Captain's Log
Latest news, requests, moans and cajoling from the skipper
Captaincy update – October 2026
11th October 2026
Evening all,
I hope you are well as we begin to drift into proper Autumn. The river is getting busy and the sun cap has been replaced by a woolie hat, which means Head season is upon. Great to see so many people down at the club recently, would be great to translate also to the Shed! A few points from me this month:
Head of the river Centenary race:
As a founding club of the Head of the River Race, we have been invited to take part in the centenary celebration race with the other clubs. It will be held over the Championship Course from Chiswick Bridge to the University Stone in Putney on the 12th December at 9.30am. Please can you sign up on fitclub as soon as possible. Week Calendar - FitClubTraining plan:
I’ve heard around that people haven’t been able to find the erg/weights plan – see link here: Cygnet Training Schedule 26/27 - Google Sheets no excuses now…5K test on Wednesday – please make every effort to attend!Learn to row
Thanks to all those who have supported LTR so far this year, they just have a couple water sessions left so please continue to sign up to set the boat and support with them learning to row: Cygnet Learn to Row - Autumn 2026 - Google SheetsBBL Christmas Dinner
As previously communicated by our social sec, we have been invited to the BBL Christmas dinner on Friday 11th December. No sign up form yet but please block the diary if interested!RAF Christmas dinner
In the spirit of Christmas, a reminder to sign up if you are interested in the Vet Christmas Lunch at the RAF club on the 18th December. All information on our website at Vets Lunch at the RAF club on 18th DecemberFours Head
Please sign up on fitclub if you are interested in Fours/Vet Fours Head – entries open in a week so I am keen to lock down the crews as soon as possible!That’s all from me this month – let’s keep the momentum going as we move into the colder months, and of course if you have any thoughts please let me know!
Thanks
JordanCaptain's Update September 2026
7th September 2026
Afternoon all,
Thanks to Mickey for arranging a great get together on Friday at The Crossing – was a thoroughly enjoyable evening and a perfect way to round off the regatta season.
Attention now turns to the Head season and all that comes with rowing in the Autumn/Winter! We will be having a season kick off meeting to go through plans for the year at 1pm this Sunday (the 6th of Sept). Ahead of this, it would be great to think about what you want to achieve this year, and we can think about what we need to achieve this – and if you have any thoughts on anything that you’d like to see different, please let me know!
Sessions Update
The Tuesday evening water session for now will be stopped due to light.
Mondays weights will be shifted to 7.30pm, to accommodate the new crop of LTR.
Please continue to sign up on Fitclub.Boat Update
Small update I think is worth sharing, the Mike Collier has been rigged as a 4- as a trial for a few weeks/month. This is to see how we go in this as a crew – if positive, we will then re-rig the Jackson back to a 4x so we continue to have two 4Xs and a 4- available to us.Learn to Row
Our LTR starts on the 7th of September. LTR is crucial to help grow the club, so I encourage everyone to help out and sign up to support the various sessions! A sign-up sheet has been circulated by emailImportant Notice
The club is hosting the organisers of a swimming event on the 6th of Sept. As a word of caution, this would mean there will be a lot of swimmers “launching” from our hard as part of this race. This is the first year the race is being held, and so expect some disorganization, so if you’re planning on an outing, please be extra cautious and patient. Note, they wont be using our changing rooms but they will be using the shed and the bar as areas to get changed. They will have all left the club, and packed away by around 12.30.Reminder
Just a reminder on ensuring we are closing the changing room windows when we lock up, and that all the doors are appropriately locked. Please just bring to the forefront of your mind.Dates for the diary
- Season Kick Off Meeting - 6th September, 1pm
- LTR first session – 7th September, at 6:30pm
- Scullers Head of The River - 19th September
- Rhine Marathon - 3rd October
- Pairs Head - 4th October
- UTAH - 25th October
- Fours Head - 21 November
- Head of the River Centenary Race - 12th December (details to be shared closer to the time, when available).
Captain's update, August 2026
3rd August 2026
It was certainly a good afternoon after Cygnet won their first pot of the 2026 regatta season yesterday, the 8+ at Henley T&V - congratulations to all those involved! As we draw the regatta season to a close, i wanted to share a quick update with the squad across various matters.
Update to the captaincy
There has been a small update to the captaincy (significantly less ruthless than Burnham). I will be continuing as the club captain for the next year, with Tom C continuing as vice and Charles J swapping roles from the social sec to the deputy captain. With this, I would like to thank Matt G for his support throughout the year as deputy, it has been massively appreciated and certainly doesn't go unnoticed! As Charles is stepping into the captaincy, this means Mickey will be the new social sec.Return to training proper
As most of you know, August is a quiet period for rowing and the club, and so we will commence the 26/27 season proper from the 6th of September - enjoy your well-earned rest and feel ready for a good Head season come Autumn. That being said, I encourage everyone to stay active during August - the shed is still available to be used and we will still have water sessions – it will just be a more "show and row" approach to sessions.
On the 6th of September, at noon, we will have a whole squad meeting to kick off the year - please mark your diary and make every effort to attend!LTR
We will be running a learn to row programme from the 7th of September. When circulated, please can everyone ensure to sign up to help run the sessions! It's a great way to grow the club, and meet the new members. Additionally, if you happen to know of anyone who could be interested, please feel free to send them the details on our website.Push to grow the club
We are currently going through a bit of a push to grow the club, where we need some support from you. Please can you:- Share any good photos with, that show the club in a good light! Be it social or rowing
- Let me know if you have any advertising ideas
- Once we generate some posters, let me know if you are part of any forums that these can be posted in
- If you are part of a university alumni network/contacts at unis or colleges, please let me know.
Reminder to lock doors/other points
On a slight less interesting, but important - please remember:- Lock up after yourself if you are the last person
- Close all windows when you leave
- We have a hosepipe ban currently.
Dates for the diary:- End of Season social - tbc
- Season kick off meeting 6th September, noon
- LTR start 7th September
- Rhein Marathon 3rd October
Thank you if you have made it to the bottom of this email!
It is my absolute intention to send around an update, however big or small, once a month for the next year – please hold me accountable!
Thank youJordan
