The 3rd of May was a sunny day with beautiful rowing conditions. It was our first time racing in Chiswick regatta as Quintin boat club, and after loosing to St Paul’s Girls School in 2022, we were back with a vengeance. We were in a straight W8+ final against a Vesta crew who had beaten us by around 10s throughout the head season, so both moral and nerves were high. After several photo opportunities we got onto the water.
We spun quickly and prepared at front stops. We had a very strong start, pulling away from Vesta and winding up to rate 42. The adrenaline on the day meant we settled to a rate 38 into the second minute. We found a good rhythm and focused on cleaning up our stroke. Vesta kept us on our toes with a very successful push at half way, we didn’t have much left in the tank but we tried to respond as best as possible.
As we rounded the slight bend in the river we were met with cheers from Quintin, and the dulcet tones of Duncan on the microphone. We couldn’t hear exactly what he was saying but I’m sure it was something like “Wow! This is by far the fastest and amazing boat we’ve EVER seen, this race is the highlight of the day!”.
Cheers from Quintin motivated us to push towards the finish, most of us now running on empty. Vesta pushed us to the absolute limit with a final squeeze at the end, gaining a seat on us.
Overall this was an incredible day, from the nervous boating, to the afternoon spent with cake and pints. We are so grateful for this event hosted by Quintin, the incredible coaching we’ve received, and to have the opportunity to race for Quintin in future races this season.
A big thank you also to our cox Macey, it was our first outing with her and she was phenomenal, I hope she enjoyed the race as much as we did!
Words by Connie Smith
