News & Events
Captain's update, 1st November
1st November 2024
Morning all,
Hope you’ve all had a good week. Hopefully nothing scary in this post Halloween update:Upcoming races. You’ll have seen that I sent around the provisional crews for Vet 4’s and 4’s Head later this month. These were based on the recent training records – well done to those selected. They are provisional still on confirmation from the organisers (these races are over subscribed so they do have to cut a few – the tideway ticketmaster!), but I also want to make clear that they can change – we need people signing up and coming down so that they are not scratch crews on the day. Lots of people are working hard and want your seat!
Upcoming erg test. On this note, we will do our November progress test – a 5k free rate – to see how the training has paid off in the past month. It also gives some of our new LTR graduates a great chance to benchmark themselves in the squad. I’ve been really impressed with some of erg scores recently- so make sure you are there at 7pm on Wednesday. Please sign up on fitclub so that if necessary, we can stagger the use of the ergs.
Safety. I’ve previously written about the safety. Unfortunately I saw multiple instances last weekend of bad practice- all related to getting in and out of boats. First, speed is vital during the winter – so please do not hang around – from putting the boat on the water, you should be kicking off in less than a minute. Second, there was an instance of stepping on the bottom of the boat which could have put a hole in the boat and left those still in there in trouble. Despite being told by multiple senior members of the squad, the individual persisted. If I see this again, water sessions will have to be limited. If you are not sure, please do just ask me or other experienced oarsmen.
Social. Thanks to Charles, we will be doing a club fireworks on the 9th Nov – please do come along to celebrate the time when some bloke from Yorkshire tried to cause havoc in Westminster (how I got a job in the civil service is beyond me).
Charity. Finally, we have had contact through the website from a former member asking for a bit of help with some fund raising. All information is on the website- do please consider it as looks like it will help your erg scores and also, more importantly, raise some much needed funds for MND research. https://www.cygnet-rc.org.uk/article-all_in_a_good_cause8.html
Onwards,
DomCaptain's update 14th October
14th October 2024
Morning all,
Hope you are all having a good start to the week. Lots of notices this week!Pairs Head. Thanks to all who came down to help at the boathouse on Saturday, and those who cheered me and Jordan from the bank. We had a solid race coming third in our category of the Open Club 2-. A good first race of the year and something to build on!
Fours head. Which leads me onto the next big race on the tideway. The Fours Head takes place on 24 November. Entries open shortly and I intent to enter two crews (a quad and a four). Please could insert your availability on FitClub this week. I will be selecting crews based on training scores and experience. I will set these crews at the weekend so that we have 5 weeks to train in them beforehand. If you want to race, it is also critical you commit to the sessions running up to it.
Training. It has been fantastic to see a full shed in our recent sessions, and there has been great commitment to match- well done. The 2k and 5k erg tests give everyone an excellent benchmark for the months ahead. One plea from me is to get signed up early where possible, and to show up ready to go on time.
Weather. Lots of us commented this weekend that it felt like the start of winter. The temperature has dropped and it’s darker. In the depths of winter – conditions and weather won’t always play in our favour. Rest assured the Coach and Captain both keep a very good eye on the forecast – we will update you if plans change, please bear with us and if you know the weather is bad, keep a good eye out for comms about outing changes. If we end up not going on the water, you are still expected to attend a training session you are signed up for on land. Remember warm clothing and if it’s still a bit dark when we are boating, to wear high visibility clothing if possible, as well as lights on boats.
Boat maintenance. If you spot a problem with a boat please do let us know. Boats are expensive and spotting issues early can help massively. And obviously remember to clean the boats after use!
Any questions/ comments, let me know!
DomCaptain's Update: 7th October
7th October 2024
Hi team,
Apologies for not sending an update email for a few weeks, but here are a few updates across the club.Rhein. Well done to all who rowed the 42.2 km across northern Germany. A gruelling event but hopefully you all stayed hydrated throughout the weekend…
Pairs head. Next weekend sees the first race of the season. Jordan and I will be racing in a pair down the 4.5km course between Chiswick bridge and harrods wall. I’ve sent round the form for helping to volunteer on the WhatsApp group. These events are really important for the club to bring in revenue, so please do spare some time- we will be unable to run water sessions on Saturday.
Water sessions. Hopefully the water will be better by next weekend. It is currently at a yellow flag but very fast conditions for less experienced rowers. As a result, I’m sorry to all who signed up over the weekend and had to just go in the shed, but from experience this land training is often far more productive than a risky session on the water where you may go swimming/ get wrapped around a bridge.Otherwise training is going well. It’s been great to see some busy sheds in the week and some improving erg scores – as well as the Monday socials, of course. Now that we are about a month in, I’m keen to put the developing squad out as one, and the more experienced rowers out in separate crews – grateful if there is coordination among these crews to see if we can build stability in selection. This is particularly important in the run up to fours head next month (reminder, please sign up if available).
Have a good week!
Dom
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