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One of our members, Laura Cram, is leading a donation-based online yoga class on Sunday 5 September from 5 - 6pm.
Treat yourself to a gentle workout for mind and body and a nourishing relaxation all the while helping to raise funds for Five in a Row's epic Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge. Our awesome rowing club colleagues will shortly be rowing 3000 miles unsupported across the Atlantic to support and raise awareness for Reverse Retts.
This all levels online yoga class is suitable for everyone, including absolute beginners. There is no ticket price, just whatever you can offer to support and help a worthy cause.
Please share with friends and family, rowers and non-rowers - all welcome.
To sign up please follow the link below.
To find out more about Laura and her approach you can find more information here.
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Now a firm fixture in the NBRC calendar, the 4th and biggest yet, Christmas ergo relay event took place in NB Scout Hall. 25 super excited participants, aged between 13 and 63, took part in finely balanced teams of 5, each person rowing 4 x 250m. How hard can that be - 45-60 seconds x 4?! Fast and furious, all important changeovers with varying degrees of perfection and each team boat tracked on a big screen thanks to Ian and the Concept 2 technology. Huge congrats to the winning team Craigleith - Clive R, Ann, Sam, Gareth and Jon. Inspired by our double Olympian guests, Rachel and Jon, the stars of the show and ones to watch for the future were our 2 juniors, JJ Wallace and Sam Cowan. Big shout has to go Vik as the biggest improver and Jon for agreeing to take part in his jeans and shoes with 2 minutes notice! Fantastic event and thanks and well done to everyone who took part. Merry Christmas!!!
Louise Presslie
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Skiff John B made the rather long journey recently to take part in the amazing Castle 2 Crane for the third year running. Deposited by drivers Millie and Sam at Dumbarton Castle, ready to spend the night with 74 other boats. Predominantly skiffs but a few others too including wee sisters Flossie and Speedwell, pilot gigs and a super wee double skull from Broughty Ferry called Georgia.
Saturday dawned bright and with a forecast for a slight head wind, which we'd need to keep us cool. Millie, Sheena, Scott and Rob were my rowers. Bacon rolls and more coffee were enjoyed before our start place came about. Number 52 and we were off, 12 noon on the dot. Out to the first perch to turn up the Clyde. But wait, that wind is much stronger and my goodness the white tops and waves. The pushing started.
It took us 58 minutes to get the Erskine bridge, such a slog. We'd overtaken a good handful of boats already. Water taken on and a few wee snacks but no stopping for my awesome crew. Up through into the city concentration and loads of encouraging chat. Some great moments of laughter with misheard chat, not like Scott, ....the safety boat actually came over to make sure we were ok as we were all in stitches...it did lighten the load....
So 2 hours in, coming past Braehead shopping centre I can see the top of the masts of the Glenlee. There was a lot of groaning in pain, then back to focusing on catches and relaxing forward. The stroke was long, slow and damn strong, on the last stretch towards the finish we reeled in about ten skiffs. How were we managing it? The momentum kept coming, we caught St Baldred just at the BBC building to cross the line at Finnieston in 2 hours 45 mins. What a row! We drifted a lot of the way back to the retrieval slip, tired, but so chuffed too. It was not easy to get out into a standing position. Blister checking....ouchy.
Huge congratulations and 6th place in the open mixed category, so amazingly fought.
An excellent festival followed with toe tapping music. Clydebuilt put on a really interesting array of stalls and the food and bar were well attended. The last three standing or dancing at the ceilidh were Vik, Ann and myself, much to our delight. We knew what we were doing was helping along the gig rowers. What a fabulous day.
Sunday dawned. Good grief, what happened to the weather? Thunder boomed overhead and boy does it know how to rain through West.
Red skiffies were not looking very cheery, supporting blisters, bruised and tired, and now soaking. Dragon Boat racing, whose flaming idea was that?
Vik, Ann, Sheena, Lou, Laura, Dave and myself were joined by Arran skiffies David, Emma, Steve, Cil ( who'd even dyed her hair red for the event much to Steve's disgust) Fritz, encouraged by a poorly Stuart. Our Broughty pals, Liz and Kate finished up our crew. Like drowned rats we were trussed up in buoyancy aids, handed little paddles, given some tips, the main one being "no capsizing", and we were off.
Nine teams took part, some very fit looking, one certainly had done it before. Three dragons at a time paddled the 160 m alongside the Glenlee. Our first race took 85 seconds, and left us even more soaked....we swapped about as we only had ten paddlers at once and with a drummer for beat on stroke too. Lou and Laura looked really great holding on tight with their thighs on a really precarious seat in bow. Our times got better with every heat. The slowest of the three was taken out and the other two added together. And we were in fourth place - YEEHA!, the sun was coming out, folk were enjoying it, and smiling too, crowds were shouting, what a great afternoon.
The semi finals saw some poaching of team members to help Ben (organiser of Castle 2 Crane), beaten by a second, by red skiffies. OMG!, into the final! Tactics were formulated, seating, best stroke, beater, and then the tension as logs were removed from the race area. And they're off, and gosh there wasn't much in it at all. Great battles, more friends made, and such a great crew! A fantastic event highly recommend to others for next year.
The journey home was thankfully a lot quicker with baths and early beds at the end of it.Here's to next year, thank you to all the volunteers and organisers, and to the towers too. An oarsome weekend.
Jacque Turner
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NBRC tradition saw a sprightly crew rowing our blue number 7 boat from North Berwick harbour to the harbour walls of Port Seton. On a blazing Easter weekend, the regatta season had started!
Off to start the races was our Men's Open but not before a near coxing related disciplinary for one of our members...
Regardless, heats were won and the boys beat Eastern in the final for the first victory of the season and the fastest time of the day.
The Buoy turns were seamless from Claire the cox, and the boys were looking very neat as coached on the banks by ever present Coach Thomson.
Hard work done and to the important business of cake eating and sun lounging in tropical taps off style whilst men's 50+ crew try to arrange their next outing ...
Back to racing and the women's open were next. This scratch crew put in a solid performance and came together well to be pipped to the post to the finals with a respectable 3rd place. Meanwhile men's 50+crew still trying to organise date for next practice ..
Eating of ice creams over, and the mixed 40+ were up next displaying solid recoveries after the turns and a tidy row in between. Again some good times and narrowly missing out on the finals. A respite from the diaries of the men's 50+ calendars comes in the form of the Mixed open.
Racing through the heats with the fastest time this scratch crew showed promise as they increased speed for the second heat - taking them through to the finals where they narrowly missed out to Eastern having previously beaten then in one of their heats.
Whirring them into action this near win seems to have stirred the men's 50+ into action and a date is set in the calendar for their next outing!
In the last race of the day came the mixed 50+ which was full of drama and saw the first oar of the day broken by Eskmouth in the final heat.
Class was shown by North Berwick who won their heats with ease however narrowly missing out on the finals.
Kit packed up and sun still blazing - home to dream about the next regatta and its cakes..
Lex Ferguson
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Five North Berwick crews travelled to the River Clyde for the second edition of the 13 mile race from Dumbarton Castle to the Finnieston Crane. Sixty St Ayles skiffs were joined by twelve other rowing boats of various classes in the biggest event for seagoing rowers, in Scotland.
The morning started at Sandpoint Marina, Dumbarton. With over 300 skiffies arriving in time to speak to friends, inspect the opposition and generally have a laugh with people of a similar persuasion. So after briefings, launching and staggered starts we all set off for the long pull towards the city. On a fairly benign day and flat calm water we expected an easier time than what could have otherwise been. And so it was in the early stage with the incoming tide pushing us all up the river towards the Erskine Bridge. The early starts got full advantage of these conditions and the Teifi skiffs disappeared into the horizon and ‘Speedwell’ (Steve Thomson/Dave Davidson/Jacque Turner) arriving first at the crane in the second fastest time of the day (1hr57mins) followed by ‘Flossie’ (Laura Cram/Louise Presslie/Kirsty Cram).
The St Ayles race within a race was perhaps the most interesting competition of the day with various male, female and mixed crews of different abilities leaving at staggered times. It is certain everybody was trying to catch the boat in front of them and keep the one behind at a distance. For some this was successful while others took a more leisurely approach. Once again conditions influenced the progress of the rowing. The early tide assistance ran out at about half way and the current changed to the river flow against the racers. So for the same effort speed reduced significantly and coxes had to judge the best line on the river, for least resistance.
‘Blackadder’ (Elisa Robertson/Jo Drewittt/Pete Mileham/Phil Robertson/Finlay Robertson) started just over halfway down through the field and managed to work their way up to 7th place in the Open category, ahead of many of the more fancied entrants. Ahead of them at the start and also working through the field ‘St Baldred’ (Simon Cowan/Rachael Porteous/Richard Budd/Duncan Mackay/Sandy Wallace) managed 5th place in their category. The late starters who were considered the fastest crews of the day ultimately suffered from the changing tide and current conditions and didn’t really ’get going.’ And so it was with ‘Skiff John B’ (Clive Rooney/Duncan Hughes/Ben Lowe/Ian Baird/Alice Everitt) who fell behind in time against clubs they would expect to beat on a normal head to head encounter. The other four local skiffs managed the course in just a few minutes over two hours and everyone is determined to return and break that barrier next time.
A unique aspect of the race is the camaraderie between crews both before during and after the race. It was usual for a cheer to go up between boats as they passed each other and shouts of encouragement to be exchanged no matter how good or bad progress was.
After all the crafts had finished there was a trophy ceremony at the Clydebuilt Festival site next to the Riverside Museum. Impressive individual trophies were presented only to the first in each of the various categories and this included the Flossie crew winning the Double Scull category, calculated after a handicap adjustment.
Festivities carried on into the evening with a party at the Archies in the city centre. A bar and live music provided the background to more skiffie socialising and the successful ceilidh was largely down to three red jacketed North Berwick members leading and encouraging people to ‘take the floor.’
The success of this huge event is due to a tremendous team led by Ben Wilde and North Berwick, and presumably, every other club are indebted to them for putting on such a magnificent event.
Sandy
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