This website covers all aspects of the rich history of rowing, as a sport, culture phenomena, a life style, and a necessary element to keep your wit and stay sane.
Contenders On The Waterfront: Pictures From Tideway Week, Part I.
Throughout Tideway Week, a light blue and dark blue checkered flag will fly from the tower of All Saints Church, Fulham, which overlooks the Boat Race start on the Middlesex side. Another such standard is also on the tower of St Mary’s, the church opposite on the Surrey bank.
31 March 2017
Tim Koch shares some of his images from the first three days of Tideway Week. Photographs are chosen according to their artistic merits, not by how much Tim likes the individual(s), crew or university they depict. Part I illustrates the women’s final build up to Boat Race Day. Predictably, Part II will feature the men.
In the Cambridge Women’s Blue Boat, Matthew Holland is the cox and Melissa Wilson is at stroke. Matthew knows the course well having coxed very successfully for Westminster School, whose boathouse is at Putney. Henley Royal medalist Melissa is aiming to row in the Tokyo Olympics.Just downstream of Hammersmith Bridge, Cambridge passes the old Harrods Furniture Depository, now luxury apartments.Old Blue and ‘7’ for CUWBC, Myriam Goudet is from Dijon (insert mustard joke here). She has rowed as a senior international since 2009.Blondie, the Cambridge Women’s Reserve Crew, boat from their temporary home in Thames Rowing Club.In the ‘2’ seat, tiny but talented medical student Imogen Grant is only 58kg – but much of that must be muscle. Last year, she rowed in the Lightweight Boat Race and in the reserves race, Osiris v Blondie, and also won lightweight doubles at Henley Women’s Regatta.Blondie prepare to go afloat.Imogen Grant at ‘2’ and Claire Lambe at ‘3’. Claire rowed for Ireland at the Rio Olympics in the lightweight double sculls (hence the necklace). She has been racing at senior international level since 2010.Passing under Hammersmith Bridge. Going in the other direction on race day, reaching the 1887 suspension bridge will mean that 40 per cent of the course is done.CUWBC President Ashton Brown is at bow. Unusually for that seat, at 82 kg, the highly experienced 28-year-old Australian/Canadian is the heaviest in the crew.Cambridge show us their bottom.All eighteen members of the Cambridge Women’s Blue Boat and of Blondie, the women’s reserve boat.Like her opposite number in the Cambridge crew, the Oxford Blue Boat cox, Eleanor Shearer, is also a product of Westminster School Boat Club. At stroke is Canadian, Emily Cameron, ancient in Boat Race terms at 34-years-old, albeit with a distinguished international rowing career. Looking on is coach Ali Williams from Australia, where she coxed both domestically and internationally.Looking cool in the ‘2’ seat, medical student Flo Pickles. Only 20 and only 60 kg, she already has Henley Royal, Henley Women’s and World Junior medals. ‘Fatsculler’ Daniel Spring has called her an ‘outstanding talent’.Looking to defend their title – Oxford University Women’s Boat Club.Rebecca te Water Naudé, British/South African, is another medic and rows at ‘3’.Cox Eleanor Shearer, stroke Emily Cameron and ‘7’, Jenna Herbert from Pittsburgh USA, share a joke (possibly, ‘How many Cambridge girls does it take to change a light bulb….?’)New Zealander Harriet Austin is at ‘6’. She has been rowing internationally since 2008 and could be at Tokyo in 2020.Passing the Fulham Wall. At the end of this part of the course, those first timers to the Boat Race become ‘Blues’.American Chloe Laverack is in the ‘5’ seat. An experienced college rower with Northeastern University, her uncle rowed in the winning Oxford crews of 1983 and 1984.Oxford at rest. Harrods Depository is reflected in the calm water producing this interesting effect.The Tideway in a different mood to the one above. Rough water for Oxford approaching Chiswick.Rhodes Scholar Jenna Herbert says that she was ‘horrible’ at all sports before she discovered rowing.Oxford practice passing the finish post at Mortlake, outside the Tideway Scullers boathouse, downstream of Chiswick Bridge. Will they lead or will they follow Cambridge here on Sunday?
Hear The Boat Sing 
As usual great article
Cheers Clive Clive Radley