Dartmouth Amateur Rowing Club          

Est 1869

                       South Coast Chqmpionships at Plymouth

CONDITIONS were ideal for the 52^nd South Coast Rowing Championship Regatta held at Plymouth on the river Plym.

The minimum requirement of a 1650 metre course was laid out from Laira Bridge past the clubhouse to the shallows. Clubs from the three affiliated associations; the Coast ARA of Kent and Sussex, the Hants & Dorset ARA and the West of England ARA covering Devon, Cornwall and Somerset; from Herne Bay in the east and Falmouth in the west, converged on Plymouth for the climax of the rowing season.

The Championship events are contested by the Champions and runners-up of each Association but representation from the host association was extremely poor for a variety of reasons. The only local interest in the Championship events was Dartmouth in the Men’s Junior/Senior coxed fours Championship but Dart Totnes did have a success in the Open events.

The main Championship event was the Men’s Senior coxed fours with just four crews following the mysterious non-appearance of Exeter. Herne Bay, BTC Southampton and Bexhill soon dropped Ryde and at 500 metres Bexhill pulled out and were almost a length up on BTC Southampton at 1000 metres. Bexhill went on to win by two lengths from BTC Southampton with Herne Bay third and Ryde fourth.

Dartmouth’s Matthew Isaac, John Hart, Phil Langman, Terry Wallis and cox, Louise Bellamy, did not have the best of starts and were half a length down on the leading crews after twenty strokes in the Championship Men’s Junior/Senior coxed fours. Early leaders were Christchurch and Itchen Imperial who were soon joined by Exeter. Christchurch soon started to take command of the race and at 1000 metres they led by two lengths from Exeter with Itchen Imperial a further length down in third place. At this stage Dartmouth was having a battle with two Herne Bay crews for the minor placings. Christchurch went on to win by a length and a half from Exeter with Itchen Imperial a further two lengths down in third place. Dartmouth overcame the two Herne Bay crews to take fourth place with Herne Bay A fifth and Herne Bay B sixth.

Hastings and Deal were the better starters in the Championship Men’s Junior coxed fours but were joined by Ryde and Southampton Coalporters who took over the lead. These two then made it a two boat race with Ryde winning a close finish by half a canvas from Southampton Coalporters with Deal a further two lengths down in third place. Exmouth were fourth and Hastings sixth.

Exeter and Southampton Coalporters were the early leaders in the Championship Ladies Senior coxed fours and at 500 metres Exeter led by half a length. These two crews were joined at the front of the race by Greenbank Falmouth and Shoreham, but by the time the crews reached 1000 metres Southampton Coalporters had built a two length lead with Greenbank Falmouth second and Exeter third. Exeter faded over the final 500 metres and Shoreham rowed through Exeter and Greenbank Falmouth. Southampton Coalporters went on to win by two lengths from Shoreham with Greenbank Falmouth a further length behind in third place.

In the Championship Ladies Junior coxed fours Bideford Reds and Exeter made all of the early running but were joined by Eastbourne. However, Bideford Reds got away with Eastbourne taking up second place. Bideford Reds were eventually convincing two length winners from Eastbourne with Exeter a further length down in third place.

The Championship Veteran coxed fours was a close race. BTC Southampton made the early running pulling out half a length which Greenbank Falmouth pulled back and briefly led the race. However, BTC Southampton hung in there and these two crews were joined by last year’s winners, Folkestone. BTC Southampton had good spell between 1000 metres and 1200 metres which gave them the impetus to go on and win by a length from Greenbank Falmouth who were just a canvas from third placed Folkestone. Lymington were fifth and Worthing sixth.

In the non-championship events the Dart Totnes crew of Steve Clarke, Eric Parker, Seb Baranzano, Nick Lovering and cox, Rob Crouch-Jones, rowed a fine race at Men’s Junior/Senior coxed fours leading almost from the start and building an impregnable lead to win by an impressive five lengths from Shoreham with Shanklin & Sandown third a further three lengths down.

The only other West of England successes in the non-championship events were Bideford Blues who won the Veteran (over 40) coxed fours by one and a half lengths from Southampton Coalporters with Eastbourne third and Plymouth at Ladies Novice coxed fours. They beat Itchen Imperial by three quarters of a length with Bideford Reds third.

South Coast Championship Regatta results:

Men’s Senior coxed fours 1 Bexhill 2 BTC Southampton 3 Herne Bay 4 Ryde

Men’s Junior/Senior coxed fours 1 Christchurch 2 Exeter 3 Itchen Imperial

4 Dartmouth 5 Herne Bay A 6 Herne Bay B

Men’s Junior coxed fours 1 Ryde 2 Southampton Coalporters 3 Deal 4 Exmouth 5 Hastings

Ladies Senior coxed fours 1 Southampton Coalporters 2 Shoreham 3 Greenbank Falmouth

4 Exeter 5 Bexhill 6 BTC Southampton

Ladies Junior coxed fours 1 Bideford Reds 2 Eastbourne 3 Exeter

4 Itchen Imperial 5 Christchurch 6 Herne Bay

Veteran (over 40) coxed fours 1 BTC Southampton 2 Greenbank Falmouth 3 Folkestone

4 Lymington 5 Worthing

Points: 1 Hants & Dorset ARA 27pts 2 Coast ARA 14pts 3 West of England ARA 13pts

Men’s Senior coxed fours 1 Itchen Imperial 2 Herne Bay 3 Ryde B

Men’s Junior/Senior coxed fours 1 Dart Totnes 2 Shoreham 3 Shanklin & Sandown

Men’s Junior coxed fours 1 Southampton Coalporters 2 Poole 3 Bexhill

Men’s Novice coxed fours 1 Poole 2 Bideford Blues 3 Southampton

Ladies Senior coxed fours 1 Southampton Coalporters 2 Greenbank Falmouth 3 Hastings

Ladies Junior coxed fours 1 Bexhill 2 Southampton Coalporters 3 Christchurch B

Ladies Novice coxed fours 1 Plymouth 2 Itchen Imperial 3 Bideford Reds

Veteran (over 40) coxed fours 1 Bideford Blues 2 Southampton Coalporters 3 Eastbourne

Veteran (over 50) coxed fours 1 BTC Southampton 2 Southampton Coalporters

3 Southampton

Points: 1 Southampton Coalporters 19pts

2= Poole 8pts, Bideford Blues 8pts, Itchen Imperial 8pts

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