Please see the document below for the list of events and regattas we will be attending this year:
The Sailing Club are having a Barn Dance on Saturday at Bere Alston and have extended a warm welcome to any Gig Club members who would like to come, a great way to stretch out any muscles after the 3 Rivers Race! Full details below:
WQSC Barn Dance, Saturday 14th March, 7.30-10.30pm , Bere Alston Parish Hall.
With our caller Martyn and live music from “Under the Moon”.
An evening of fun and frolics!! A good way to get to meet up before the sailing season begins.
Cost £5.00 to include a pasty. Under 18’s £2.00
Please let me know if you are coming. Cheese or meat pasty. Guests welcome.
Don’t forget your favourite tipple’, glasses and a pud or salad.
We will need a bit of help to clear up and with the pasties otherwise Henry might get out of the dancing!
Phone me Ruth on 01822840208 0r email me ruth@luffruth0.wanadoo.co.uk
The Hub Club is running a BBQ this Sunday, 8th March from 11am-1pm at the new site. Burgers and soup will be provided for a small donation to help cover costs. Please come along! It would be really good to see lots of Gig Club members there to have a look at the plans for our new facility.
Please click the link below for a copy of the latest news from the River Tamar!
Tamar and Tavy Gig Club enjoyed a very successful day on the river on Saturday 9th August competing in the Tamar Challenge hosted by Cotehele Quay Gig Club. They entered three boats of mixed ages; two ladies and one men’s crew into the 9 mile (one hour) endurance race which started in Saltash and ended at Cotehele Quay. The race was handicapped with
Conditions on the river were mixed, with a strong wind making the going very tough on some sections, but providing a welcome tail wind on others. The race was handicapped, with the slowest boats starting first and everyone else trying to overtake them before the finis, and prizes awarded for first past the post and fastest time. Both Ladies crews were in the first group to start, with crews from Rame and Rock. The boats had a tussle up to the first corner, but Tamar & Tavy Ladies A: Claire Luxton, Sandra Anstey, Katie Turner, Lynn Renton, Sarah Gall and Julie Rendle, managed to pull into the lead as they approached Cargreen. Some great coxing from Mark Turner and some strong rowing saw them holding off Rock as they past Weir Quay and they then managed to maintain their lead all the way up to the finish line! Unbelievable!
The B crew, coxed by Becky Masters with Karen Auborn, Nicky Evans, Carolyn Dawe, Helen Samson-Hill, Jennie Smith and Beth Gay also had a fantastic race. They fought for position and rowed very strongly, finishing in 7th place out of the 13 crews competing and holding their own amongst the competition. The men’s crew: Rob Dawe, Simon Luke, Jake Rendle, Ian King, Peter Clarke and John Rogers were coxed by Chris Dill. They started 11 minutes after the first boats, which meant that they had their work cut out as they fought their way past other crews on their way up the river. They proved their worth though, finishing in 12th place, but with the 5th fastest time of the day. Brilliant!
The official results are:
Ladies A 1st (1 hour 6 minutes 44 seconds, 8th)
Ladies B 7th (1 hour 12 minutes, 4 seconds, 12th)
Men 12th (1 hour, 3 minutes, 22 seconds, 5th)
For the full results please click here – Tamar Challenge Results 2014
Huge congratulations go to all teams competing, and especially to the Ladies A, some fantastic results, proving that the hard work and dedication in training really does pay off. Huge thanks also to all the supporters and to the crew who rowed Belinda back to Weir Quay after the racing. Thanks in particular to Mike Vosper who provided safety boat cover and saved us from having to row the race length twice by towing Tamar to Saltash and back from Cotehele, and then coming back to tow Belinda the final stretch of the river. You certainly providing some very welcome relief after a hard day at the oars!
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The social rowing season is going well, with some lovely MMR and Thursday evening adventures. These sessions are inclusive of everyone, and designed to let us enjoy our beautiful river without having to worry about training. Thursday evenings often include a stop for refreshments of some kind, and Monday mornings are seeing some exploratory rows to parts of the Tamar and Tavy that we don’t often get to see. One lucky crew even managed to spot the seal up near Pentillie!
Here are a few photos from the season so far:
On the 3rd of August, Tamar & Tavy Gig Club entered an all boys crew into the gruelling, annual under 16’s championship held at Newquay on the 3rd August, along with 25 other clubs. The crew members were Ben Milligan, Ethan Lamerton, Cameron McKay, Will Gardner, Ben Luke, and Elliott Overnell who was the youngest at only 11 yrs old. Coxed by their coach Tricia Stewart, they rowed magnificently!
The Newquay championship is always a very tough race and the sea conditions can be very challenging with large swells. None of the boys had ever rowed on the sea before. They are a relatively new and inexperienced crew who were competing together for the first time. They did exceptionally well, and after 3 heats had qualified for the final of the plate race.
A very large wave hit them on the start line of the final which caused a thole pin to break and get stuck, the boys slowly edged their way at the back of the pack with only 5 out of the six lads able to row. The pin wasn’t freed and replaced until nearly half way to the first marker buoy which left them a lot of ground to make up. Sheer guts and determination saw them digging deep and rowing their hearts out. One by one they managed to overtake four other gigs to finish in 2nd place, with only six seconds between the winning crew and themselves. The courage, determination and guts they showed after such an unlucky start was just a reflexion of what an amazing crew they were to fight all the way to the finishing line after having rowed four very tough races throughout the day. Huge congratulations to them all!
On Wednesday 23rd July, our men’s squad were involved in the rescue of four men from their boat which had become stranded in the mud on the banks of the Pentillie reach of the River Tamar.
The two crews had just started their evening session when the alarm was raised by a passing vessel who asked whether they might be able to assist in a rescue. They arrived on the scene to find the men stranded on their boat, and tried to reach them with the gigs. They were unable to get close enough to pull the boat off the mud due to the outgoing tide, but some quick thinking from the crew and coxes got the gigs close in and one crew member (Pete Keegan) ran across the mud and shepherded the men back to safety. A police rib joined the scene but was unfortunately unable to free the stranded vessel and was in turn caught by the tide. The men were returned to the safety of a police launch at Weir Quay and one of the gigs helped to free the rib.
The crews received a thanks and commendation on their skills and competence from the police. Well done and many thanks to all involved for their good citizenship; the event was a good test of the skills and expertise of the crews and coxes, proving the worth of the club who has a presence on the river seven days a week for either social rowing or race training.
Special thanks go to Pete Keegan for his initiative and quick thinking, to George Masters who helped one of the men to recover, to Mike Blong who aided the recovery of the police rib and to Becky Masters and Chris Dill who were coxing the gigs.
The club had a brilliant day in Salcombe on Sunday 29th June at the Salcombe Estuary Rowing Club regatta. We entered Ladies and Men’s A, B and Supervet teams and two mixed U16 teams. The setting was stunning, and rowing in another beautiful estuary was a lovely treat. The races were challenging, with twelve gigs competing on the mile long course and fighting for water around the numerous very tight buoy turns.
The ladies A were first up, battling their way round, and finishing in 10th place, the Men’s A followed next, finishing in 7th, the ladies B in 9th and the Men’s B in 10th place. The two supervets crews also had a strong row, with the ladies finishing in 4th in their race, and the men narrowly beaten.
The real highlight of the day, however, was watching our two fantastic U16 teams. They had a tough row, with the A team, Molly Friendship, Will Gardner, Cameron Mckie, Ben Luke, Ethan Lamerton and Fen Eastaugh suffering a clash with another boat on one of the buoy turns, but some fantastic coxing from Becky Masters saw them pull away in the home straight and take some boats, earning them a well deserved 1st place! Fantastic! The B team also had a brilliant row, with the crew Martha Walke, Amy Crocker, Anya Anstey, Katie Crocker, Elliott Overnell and Mia Anstey, and coxed by Tricia Stewart rowing their hearts out and proving their strength. It was a brilliant start to their season. Many congratulations to all of them.
Thanks to everyone who came to support the teams, to the rest of the club, to the rowers and coxes, and to Salcombe for hosting such a great day.
(Details below to be confirmed)
Ladies A crew: Sarah Gall, Meg Keegan, Katie Turner, Claire Luxton, Helen Atrill, Lynn Renton, Cox: Mark Turner
Ladies B crew: Helen Lloyd, Julie Eastaugh, Julie Rendle, Jennie Smith, Mel Cotton, Debbie Farmer, Cox:
Ladies supervets: Julie Rendle, Sandra Anstey, Debbie Farmer, Lynn Renton, Mel Cotton, Tricia Stewart, Cox:
Men’s A crew: Simon Luke, John Overnell, Jake Rendle, Mark Turner, Pete Keegan, Andy Morton, Cox: Becky Masters
Men’s B crew: Matt Pinney, Roger Hine, Kevin Cole, Tim Brodribb, Ian King, John Rogers, Cox: Becky Masters
Men’s supervets: Mike Blong, Peter Clarke, John Rogers, David Auborn, Ian King, Martin Painter, Cox: Becky Masters
Junior U16 A crew: Molly Friendship, Will Gardner, Cameron Mckie, Ben Luke, Ethan Lamerton, Fen Eastaugh, Cox: Becky Masters
Juniors U16 B crew: Martha Walke, Amy Crocker, Anya Anstey, Katie Crocker, Elliott Overnell, Mia Anstey, Cox: Tricia Stewart
On the 25th July we are hosting a ladies night at Bere Alston Parish Hall. What better a way could there be to treat yourselves to some pampering and a good old catch up with your friends? Please join us and help support your club!
Click on the link to the flyer for all the details: Ladies Night flyer
The weekend of the 21st & 22nd June proved to be a great weekend of racing for us. Our crews took to the river at Saltash for the Mixed and Vets championships hosted by Caradon Gig Club. The Mixed A & B teams competed on Saturday and the Men’s and Ladies Supervets A teams on Sunday. It couldn’t have been better conditions to be on the river (although it was a little warm!), and all teams rowed extremely well amid some fierce competition. The Mixed A had a tough first heat, coming in fourth and narrowly missing out on a place in the top half of the crews, but a fantastic row and a win in their second heat earned them a place in the plate final where they came third. The Mixed B team came third in their heat which meant they went on to row against crews in the top half of the field, where, despite a hard fight they were knocked out in the second heat.
Sunday bought the turn of the Men’s and Ladies Supervet crews. Both battled hard in their first two heats, coming in the second half of the field, but some superb rowing earned them both places in the plate finals. The ladies had a fantastic start to their final, leading for a good portion of the race, before some difficult clashes with another boat left them in third place overall. The men’s crew also had a battle, with some very hard and determined rowing, but they were not quite able to make it past the crew from Salcombe, leaving them in fourth place.
Overall it was a fantastic weekend. Many thanks go to the supporters, rowers, coxes and those who rowed the boat down and back to Weir Quay. Congratulations everyone!
Mixed A crew: Pete Keegan, Mark Turner, Jake Rendle, Katie Turner, Claire Luxton, Sarah Gall, Cox. Simon Howes
Mixed B crew: Andy Morton, Roger Hine, Jon Overnell, Charity Philips, Helen Atrill, Jennie Smith, Cox: Chris Dill
Ladies Supervets crew: Lynn Renton, Helen Samson-Hill, Julie Rendle, Mel Cotton, Karen Auborn, Debbie Farmer, Cox: Mark Turner
Men’s Supervets crew: Mike Blong, Peter Clark, John Rogers, David Auborn, Ian King, Martin Painter, Cox: Becky Masters
Tamar & Tavy Gig Club celebrate best ever world championships
Tamar & Tavy Gig Club had a fantastic weekend of racing at the World Pilot Gig Championships on the Isles of Scilly from the 2nd – 4th May. They took Ladies and Men’s A and B teams, and their boats Ginette and Tamar were two of 147 gigs taking part. The teams had worked hard all winter to prepare, often battling challenging conditions on the Tamar, but they were rewarded by idyllic conditions to race in, with calm seas and clear blue skies. Rowing captain Lynn Renton commented that the ‘great weather, great results and great people all combined to make it a fantastic experience’.
The Men’s A team rowed superbly, with some brilliant coxing resulting in them reaching group D (the 4th of 12 groups) in the seeding race; within the top 50 crews. They then held their position for the 2 heats that followed, and had a blistering row in the final with some fierce competition, finishing in 7th place in their heat and 42nd overall. An amazing achievement and a massive 33 places higher than they finished in 2013, proving they are a force to be reckoned with. The B team also had a strong championships, beginning in a low group, but winning that in the first heat by a good few boat lengths – fantastic! They went on to finish in group K in 127th place; a great achievement.
The Ladies A team similarly proved their worth, battling some tough conditions in the seeding race, which landed them in group H, below where they were hoping to be. This gave them renewed determination and they had an amazing couple of heats, winning both by at least a boat length which put them into group F for the final. They pulled it out of the bag, rowing their hearts out, to finish 2nd in the group, and 62nd overall, 8 places higher than ever before; fantastic! The Ladies B had a superb row in the seeding race, finishing in group I. They then held their position, competing strongly within their group with 2 strong heats, and a brilliant final finishing 104th overall.
Club chair Simon Howes said ‘This year’s expedition to the World Championships in Scilly was our best ever – best training, best organisation, best publicity, best teamwork, best weather and BEST RESULTS. It takes an enormous amount of effort to project two boats and four teams to the islands and it is a whole club enterprise. Oar painters, coaches, boat tow drivers and all the others who have had a part in the club’s success should be proud of our results. We can of course do even better next year and with this level of commitment I am confident we shall.’
Huge congratulations to all the rowers, to their coxes, and in particular to Pete Keegan, Jake Rendle and Claire Luxton, for whom it was their first world championships. They did the club proud. Thanks also to Jean-Pierre Le Tissier from Cotehele Quay Gig Club who rowed for our men’s B team, and to all the supporters and club members who have trained and rowed throughout the winter and supported the team’s preparations. It truly was a great club event and a brilliant start to the 2014 season.
Here are some more photos from our fantastic weekend – I think we will be buzzing for weeks!
If you have any to add then please email them to Sarah. Thank you!
More to follow soon…
It’s a bit of a different day on the islands today, we’ve lost the sun so the shorts are packed and the woolly hats back out! The seas look quite rough for those on the Scillonian…so everyone is envious of those who are flying.
The official results are now in! A full report will follow once we’re back on the mainland, but for now we are extremely proud to report the following:
Ladies
A team: 62nd – 6. Sarah Gall, 5. Meg Keegan, 4. Katie Turner, 3. Helen Atrill, 2. Charity Phillips, 1. Heidi Brodribb, Cox. Bill Stacey-Norris
B team: 104th – 6. Julie Rendle, 5. Nicky Evans, 4. Lynn Renton, 3. Claire Luxton, 2. Jane Morton, 1. Helen Samson-Hill, Cox. Simon Howes
Men’s
A team: 43rd – 6. Andy Morton, 5. Pete Keegan, 4. Mark Turner, 3. Jake Rendle, 2. Rob Dawe, 1. Simon Luke, Cox. Carolyn Dawe
B team: 127th – 6. Jean-Pierre Le Tissier (Cotehele Quay), 5. John Rogers, 4. Roger Hine, 3. Euan Roxburgh, 2. Peter Clark, 1. Matt Pinney, Cox. Chris Dill
We had a great time celebrating last night once the boats were packed away. They were manhandled very successfully off the beach and onto their trailers – who needs trolleys hey?! The meal at the Kavorna was very tasty, and we then went our separate ways, some to the campsite, some only made it as far as The Atlantic across the road, and others off to the Turks Head on St Agnes. But we did all have one thing in common, and that was that we made the most of some celebratory drinks – very well deserved I think!
So, it’s been an amazing weekend, we couldn’t have hoped for better conditions, and the results prove how good our teams really are. Huge congratulations to all that rowed and to our fantastic coxes. Thanks also to our two captains, Katie and Chris, our rowing captain Lynn and chairman Simon, and to those that have coached and coxed us in training, and of course a massive thank you to all our supporters and the rest of the club – we most certainly couldn’t have done it without you!
So, today has been another amazing day of weather. Slightly windier but another stunning day of sunshine. The morning kicked off with the ladies, with both teams having a brilliant row. The ladies B came fourth, with an amazing row, leaving them very happy. The ladies A came through again, winning their heat for the second time – fantastic! That moved them into group F for the final.
The men also had some fantastic results with the B team holding their own and finishing mid group which was great. The men’s A also held their position, coming in the top 5 in group D and setting themselves up to challenge the top crews in the final.
The wind died away again for the final races, and the atmosphere was electric. Both the men’s and ladies had 12 groups – A to L, and with it being the finals we were ready to give it everything we had left in the tank.
The ladies B came 8th in group I which was great, and the ladies A had another storming row, coming 2nd, narrowly beaten by Weymouth. That means they moved up from group H to second in group F – amazing!
The men’s B had another great row, holding their own and finishing middle of their group. The A team had a good strong row and a battle for the top spots. They came in in a fantastic 5th place! Amazing!
Everyone enjoyed themselves completely, the weather was brilliant and the team spirit has been fantastic. Rafting up at the end with some (many!) bottles of fizz was very special. We are so lucky to be here!
Official results to follow once there is space to get near the board! Presentations are underway for the winners of each group. Falmouth won both the men’s and the women’s races – amazing!
Now it’s time to celebrate and relax, dinner shortly and no doubt a few drinks before we are tucked up in bed with our cocoa – as instructed by our lovely rowing captain Lynn.
Photos to follow – more battery needed!