EUBC at Rutherford Head 2018

The ‘Border Reivers’ were a group of raiders who operated along the Scottish-English border from the 13th to 17th centuries. They rode out on horseback, looting and pillaging from rival tribes, before returning home with their spoils.

Our annual hop over the border to Newcastle has become a highlight of the first half of the season, marking the last race of the calendar year and a final competitive excursion before the December exam season kicks off. So, at 0500 on Saturday morning, seventy athletes ‘rode out’ from Edinburgh (on the comfort of a coach) to see what could be brought back from the Tyne…

With other events across the United Kingdom falling victim to stormy weather, it was a relief to all to find flat conditions and little wind. However, it wouldn’t be Rutherford Head without a little bit of meteorological misery to make sure people didn’t get complacent, so the racing unfolded under incessant rain, meaning managing ones body temperature in the endless wait up at the start was an integral part of race tactics to be considered.

Division One was led off by the Men’s Eights. Our 1st Eight, on its first real session together as a crew, had an inauspicious start, incurring a time penalty for daring to leave their outer layers on as protection from the conditions a little longer than the umpire was willing to tolerate. However, the five seconds added was to prove academic, as they had a strong row to finish in second overall, ahead of hosts Tyne and perennial rivals the University of London, but behind home favourites Newcastle. The 2nd Eight, made up of a lot of our newer athletes, also acquitted themselves well to finish second in the ‘Band 2’ category (an explanation of the new bandings would take a whole new article, on another level of boredom, from which I will spare you), which was won by our friends at the other end of the M8, Glasgow University.

Our Women’s squad were spearheaded by a top Quad and Coxless Four. The Quad came in as the second fastest women’s crew, again missing out to Newcastle. Our 1st Coxless Four, made up of the top two under 23 pairs from the recent GB trials, claimed our first win of the weekend, showing they can transfer their undoubted small boat skills into the bigger boats. Showing the continuing depth of the Women’s squad, it was the 2nd Coxless Four who pushed them closest.

There was also a win from our ‘Band 2’ ‘Band 3’ coxed fours. It was especially pleasing to see the Band 3 crew made up of athletes from the clubs Recreational Squad, who have made a concerted effort to race more this season, and are showing that their own training is going well as they pick up some silverware.

Rutherford always marks the first big river experience for our Beginner athletes. Far from being overawed by a stretch of water about thirty times wider than the Union Canal (and which moves…in both directions!), they performed admirably and took a few scalps in the Band 3 and 4 categories across both divisions, testament to their speedy progress and in the absence of a dedicated beginner or novice category.

The highlight of division two was surely the ‘Battle of the Quads’. EUBC have won the quads event five years in a row at Rutherford, and there was never any danger of someone stopping it becoming six. The question was, would it be the Lighties or the Heavies? Both crews had to weave their way through the newly established Alumni 8+ category (something to think about for next year, Alexandra?), but did so without incident, and it proved to be the nimble Lightweights who took the spoils on this occasion, overturning the order from British Championships in October, with the crews finishing first and second overall in the division. We even boated a 3rd Quad, who won Band 2 and were the fourth fastest quad.

Our Women reached a significant milestone in putting out three eights from the Senior squad for the first time in recent years.

The 1st Eight were up against not just the usual Rutherford opposition of Newcastle, UL and Durham, but also crews from the traditionally strong Women’s programmes at Thames RC and Tideway Scullers School, adding to the evidence that this is becoming the most competitive Head Race outside of London. A solid row was to place them second behind UL and ahead of Thames, with the top two crews showing themselves to be a class apart at this early stage of the season. The 2nd Eight claimed the Band 2 prize, and the 3rd Eight also had a good row that would have won them Band 3, had the advanced mathematics required to put them there agreed.

It was a slightly damper and colder group of people who loaded up and set their noses north again. However, the journey was warmed by the spoils successfully pillaged and lessons learned to take us into 2019 in good shape.