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On Saturday 19th October 2013, Tamar & Tavy Gig Club travelled to Helford Passage to row in the Head of the River Race, hosted by Helford River Gig Club. The race was handicapped, with a mix of crews competing, including ladies, mens, vets, mixed and juniors, with the boats setting off in groups and the strongest crews starting last and trying to catch the boats ahead.

Tamar & Tavy Ladies started in the third group, with the crew consisting of Julie Rendle, Julie Eastaugh, Katie Turner, Sandra Anstey, Sarah Gall and Clare Luxton, coxed by Jo Cameron.  They were in a group of about 8 boats at the start, and battled their way up the river, vying for position with a number of other gigs. They rowed strongly, with lots of encouragement and great coxing carrying them to the finish line, where a final effort saw them holding their place and beating the boat that was the fastest to complete the course by the skin of their teeth! They completed the course in 42:41 minutes, coming 17th out of the 29 boats competing.

T&T Men’s crew, Mark Turner, Dan High, John Rogers, Rob Dawe, Pete Keegan and Jake Rendle coxed by Carolyn Dawe

The Men’s crew, Mark Turner, Dan High, John Rogers, Rob Dawe, Pete Keegan and Jake Rendle formed a very strong crew. They too had a fantastic race, starting 6 minutes behind the ladies, and some great coxing from Carolyn Dawe resulted in them overtaking a number of boats, and crossing the line in 38:52 minutes, making them third fastest to complete the course. A brilliant result to end the season!

Both crews had a great day out, rowing on a beautiful stretch of water and enjoying the sunshine, making the most of the last race before the winter kicks in.

On Saturday 7^th September, Tamar & Tavy Gig Club entered a mixed vets crew into The Great London River Race. 324 boats took part in the race, and the T&T crew were one of 32 Cornish pilot gigs competing. The race began at London Docklands amidst a carnival atmosphere, and the boats rowed up the Thames through central London, passing under Tower Bridge, past the Houses of Parliament, up through Putney and Richmond and ending at Ham in Surrey – a total of 21 miles of racing which made for a very competitive atmosphere. The T&T crew was formed of Carolyn Dawe and Chris Dill who shared the coxing, Lynn Renton, Johnny Rogers, Simon Howes, Martin Painter, Wendy Maclean and Sandra Anstey. They had a fantastic row, enduring only minor scuffles and some clashing of oars as they went through the bridges, and completed the course with a time of 2:45:06. This placed them 142^nd out of the 324 boats competing and 12^th out of the 32 pilot gigs – a brilliant result, especially as they were the last gig to start. All in all it was a great day on the water, and well worth the blisters!

Tamar & Tavy Gig Club enjoyed a fantastic day of rowing at the Tamar Challenge on Sunday 18^th July, entering a Ladies and a Men’s crew to race the 9 miles up the Tamar from the Tamar Bridge to Cotehele Quay. The challenge was hosted by Cotehele Quay Gig Club, and was very well organised and a great day out. Weather conditions were perfect, which was a welcome relief for the crews who enjoyed the calm waters and sunny weather.

The race handicaps meant that the T&T Ladies crew were the first to leave the start line amidst cheers from the waiting crews and spectators. The crew, formed of Lyn Renton, Carolyn Dawe, Katie Turner, Mel Cotton, Helen Samson-Hill and Julie Eastaugh had a storming first leg up to Weir Quay where they were finally overtaken by Rock Ladies vets who went on to win. They maintained their speed and with some strong rowing and fantastic coxing from Tricia Stewart held second place all the way up the river, only to be taken by Falmouth Men’s B and Caradon Men on the 2^nd to last bend. This was a fantastic result for our Ladies who came 4^th out of the 12 crews with a time of 1 hour 14 minutes.

T&T Ladies Tamar Challenge crew: Helen Samson-Hill, Carolyn Dawe, Mel Cotton, Katie Turner, Tricia Stewart (cox), Lyn Renton and Julie Eastaugh

The T&T Men’s crew, formed of Martin Painter, James Roobottom, Rob Dawe, Dan Highscapes, Ian King, and John Rogers also had a great race. They enjoyed the good conditions, and some excellent rowing and great coxing from Chris Dill meant that they came home in 1hr 10mins. All rowed hard, and enjoyed the race. Supporter numbers were high which added to the atmosphere and gave the crews a much needed boost as they came into the final stages of the race. Many thanks go to Cotehele Quay Gig Club for organising a fantastic event and providing such a good day out.

Tamar and Tavy Gig Club enjoyed a successful weekend on the 15th & 16th June 2013 at the Mixed and Veterans Championships hosted by Caradon Gig Club in Saltash. We entered a Mixed, a Mixed Super Vets and a Juniors (under 16) team on Saturday and a Ladies Super Vets team on Sunday. Despite the weather conspiring against us, with strong winds making conditions particularly challenging, spirits were high and the crews were determined to succeed, as always.

The Mixed team formed of Heidi Brodribb, Tim Brodribb, Mark Turner, Dan High, Sarah Gall and Charity Philips had a strong first heat, coming third out of four and qualifying for a place in quarter finals thanks to some strong rowing and great coxing by Katie Turner. They then battled it out in a tough quarter final heat against some of the top clubs and unfortunately narrowly missed out on a place in the semi finals, but finished within the top half of the crews, and with the satisfaction of knowing it was a job well done.

Mixed team at Saltash Regatta 2013: Dan High, Mark Turner, Tim Brodribb, Katie Turner (cox), Heidi Brodribb, Charity Philips and Sarah Gall

The Mixed Super Vet crew, coxed by Becky Masters and formed of Penny Twine, Christine Roberts, Karen Auborn, David Auborn, Ian King and Simon Howes had a tough first heat but rowed superbly and qualified for the Plate final. Here they rowed a strong race, and with some great coxing from Becky came home in fourth, another brilliant result! Bill Stacey-Norris coxed a very strong and determined Juniors team, who got through their first heat into the finals where some brilliant rowing earned them 5^th place.

Sunday brought even tougher conditions, with crews having to battle both wind and rain. T & T Ladies Super Vets weren’t put off though, entering a strong crew; Carolyn Dawe, Julie Rendle, Lynn Renton, Mel Cotton, Julie Eastaugh and Helen Samson-Hill who had a fantastic first heat, with some excellent coxing from Rob Dawe resulting in them coming 2^nd and earning them a place in the final. Here they fought hard, overtaking one boat and coming close to taking a second, finishing the race in 4^th place. A fantastic weekend was had by all!