Sunday 19th January saw many junior and elite rowers visit the historical town of Boston ready to race on Great British waters.
Boston had received entries for 287 boats
ready to take on either the 3 kilometre or 5 kilometre course (in very bright
and smart racing all in ones). The morning saw some rain and a strong head wind,
but the competitors gritted their teeth and pushed on; the hard work paid off
when the times were released at the end of the division.
The clubhouse filled quickly as hungry
competitors and officials took a break from the icy wind. Times were released
soon after and Boston found they had an advantage being on home water and
knowing the best ways to take the bends.
I was racing in division 2 so after a quick
burger, my crew and I proceeded towards the start line just over 3 kilometres
away, with a quick warm up and a jog thrown in. When we got down to the
starting line we had to sort ourselves into numerical order.
As soon as we heard the bell, Lucie and I
pushed. Within the first kilometre we gained ground and caught up with the
double in front. However, we didn't sprint and take over them until the beginning
of the last kilometre; our stroke rate was pushed to 25 strokes a minute.
Coming up to the finish, the crowd and
bystanders were cheering as we both gritted our teeth and gave ten solid
strokes that pushed us over the line. Our final time for our 3 kilometre sprint
was 12:43. In the under 15's
category we came 5th overall.
It was a great day and everyone enjoyed the
racing and close competition.
By Kyra
Balderstone,
year 9
