the pipeline. After all, Trinity would be the term to remember. Training back in full force, M1 chopped away the miles at Godstow while M2 found its mojo on the Isis stretch. The Isis Summer League races gave many of us our first race experience as both crews zipped down the Isis in anticipation of the rowing year highlight: Summer Torpids!

In a week of nothing but sunshine, M1 fiercely continued our campaign up the Torpid charts, bumping up the first three days and just about missing Univ M1 on day 4 thus bringing us within reach of division 1. Meanwhile, M2, having seen how it’s done, went to make a statement themselves and won blades despite having to repeatedly bump a boat three places ahead. With all this new energy, it will be exciting to see what the next year is going to deliver.

Paul Zimmer-Harwood, Men’s co-captain 2020-21

Categories
Committee Oxford Social Training

Men’s Report 2019

Annual report 2018-19 – Men’s squad

The rowing year began for the men’s side with the senior squad training towards the Fairbairn Cup on the river Cam and the novices training towards Christ Church Regatta. Our Fairbairn crew would finish in a respectable 14th place and the first novice crew was unlucky to be knocked out in the thirdround. The success of the novice programme under the leadership of Ty Rallens (Kellogg, 2012) was evident from the fact that by the middle of Michaelmas a handful of novices were regularly joining senior squad outings, and two would join the First Torpid in Hilary term.

In Hilary term, the men’s squad ran a system of matched eights, with the rowers in competition for the first and second eights training together and entering all three Isis Winter Leagues. Strong results from both crews were early evidence that this would be a successful year. Despite the disappointment of qualifying only two men’s crews for Torpids, the bumps campaign would turn out to be an unprecedented success, with both crews bumping every day to win blades. This is the first time in MCBC history that the First and Second Torpids have won blades in the same year, leaving the First Torpid on bungline six in Division 2 and the Second Torpid on bungline two in Division 5.

At the end of Hilary term, the first boat entered the Head of the River Race for the second year running, this time placing 114th in a time of 19 minutes and 40 seconds. Notably Merton was the fastest of 24 Oxbridge college crews racing that day, besting Trinity, Balliol and Brasenose as well as a host of Cambridge first division crews.

Over the Easter vac, we returned to the Amstel for our second annual training camp. Generous support from College and from our host club Willem III made for an extremely productive week’s training and set up our Trinity term well.

For only the second time in the last 20 years, Merton fielded four men’s crews in Summer Eights, a real achievement that highlights the depth of the club. Overall results were mixed during Eights Week. The Second Eight fell two places, having lost two of their most experienced rowers from Torpids to academic commitments, but put on a sterling performance on Saturday to close on Wolfson II before a klaxon cut the race short.

The First Eight had a disappointing Wednesday of racing, narrowly missing out on catching Mansfield after tactical errors, a crab in the Gut and a klaxon which stopped the division when Mansfield was a mere canvas away. The crew showed real discipline by regrouping to come back and bump Mansfield with composure on Thursday, and caught Worcester in a mere 21 strokes on Friday. The First Eight rounded off the week with a bump on Hertford in the Gut to finish up three places and leave the crew within sight of the first division.

Since the end of Summer Eights the first boat has continued training hard and will attempt to qualify for the Temple Challenge Cup at Henley Royal Regatta on 28 June.

Written by Dylan Gutt (2017)
Men’s Rowing Captain 2018-19

Categories
Committee Oxford Social Training

Women’s Report 2019

Annual report 2018-19 – Women’s squad

It has been yet another great year for women’s rowing at Merton. Even before the start of the year we came across the excellent opportunity to be sponsored by Swift Racing. We had the pleasure of rowing in one of its Elite shells for the duration of the year, which undoubtedly contributed significantly to the success of the women this year.

While our returning rowers trained in their superb shell at Godstow, the freshly recruited novices were learning all about rowing through our extremely successful novice programme. At Christ Church Regatta, the women’s novice first boat finished fourth overall, marking three consecutive years of Merton women finishing in the top four. The keenest
of the novices joined a few of the seniors to compete in Fairbairn Regatta in Cambridge at the end of term, which proved a valuable experience for the whole crew.

In Hilary, W1 put up great performances in the Isis Winter Leagues, catching the eye of many on the river. W2 persevered through some cancelled outings and saw great improvements throughout term. After being tied with St Benet’s for the last qualifying spot in Torpids, and because
of poor availability for the races, W2 formed an unofficial composite crew with St Benet’s competing as the first-ever St Benet’s Women’s First Torpid. ‘Benerton’ ended their Torpids campaign winning footship spoons, but having had great fun racing together. W1 had a hopeful start to the campaign with a bump on the first day, but a series of unfortunate races left them on -5 at the end of the week.

During the Easter vacation the squad returned to Amsterdam after last year’s training camp’s success. Training three times a day for a week, it was a great way to build up momentum for the start of term and the Eights campaign, and the squad developed together very rapidly.

W1 came back even more fierce and competitive than before. Training at Godstow five times a week, it was clear they were getting ready for a successful Summer Eights. On the Isis, W2 was also training enthusiastically despite sometimes struggling to fill all the seats. In a testament to the depth
of Merton women’s rowing, 15 Merton students and alumni rowed with W2 throughout Eights Week. The crew finished the week on -3, after a klaxon on the first day as they were a few strokes away from a bump put an end to what could perhaps have been a very different campaign.

However, the dedication of W1 really did pay off with the historic results they obtained. After six years of not bumping once, W1 went on to bump a record-setting five times over the course of the week, winning blades for the first time since 1999 for a Merton women’s first boat. It was the best way possible to end a fantastic season of women’s rowing at Merton.

Thanks must be given to the incredibly hard-working MCBC committee, as well as our coaches Ian Smith, Stan Billington and Daniel Sadler. I am very excited to see what the future holds for Merton women, and I wish Sanne Van Den Berg (2018) the very best for her captaincy.

Written by Matilde Soares da Silva (2017)
Women’s Rowing Captain 2018-19

Categories
Torpids 2016

Men’s Report 2018

Annual report 2017-18 – Men’s squad

The 2017-18 season has seen Merton’s men’s side reaffirm itself on the river as a force to be reckoned with.

Starting the year with a large intake of novice rowers, several talented new coxes and a varied group of returning rowers, it quickly became apparent that we had the potential for a successful year. The arrival of a new men’s coach and the opening of a brand new erg room in the Sports Pavilion gave us the impetus to train hard both on and off the water. Although our Christ Church Regatta novices, despite some exciting and hard-fought races, did not get as far as they had hoped, the development squad obtained promising results at a number of smaller races on the Isis.

With M1 and M2 crews selected early on in Hilary term, and a keen M3 coming together as well, the squad continued to progress week after week despite the cold mornings and sometimes challenging river conditions. The arrival of a gorgeous Fillippi F42 shell and a brand new coaching launch – acquired through generous donations from our American friends and alumni – gave the squad an extra edge going into the final stages of preparation for Torpids. Unfortunately, our ambitious plans could not be fully carried out because the exceptionally cold weather caused several race days to be cancelled. Still, M1 kept its place in Division 2 despite a very strong Exeter coming up from behind; M2 bumped in less than 20 strokes on day 1 and would surely have got blades had it been able to race; and M3 also swiftly bumped on day 1 after achieving the fastest finish time at Rowing On.

In preparation for Summer Eights, a group of men’s rowers travelled to Amsterdam for an Easter training camp. Spending a week rowing on the beautiful Amstel River, cycling through the city centre, and sleeping on a cosy sailing ship wasn’t only incredibly fun, but it also had an immediate effect on the quality of rowing in the squad. Coming back to a newly refurbished Harry Quick shell at the start of Trinity term, M2 was able to make the most of its training on the Isis, while M1 continued to perfect its technique at Godstow. With three men’s crews entered for Summer Eights, including an M3 containing several recent alumni, our hopes for success were high…

Unfortunately, the first day took away the possibility of blades for either crew: M3 was caught in the Gut by a strong Corpus M2, M1 saw its competitors bumping out and had to creatively manoeuvre its way to a row over, and M2 suffered a spectacular crash under Donny Bridge, sending shockwaves around social media. Nevertheless, Merton showed its resilience and determination from here onwards. On every one of the following days, both M1 and M2 bumped before the green banks, finishing in the middle of the second and fourth divisions respectively. Meanwhile, M3 vigorously defended its place at the top of the last division, claiming a bump on day 2. With a net score of +3, it is safe to say that it was a successful Summer Eights for MCBC.

Over the course of the year, the Boat Club also achieved notable results further downstream of the Isis stretch, participating in a number of external regattas. Last summer, a Merton delegation won BR points at both Henley Town & Visitors’ Regatta and at Maidenhead Regatta. In Michaelmas, a men’s four competed in Cambridge’s Fairbairn Cup, clocking the fastest time among all Oxford colleges. Last but not least, a men’s eight participated in the Head of the River Race on the Tideway, where it overtook five crews and finished 119th, our highest place in recent history.

Overall, this year’s achievements are testament to the depth and enthusiasm we currently have in MCBC’s men’s squad. With Dylan Gutt (2017) and Mantas Abazorius (2013) taking over as captains next year, we can be certain that the Boat Club will continue to go from strength to strength!

Categories
Committee Oxford Social Training

Women’s Report 2018

Annual report 2017-18 – Women’s squad

The strength of the Merton women’s squad continues to grow year on year. Michaelmas saw a lucky windfall of keen novice rowers who have proved very enthusiastic members of the boat club. Through their hard work, and the support of senior rowers and our coach, who committed themselves to running a demanding novice training programme, the women’s novice boat finished fourth in Christchurch Regatta, continuing a solid run after last year’s victory. With this behind them, it looked to be an exciting year for women’s rowing, with the development squad making progress on the water at Godstow. At the end of the term, four of the dev squad made the trip to Cambridge to compete in the Fairbairn Cup, a long 3.4km race down the Cam.

It was testament to the commitment of the squad and the invaluable help of committee members that we were able to make it through a tough Hilary term, during which bad weather and illness cancelled weeks’ worth of outings. Come Torpids, however, W1 and W2 were looking impressive, putting in some very decent performances during that term’s Isis Winter League races. Indeed, so much so, that the local rumour mills put W1 on ‘blades watch’ for Torpids. Sadly, it was not to be, as bitter cold, wind and snow cancelled racing on the second and third days of racing, leaving the crew heartily disappointed. An unfortunate race left W2 with one bump on the first day, but W1 were at least proud to come away with bumps on Queen’s and Wadham II.

On such a trajectory, it was fantastic to be able to keep up the momentum among the squad on the first training camp that Merton has seen in a number of years. Travelling to Amsterdam, eight rowers and a cox were worked hard with three outings a day for five days on the gorgeous Amstel river. Such an opportunity to row together, with fresh coaching in a new environment, meant the crew developed well together ahead of the Eights campaign.

Trinity rowing saw W1 return to Godstow and, alongside the gleaming new launch, dedicate themselves to five outings a week. Another run of illness saw the crew cycle through rowers at an alarming rate, finally finding a crew the weekend before Summer Eights began. The infamous four-year spoons streak loomed large over the crew, but they were quietly confident having made great improvements in technique all term. Impressive commitment from all ensured that W1 did indeed break with tradition, finishing the week on -3 (rather than -4) thanks to a lucky escape from St Anthony’s on the second day, as they took a course into the bank in the Gut. If that wasn’t enough cause for celebration, W2 put in an even stronger show. Having struggled to put together a crew for outings all term, they rowed remarkably well to bump Green Templeton III, Somerville III and Pembroke IV.

It has been a pleasure to see Merton women’s rowing continue to progress and we look forward to another exciting season next year. Thanks should definitely go to the whole MCBC committee for their work and especially to our coach, Ian Smith. Matilde Soares da Silva (2017) has proven an exceptionally committed member of the squad and as the incoming captain I’m sure she’ll do great things for the women’s side.

Categories
Oxford Training

Seeking Coach!

Seeking new coach

Merton College Boat Club are looking for an enthusiastic and ambitious Men’s coach for the coming academic year. Competitive pay available, all applications welcome. Trial outings will be held on the Isis in the next two weeks.

MCBC is proud to have a newly refurbished Men’s 1st shell, a brand new launch, and a recently opened erg room to its disposition this year. With an ambitious Men’s squad eager to continue climbing in the bumps charts, and planning to enter several external regattas throughout the year, we are looking for an enthusiastic and experienced individual to help us reach our full potential.

Initially coaching the men’s Dev squad in Michaelmas term (12-16 people), you would transition towards coaching the Men’s 1st VIII in Hilary and Trinity term.

Your responsibilities: 

  • Help design and oversee an exciting and challenging training programme with weekly water sessions, erg sessions, and circuits.
  • Be available to coach up to 5 outings per week including up to 4 early morning sessions at Godstow.
  • Together with the Men’s captains, select crews for Torpids and Summer Eights.
  • Bank ride your crew at each of those regattas.
  • Ideally, be available for a 5-day external training camp in April.

Competitive pay available, all applications welcome. Trial outings will be held on the Isis in the next two weeks.

Get in touch with Samuel Picard, Men’s Captain 2017-18 (samuel.picard@merton.ox.ac.uk)

Categories
Bumps Oxford

Eights Week 2017

Summer Eights 2017 – race reports

Not quite three months of peaceful training on the river and here we are for Eights Week! With M3 successfully rowing on last Friday, four crews in maroon (well… maybe fuchsia, depending on whether you ordered the latest round of kit with that colour accident) are aiming to bump up.

The following reports were written during the week and distributed on the alumni Facebook group
 
Wednesday

M1 on their way to bump St Anne's on Friday
M1 on their way to bump St Anne’s on Friday – © Gareth Ardron

M3 [MDiv7 – bungline 1] -1
With a motley crew of some of the guys fancying a summer paddle and veterans of “the tree” the Women’s 2nd Torpid (nowadays colloquially known on the river as “doing a Merton”) braved both rowing on, clocking in the last qualifying time of the day which both qualified them but saddled them with the misfortune of inheriting last year’s bungline. Now squaring off against St Hilda’s M2 who qualified 25 seconds ahead of them, fight was valiant, but unfortunately short and the division headship had to be handed over. Though St Hilda’s failing to bump up as sandwich boat allows a chance for revenge tomorrow.

M2 [MDiv4 – bungline 11] – row over
With a strong start from a difficult bungline M2 had closed hard and fast on their Brasenose counterpart. At Salter’s a mere quarter length separated the Merton boat from the Brasenose stern which quickly became just a canvas even decreasing to a foot or two as they shot Donnington Bridge. Unfortunately, the last few centimetres are the hardest to close and with crews nearly evenly match, the race rhythm and composure showed tenacity and the hard training, but left both crews returning to the same bunglines tomorrow. Hopefully the row will be shorter and will come to a sudden, bumpy, end.

M1 [MDiv3 – bungline 2] – row over
Looking sharp and composed during the warm up M1 was looking to clear Exeter out of the way in order to be able to bump up into the next division. A concerted effort and strong and solid row, closing in onto Exeter showed a crew set up well for the bump with good coxing line at difficult corners, but Exeter, for today, escaped the Merton bow. With Exeter not being able to capitalise on their row over, the battle for division headship and the chance to move up is back on tomorrow.

W1 [WDiv2 – bungline 9] -1
In their freshly refurbished and bright-purple Joe Virden, the Women’s 1st Eight challenged the Magdalen and Linacre women in WDiv2. Unfortunately, the strong graduate crew from Linacre proved the better one of the day W1 will have to look for their bungline one further down tomorrow.

 
Thursday

Round up of day two of Summer Eights: a rather mixed day for Mertonians, but some good rowing nonetheless. The weather continues to hold beautifully.

M3 [MDiv7 – bungline 2] -1
Despite a variation in line-up due to injury, M3 put in good showing in the first division of the day. After a great start and a good settle the crew found a strong rhythm as they pushed upstream under Donnington Bridge. Balliol M4 – a blades-tapped Schools Eight – unfortunately made an early appearance alongside. Despite concession, the large speed differential led to Balliol running over the Merton stern, lodging themselves firmly in the rudder yoke and spinning M3 into the bank. It wasn’t pretty. The tally on the Merton side is a bent rudder stem and yoke and a shared-off bow ball. Presumably the Balliol bow will have need for a few patches as well.
With strong crew improvements, despite the downward slope on the bumps charts, the crew is looking forward to the remainder of the week.

M2 [MDiv4 – bungline 11] -1
Today St Hilda’s men took revenge for last year when the 2nd VIII had inflicted the first bump on them since they started fielding men’s crews. A kerfuffle with crews in front, both Brasenose M2 and Osler House had different interpretations of “clearing the racing line” necessitated some hard rudder whereas St Hilda’s could make use of a slightly straighter gaining hard. Unfortunately, an appeal led to no avail and M2 will be starting from the unfavourable bungline 12 tomorrow.

M1 [MDiv3 – bungline 2] +2
The men’s 1st VIII had not only one, but two chances to showcase them putting the hard training of the last months to good use. After a strong start and closing hard onto Exeter, the gap was merely half a length at the entrance of the Gut, having closed it to a canvas by the time both crews raced past Longbridges further upstream along Green Bank. While it nearly looked like to be a replay of yesterday, Exeter had to bow to a strong row from the men up Green Bank. Oriel M2 did not stand a chance and Merton has now returned to MDiv2 after nearly a decade of absence.

W1 [WDiv2 – bungline 11] -1
In true Merton spirit with the boats improving even during the race weeks, the women’s 1st VIII had made it to Top Gut until they had to concede to LMH despite rowing and chunky rhythm. Tomorrow they will have Exeter on their tails who will try and avenge their men being taken down by Merton M1 today.

 
Friday

On the third day fortunately for one boat, unfortunately for all others, the trends of the earlier days were continued. A bonus for all boats was the continued amazing weather and the banks being more and more filled with spectators cheering on the racing crews.

M3 [MDiv7 – bungline 3] -1
Our fun mixed boat is unfortunately placed with several schools Eights around them. As such they had to concede just after Donnington Bridge to a powerful St Catz pushing them to start a bungline further down for the last races. 

M2 [MDiv4 – bungline 12] -1
One of those days when planned race (quick start, settle to pace, pushing off Donnington Bridge, speeding up green Bank and catching St Hilda’s at Boathouse Island) was somewhat different to the reality. St Hilda’s bumped out quickly on a slow mixed Osler House crew ahead and Lincoln raced up from behind. A bow on stern bump as M2 was the result. Clearing the race line under full power, the Osler House cox was fearing another bump, but the well-trained crew’s responsiveness prevented that. The next race should be the best one of the week.

W1 [WDiv2 – bungline 11] -1
A slightly rocky start did not stop the women from gaining 1/4 length on LMH quickly whose start seemed to be less determined than yesterday. As the crews settled unfortunately Exeter W1 were out for revenge for their men being bumped by M1 yesterday and charged up the bunglines. A valiant push held them at bay for some lengths but the bump was indisputable right before shooting under Donnington Bridge. The last races are now to stave off the dreaded soup implements.

M1 on their way to bump Exeter on Saturday – © Gareth Ardron
M1 on their way to bump Exeter on Saturday – © Gareth Ardron

M1 [MDiv2 – bungline 13] +1
A quick start a high-paced but short race: St Anne’s had nothing to show and M1’s powerful rhythm and speed and had to concede in the Gut.

 
Saturday

The final day of Eights week was a very eventful one, fortunately none of the Merton crews were involved in any of the (multitude of) crashes which happened. We had two full boat evacuations, even MDiv1 had to be klaxoned due to a severe crash in the Gut. Luckily the Magdalen cox is alright, though their brand new Empacher is less so. Both Headship crews rowed over meaning Christ Church are holding it for the men and Wadham for the women.

M3 [MDiv7 – bungline 4] -1
As every day, our motley crew of M3 paddled to the bunglines. Having been relegated three times so far in the bungline fight, the plan was to not continue last year’s trajectory and collect spoons. Unfortunately, Keble M4 was chasing and since their two coaches, both ex-Oriel M1 rowers one of whom rowed Isis, decided to sub into the crew our valiant M3 had no chance. At least Keble spend some money of their rather deep pockets on a set of wooden spoons which were presented to our crew.

M2 [MDiv4 – bungline 13] +5
A rather surprising reversal of fortune brought M2 significantly back into the plus today by achieving a double over bump. With Lincoln M2 ahead who had a very likely bump on Osler House, the expectation was to fight for the row-over. The chasing Regent’s Park already having rowed over as head of MDiv5 were now pursuing both their blades and a promotion to MDiv4. They had closed to overlap by Donnington Bridge. A series of pushes, only few feet of manoeuvring space through the Gut, M2 never had more than a canvas of breathing room from the chasing Regent’s who gained overlap again at Longbridges. A forced early crossing due to bumped-out crew having wrongly cleared to Green Bank, the final move was made at Univ raft. The chase was broken, clear water opened up and M2 powered to the line. A row to their true potential and credit to their training.
Much to everyone’s surprise, no successful row-over was announced on the tannoy, but a bump on Brasenose M2 instead. While Brasenose (having started on bungline 8) claims to have been wedged in by crews bumping out ahead of them and promptly appealed, their attempt to disguise their lack of coxing skills by blaming others was discovered and the bump upheld, thus creating a double over-bump in favour of M2 leaving them net +3 for Eights Week!

W1 [WDiv2 – bungline 12] -1
A great start allowed W1 to reel LMH slightly back in with the Wolfpack of Wolfson W2, the highest-placed ladies’ 2nd VIII, hot on their heels. The brief hopes of not repeating ourselves were squashed despite a good fight. The bump came just before Donnington Bridge. Despite another addition to W1’s collection of cutlery particularly suitable for the soup course, the week ended on a positive note as the crew put in a strong effort and plans for resurgence after the long vac with strong autumn and winter training are already afoot.

M1 [MDiv2 – bungline 12] +1
In a fantastic continuation of the previous days, M1 bumped up and decisively so: Pembroke M2 was caught under Donnigton Bridge. A very good performance reeled in Pembroke throughout the bunglines and this was an excellent end to Summer Eights. Not only did the crew bump up a division, but by sending Pembroke to the bottom of the division has now surpassed the highest-placed 2nd VIII on the river as well as becoming the most senior boat in the club. The only frustration of the week was the row-over on Wednesday, meaning that the crew did not repeat last year’s success of winning blades.

W1 warming up on Saturday
W1 warming up on Saturday

 

Overall summary for this year’s Eights:

M1: ±0/+2/+1/+1
Start: 2nd Div III
Finish: 11th Div II
 
M2: ±0/-1/-1/+5
Start: 11th Div V
Finish: 8th Div V
 
M3: -1/-1/-1/-1
Start: 1st Div VII
Finish: 5th Div VII
 
W1: -1/-1/-1/-1
Start: 9th Div II
Finish: 13th Div II
 
Men’s
Bow
2
3
4
5
6
7
Stroke
Cox
 
 
Men’s
Bow
2
3
4
5
6
7
Stroke
Cox
 
 
Men’s
Bow
 
2
3
 
4
5
6
 
 
7
 
 
Stroke
 
Cox
 
 
 
1st Eight
Lukas Koch
Jaime Valdemoros Gomez
Frederick Crowley
Mate Kovacs-Deak
Jacob White
Jacob Cushnie
Mantas Abazorius
Samuel Picard
Katherine Davies
 
 
2nd Eight
Tom Murphy
Paul de Jong
Verena Schenzinger
Ryan Burke
Lukas Krone
Michael Bruckner
Christian Wilmes
Andrius Ovsianas
Tyson Rallens
 
 
3rd Eight
Daniel Sherlock
Josie Western
Tito Bastianello
Andrew Kenyon-Roberts
Yuri Van Nieuwerk
Tyson Rallens
Piotr Khrkowski
Edwin Lock
Josie Western
Georgina Fooks
Laura Hankins
Lily McElwee
Carla Schmelzer
Rebecca Henzel
Daniel Kennedy
Paris Jaggers
Tif Brydges
Women’s
Bow
2
3
4
5
6
7
Stroke
Cox
 
 
1st Eight
Kirsty Mitchell
Venla Karpinnen
Sinead Duffy
Phoebe Pexton
Charlotte Oakes
Frances Des Forges
Esther Borsi
Josephine Smith
Tom Murphy
 
 
Categories
Committee Oxford

New committee 2017 – 18

Annual General Meeting – Committee Elections

On Wednesday, 3rd May, we held our AGM and we are looking forward to build on the strengths of the past year and the exciting projects to come (boathouse, erg room, to name a few). Traditionally the new committee will have a few weeks to work alongside the current one before taking over at midnight on Saturday of Eights Week.

Merton College Boat Club will be lead for the 2017 – 18 season by:

Secretary – Charlotte Oakes
Men’s Captain – Samuel Picard
Women’s Captain – Paris Jaggers
Captain of Coxes – Katie Davies
Treasurer – Jacob White
Women’s Vice-Captain – Venla Karppinen
Men’s Vice-Captain – Thomas Murphy
Water Safety Advisor – Lukas Koch
PR & Alumni Officer – Tyson Rallens
Men’s Social Secretary – Paul de Jong
Women’s Social Secretary – Julia Zlotkowska

Categories
Bumps Oxford

Torpids 2017

Torpids race reports

An exceptionally sunny and reasonably dry Hilary Term with only three days of red flag in early February meant that Torpids was hotly contested as all clubs had ample time to get their crews on the water. Despite this one club decided not to field any men’s boats at all, Merton fielded a second women’s Torpid for the first time since 2013. Successfully qualifying in rowing on, four boats were vying for success during the week.

The following reports were written on the day an distributed on the alumni Facebook group
 

2017_Torpids_Crews
Torpids 2017 crews (from the top left clockwise) M1, W1, W2, M2

Wednesday
W2 [WDiv 5 – bungline 12] + 1
The boat to start everything off technically started their Torpids campaign last Friday already. Their qualification in Rowing On ensured Merton having a second Women’s Torpid for the first time since 2013. Despite them having to start at a very unfavourable bungline in the bay between the Isis Tavern and Isis Boathouse and having a crew which was faster in rowing on placed behind them, they managed to capitalise on Exeter’s start and the subsequent unrest with a bump.
 
M2 [MDiv 5 – bungline 6] + 2
After last year, the unexpected drop out of both Magdalen men’s crews which had fixed division bunglines allowed M2 to rise a further two bunglines before the first racing stroke was even taken. Undeterred they continued the game of chasing down Wolfson M3. After eluding the M2 last year, this years crew was finally able to garner themselves a wolf pelt. The navigational skill took M2 past Wolfson who seemingly favoured a closer inspection of the river bank.
A particularly skilful St Hugh’s M2 being handed down half the division gave M2 another boost, leaving them on bungline 4 for tomorrow.
 
W1 [WDiv 3 – bungline 10] +1
W1 bumped St Peter’s W1. The first Torpids bump since Thursday of Torpids 2015 and only the second one since 2012. This could be a turning point!
 
M1 [MDiv 2 – bungline 9] -1
Unfortunately M1 could not complete the day in the same fashion the other crews had. While pushing LMH very hard off the start and closing down considerable distance on them, Keble chased M1 hard off the gun and caught up with them just after Donnington Bridge. A slight fluster during the concession allowed LMH to run away a little bit which M1 was unfortunately not quite able to close again and was left with the arduous row over.
 
Overall a very decent day for Merton rowers at Torpids, especially considering the training constraints under flag and the last-minute crew changes in W1 and W2. Three more days and many more chances for bumps.

Thursday
The second day of Torpids 2017 was another solid performance from the Boat Club. Still continuing overall in the plus and two crews with chances of further glory!
 
W2 [WDiv 5 – bungline 11] +1
A rocky start allowed Exeter to close to nearly a canvas to which a crab contributed, but was quickly recovered. Once more it showed that bumps racing is a mix of skill, luck, and lack of skill on part of the opposition. Passing Keble W2 who had already bumped, Exeter’s blades clashed with theirs which gave W2 to the necessary breathing room to gain their composure and push for the bump. After 500m W2’s race was over as St Hilda’s W2 conceded at the entrance to the Gut.
 
M2 [MDiv 5 – bungline 4] -1
After a successful first day, the foreshadowed results from the Isis Winter League in which Regent’s Park M1 posted a considerably fast time came to be today. M2 had to concede though showed a strong and determined row thereafter, making successful inroads for an over bump on Trinity M3 though unfortunately not quite able to close the last gap.
 
W1 [WDiv 3 – bungline 9] +1
After years of having to balance the previous crews having been very strong, W1 has now seemingly found its place, though not quite its equilibrium. After a long row pushing the crew to their limits, W1 bumped Corpus Christi W1 at the top end of Boathouse Island. No amount of running across the river by Corpus, nor the last-minute crab in Merton’s stroke seat could stop W1 from claiming their second bump of the week.
 
M1 [MDiv2 – bungline 10] rowed over
With a solid start M1 tried to avenge yesterdays bumps on them. Settling into a strong pace the crew followed the ideal race line out of the Gut and up Greenbank while both Keble and LMH ahead were chasing up the towpath side. A push to make inroads on Keble along Greenbank and in the crossing did unfortunately not cover the necessary distance. With Keble bumping Worcester at the top of Boathouse Island, todays hard row over will hopefully be somewhat balanced by (hopefully) a bump on Worcester, who so far have -7 to their name, tomorrow.

Friday
Some say the third day is the hardest of bumps racing. Today certainly proved to be a trialling one for Merton rowers.
 
W2 [WDiv5 – bungline 10] -3
A solid start marred by a slight scrape on the bank. While pushing away from St Hilda’s W2 and closing distance to Christ Church W2, unfortunately 4 seat caught a boat stopper crab. With a full restart W2 manage to once again close Christ Church W2 down to overlap in the Gut, but this time 3 seat decided it was time for a crayfish break. Recovery at race pace, pressure steering, and hard rudder should have brought the crew out of the Gut… Should have since a solid crunch heard all the way to racedesk at Longbridges Boathouse indicated W2 had tried the overland shortcut. The safety launches extracted the bow three rowers before safely towing the boat stern first from the bank. All rowers are safe and despite everything the total tally is one bent backstay in bow seat.
For completeness sake: being stuck in a tree on top of the bank resulted in crews bumping by row past. As coveted the footship of Torpids may be, onwards and upwards tomorrow.
 
M2 [MDiv5 – bungline 5] -1
Being chased by a strong Wolfson crew, the M2 went off with the gun and held the hungry wolves until the Middle Gut when they had to concede. Blatantly ignoring the coxing strategy of W2, a smooth line out of the Gut took M2 along the course while being chased down by LMH M2. Knowing when to run and which line to take is an important part of bumps coxing and with running away across the river and holding them at a canvas, M2 crossed the finish line denying LMH M2 their blades potential. For tomorrow the chase with LMH M2 is back in the cards, but there is also Trinity M3 being handed down.
 
W1 [WDiv3 – bungline 8] rowed over
With a plummeting Corpus behind W1 acting as a very generous buffer, the boat went in for the long-haul race chasing St Hilda’s. Unfortunately, it turned out to be a long-haul for good and both crews rowed over the whole course. Same set-up at the bunglines tomorrow, though since Corpus has disappeared into WDiv4, St Antony’s W1 will be lining up on bungline 9.
 
M1 [MDiv2 – bungline 10] +1
Once more M1 is somewhat bucking the trend of the other boats, this time fortunately going upwards. A bump on Worcester in Middle Gut placed M1 back onto its starting bungline of the week. All this happened undeterred by the cox box issues leaving the valiant cox with having to shout at the crew (and the poor stroke having to take the brunt of it). A short race in Torpids is a successful race. Tomorrow the crew will be tasked with chasing down LMH while holding Exeter at bay who are trying to get blades having come up from MDiv3.

Saturday
W2 [WDiv5 – bungline 13] +1
Having been somewhat tree-related relegated to the foot of the river, W2 made solid start despite the crosswinds. St Hilda’s W2 bumping out before Donnington Bridge left W2 chasing Exeter W2 whom they had already bumped once on Wednesday. Steadily closing distance and being at half a length coxing into the Gut, this time the tree was given a wide berth a text book push out of the Gut sealed the over bump on Exeter W2 outside Longbridges.
 
M2 [MDiv5 – bungline 6] rowed over due to klaxon
After a strong start and tidy rowing, M2 was set to push hard again on Wolfson M3 having reeled them in already to 3/4 of a length by Donnington Bridge, the crew got robbed of success on the last day by a klaxon due to swans in the race line.
 
W1 [WDiv3 – bungline 8] rowed over
Chasing St Hilda’s W1 once again but holding off a strong St Antony’s W1 at the same time showed that W1 has settled into more sustainable realms of the bumps tables. With not many boats having bumped out, the race was still going strong coming out of the Gut by which stage St Antony’s had cut the distance to W1’s stern to a mere half length. Seemingly having spent their pennies though, St Antony’s got lost slowly but steadily ground again along Greenbank though the final verdict can only be speculated: a St Hilda’s rower decided that the sunshine and all the spectators were enticing enough to opt for a race-pace Cambridge swim test leaving the second of our crews in one day victim to a klaxon.
 
M1 [MDiv2 – bungline 9] rowed over
On the final day M1 was once more left with chasing down LMH on whom they had closed considerably on Wednesday. Unfortunately, the start and leading up to Donnington Bridge was not quite matching LMH who added a tiny bit of distance onto the starting lengths. That being said, strong race rhythm pushed the crew along the course and leaving Exeter, who were chasing for blades, behind in their wash. A strong row-over ended the Torpids on the starting bungline of the week.
 

Overall summary for this years Torpids:

M1: -1/±0/+1/±0
Start: 9th Div II
Finish: 9th Div II
 
M2: +2/-1/-1/±0
Start: 6th Div V
Finish: 6th Div V
 
W1: +1/+1/±0/±0
Start: 10th Div III
Finish: 8th Div III
 
W2: +1/+1/-3/+1
Start: 12th Div V
Finish: 12th Div V
 
Men’s
Bow
2
3
4
5
6
7
Stroke
Cox
 
 
Men’s
Bow
2
3
4
5
6
7
Stroke
Cox
 
1st Torpid
Mantas Abazorius
Lukas Koch
Lukas Krone
Frederick Crowley
Jaime Valdemoros Gomez
Jacob White
Samuel Picard
Thomas Lousada
Tyson Rallens
 
 
2nd Torpid
Andrius Ovsianas
Wilfred Ngia
Mate Kovacs-Deak
Michael Bruckner
Daniel Kennedy
Ryan Burke
Christian Wilmes
Tom Murphy
Jame Valdemoros Gomoz
 
Women’s
Bow
2
3
4
5
6
7
Stroke
Cox
 
 
Women’s
Bow
2
3
4
5
6
7
Stroke
Cox
 
1st Torpid
Venla Karpinnen
Phoebe Pexton
Esther Borsi
Frances Des Forges
Kirsty Mitchell
Josephine Smith
Paris Jaggers
Rebecca Hardy
Daniel Whittle
 
 
2nd Torpid
Hilary Cockhill (JEO)
Georgina Fooks
Julia Zlotkowska
Jessica Phillips
Verena Schenzinger
Charlotte Oakes
Carla Schmelzer
Rebecca Henzel
Edward Thomas
 
Categories
Oxford Regatta

Christ Church Regatta 2016

Christ Church Regatta success!

Women's Novice A racing in ChCh2016

The start of a new academic year at Oxford means also the start of a new season for Boat Club. Keen new rowers, some with previous experience, most with no rowing background, gathered at the beginning of term for freshers’ events and decided to give rowing a go. While those who had rowed before were integrated into the development squads, the novices started training together aiming for the two regattas this term: Nephthys Regatta and Christ Church Regatta.

Only novices are eligible for the respective categories in Nephthys and for all of Christ Church, so this is a sparring between all colleges, everyone having started at zero. While all novices initially trained as mixed squad together, with the regattas drawing near the boats were set as they would enter into the respective events.

Nephthys Regatta

Nephthys Regatta somewhat foreshadowed the coming results at Christ Church a week later. With all races happening on a single day, the women’s novice eight made its way through four races, only losing in the semi-final against Wolfson, the eventual winners of the category. The men were slightly less successful with their racing being cut short after their loss against St Anne’s.

Christ Church Regatta

No novice regatta would be complete without carnage on the river, organisational nightmare, and last minute crew changes. After being very well behaved for all of summer and most of term, rain and river warranted a flag change on Tuesday of the regatta week, thus excluding novice-status coxes for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday morning. At this point a ‘thank you’ to Toby Adkins and Henrik Hannemann for coming out of retirement and coxing the Merton crews on those days!

Academic commitments meant that the Merton novice men had to race as a ‘friendly’ boat with one senior rower and thus were barred from proceeding beyond round 2 on Friday. Another ‘thank you’ is due to Jaime Valdemoros-Gomez and Tom Lousada for substituting into 7 seat and making sure the men can race. The novice women appeared in the assigned lane again and again progressing through the regatta. Starting off with a win against Green Templeton A on Wednesday and leaving St Hilda’s A and University A in their wake on Thursday and Friday. Then on Saturday they beat in quick succession Green Templeton B, St Hugh’s A, and Keble A. The women’s final against New College was fought hard every inch up the Isis, but Merton defended their lead for the entire race to win!

Both men’s and women’s crews were mixes of JCR and MCR members who all displayed extraordinary commitment and talent for rowing. This is the Merton’s best performance in the Christ Church Regatta ever and hopefully presages success in Torpids and Summer Eights. Congratulations to all Merton novices for their accomplishments in Michaelmas Term.

Overall summary for Nephthys and Christ Church Regatta:

M
Cox
Stroke
7
6
5
4
3
2
Bow
Novices
Katherine Davies
Wilfred Ngia
Lukas Krone
Paul de Jong
Daniel Sherlock
Yuri Van Nieuwkerk
Edwin Lock
Thomas Murphy
Andrius Oysianas
W
Cox
Stroke
7
6
5
4
3
2
Bow
Novices
Tyson Rallens
Catherine Felce
Julia Zlotkowska
Esther Borsi
Frances Des Forges
Venla Karppinen
Jordan Maly-Preuss
Charlotte Oakes
Jessica Phillips
Results
Nephthys
easily
3L
 
Nephthys
easily
1.5L
2L
2L
 
ChCh
1/4L
2/3L
 
ChCh
1/3L
3L
easily
5L
3.5L
1.5L
1/2L

Men
Mansfield [win]
St Anne’s [loss]
 
Women
Brasenose [win]
St Anne’s [win]
St John’s [win | QF]
Wolfson [loss | SF]
 
Men
ChCh A [win]
GTC A [loss]
 
Women
GTC A [win]
St Hilda’s A [win]
University A [win]
GTC B [win]
St Hugh’s A [win | QF]
Keble A [win | SF]
New A [win | F]